You can tell a lot about what concerns people by looking at their language. Eskimos have many words for snow. The ancient Greeks had six words for love. It doesn’t take a […]
A Idiot In Scotland Might Find Himself Kilt
Royal Regalia and Highlander Honours
The Honours of Scotland is the name given to the crown, sceptre, and sword of the Scottish monarchy. They are the oldest set of crown jewels in the British Isles, dating back […]
Each Year Brings Pain … And Riches
Birthdays in Scotland come with a tradition of being greeted with a soft swat on the backside for every year of age. To make up for any offense, the recipient also […]
To Battle… By Car?
In the movie Braveheart, Sir William Wallace gives a stirring speech at the beginning of the battle of Stirling Bridge that motivates the Scots to fight to victory. Perhaps they were so […]
The Fabled Bridge of Doggie Suicides
For as far back as the 1950’s, Overtoun Bridge in Dunbartonshire, Scotland has developed a reputation for luring dogs to their death. At the astonishing rate of as much as one per […]
Need Extra Days for Christmas Shopping? Move to Foula
The island of Foula in the Shetland Islands of Scotland operates off of a different calendar than the rest of the United Kingdom. When Great Britain adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1752, […]
Haunted
Originally posted on Gems favourite things:
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Have Yourself a Happy Hogmanay
In northeastern Scotland a local custom is the annual swinging of the fireball. This involves local people making up ‘balls’ of chicken wire filled with old newspaper, sticks, rags, and other dry […]
A King So Nice They Crowned Him Twice
Robert the Bruce (1274 – 1329) was crowned King of Scots on March 25, 1306 by Bishop William de Lamberton at Scone, near Perth, Scotland. By tradition, the Earl of Fife had […]
Forget the Brooklyn Bridge… I Have a Whole Country to Sell You!
One of the most successful con men of all time was the Scotsman Gregor MacGregor (1786-1845). Among his most successful and notorious scams was to encourage investment in the fictional country of […]
Laughing to Death Over Royalty
The Scottish aristocrat Thomas Urquhart (1611-1660) was a noted polymath and first translator of French Renaissance writer Francois Rabelais into English. It is said that one of the greatest signs of genius […]
A Good Location for the Next Yodeling Competition
Hamilton Mausoleum in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland holds the record for the longest echo of any man-made structure in the world. It takes 15 seconds for the sound of a slammed door […]
Any In-Flight Movies Available?
The shortest scheduled flight in the world is from Westray to Papa Westray in the Orkney Islands of Scotland. The distance is one and one-half miles, and the flight lasts 74 seconds. […]
Next Time, Try Unleaded Instead
In 1755 Henry Hall, aged 94 years, who was the oldest-known member of the Hall Family of Lighthouse Keepers that kept lights around the English and Welsh coasts, lost his life due […]
Commonplace Fun Facts 