Why visit Glasgow?

One of the best reasons for visiting Glasgow has got to be it’s shopping. It is a shopaholic’s dream destination and has been voted the top place to shop in the UK, outside of London’s West End. There are over 1,500 shops and the ‘Style Mile’ which holds a huge variety of shops including top high street retailers. There really is no better place to indulge in some retail therapy. To promote your business in Glasgow more effectively think about a Glasgow web designer. For more information, visit http://mediadesignassociates.co.uk/

There is a great selection of shops in Glasgow’s Style Mile including malls, independent boutiques, designer stores and speciality shops. According to Lonely Planet, “The Style Mile around Buchanan Street, Argyle Street and Merchant City is a fashion hub, while the West End has quirkier, more bohemian shopping options”. So there really is something for everyone.

There are stores for menswear, kids, hair and beauty, homeware and  women’s fashion. Merchant City used to house tobacco factories and cotton trading but now is home to a lively cultural quarter. The streets closest to the Clyde are full of workshops and galleries, while closer to Ingram Street you will find some of Glasgow’s best restaurants and bars. Merchant Square is here as well featuring a weekly craft fayre every weekend. There are 70 stalls and some great handmade items including photography, art, jewellery, cakes and flowers.

If you like all your stores under one roof then head to the Buchanan Galleries where you’ll find over 80 of the best high street names. With a huge car park available, shopping will be both fun and convenient here. Other malls include Glasgow Fort, Silverburn (a shopping and entertainment venue), St Enoch Centre, Princes Square and the Forge Shopping Centre. As you can see, you’ll be totally spoilt for choice.

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And you’re not likely to go hungry either with almost 1,800 cafes and restaurants in the city. Lonely Planet has described it “the best and most eclectic dining city in Europe”. High praise indeed! Enjoy all things Scottish at some of the finest eateries featuring mussels, oysters and langoustines.

Once you’ve exhausted the shops, or your credit card, Glasgow is compact enough for you to be able to explore some of the interesting neighbourhoods. Enjoy the trendy West End and then head to Finnieston with all its bars and independent stores. There is a flea market in the East End if you like hustle and bustle but for a more tranquil experience, head over the river to the South Side and take a walk through the huge Pollok Park.

The West End has been voted ‘Best Neighbourhood in the UK and Ireland’. That is quite an achievement and you’ll find a very cool area with sandstone villas and leafy roads. If you enjoy mooching in vintage shops then the West End will be right up your street. There are also some very good delis, cheesemongers and fishmongers to be found in the West End.

A brief history of Reading

Reading was originally a settlement that developed on Saxon times and was named Reada Ingas. Reada was a Saxon leader who lived in the area around the 6th century. Positioned near two rivers, it was ideal for markets as goods were transported by river. The Danes captured it in 871 and made a fort by erecting a rampart between the rivers Thames and Kennet. When the Domesday Book was written in 1086 there were about 600 people living there. Don’t let your website get stuck in the dark ages. Try a Reading web design company. For more information, visit http://www.starwebinnovations.co.uk/ Continue reading A brief history of Reading

Must-Have Tech Items for College Students

College students today are the most digitally connected batch we’ve seen yet. As such, their technology requirements are unprecedented, and it’s easy to overlook some gadgets that can really make a world of difference in the quality of modern day college experience. Here are a few must-have tech items to help navigate the ins and outs of higher education this school year.

Portable Power Sources

Being overly reliant on technology such as your phone and laptop are essentially a fact of life these days – which makes it seem like a catastrophe when your battery goes dead by lunch time. With the fast pace of college life nowadays, no one has time to sit around by an outlet while their phone recharges. So invest in a portable recharging solution to free you from the limitations of your gadget’s battery lives.  The options out there range from simple small battery packs to backpacks outfitted with multiple USB outlets that keep all your devices running as long as you are.

External Memory

Your mom always warned against putting all your eggs in one basket, so why would you expose the only copy of your capstone project to the fickle whims of Murphy’s Law? Anything that can go wrong will go wrong – and usually at the worst possible time for you. So save yourself the stress of starting over from scratch after your study partner decides to share his coffee with your laptop keyboard and back up your work to an external hard drive. It’s also a good idea to take advantage of cloud storage services – there are many free options out there – as well to back up your backup, just in case.

Fitness Tech

The freshman 15 is just one of the many potential pitfalls of the unhealthy lifestyle of college students.  The mix of freedom and stressful deadlines can make it easy to neglect physical fitness in the pursuit of intellectual goals – leaving your health at risk. Fitness gadgets like the Fitbit can help you track and manage your physical conditioning as well as your eating and sleeping patterns. This will help ensure that your mind is the only thing about you that expands during your time on campus.

Large Computer Monitor

These days most modern college students will likely have a laptop instead of a desktop. The size, weight, power and cost of your portable computing options has improved so much in recent years that most students never give the decision a second thought. However, investing in a nice flat screen computer monitor – as well as an inexpensive desktop keyboard and mouse – is a great way to get the best of both worlds.

Whether you’re a remote student pursuing Portland State’s online criminal justice degree or a landscape architecture student at University of Michigan working on a new design, you’ll find that the larger display – as well as the option to set up a dual display with your laptop – can help out immensely. The visual and ergonomic benefits of this larger setup are much better than hunching over a small screen for hours on end. Additionally, new HD resolution options allow the monitor to double as an improvised TV for streaming shows and movies.

Important Advice for Computer Science Majors

Like most college students, computer science majors can suffer from the notion that they know everything and don’t need advice from their elders. Given the speed at which the field evolves this can be a beneficial attribute in some cases; however – like many professions – there are still a ton of hidden aspects of the job that many people would have benefitted from finding out before they graduated. Here is some advice that can help computer science majors make sure they get the most out of their undergraduate education. Continue reading Important Advice for Computer Science Majors

Rock ‘n’ Roll

A quarry might look like an unsightly gauge in the ground or the side of a hill but what purpose do they actually serve? The reason we quarry is for all the essential materials that we take for granted in our daily lives, like materials for roads, buildings and for the generation of power for our homes and businesses. Quarrying provides materials essential for our economy and is an important activity that needs to be done safely and in a way that doesn’t harm the environment. Continue reading Rock ‘n’ Roll

Life in the fast lane

If driving is your passion then top of your Christmas list this year should a driving day experience. Make it your mission to drive as many different vehicles as you can before they all become driverless! Here are just a few ideas of things you can get behind the wheel of: Continue reading Life in the fast lane