Brilliant things about Scotland

[JennyPiccolo]

Just cos I love Scotland.

The banter
Irn bru
Men who look like they grew out of the ground
How everyone sees going out and having a good time as some kind of fundamental human right
Edinburgh fringe festival
The barrowlands ballroom
Whisky

how could i forget tablet! yum yum good stuff there :)

Did I nemtion that I LOVE KILTS??

Shooglenifty
Rock Ness and other festivals
The sunsets on the West Coast
Ceilidhs
Tweed
Being one of Jock Tamson's bairns
The culture, music and art
corned beef legs from hogging the fire

The water
The beaches - Lunan Bay in particular.
The education system
The parliament
The fact that if you vote Tory you keep very quiet about it.
Tablet and tattie scones
Berry picking
Vissochi's ice cream
The mountains. We drove up to Aviemore this summer - amazing.

The Forth Bridges

Tablet
Fisher and Donaldson fudge donuts
Lucas ice cream
Cakes at inshriach nursery tea room
The Cairngorms
The ferry trip from Uist to Harris
Luskentyre beach
The view to Eigg and Rhum from Arisaig
Landing on the beach at Barra in the smallest plane I've been on
Orkney

I could go on......

Dry humour
Scepticism
Hospitality
Huge enterprising spirit - all the great names from such a small country who've contributed to the world
How the sound of bagpipes gives me a shiver up my spine

The lingo - pure dead brilliant
The view of the The Arran Hills from the Ayrshire coast
Hogmanay
Ginger wine - can you still get that? My granny used to make it up like cordial.
The light. And the sky.
Welcome to Scotland sign on the A74
David Tennant
Tablet
Oor Wullie and The Broons
The West coast sunsets - breathtaking
The Currant Bun
Troon shore, happy days
Ewan McGregor
Men in kilts with no pants (preferably who look like Ewan McGregor)
Words like crabbit, wabbit, glaikit, midden
Bluebell woods
Lewis Grassic Gibbon's Sunset Song
The Electric Brae

:( I'm homesick now.

I LOVE Bonny Scotland!

The lochs
The beautiful serene scenery by lochs and highlands.
The remoteness that contributes to the above.
Scottish morning rolls
Words said in a Scottish accent like "wee". DS started using "wee" instead on "little" or "small".
Nessie.
Knitwear
Tablet - only on Scottish holidays though.
Heeland Coos.

DS and FIL love their Scotch pies on picnics.

The patter and banter
The heart on the sleeve nature
The way you will hear a life story just by spending 5 mins at a bus stop
The we will do anything for you but don't mess with us attitude
The pride Scottish people have of being Scottish
The highlands
The views
The random weather
Highland cows

Haw JennyPiccolo, thanks fur sterting this threid hen. It's been a wee tonic fur me this mornin'. Mind you, you've a' goat me greetin' noo, ah'm ready tae pack mah bags and heid up the MWan :(

Edinburgh - my favourite place in the world
80 shilling
Bloody Marys at Frasers cocktail bar at The Dome - sadly no more
Pakora - not to be found on curry house menus in the Peoples Republic of South Yorkshire - why is this?
Haggis - of course
Haggis pakora at the fringe
Whisky
Pinhead oatmeal - like rocking horse shit down here
Buckfast
Valvona & Croller
The Pleasance
Pittenweem
The Cocoa Tree in Pittenweem
Caliente hot chocolate from The Cocoa Tree in Pittenweem
Fish & chips at the Anstruther fish bar
The Dominion cinema in Morningside
Wonderful, wonderful old friends in Corstorphine who forgive us our Englishness

Barra. The highlands, arbroath smokies and finnan haddock. Scallops like dinner plates. Oban. The patter. Being scunnered. Or a total walloper! Everything, really, I love it here, wouldn't live anywhere else!

hmmmm, some of these just a wee bit romanticised for those of us who actually live here.
"adequately staffed hospitals and short waiting times" - not in this part of Scotland
However, don't want to bring the thread down so gaun yersels
borisbear dinna greet henny, the auld country's naw gangin anywhaur wi'oot ye! Ye just need some houghmagandy wi a viscount in a kilt tae pit a smile oan yer face

Jura, deer everywhere and the softest light I've ever seen
Porridge breakfasts, especially at wee B&Bs before a day in the hills
People that are uncomfortable "bigging themselves up"
News full of silly little stories, makes me feel safe (eg on Monday Scotland's contribution to the news following riots and US economy was about a woman who had bats in her house and had to move)
How easy it is to go from town to countryside
The tap water and that buying bottled water was always the sign of a numpty
River and countryside access
The accessibility of outdoor sports, so easy to try anything
Highland cows
Highland toffee (how I removed my childhood wobbly teeth)

Oh, I've also always had fantastic hospital treatment as well, and I've had quite a lot of it!

Scapa Flow
Oor Wullie
Butteries from Aberdeen
The water
Stovies
The way every Scottish person I know finishes a sentence with 'ken'

Dead long summer days and nights.
Stovies on bonfire night
Going anywhere in the world and meeting a weegie
How yer iPod disnae have a fuckin scoobie aboot whit yer typin.

Love calling somebody a walloper.

Going out to the dancin, getting moroculous, getting a winch and being a bit of a midden the next day.

Oh, and the Sunday Post. A feature of my childhood though it's been ages since I bought it. Oor Wullie, The Broons and Francis Gay (do they still have him, or is he long dead?)

RED KOLA!!! I am drinking it A LOT!!! That's why I am !!!!!!!!!! and SHOUTING AT YOU all those lovely colours and E numbers!!!!!

Highland weddings which contain everything in JennyPiccolo's last sentence.
Pushing the furniture against the wall for having folk in during Hogmanay.
Scones the size of your heid with jam and butter.
That feeling that you get when a crowd starts singing Flower of Scotland.
The use of the word 'pus' for face. A great leveller.

Haha, my dp has norwegian family who use the word 'pus'. Too funny.

Oh and The People's Friend. It never changes and is the provider of nylon peenie patterns. And Love Darg.

(Frances Gay column still on the go despite his/her demise years ago).

"Ach, he fell on his pus".

"Whit's wrang wi yir pus the day, hen?

"He had a pus like a skelped erse".

Everone rightly raves about the Highlands and Islands they are stunning but Dumfries and Galloway is just as stunning and welcoming and quieter.Nobody seems to go there it's a hidden gem.Every year they also have The Wickerman Festival which is great for kids.and adults.
But the best thing about Scotland is that we don't riot in the streets and destroy our own communities!