Tag: Scotland

Yummy! 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 …

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From Scotland: The First Foot

  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 …

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Hogmanay Fireballs!

  Hogmanay is the Scots word for the last day of the year and is synonymous with the celebration of the New Year (Gregorian calendar) in the Scottish manner. It is normally followed by further celebration on the morning of New Year’s Day (1 January) or, in some cases, 2 January—a Scottish bank holiday. The …

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Lockerbie

  The Lockerbie Cairn, through its 270 blocks of red Scottish sandstone, memorializes the 270 lives lost in the terrorist attack on the United States when Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed Dec. 21, 1988, over Lockerbie, Scotland. It is a gift of the people of Scotland to the people of the United States, financed …

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Saint Andrew’s Day!

  In Scotland, and many countries with Scottish connections, St Andrew’s Day is marked with a celebration of Scottish culture with traditional Scottish food, music and dance. Schools across Scotland hold special St Andrew’s Day events and activities including art shows, Scottish country dancing, lunchtime Ceilidhs, dance festivals, storytelling, reciting and writing poems, writing tall …

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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 …

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Five Things You Didn’t Know About Scotland on Tartan Day

I had my Black Watch tartan ready to go to wear to the parade in New York this year but it was canceled due to COVID-19. Don’t be surprised if you see people decked out in tartan this weekend. Today, April 6, the United States is celebrating National Tartan Day. The day is intended to …

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My Ringtone: Scotland the Brave

“Scotland the Brave” (Scottish Gaelic: Alba an Àigh) is a Scottish patriotic song. It was one of several songs considered an unofficial national anthem of Scotland. My cellphone ringtone is Scotland the Brave. At any rehearsal, everyone knows it’s my phone, if one is ringing 🙂  I posted a bit about that here: http://maryoblog.com/2015/08/ Below, the …

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Celebrate Burns Night!

  Burns Night commemorates the life of the bard (poet) Robert Burns, who was born on January 25, 1759.     The day also celebrates Burns’ contribution to Scottish culture. Burns’ best-known work is “Auld Lang Syne”. We were at the Edinburgh Tattoo for this performance but I didn’t take this video.     Haggis, …

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Happy Greyfriar’s Bobby Day!

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 …

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