Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
imprisoned) that engulfs the church dates to 1810. Mandela was awarded the
Freedom of the City in August 1981.
Continue up Buchanan Street to:
4
Buchanan Galleries
Before the next intersection, after entrances to the underground, comes the
southern wing of the rather unremarkable Buchanan Galleries shopping center.
Indoors, it is equally predictable, a mall that could be almost anywhere in the
capitalist world. Ahead is the modern and brutalist Royal Concert Hall, which
now terminates Buchanan Street—effectively cutting off a direct path to the
bus station and Glasgow Caledonian University beyond. The concert hall's
outdoor steps, however, provide a suntrap and offer good views down Buchanan
Street toward St. Enoch Square and the River Clyde. Just in front of those
broad stairs is a statue of Scotland's first First Minister, Donald Dewar, who
opened the new Scottish Parliament in 1999 but died before his initial term in
office was over.
17
Turn left (west) and proceed on:
5
Bath Street
Bath Street got its name from the public baths that opened here in the early
19th century. Today, it is home to several popular bars and restaurants. At the
next intersection, West Nile Street, looking south (left), one can see the first of
three buildings by Alexander “Greek” Thomson (p. 202) on this walk. Today
housing a barbershop, this modest warehouse displays some design signatures
of Thomson, Glasgow's underappreciated yet visionary Victorian-era architect.
At the intersection after the next, again just south of Bath Street, is another
minor architectural landmark at 172 Hope Street: The Lion Chambers. Now
trussed in chicken wire after many years behind scaffolding, the eight-story
gabled building resembles a Scottish castle keep. It is built on a plot measuring
only 10 × 14m (33 × 46 ft.) with artist studios at the top.
At Hope Street, turn right (north) 1 block to:
6
Sauchiehall Street
Sauchiehall Street is probably Glasgow's most famous street. Today, for several
blocks west of Buchanan Street, it is pedestrianized and popular for shopping.
Beyond, it is a locus of drinking and dining with door-to-door restaurants and
bars. Just over the rise of Hope Street to the north, one gets a glimpse of the
Italian styling of the Piping Centre (formerly St. Stephen's church). Nearby is
the Theatre Royal (p. 236).
Go left (west) on Sauchiehall Street and continue to:
7
Willow Tea Rooms
On the south side of Sauchiehall Street, between West Campbell and Blyth-
swood streets, is one of the signature works by architect Charles Rennie Mack-
intosh (p. 201). The spare white exterior, clean lines, and asymmetrically
arranged windows certainly stand out from anything else on the street. The
ground floor is now a jeweler's shop, but above are tea rooms in Mackintosh's
ground-breaking 1904 design. Much of it has been reconstructed, but a few
