Edinburgh and Glasgow
AN autumn trip to one of Scotland’s cities can offer the chance to see these much-loved places in a whole new light. Edinburgh and Glasgow each have lots to offer, from grand and historic houses to fine gardens. There are also food experiences to tickle your tastebuds in these classic staycation destinations.
A BREATH OF FRESH AIR AT GREENBANK GARDEN
VISITING Glasgow for a short getaway? The city is known for its much-loved green spaces – ideal spots to take a breather in your busy sightseeing schedule.
Visit Greenbank Garden for the perfect place to stretch your legs in the city. This urban oasis is host to more than 3,500 species of plants – and is beautiful year-round.
Greenbank House and its beautiful walled garden were built for Robert Allason in the 1760s. Allason made his money as a tobacco merchant and slave trader in the days when Glasgow was the second city of the British Empire.
The property is surrounded by tall swaying beeches, which flame a spectacular gold in autumn.
It’s hard to believe you’re barely two miles from the centre of Glasgow here.
Autumn and winter are often
seasons of preparation for the year ahead, so why not quiz our gardeners and volunteers on tips and tricks to bring home to your own garden?
The garden is open Thursday to Monday during autumn and winter. Don’t forget to stop off for a delicious treat at our café before you leave – after all that wandering, you will definitely have earned it!
Plan your visit to Greenbank Garden at www.nts.org.uk
A TRUE TASTE OF HISTORY
A POWERFUL way to connect with our past is through food – a constant love affair through human history.
Take Tenement House in Glasgow. This building is unique in the Trust’s collections – it showcases the apartment of two ordinary working women who moved into the building in the early 20th Century. Complete with their possessions, which the Trust also cares for, the house feels as though you’ve stepped back in time 100 years, even down to the gas lights which are still working to this day.
As Ana Sanchez, visitor services supervisor, says: ‘Everyone’s favourite room is the kitchen – which is also my favourite room – and that would have been the heart of the home.
‘They would have cooked here and slept here, and it’s just filled with really lovely things.
‘And we know that Miss Toward really loved to cook because we have all of her recipes.’
As well as the recipes, there is also a large collection of homemade jam at the Tenement House. This includes Victoria plum jam from September 1947; strawberry jam from 1961; and rhubarb and ginger jam from 1963.
Jam was a rare treat during the Second World War – in fact, it continued to be rationed until 1953. As a result, women often made their own. The Women’s Institute was also drafted in to help with largescale production.
Over at Gladstone’s Land in Edinburgh, we can travel even further back in time through the building’s relationship to food. Claire Grant, the National Trust for Scotland’s operations manager for Edinburgh, notes: ‘It’s impossible to think about Gladstone’s Land without thinking of food.
‘It has been at the centre of Edinburgh’s spice and coffee trade, it’s been a tavern, it’s been a home.
‘From the ice cream flavours served to the spices that sit on the tables in the coffee shop, we’ve taken inspiration from the flavourful history of the building, its residents and its many uses over the centuries, to create a place people will love.’
The Trust commissioned research from Lindsay Middleton, PhD researcher in food history at the University of Glasgow and University of Aberdeen, to understand more about how food and history combine in this unique property.
She explained: ‘Historical food is something we are becoming increasingly interested in, whether it is history week on the Great British Bake Off or reading recipes in historical cookbooks and marvelling at strange ingredients and cooking techniques.
‘Scottish food does have a rich and varied history. In the harsh climate, Scottish people have had to be creative with food.’
These innovative traditional foods included the likes of bannocks sweetened with fruit, sugar or honey; parlies, a type of ginger biscuit named because they were a favourite with members of the Scottish parliament; and ‘donkey tea’, toast steeped in hot water.
You can try some of these flavours on one of the food tours, Tables Through Time, to literally get a taste of the past.
You can also try the custom ice cream flavours at Gladstone’s Land, such as elderflower and lemon curd, which were created using research about the flavours and tastes that would have been associated with Gladstone’s Land over the years.
As Lindsay Middleton puts it: ‘Considering the different foods that would have been cooked and eaten within the property throughout its history will show how food, life, and work have always been linked.’
You can plan a delicious day trip to one of our National Trust for Scotland properties at www.nts.org.uk