I’m working in Glasgow this week, as my good friends D&J are off to New York and said I could stay in their place while they are away. And my god, what a place: a gorgeous tenement flat in the heart of the West End, with a spacious spare room (jokingly called ‘the library’ – you can see why from the picture below.)Being back is always a joy, even though sometimes it makes me a little ‘homesick’ – I spent an awful lot of happy years in Glasgow, and the West End was where I lived. Memories come thick and fast: snogging a cute boy on that corner on the way home, eating cheesy chips after a drunken night out, long hours spent dragging out a coffee at that cafe when I was broke. And like moving back to Newcastle, everywhere I go is an odd mix of the new, strange and familiar (even D&J have moved since I was last here – this is the first time I have seen their new place). The old University Cafe on Byres Road is still standing, and a trip to Ashton Lane – to try some deeply delicious noodles at tint little restaurant Ramen Dayo – showed that some stalwarts were still there (Brel, the Ubiquitous Chip) but many had gone.De Courcy’s Arcade has also changed, though there are still some cute little shops (I fear I might do some serious spending: I popped out to Byres Road for coffee this morning and came back with a pair of London Fly boots…). I’m looking forward to seeing more of the city over the next few days…