November Newsletter

St Andrew’s Day – Celebrating Scotland

Many visitors to Scotland fail to go beyond the Royal Mile of Edinburgh and they are hugely missing out. From the desolate wilderness of the Highlands, to the sweeping valleys of the lowlands, Scotland is a land of great untamed beauty, home to a people renowned as much for their spirited nature and warm hospitality as for their resilience and self-reliance.

November 30th marks the feast day of the patron saint of Scotland: St Andrew. The elder brother of Saint Peter, St. Andrew is venerated in many places in Europe, including Russia, Malta, Romania, Greece and Sicily. St Andrew was crucified in Patra, modern day Greece on an X shaped cross known as a Saltire. The Saltire has been the national emblem of Scotland since 1390, flying on the Scottish Flag as a diagonal white cross on a blue background.

In Scotland legend has it that the relics of St Andrew were brought to the country from Constantinople by St Rule after he was warned by an angel of the impending destruction of the city. According to the legend, St Rule was guided to the east coast of Scotland to a settlement close to the town now known as St Andrew’s, where the saint’s holy relics were housed in St Andrew’s Cathedral until the church was sacked during the Scottish Reformation of the 1560s.

Today St Andrew’s is probably more widely known for its association with golf.  As the sport’s spiritual home it is here that the Royal and Ancient Golf Club has governed the game for centuries and golfing pilgrims travel from all over the world to play the hallowed Old Course. Besides the greens, St Andrew’s is an elegant and affluent market town whose quaint cobbled streets are lined with boutiques, bookshops and cafes.

Scotland’s capital city barely needs an introduction. Edinburgh is a world renowned city of culture, famed for its international festival throughout August, its Military Tattoo and raucous New Year celebrations of Hogmanay. Dominating the city is Edinburgh Castle, while the cobbled street of the Royal Mile winds down to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Throughout this Old Town area of Edinburgh run intricate nooks and crannies, while outside the protection of the castle is Edinburgh’s New Town one of the best-preserved Georgian towns in Britain. This collection of elegant townhouses, city gardens and leafy squares make up Edinburgh’s hottest real estate and its more sophisticated shopping district.

While Edinburgh boasts a rich history and heritage, Glasgow, Scotland’s second city, is its first for fashion and nightlife. Glasgow is the UK’s largest retail centre outside London with shopping districts on Sauchiehall Street, Buchanan Street, and Argyll Street and Glasgow is a modern urban city with an effervescent atmosphere, plentiful restaurants and dynamic nightlife, which is centred around the regenerated Merchant City and historic West End. Glasgow is home to the Scottish Opera, the Scottish Ballet and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and culture lovers can also browse the Burrell Collection and the Gallery of Modern Art.

But while the huge cultural centres of Edinburgh and Glasgow are indeed great destinations, Scotland’s most prized and unique attribute is the romantic wilderness of the Scottish Highlands. The Highlands are one of Europe’s last untamed wildernesses; of mountains, moorland, coasts and lochs urging you to stop every five minutes to take a picture of a distinctive landscape that will be etched into your hearts forever. The land is dotted with baronial castles linked with evocative memories of the past. Of famous Scottish Heroes such as Bonnie Prince Charlie and his Jacobites, Rob Roy, Robert the Bruce and William Wallace. Places etched into the tumultuous history of Scotland; Culloden, Bannockburn, Glen Coe and Glenfinnan and places where myth and beauty blend, to create legends like the Great Glen, Loch Ness and its famous monster.

As well as experiencing the scenery and romance of the Highlands, people come to sample its culture and Scotland’s greatest export; whisky. Scotch single malt whiskies, each with its own distinctive flavour, have been distilled in the region for centuries from the Isle of Islay, and the Isle of Skye in the west, to Orkney in the north and most commonly the Speyside and Deeside glens Aberdeenshire, home to the ever popular Glenfiddich label

As a destination, Scotland deserves special attention and a visit to the country will reward you with a lifetime of cherished memories.

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