The Scottish Thistle is the national emblem of Scotland, and it’s gorgeous to see in the wild. Legend has it that an army from Norway wanted to conquer the Scots. They landed at the Coast of Largs in the middle of the night, in order to surprise the Scottish clans. In order to move stealthier in the dark, the army took off their footwear, but unfortunately, one of the men stepped on a thistle and screamed in pain, alerting the clansmen to their presence. The Scottish won the fight. The Scottish thistle became the emblem of Scotland during the reign of Alexander III, 1249-1286. ... read more

GREYFRIAR’S KIRK 12 July 2007 Thursday I love walking around old cemeteries, because… well, I don’t really know why, but I like looking at the old and stunning grave markers. Greyfriar’s Kirkyard is probably the most famous of all the cemeteries in Edinburgh, but surprisingly, it’s not because of any famous citizens. It’s because of Greyfriar Bobby, the loyal dog who guarded his master’s grave for 14 years, from 1858-72. Bobby was only two years old when his master, John Gray died and was buried in the kirkyard. After the burial, Bobby refused to leave his master’s grave, only venturing to the local tavern at lunchtime to be fed. After Bobby passed away, the locals thought he deserved to be buried with his master. Though Bobby's headstone is at the entrance to the Kirkyard, he is ... read more

7/4/2007 Independence Day really takes on a new meaning for me when I’m living in a country ruled by the Queen, and where the people talk about the Act of Union in 1707 as if it happened yesterday, and they take it personally when the truth is every “Scot” (correctly “Brit”) living today was born into the UK and unified and governed under one queen. This is also the country who had elections two months ago, and for the first time in history, the minority party is in power. The Scottish National Party (SNP) and Scotland’s First Minister, Alex Salmond, has told the Queen to her face that his goal while in power is to make Scotland an independent nation. Every Scot I’ve spoken witih talks about how the Act of Union in 1707 was the ... read more

6/27/2007 Wednesday Since I have found a job, I’ve decided that I can relax a bit. Plus, since I don’t start for two weeks, I have time to see stuff. Today, I took a day tour with ‘Heart of Scotland’ Tours to see Loch Ness and Glencoe. It was a small tour group, only about 25 people, and most of them were American—it’s probably been 3 weeks since I’ve heard an American accent!! Aaah. People I can understand without trying, or saying ‘pardon?’ ten times. Our tour guide, Cullen, was great! One of those natural born speakers and storytellers, he told us so much about Scotland’s history and what we were seeing. This was my first drive out of Edinburgh, so I eagerly waited seeing what the rest of Scotland looked like. We drove into the ... read more

6/22/2007 Saturday Today started the third session of Scottish parliament, which was disbanded in 1707 and not reconvened until 1999. We went to the processional and festivities at Parliament and Holyrood Park. I even saw the Queen!! In old Scottish parliament, there were processional ceremonies to signify that Parliament was sitting. It used to include nobility, members of parliament, etc. The tradition of the Riding of the Parliament was renewed and updated. It’s a good way to give regular citizens the chance to feel a sense of belonging with the MP’s. In the parade, there were the Royal Marines Band Scotland, pipe bands, Red Hot Chilli Pipers (more on them in a minute), members of Scottish parliament, and tons more. There was also the ‘Jarls Squad,’ which is a group of people celebrating their Viking heritage ... read more