Glasgow is often described as friendlier than Edinburgh, and while that's a slightly tired comparison, it's not wrong. It's a bigger, louder city with a different energy — more industrial history, more of a working-city feel, and a genuine pride in what it is rather than what it used to be.
The architecture is Victorian and heavy, which suits it. The grid of the city centre makes it easy to navigate, and the sandstone buildings are impressive once you start looking at them properly. Charles Rennie Mackintosh designed several buildings in the city — the Glasgow School of Art being the most famous, though access has been limited since the fires — and his influence is visible across the decorative arts of the period. Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is the big free attraction and it's genuinely excellent — a wide-ranging collection in a striking building, with a Spitfire hanging from the ceiling of the main hall. Worth a few hours.
The West End, around the university, is the most pleasant part of the city for wandering. Good independent cafes, a market on Saturdays, Byres Road for general browsing. The Southside is less visited but locals tend to rate it — Shawlands in particular has a good food scene.
Music is a big deal here. The OVO Hydro is one of the busier arenas in the UK and pulls significant names throughout the year. Smaller venues like King Tut's and the Barrowland Ballroom have proper reputations in the music world. If you're here on a weekend, there'll be something worth seeing somewhere.
Getting around is easy enough. The Subway — two circular lines, known locally as the Clockwork Orange — covers the city centre and West End efficiently. Glasgow Central and Queen Street stations handle the mainline trains; Central for the south and London, Queen Street for Edinburgh, Dundee and the Highlands. Glasgow Airport is a bus ride from the centre and well connected to most UK cities.
The city does food well and has done for a while. The range is good, prices are generally more reasonable than Edinburgh, and there are neighbourhoods where you can eat well without much planning.