Dundee is the largest town in Tayside, although a city it certainly feels like a town from the moment you arrive at the train station with only two platforms. Should you arrive by car, your search for a car park through boundless taxis who seem to have no requirement to use a rank or give right of way, your initial optimism will start to wane.
With the regeneration of the waterfront and captain Cooks discovery facing up the Tay you will feel you have made a good choice to visit this city, but wait, you have not gotten out of your car yet. A trip to the Wellgate shopping centre with the pound shop welcoming you in and the aroma of maccydees as you approach the escalator is a surefire haven for the **** and junkies that will be loitering at your arrival on the second floor. My advice…. take the escalator straight back down and get out of there.
A short walk through the city centre past even more pound shops, 2 more maccydees, big issue seller’s benches filled with alcoholics, junkies and **** alike, will lead you to the shopping jewel of Dundee,THE OVERGATE. This centre of attraction, of course, provides benches at the front for the junkies and first shop to welcome you is of course Primark. This high end shopping experience wouldn’t be complete without JBsports and Sports Direct, who actually could still sell shell suits in this city and probably do.
The only growing industry in this city is computer gaming, so fair to say, the employees needed for this are bussed in as they cannot be sourced in Dundee. If you are young, out of work and looking for a future do not think drug dealing is going to be profitable, it wont be. There are far too many jack-the-lads offering £5 baggies in the cities biggest bars/eateries, just visit ” th_ Ma_ _ _t” where you can eat and drink from breakfast, but beware in Dundee if the drugs don’t get you, the food very well may do.
During my visit to the town centre, i never saw a police officer at all, but saw traffic wardens on six occasions.
I can only assume the police have been drafted to one of the stabbings that seem to occur on a weekly basis now.
The fairest way to sum up Dundee is to say that despite the local council throwing their greatest minds and millions of pounds behind their bid to become the U.K. city of culture they were beaten by Hull, yes Hull, are you starting to get a feel for the place now.
