I was out shooting waterfalls over the weekend and scoping out locations for some upcoming photography workshops. A few times I got distracted by these lovely signs of spring.
Happy Tartan Day!
Did you know that there are over 500 officially recognised clan tartans and over 7000 listed on the Scottish Register of Tartans?
Tartan is a coloured, patterned cloth made in Scotland from woven wool with horizontal and vertical stripes in different colours. A tartan isn’t actually identified by its colour but by its pattern and thread count. So you can change its colour, but if the pattern and thread count are the same, it’s still considered to be the same tartan.
As well as the established family tartans, there are many others that have been registered, such as the City of Edinburgh’s tartan. Even Canada has its own tartan called the Maple Leaf and each of the provinces, plus Cape Breton, has their own too.
@lochcarron_of_scotland is the main producer of tartan in Scotland, employing skilled craftspeople using traditional methods in their weaving mill based in the Scottish Borders.
If you want to be sure to have an authentic tartan, look for one that says “Made in Scotland”. There are many tourist shops all over Scotland selling items such as scarves, shawls and even kilts that are actually made in China and therefore not authentic tartan.
If you’re in Edinburgh, I recommend @scotlandshop and @ccc.kiltmaker where not only can you buy authentic tartan products, but you can learn about the clans, tartans, and the history of the buildings they’re in.
Happy April Fool’s Day from the ultimate April Fool 😆
Come out for a hike or tour with me and you’re sure to have a good laugh! 😁
Sound on if you really want to have a laugh 😉
Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas!
The big day will soon be over, but the Edinburgh Christmas Market is still open through to January 6th. So there's plenty of time to get down and visit it yourself.
The busiest part of the market is on Princes Street, but there are also booths and activities on George Street and in St Andrew Square.
If you're heading down, be sure to visit the vendors on George Street (the fudge shown in the video is from Granny Charlotte's and the waffles from Dutch Stroopwafels, both in that area). You can also check out the skating rink and the carousel while you're there.
Hope you all enjoy the rest of the festive season and the remainder of 2023!
Happy International Mountain Day!
December 11th was designated as International Mountain Day by the UN back in 2002. The purpose of it is to create awareness of issues relating to mountain regions and the communities that live there.
Each year’s event has a theme. This year it’s “Restoring mountain ecosystems”. This means finding and implementing nature-based solutions, best practices and investments which will build resilience and reduce vulnerability.
Restoring mountain ecosystems is not only about protecting their biodiversity, but also the cultural heritage of mountain regions. It also means protecting water sources, many of which provide fresh water for billions of people outside the mountain regions.
Scotland actually has a severe lack of biodiversity. It also has a long culture of people living and working in and around the mountains. Many organisations across the Highlands are working on rewilding and trying to restore our own ecosystems to how they should or at least could be.
Next time you’re up a mountain, in Scotland or elsewhere, take a look around and see what the ecosystem is like. And then see what you could do to help even if it’s just spreading the message of how important and precious they are.
Video shows a variety of mountain views from the Scottish Highlands, Canadian Rockies, the Yukon, the Dolomites and the Pyrenees.
St Andrew’s Day
Happy St Andrew's Day! 🏴
Here are some iconic views from around Scotland to celebrate our national holiday.
It’s World Porridge Day!
So here’s a silly wee video I did when making my breakfast this morning 😁😋
This is an annual event started in 2009 by the charity Mary’s Meals in Argyll in Scotland as a fundraiser, with the proceeds going to help starving children in developing countries.
An even older event established is the World Porridge Making Championship, which celebrated its 30th anniversary this past Saturday in Carrbridge.
The word porridge comes from the French “potage” which is a thick soup or stew. Despite the origins of the word, it is definitely a Scottish breakfast staple.
Research has traced it back 5500 years to the Stone Age period in the Outer Hebrides, where a gruel of cereals such as wheat were cooked with milk. Later oats became the favoured ingredient as it was a perfect crop to withstand the harsh Scottish climate.
There’s a lot of dispute as to how to make it properly. Purists use only oats, water and salt. That’s how my parents always cooked it and that’s how I grew up eating it – and still do. No sugar or honey added, no nuts or seeds, no dried fruit. When I was a kid we’d have a mug of milk alongside and I’d dip each spoonful of porridge into my mug.
As you’ll see in my video, the proper tool for stirring porridge is a wooden utensil called a spurtle, which prevents lumps from forming in the porridge. The spurtle is meant to have a carved thistle on top, as does the one I inherited from my mum and dad.
Tradition says that the spurtle should be held in the right hand and you should stir clockwise. The prize for the winner of the world championship is the Golden Spurtle.
I’ll post some links in the comments below in case you want to read more about porridge, it’s history, how to make it properly and the world championship.
