Canadian tourist proposes to partner after scavenger hunt across Glasgow with the help of locals - here’s how he did it

A Canadian couple holidaying in Glasgow went on a scavenger hunt of epic proportions spanning the entire city - but little did one half of the couple know that their boyfriend was planning a proposal.

Kasey is a sapper (combat engineer) in the Canadian Armed Forces who visited Glasgow with his then girlfriend Kate, a harm reduction nurse back in their home country of Canada. The couple were in the city as Kate was attending a harm reduction conference in Glasgow - and crafty Canadian Kasey tagged along to ‘see the city’, little did his partner know that he had much bigger plans in mind.

While Kate worked and attended the conference - Kasey began planning his proposal - the harm reduction nurse had to work for most of the trip, so her partner wanted to show her as much of the city as he possibly could in one day, and end the tour with his proposal. He spent some time brainstorming, and decided that a scavenger hunt would be the best course of action.

Kasey enlisted the help of the r/Glasgow subreddit - asking the Glaswegian redditors to reccomend the most fun and unique locations for the scavenger hunt. After some deliberation, the Canadian combat engineer had his list narrowed down to a dozen locations that he could visit in one day. Kasey would take Kate to a Turkish coffee shop near their flat in the West End in the morning - and then present her with a riddle to solve to begin the scavenger hunt.

Kasey’s list of locations were as follows:

• Glasgow Botanic Gardens,
• University of Glasgow
• Kelvingrove Art Gallery
• Glasgow Science Centre
• Riverside Museum
• Glasgow Cathedral/Necropolis
• East End Mural trail,
• Glasgow Museum of Modern Art
• Waterstones on Sauchiehall Street
• The Horseshoe Bar for Karaoke
• And ending by the Doulton Fountain by the People’s Palace.

Kasey did a dry-run of the scavenger hunt the day before - letigously making sure that all the timings linked up and that they wouldn’t turn up anywhere too late or too early. When the day finally came, he hid the ring and took Kate for coffee before presenting her with her first riddle.

The pair took in the city together - spending the whole day travelling from location to location and drinking in the Glasgow culture. Kate had no clue about Kasey’s plans, and was enjoying seeing the city as she spent so much of her time working while in Glasgow. Her favourite destination was the University of Glasgow - where the two were able to watch a lecture take place in the grand ancient halls - and the Waterstones, where the bookworm was able to bask in one of Scotland’s biggest book shops - while Kasey enjoyed all the pubs along the way.

Kasey spoke about the hunt, he said:”Every stop was just amazing. I was worried about us getting burnt out as the whole day was about 9 hours of non stop bustling to the next location but your city was so beautiful and exciting that fatigue never claimed us. Every stop was unique and the curiosity kept her effortlessly engaged.”

When the final stop came outside the People’s Palace it was long after the sun set in Glasgow. Kasey had hoped that the fountain would be as beautiful as it was in the day - lit up and resplendent - the perfect spot for the perfect proposal. Unfortunately Kasey had no way of knowing that Glasgow always has a way to surprise. The fountain was not lit at all, and the couple stood alone in the rain and in the dark.

Kasey describes the moment he proposed:”The final destination was at the people’s fountain. I made it there during the day and it was perfect.

“So I Google it, to make sure it would be lit up at night and it looked awesome.When we made our way there it was not [haha]. I dropped a knee in the rain and the dark - the water wasn’t even running which just added humor to the whole thing for us.

“Kate had tears running down her face. I was so nervous but it didn’t matter. I realised when I dropped to my knee that I could have proposed in a DMV parking lot and she would have been just as excited.

“I wanted an experience that was fond and personal to us - and the city and people of Glasgow really came through. I think that I couldn’t have had a better city for this hunt. It’s playful demeanor and world class attractions made the experience truly on of a kind. We will be back, who knows, maybe even for a wedding.”