A wonderful story from a broadside (early version of a newspaper) from 1828, about a man who was auctioning off his drunken wife at the Grassmarket in Edinburgh. Details of the extraordinary auction are held by the National Library of Scotland in its vast collection of broadsides, single newssheets which were distributed or pinned up […]
Near the highland town of Dingwall sits the village of Strathpeffer, A collection of attractive houses. surrounded by impressive mature trees. A quaint victorian railway station, no longer used, gives away the village’s past as a popular spa destination – the nearby grand old hotel is another sign of a now faded glory. Nestling among […]
Archaeologists excavating Warren Field, an area next to Crathes Castle in Aberdeenshire from 2004-06 uncovered 12 pits which appear to mimic the phases of the moon and track lunar months. Unusual crop marks had been spotted from the air by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) which led to […]
The Beaker People were so named because of their distinctive pottery (they were shaped like inverted bells and highly decorated). These pots were included in their burials and can be found all across Europe in the late third and early second millennia BC. The Beaker People migrated to Britain around 4,500 years ago spreading right […]
As today is Boxing Day I thought I’d look at what would traditionally happen on Boxing Day in Scotland. The term ‘Boxing Day’ started many centuries ago, where the Lord and Lady of the manor/castle/estate gathered together at the manor house, castle etc., the workers including those from the outlying fields, forests and streams, […]
The American tradition of Shop Floor Santas all began with a humble Scot known fondly as ‘Big Jim’ or ‘Uncle Jim’ to the children. He was a kind a generous man who used to stand on the top of his store and scatter pennies for the children on the 4th of July. He was a […]
Recently we’ve been getting asked a lot about how to move to Scotland to live so we thought we’d put together a bit of a helpful guide. Maybe the pipes are calling you home? Scotland compared with other places does not have many people – we only have around 5.5 million people and about 70% […]
When selling traditional Scottish clothing what can be more iconic than the Scottish Kilt. This has to be one of the most recognisable items of clothing in the world. Kilts are cherished for generations. As soon as you talk about kilts you hear wonderful family stories; like people still having their grandfather’s military kilt. People […]
Edinburgh became the sister city of San Diego, USA in 1977. Sister cities were the result of an initiative by President Dwight D. Eisenhower who believed that twinning cities and connecting people at the community level would forge strong international relations and build trust which would result in a more peaceful world. These two cities shared […]
The New Town in Edinburgh is a beautiful area right smack bang in the centre of the city, contrasting greatly with it’s counterpart the Old Town. One straight and neat, in fact considered to be a masterpiece of city planning, the other jumbled and confused but layered in history. Let’s take a look at a very […]
