Why do I keep referring to My Games? Well it struck me from the very first day that with so many sporting and cultural events on around my city no two people were ever going to have the same experience of the Commonwealth Games and our Dear Green Place.
So here is my summary, my perspective of Planet Comm Games.
Doing it our way
From the get go Glasgow presented to the world what Glasgow is. There was no glitz, glamour or gloss put on our city and our country. Instead the tone can best be summarised as "real" as far as I am concerned. We didn't over egg the ceremonies, we were sympathetic to the city and its citizens - one of the bands at the pre-opening ceremony was a band that was playing at Clutha Vaults the night the helicopter crashed, the pipes and drums were provided by the guys you see on Buchanan Street every week, real people explaining the rules of the games, real language from Haud Yer Wheesht to Gie it Laldy, real humour (taps oan and taps aff). It felt like we were showing who we are to the world and what was more important than anything was making sure that the citizens of Glasgow and Scotland were engaged and felt it was their games.
Raising the bar
The first games to integrate para-sport. The first games to directly link to a charity that works across the commonwealth (£5m raised to date for UNICEF). Fifty thousand people applying to be a Clydesider (more than Manchester and Melbourne combined). We may have kept the tone of the games "real" and understated but our achievements in taking the Games to another level are second to none - we really have moved sporting events to a new platform.
Joining the Dots
In the last few years when thinking about the Games coming to Glasgow, my focus has been on the sport. I never in my wildest dreams expected this to be such an all encompassing positive invasion of my city from sport to theatre, dance, music, talks, poetry, tour, exhibitions.....there was something for absolutely everyone and not enough hours in the day to fit it all in.
The marrying up of the sports venues with the festival hubs at Glasgow Green and Kelvingrove Bandstand and the complete engagement of the BBC at the Quay made the city feel even more compact than it actually is and made for a great opportunity to get involved in tonnes of different things whilst wandering between venues.
Even within the venues you could have different experiences. BBC at the Quay was a completely different experience in the evenings when there for events versus visits during the day with children. My nephews could not believe how much there was to do and how many take aways they got - online videos, circuit board badges, stickers, medals, flags.....this is engagement of the future generation.
Bringing the city and its communities to life across all the arts and sports is what made it possible to have such a stand out event that was always going to have something for everyone - well provided they chose to engage in it.
A number of months ago Glasgow launched its new slogan - People Make Glasgow. We all knew it was true but I'm not sure we really fully related to it or embraced it before the Games. And that is where you have to take your hat off to the organisations which have been working together over the last few years to make engaging in the slogan and the Games a journey to something we as the people in question believe in through our own experiences; introducing the new slogan to engage people in becoming involved in the Games then reinforcing it throughout the Games; letting people work it out for themselves that they are the thing that makes the city by being themselves, helping people, stopping for a blether, laughing at ourselves and getting wholeheartedly behind every athlete. I believe even the more sceptical amongst us is now engaged in a way we never have been before about a slogan for our city.
Hats off to to all the agencies and organisations involved in People Make Glasgow and the Games for the way they have joined the dots on the opportunity the games have afforded and the possibilities for the future showcasing our magnificent city will afford. I don't think the city has ever felt as collaborative, professional and joined up in making sure we fully exploit these opportunities (in a positive way).
The Energy
I have never felt an energy like it in the city - the place was mobbed; people were excited, positive, supportive, welcoming, going out their way to help, coming together to soak it all up, exploring new experiences, getting behind the sport and the festivities, setting a standard, making Glasgow.
The unexpected
Working for myself I was very fortunate to be afforded a chance to spend the two weeks immersed in the Games and the festivities. What a brilliant opportunity to explore my city - to be a tourist in your own town and find new places and experiences as well as taking time to do things that were never likely to make it off the to do list. I experienced some "out there" outdoor theatre at Perch, discovered the beautiful park at Tollcross I never knew existed, realised how compact the city is and that there is no reason for us not to cycle or rely on public transport more - it actually is really easy no matter where you're going, got to climb the Glasgow Tower on the most perfect day of the year, discovered a vegan cafe at St Enoch called Mono which had the most amazing looking (and tasting) food. None of this would have happened if I hadn't taken that time to soak up my city.
Legacy
I understand the need for us to ensure that all that has been achieved during the Games is not allowed to slip through our fingers, that we galvanise the opportunities presented to us to make the City even more successful than it is today for its citizens.
That said I am not a fan of over analysis and job creation for management consultancies to produce reports in a couple of years time that tell us a whole load of things about whether people in deprived areas have taken up sports / developed a healthier lifestyle, whether we've attracted more inward investment etc. These are important factors and we should be concerned about the state of our nation but the last thing we need is overanalyses. Lets just assume all of that will happen and find examples of it as we go rather than creating a cottage industry of validation.
Legacy as far as I am concerned is all about the small stuff:
1. the family from London mum and I met at the top of the Glasgow Tower who had never thought of coming to Glasgow, wouldn't have without the Games but have vowed to return for future holidays
2. Active Sports visiting schools and giving kids the chance to try lots of different sports which has directly led to my nephews trying judo and taekwondo
3. kids getting the chance to go to these venues and see the athletes and be inspired for the future or visiting the digital tent at the BBC and trying out new skills with basic computer programming
4. getting on your bike rather than driving
5. lifting our heads out of our phones and talking to each other on the trains and buses or talking to people we'd never otherwise have met
6. coming together in a shared experience with a positivity that permeates every part of our lives - even the small things of helping each other get served at overcrowded bars, sharing tips on where to go and what to do
7. Young Scot initiative to plant seed bombs the length and breadth of Scotland with legacy wishes from all age ranges - an amazing initiative that humbles you when you read what kids (and adults) wish for
8. entrepreneurship - my junior companions at the Closing Ceremony Party in Glasgow Green made £36 between them just collecting used plastic glasses and returning them to the bar - it made their night and whilst it sounds stupid it did bring out some entrepreneurial skills and reinforce reward for a bit of effort!! It was also quite funny when the competition emerged too.
So in summary my games is more about my city and the fact that she really showed herself to be the hostess with the mostess wooing everyone in to experience all she had to offer and sending them home having had the most amazing experience and new memories made.
Its also about the citizens of the Dear Green Place - those who stop for a blether, who help anyone and everyone, who include and cheer on all the athletes especially the underdogs and even the English!!!!, the Host City Volunteers, the Clydesiders, those who have worked so tirelessly (or at least sleeplessly) in the hospitality trade that they've barely even experienced the festivities.
And what am I going to commit to? What is my part in Legacy? To continue to explore my city and all that it has to offer, to make the effort into going further afield and being engaged in my wider country by ticking off the bucket list I never quite get to, to do it using my feet, my bike or public transport (it is so easy), to promote my city at every opportunity and to continually promote my city and keep the spirit of the last two weeks alive.
Thank you is not enough of an appreciation to all those involved but it is what I have so a huge thank you to all who have played their part in making this the most successful fortnight Glasgow has ever had.
Whilst the Games were on I...
...HUNG OUT AT...Perch theatre production, 2 x Queens Baton Relay parties, Mark Beaumont in Conversation at the BBC, Ken Bruce Show, The One Show, Opening Ceremony, Glasgow Green, Merchant City Festival, BBC at the Quay, Glasgow Tower, the swimming, the flotilla, Boomerang, the rugby sevens, three athletics events, Scotland House with Team Scotland on Medals Night and Salsa Celtica & The Funky Shepherds of Lesotho at Festival Club, the Gerard Burns Portrait Exhibition at Clydesdale Bank (don't miss it), the marathon, the time trials, the road race, the Closing Ceremony Party at Glasgow Green...
....WINED ON...mainly beer!!...
...DINED ON...many lovely locally produced foods at the venues including a stunning Loch Fyne fresh made salmon burger. By far and away though the best meal out I've had during the games is reserved for Bukharah Indian restaurant in the Lorne Hotel, Sauchiehall Street. It was not only a beautiful setting but the food itself was very flavoursome and majored on being healthy so a lot less oils and you add the sauces for yourself so unlike some other establishments. It wasn't a case of trying to find some solid food in amongst a dish swimming in sauce. The food was beautiful, tasty, aromatic and some of the dishes quite unusual. I would highly recommend it.
So after all that I do find it somewhat ironic that as the athletes get a chance to let their hair down and have a couple of days off to party, have a drink and bad food, the rest of us are back focused on drinking less, eating healthier, getting our exercise regime back in shape.....Here's to a health conscious and business productive week!!
See you next week. Until then have a good one. G
My Wee(ish) Gallery from the Games
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