OT, from Gillian

Sounds like fun so I want to be there too. And inquiring minds want to know, what's a Ceilidh?

Lucille

Locally we think of them as a house party with music and dancing, usually accompanied by a bit of elixir! Here is an online definition:

Quoting from a webpage

== Ceilidh is a Gaelic word for which there is no single English equivalent. It originally signified (and still does to Gaelic speakers) a gathering at which spontaneous singing, verse-recitation, music and dancing took place. However, the term "ceilidh dancing" nowadays usually refers to couple dances (generally using "ballroom hold") or what used to be called "old-time" dances (St. Bernard's Waltz, Gay Gordons, and so on, but including some "borrowing" from Country Dancing (Strip the Willow, for example.) == Here on Stronsay a ceilidh usually celebrates a significant event such as a wedding or a birthday and often involves everyone on the island, young and old. Nobody is a "wallflower" and teenagers happily dance with pensioners and young children.

"Mavia Beaulieu" ,in rec.crafts.textiles.needleworkwrote: and entertained us with

And a wee dram lol

"Lucille" ,in rec.crafts.textiles.needleworkwrote: and entertained us with

A Scottish ho down, a kitchen party, booze, people, fiddles, singing etc etc.

The second best part!

Glad you appreciate it! One of our best beers is called Old Peculiar!

Pat

I've even tried Old Peculiar - on both sides of the pond.

Cheryl

As Pat says, peculiar (or peculier) has special significance. In the UK a Royal Peculiar (or Peculier) is a chapel that falls directly under the jurisdiction of the British monarch, rather than a diocese. Here in Scotland there is just one such place - the chapel at the Palace of Holyrood.

And one of these days, I'm going to see it!

Cheryl

I hope you have better luck than we did! When we got there it was closed to the public because the Queen was coming.

However, we did get to see the Queen and Princess Anne drive past from King Arthur`s Seat, led by a pipe band!

Suggest you try to avoid the time she`s at Balmoral for her summer break, just in case!

Pat

If you are going to visit Scotland it is well worth joining "Historic Scotland", if you are going to visit a lot of sites the annual subscription will save you a lot of money.

Enabler!

I can give you the address of Isa Nicolson, a lovely lady crofter on Skye who does B+B. She is right by (and owns the raparian rights to) the river Hinnisdahl, in Snizort, which is is where Bonny Prince Charlie was spotted lifting his skirt too high as he wades across. Someone spotted his hairy legs and realised that THAT was no maidservant!

Pat

You can keep that stuff. IAP!!

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaayy better! :)

Joan

Now, now, if this were a true Enabling, it would also include a list of every LNS in Scotland! :)

Interesting! Thanks, Bruce!

The things we learn on a needlework ng!!! :)

Joan

Heck, I've been dreaming of the garden and Scotch brewery tour that I read about - the stitching would be a mere after thought. I should add hard to do if a brewery tour or two had proceeded it.

Cheryl

Sorry to be picky but please - Scottish not scotch. And brewery (beer) or distillery (spirits)? Important distinctions if you visit Scotland I can't drink any kind of spirit (whisky, gin, rum etc) but do enjoy beer - especially my own home-brew (cost works out at about 25 pence per pint). Up here we do have the Orkney Brewery which produces special beers with wonderfully evocative names such as "Skull Splitter", see . And if you like whisky there is the Highland Park Distillery, Scapa, Orkney, Scotland, see . Was the garden in the tour you mentioned the sub-tropical one on the west coast of Scotland at Inverewe? Nice photographs at to whet your appetite!

Bruce