Glasgow sure does love festivals. We may all be a bit gutted that the West End Festival is now over, but luckily the Merchant City Festival has swooped in. With the fun and frolics kicking of on July 24th until July 28th, the festival-shaped gap in your life won't be there for long.
The award-winning Vintage Festival will take centre stage (a festival within a festival...festival-ception?), celebrating all things old-school. Candleriggs and the Old Fruitmarket will be transformed into a vintage marketplace with various events taking place over the five days, such as a Great Gatsby inspired fashion show, a Charleston style brunch and 50s rock 'n' roll providing the soundtrack to it all.
Street parades at 2012's Merchant City Festival - no doubt there will be a few this year too.
There will also be street theatre, continental markets selling all kinds of foreign fare, a dance stage, numerous music stages and a family zone with plenty of activities for your little ones; it's fair to say that you won't be at a loss for something to do.
Of course, the Merchant City holds an abundance of restaurants, cafés and bars to keep you fed and watered throughout the day. Mono and 13th Note specialise in vegetarian and vegan cuisine and are great places to eat if you're looking for something healthy and fresh. If an all-veggie menu is a bit too radical for you, Committee Room No.9 offers plenty of pub favourites for less than £10. As for drinks, Irish bar Waxy O'Connor's is sure to keep the festival vibe going and the pints flowing. Bar Bacchus serves up cocktails starting from £3.95, and Metropolitan is the place to be if you're looking to splash the cash on premium spirits. Finally, the party continues well into the night thanks to one of Glasgow's most glamourous hangouts, Cirque, and popular Merchant City gay bar, the Polo Lounge.
Make your way over to the Merchant City between the July 24th-28th and enjoy some of the (free, by the way!) activities for what's set to be yet another exciting summer in Merchant City. Hey maybe the sun will even show its face by then. We're (not-so) quietly optimistic.
