Haló there my fellow adventurer! Hello from Scotland!
I want to take a moment to apologize to you for not having posted in a while, the reason being over the past 2 weeks I have been working on 3 big essay assignments for my courses! After all there is a ‘study’ aspect of ‘study abroad’!
For my History of Edinburgh course I had a 2,000 word essay, Scandinavian Civilizations was a 2,300 word essay, and now currently I am still working on my Visualizing Scotland essay of 3,000 words (and just in case you were wondering, yes the word count matters, I as the student have to write EXACTLY the amount of words expected as outlined, with only the room to go over by 5% and if you go under by any less, than your paper is expected to be perfect), so to say the least, while you know how much I love travel writing, writing an essay requires a bit more research and concentration (which call me a dork, but I still love doing haha), so nonetheless I have had to focus the majority of my energy on writing my essays.
But fear not my fellow adventurer! Throughout my essay writing period, all of the research I was doing got me thinking, ‘I should write a post about research! I should research fun facts about Scotland so that my fellow travelers can learn more about the country aside from just listening to my travels’!
So, there you have it my fellow adventurer, that’s exactly what I have done! For it is my personal belief that education and knowledge are two of the most important aspects in life that one should seek to master or experience in the world! Therefore, during my little paper writing study breaks, I took the time to research some of my favorite facts about Scotland, narrowing it down to a list of ‘50’ for you to enjoy! Hopefully if my travel posts haven’t inspired you to come visit Scotland already, perhaps one of these fun facts will resonate with you, causing you to buy a ticket, grab your passport and explore all that the Scotland has to offer the world!
Once my final paper has been turned in, I will back to ‘normal’, writing post more frequently, so that you as my fellow traveler can stay up-to-date with me!
Without further ado, here’s my ’50 Fun Facts About Scotland’ list for you…. Enjoy!
50 FUN FACTS FROM SCOTLAND
1. The Edinburgh Castle is built on an extinct volcano and the last time it erupted was 350 million years ago
2. The name of the Edinburgh volcano is often referred to as ‘Arthurs Seat’, now a mountain that many people (including myself) I have hiked.
3. The Royal Mile is actually 1 mile and 107 yards long
4. Sometimes the city of Edinburgh is called ‘The Athens of the North’ (the Edinburgh Castle = The Greek Acropolis)
5. Edinburgh was the first city in the world to have its own firemen service, starting in the year 1703
6. Approximately there are 112 green parks in the city of Edinburgh
7. Ebenezer Scrooge from the famous Charles Dickens novel, ‘A Christmas Carol’, was a real person (or at least a person whom Dickens’ borrowed his name), who was born in Edinburgh
8. The Unicorn is the national animal of Scotland
9. The Encyclopedia Britannica was first published in Edinburgh, Scotland
10. Before Princess Street existed, there once was a body of water located where the street now lays called, ‘Nor Loch’, unknowingly famous for being the drowning location of over 300 witches during the Edinburgh witch trails.
11. The last public execution in Edinburgh was the death of George Bryce in 1864
12. The official name for Scotland is actually Alba
13. The monarchy has no real ‘official’ control over the lands or people of Scotland, although they still do recognize Queen Elizabeth II as their reigning monarch
14. Scotland has three official languages: English, Gaelic and Scots
15. The largest city in all of Scotland is Glasgow
16. In the year 43 AD, the Romans successfully invaded Britain. Causing an uproar, the Romans frequently fought many Scottish soldiers called, the Caledonians at the time.
17. 1707 – the Act of Union: marked the official union of Scotland, England and Wales; a single nation state with one monarch (aka. the United Kingdom of Great Britain)
18. Scottish Inventions – the telephone, the television, tarmac, the steam engine, anaesthesia, penicillin, the pedal bicycle and the decimal point, all exist today because of the Scottish (Thank You!)
19. Scotland’s land mass only touches boarders with one other country, England.
20. Scotland has over 700 islands!
21. Standing at the height of 1344 meters (4409 feet), Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in Scotland!
22. All of Scotland drives on the left-handed side of the road (compared to the United States that drives on the right-handed side)
23. Scotland has over 300 railway stations
24. Movies filmed in Scotland:
a. Harry Potter (2001-2011)
b. Rob Roy (1995)
c. Braveheart (1995)
d. Trainspotting (1996)
e. The Wicker Man (1973)
f. Brave (2012)
g. Hamlet (1990)
h. Victor Frankenstein (2015)
i. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
j. Prometheus (2012)
k. The Da Vinci Code (2006)
l. Snow White and the Huntsman (2012)
25. Television shows filmed in Scotland:
a. Outlander (2014 – current)
b. Case Histories (2011 – current)
c. Shetland (2013 – current)
d. Game of Thrones (2011 – current)
26. Around 13% of Scotland’s population has red hair!
27. According to legend, the Scots invented golf and the town of St. Andrews is considered to be the ‘birthplace of golf’
28. Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, may or may not really exists…
29. At 1,077 feet deep, Loch Morar is considered to be Scotland’s deepest body of water, and is ranked the 17th deepest lake in the world
30. Founded in 1136, Aberdeen Harbour Board, is Britain’s oldest running business (located on the western shores of Scotland)
31. During the 19th century, in the year 1824, The Great Fire of Edinburgh struck the nation, an accident fire that lasted for five days (and burned the city to ashes)
32. In 1872, the first ever official international football match was played in Glasgow between the Scots and English
a. Fun Fact: Neither side actually ever scored a goal!
33. The Teviot Row House, located inside the University of Edinburgh’s campus grounds, is the oldest student's union building in the world!
34. Technically the fictitious Sherlock Holmes is part Scottish! For the author, Arthur Conan Doyle, was born in Scotland!
35. One of the seven industrial wonders of the world, the Bell Rock Lighthouse, is located in Scotland!
36. Haggis = the National Dish of Scotland (made from heart, liver and lungs of a sheep) but if that doesn’t sound appetizing to you then there is always option of a vegetarian haggis (fresh veggies, pules, oatmeal, seeds, lentil and spices).
37. November 30th = National Day of Scotland (aka St. Andrews Day)
38. The world’s first color photograph (of a Tartan Ribbon) was taken in Scotland!
39. Believe it or not, Scotland is home to the oldest preserved stone house in northern Europe, the Knap of Howar
40. Scotland was an independent country up until the 15th century. The country merged to form Great Britain when the King of Scotland, James the 1st and 6th, was given the throne of England in 1603.
41. Considering how old Scotland as a country really is, Scotland's Parliament is actually didn't open for its first session until May 12th, 1999, only a mere 19 years ago!
42. Fortunately for the Scots who love to drink whiskey, eating a Scottish breakfast is considered to be one of the best hangover treatments, consisting of; Scottish style black pudding, Lorne sausage, baked beans, tattie scones, poached egg, toast and English tea of coffee
43. Scottish authors, Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott, are said to be two of the greatest literature and poem writers to have ever existed in history, furthermore, their works are still greatly respected today
44. There are around 300 castles in Scotland! That’s about one castle for every 100 square miles!
45. Scotland is considered to be the homeland of many mythical creatures; elves, spirits, fairies, ghosts, monsters, goblins, mythical beasts, giants, the Loch Ness monster and of course Buckbeak from Harry Potter
46. Sir James Clerk Maxwell, the founder of modern electromagnetism, was born in Scotland
47. The Thistle plant is considered to be the national symbol of Scotland
48. According to the local Gaelic language Whiskey dictionary, the meaning of Whiskey translates into ‘water of life’.
49. Want to see the third oldest tree in the world?! You should head to Fortingall, Scotland!
a. Correction: On March 11th, I visited the tree only to discover that upon arrival, the tree had fallen down a few months prior and chopped up, so technically this fact is no longer true but still fascinating!
50. The raincoat was invented in Scotland (how appropriate)!
(Photo: off to the right you can see a sunset from the Highland valleys)
So there you have it my fellow adventurer, 50 Fun Facts from Scotland!
As promised, after I finish my third and final essay this week, I will get back to writing posts about my studies, adventures, reviews, all things interesting! But until then, I will leave you with this quick update; right now as of Monday March 19th, we have just started week 9 of classes here at the University of Edinburgh, as I said I have had three essays due recently for those courses, I experienced my first St. Patrick's day abroad (in Scotland), at probably the world's largest plate of nachos with my friends at a pub called Auld Hoose, through a lot about how much I miss my dog, went to the Isle of Skye, Fairy Pools and other parts of the Highlands, started getting sad about having to leave Scotland at the end of May, started getting excited for my birthday coming up in April, and overall have still been falling more and more in love with the city of Edinburgh by the minute. (don't worry I will go more into detail about the events I just described in my next travel post, pictures included)!
So to say the least, all is well here in Edinburgh, I can't wait to finally finish my essays, post my 'farewell portugal' post, explore more of the city, celebrate my birthday and just relish in every moment I have been blessed to experience!
I hope you enjoyed learning some fun facts about Scotland, so perhaps now you have a greater appreciation of the county! If you want my opinion, Scotland truly is beautiful, so if your planning your next adventure, I highly recommend you come here my fellow traveler, to the land of magic and mystery!
Until next time my fellow adventurer...
Cheers,
Meghan Chayka
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