Edinburgh has been Scotland’s capital city since the 15th century. The city centre comprises the Old Town (which dates from medieval times) and the neighbouring 18th century New Town, which makes for a fascinating mix of architectural styles. Edinburgh is not short of impressive modern architecture too, with the controversial new Scottish Parliament building one of the latest to grace the city skyline. Dominated by the hills of Salisbury Crags and Arthur’s Seat, and surrounded to the east by the waters of the Firth of Forth, Edinburgh is surely one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
Famous for its festivals, Edinburgh plays host to the biggest arts festival in the world every August, along with the Edinburgh Royal Military Tattoo. And Edinburgh is also the centre of Scotland’s Hogmanay or New Year celebrations, with a week long festival of events culminating in a huge street party on Princes Street and fireworks over the castle.
Edinburgh is home to many great visitor attractions including Dymamic Earth, the Museum of Scotland, the Royal Yacht Britannia and Edinburgh Zoo, whose latest addition are two pandas! There is great nightlife with plenty of pubs, bars and restaurants – the food scene is buzzing, from the seafood bars of the Port of Leith area to the Michelin starred dining experiences of Kitchin and Wisharts, to name but two.
Edinburgh makes a great place to start or end your Scottish tour and in our opinion no visit to Scotland is complete without a trip to our capital city!
I use all of these, all the time! My granny used to tell me I was “as thrawn as a bag o’ weasels” when I was a wee girl 😂💙🏴The Scots language has words for things no other language bothered to name.
Dreich — that specific grey, damp, miserable weather that isn't quite rain but isn't quite not rain either. The English say "overcast." The Scots say dreich, which sounds exactly like it feels.
Thrawn — stubborn in a particular way. Not just obstinate. Twisted, contrary, determined to do it the wrong way on purpose. There is no English equivalent because English speakers apparently gave up trying to describe this personality type.
Glaikit — vacant. Dopey. The expression on someone's face when the lights are on but nobody is home.
Couthie — warm, friendly, comfortable in a homely way. The feeling of a kitchen that smells like baking and has a dog asleep by the fire.
Wheesht — be quiet. But with feeling. Haud yer wheesht is the full version, and it means be quiet right now and I mean it.
Scunnered — utterly fed up. Beyond tired of something. A level of exasperation English doesn't have a single word for.
Every language reveals the priorities of the people who speak it.
Scottish priorities, apparently, include very specific weather, very specific stubbornness, and very specific silence.
Which one is your favorite? 👇
#ScottishHistory #ScottishHeritage #ScotsLanguage #ScottishWords
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Hope everyone has been enjoying the antics of the Tartan Army over in Boston for the World Cup! Glad to see the Glasgow tradition of putting cones on statues is alive and well across the pond 😂⚽️🏴The Scottish fans didn't just bring bagpipes and beer to Boston.
They brought traffic cones for the statues too.
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