When we were in Scotland a couple years ago, we walked to Edinburgh Castle and back from hotel a couple times. I had never heard of Greyfriar’s Bobby until our bus tour the second day although we had walked by the statue 3 times already! On our 4th pass-by, we saw several people taking pictures …
Tag: Scotland
Jan 06
Today is…National Shortbread Day
Shortbread is a classic Scottish dessert traditionally made with: 1 part white sugar (I use powdered) 2 parts butter 3 parts flour (I usually use rice flour) And a bit of salt Shortbread is so named because of its crumbly texture which is caused by its high-fat content, provided by the butter. “Shortening” is …
Jan 01
First Foot on Hogmanay
In Scottish folklore, the first-foot is the first person to enter the home of a household on New Year’s Day and a bringer of good fortune for the coming year. Although it is acceptable in many places for the first-footer to be a resident of the house, they must not be in the house at …
Nov 11
Giving Thanks on Veterans Day
Giving thanks to our Veterans today I’m not sure how Veterans Day turned into a Monday holiday and a day to sell stuff, but then, most every holiday has turned into a day for stores to run “sales”. Possibly, the original intent was to give our veterans a break but it has sure morphed away …
Oct 15
Scotland ~ Living in Caves
Since we recently went there, I’m following all kinds of news items and blogs about Scotland. I found this one particularly interesting. Cave dwelling has stone age connotations for most people today , but in Scotland living in caves only ceased 100 years ago when it was outlawed in 1915. Alison Campsie looks back at …
May 01
Happy Beltane!
Summer in Edinburgh, Scotland, kicks off with an evening of whimsical revelry. Colorful characters parade atop a hill, dancing and marching to the beat of pounding drums. Fires blaze, warming the air with their bright, smoky flames. Beltane or Beltain is the Gaelic May Day festival. Most commonly it is held on 1 May, or about …
Apr 16
Culloden
The Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On this date, 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force under Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, on Drummossie Moor near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. 1250 Jacobites died at …