Edinburgh or Glasgow?

[TheBrit]

Clearly never been.

Not been recently, but visited for work half a dozen times in the Noughies. Highlights included my female coilleague being mistalen for a prostiture when walking before to the hotel in the CBD, and a HK colleague being verbally abused in the evening during after work drinks.

None of my collegues who work in Glagow choose to live there, they all endure a commute. I could see why when I visited.

Shithole.

[Resilience4477]

Do you see yourself living in the main area of a city, in suburbs or small villages outside a city? If you plan to be a city dweller but are happy with a quieter type of city that has more stress on cultural aspects, than on the margin you might prefer Edinburgh

I personally find Edinburgh a much more walkable city, designed on a more human scale, than Glascow. And visually it is more beautiful.

However, each person has their own preferences, and it's often hard to be sure until you've spend time living somewhere. Have you considered renting somewhere for your first year, and then seeing if your first choice is really as appealing as you think, while you're living there? You can spend a fair bit of time in either city to see how you react to each one.

I'd definitely like to live in the city - near the city center if it's not too expensive to rent a studio or one-bedroom apartment there. Ideally, I should pay a visit to both cities before making a decision and putting down roots, but with this God-awful Delta variant running amok in the UK (and the rest of the world), it's really hard to just hop on a plane and make a quick trip to the UK.

As you suggested, I might live in one city (I'm leaning toward Edinburgh) for the first year and see how I like it. While I'm there, I can make a trip to Glasgow and get a feel of the city.

[Resilience4477]

I grew up in Edinburgh and was there for 20 odd years, so here is my biased answer. EDINBURGH!

Glasgow I know have a stronger accent and parts of it can be rougher. It is a lot larger and dominated by football with Celtic and Rangers. Most of my friends who live in Glasgow are relatively young and are there for the nightlife more so than Edinburgh.

Edinburgh has many parts to it. I grew up in Cramond which is considerably far from the Town Centre. Buses are the main source of transport in Scotland, but there is a tram system (that everyone hates and is STILL under construction) in Edinburgh. Public transport I do not advise personally, as it is slow and not convenient. Everyone pretty much drives as it is not like Hong Kong with everything a short distance away. You drive to the supermarket to pick up groceries for the week for example.

Location is everything. Anywhere near council estates (lower income areas) there is more crime. I do not know the stats, but there is a saying you are more likely to get stabbed in Glasgow! Though the thing in the UK, youths are the complete opposite of Hong Kong. They like to cause trouble when in their groups but are majority harmless. Just mouthing off. Cramond where I grew up is more middle/upper class and it is very peaceful.

As mentioned, Edinburgh has many different parts to it (east lothian, midlothian, queensferry, west lothian etc). I say you need to visit each to get a good feel for it. It depends on what you want in a home. A garden? Close to the city centre? Modern or more traditional with high ceilings?

The asian community is large in Edinburgh. I know you said you want to blend with the locals, but the 50s crowd is either playing lawn bowling (bowls) or in the pub!

Any questions feel free to PM me

I think I just hit the jackpot! The info you gave is exactly what I'm looking for.

It's a lot to digest so I'll read through your post again tomorrow and PM you with more questions. Thanks a lot!

[Resilience4477]

Edinburgh

Got it!

[Resilience4477]

Original Post Deleted

Me leaning heavily toward Edinburgh now...

[Resilience4477]

Glasgow is a shithole. Pick Edinburgh everyday of the week.

Roger that!

[Resilience4477]

Clearly never been.

To the OP, for me - and having lived in both as an outsider, although much longer in Glasgow - Glasgow is hands down is the better place to live.

There is a reason Anthony Bourdain said it was his favourite city in Europe.

However, given your circumstances, it's a difficult call. But don't write off Glasgow's cultural scene. Yes Edinburgh has the festival (which most locals avoid) but Glasgow has a very decent arts scene and a very good live music scene. Some great places to eat as well. The city's west end has a nice vibe - the university, Kelvingrove Park and Museum, Byers Road. Easy access to Loch Lomond and the national park (less than an hours drive)

But more than anything it's the people. Warm, funny and friendly. Possibly the best in the UK. My brother in law is there right now, working away. He called me to tell me how amazed he was by the friendly locals. I do miss the Glasgow spirit a lot.

Thanks for the counterpoint. My former boss at the British pub where I worked in the 90s is Glaswegian and he's ALL THAT - warm, funny and friendly!

[Resilience4477]

To everyone who's responded - thank you for taking the time to post your advice, insights, comments and opinions. Whether you're pro-Edinburgh or pro-Glasgow, I appreciate your honest opinions.

I'll PM some of you in the next few days to ask for more specific advice. Thanks in advance for your help!

[ICanBoogie]

“Glasgow is a shithole. Pick Edinburgh everyday of the week.”

Glasgow is indeed a shithole but that’s deliberate to keep the English and Edinburgh people out

[ICanBoogie]

Have you considered Falkirk? It’s right in the middle of Glasgow and Edinburgh so you don’t have to choose and can enjoy the best of both worlds…

However, as a Glaswegian I will quote our most famous son Billy Connolly:

“Q: what’s the best thing to come out of Edinburgh?
A: the train to Glasgow”

#DropTheMic