One thing I did have arranged was a visit to Glasgow, one of my irregular lunches with Andrew.  Not that there is anything untoward or reprehensible about the lunches, it's the frequency that is irregular.

In fact they could be considered praiseworthy since they are preceded or followed by a cultural activity.  On this occasion we visited the Science Centre, the adjacent Glasgow Tower and the not very far away Tall Ship.

Of these the Tall Ship has the great merit of being free although they twist your arm for a donation in the guise of an unnecessary guidebook.  My advice is to allow your arm to be twisted because you'll enjoy the visit.  When you study the panels detailing the work of restoration that re-turned it from a hulk into the noble three-masted beauty that it was when built in 1896 you have to admire the skills, energy and dedication of the team that did it.

If you want to slip into the skin of a sailor of the times you can have a go at swabbing the deck, or twirl the wheel or like me gaze upwards and thank your lucky stars you never were called upon to shimmy up the rigging to frig about with the top gallants in a howling gale.

The ship is mostly about looking but the Science Centre is much more hands on.  There is a multitude of buttons to press, handles to turn, touchscreens to prod, peepholes to squint through and the like.  If you are ten years old and your parents are prepared to fork out £8.50 for your pleasure you will have a lovely time.  I enjoyed the fish and chips for that is where we had lunch.

The Glasgow Tower is adjacent to the Science Centre and indeed joined to it but entry will cost the parents of that ten year old another few quid.  Mind you it will take a lot of ten year olds to recover the costs of a building that's been closed for most of its life.  Its troubled history is described in this 2013 BBC report where someone calls it an albatross round Glasgow's neck.  But only a year later the BBC were reporting that everything was now hunky dory and that's how we found it.

It's a beautiful looking object, an architectural and engineering triumph. There are great views from the top and through the glass walls of the lift as you are beamed up.  What's more you get a neat certificate as a souvenir when you come down.