Scotland: Where Old Traditions are Alive and Well Today
TO LIVE LIKE A LOCAL – MAKES FOR AN INCOMPARABLE TRAVEL EXPERIENCE
If there were a singular symbol for Scotland, it might be tartan.
Should we sleep in – or get an early start? Have dinner out – or eat in. Spend the day exploring our home town – or visit some of the towns within an easy hour car ride? Enjoy a sampling of various Scottish single malts – or revel in other less-indulgent sightseeing options? Such are the many decisions we had to cope with on our Scottish Highlands UNTOUR, an unrivaled way of traveling that encourages you to live like a local. This means one decision you never have to make is whether or not to unpack.
We were spending the week in our apartment, part of an 1837 church in a former life, near our home base of Inverness – and it indeed felt like home. Although a street sign on the corner with arrows pointing to a museum, the bus station, a market, and “Castle and Toilet” warranted a double-take. As did all the neighborhood signs where the Gaelic translation appears below the English ID. Dead language? It is not close – they still teach it in school. Very hard to understand, though. But then again so is the language they speak, which they claim is English…
Kilts, tartans, whisky – not your everyday window-shopping options. If there were a singular symbol for Scotland, it might be tartan: from hotel interiors and tabletop items to cookie tins and everyday clothing. And then there are the wings of planes at the airport sporting bright plaid colors. Scottish tradition in inescapable.
Case in point -- the Highland Games. A throwback to ancient Scotland, it is a unifying rite of passage for any Scot. Amidst the vast ocean of tartan, bagpipes and clans sits a cultural event steeped in skill, tradition and community going back more than a thousand years. Now, the games are held in several cities throughout the summer – and we found ourselves at one on the only day of our week that was dry and drenched in sunshine.
Similar in style to the Renaissance Faires in the States, only here the men are wearing kilts rather than English robes. The music, of course, the incredibly distinctive bagpipes emanating from competing bands, never leave your ears. And, of course, every pipe band sports its own tartan -- all of which I wanted a sweater made of -- so the multitudes of plaids create a fashion visual that is hard to forge from your eyes. And I can’t tell you how often I heard the words bonny, aye, and laddie. To say, the Highland games are an assault on all the senses is a wee understatement.
A VISIT TO THE HIGHLAND GAMES IN SCOTLAND TRANSPORTS OLD-WORLD TRADITION INTO MODERN-DAY ENTERTAINMENT
Although some of the games such as track and cycling may be recognizable, the chanter, caber tossing, hammer throw and tug ‘o war are not. Men throwing heavy sticks, balls, hammers – and probably their arms out! The Highland dancers, from age six to seniors all decked out in colorful costumes, their intricate steps, toe-tapping music and enthusiasm galore enchant, whatever the age. At one point, I noticed that silence had descended upon the arena and I realized it was the first time a bagpipe couldn’t be heard somewhere off in the distance. It didn’t last long.
So kilts, bagpipes, Highland Games all attest to Scottish heritage. That still leaves whisky. And, oh yes, the damn haggis.
Scottish single malts – celebrated locally as whisky (no e) – are known worldwide for their richness smoothness, and cost. With a history dating back as far as the 11th century, Scottish whisky is an important part of the country's identity, with most of the 140-plus distilleries in the Highlands. Being more of a pedestrian drinker of alcohol, I was not the ideal candidate for a whisky distillery tour and tasting. But I soldiered on.
At the Glen Ord Distillery, serving up its single malts for almost two centuries, I sampled a flight of their 3 brands of whisky – a dram each which I learned was 25 ml. At 12 years of age, they were just kids. Three very different flavors, or so I was told, but I was useless as a connoisseur. They all tasted the same to me. I’m not proud. Then, as instructed, I added three drops of water to each dram to “separate the flavors.” And yes, I noticed they were more potent but tasted the same. I slinked out of the distillery.
But I was braver there than with one of Scotland’s most traditional dishes – the inevitable haggis, a lovely concoction of a sheep’s liver, lungs and heart which I chose not to pursue. I opted for another single malt which should tell you how much I didn’t want haggis.
Colorful Scottish Tartans decorate everything here from clothes to airplane wingtips.
A visit to The Highland House of Fraser reinforces Scotland's uniqueness because there, for a mere $750, you can have your own personalized kilt made. And should you not have your family tartan, you can choose from 750 different plaids from other clans. And you can even watch a kiltmaker weave your threads while listening to bagpipe music.
And lest you think the kilt is a throwback to history, not so. They are often worn at every celebration, from birthday parties to weddings to funerals – and sometimes just because. Locals take their kilt and bagpipes with them wherever they go – apparently, both wrap up well for traveling -- which conveys how very much a part of everyday living the old traditions are today.
So, despite Britain’s efforts to destroy the language, the clothing, the traditions, and the lifestyle of the Scottish people, it all remains alive and well today. Picking up a roasted chicken and another bottle of wine at a local shop in our hometown, we headed back to our cozy apartment to think about what other historical/modern Scottish traditions we would next explore. For more information, visit www.untours.com/scottish-highlands.
P.S. I wish I HAD tasted haggis – if only for the sake of this article.
Fyllis Hockman
Fyllis Hockman is a multi-award-winning travel journalist who has been traveling and writing for over 30 years — and is still as eager for the next trip as she was for the first. Her articles appear in newspapers across the country and websites across the internet. When not traveling, she is almost as happy watching plays or movies, working out, and sitting on a barstool next to her travel-writing husband.
