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Saturday 30 June 2007

Best Scottish Tours Highland Games


Best Scottish Tours Highland Games. Attended the Ceres Highland Games today, and although the weather was rather dull, the games were no less enjoyable. Ceres Highland Games are the oldest free games in all of Scotland. These games always held on the last Saturday of the month of June, have been held every year, except for war, since the charter to hold the Highland Games was given to the people of the village of Ceres by Robert the Bruce in 1314 in recognition of their support at the battle of Bannockburn. Ceres Highland Games Photographs.

Friday 29 June 2007

Best Scottish Tours Whisky Galore


Best Scottish Tours Quiz. Who was the author of Whisky Galore who was educated at St Paul's School and Magdalen College, Oxford. During the First World War he became a Captain in the Royal Marines, becoming Director of the Aegean Intelligence Service. He wrote more than ninety books; novels, history and biography, essays and criticism, children's stories and verse, and was also an outstanding broadcaster. He founded and edited until 1961 the magazine the "Gramophone", and was President of the Siamese Cat Club. He lived for many years on the island of Barra in the Outer Hebrides, but later settled in Edinburgh, and died in 1972. Find the answer here.

Best Scottish Tours Bonnie Prince Charlie


Best Scottish Tours Quiz. On which Scottish island is Prince Charlie's cave ? Find the answer here.

Best Scottish Tours Raspberries


Best Scottish Tours Quiz. Which Scottish dish is made with oatmeal, heather honey, whisky, cream and raspberries ? Find the answer here.

Thursday 28 June 2007

Best Scottish Driving Tours


Best Scottish Driving Tours. Make the most of car touring with these practical motoring guides from the AA. The Best Drives series is not just for independent travellers but also those who wish to know more about the chosen region. Now fully updated with new look covers, the guides are beautifully illustrated with colour photographs throughout. The Scottish drives are hand picked by experts for their spectacular scenery and there are specially created colour route maps and detailed directions included. Each country is divided into four geographical areas, with town visits plus itineraries for each one. There are also specific city tours with details of the most interesting places to visit en route. The AA Best Drives Scotland (AA Best Drives).

Scotland's Best-loved Driving Tours. Jagged coastlines, freshwater lakes, and saltwater fjords; St. Andrews, home of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club; hip and historic Edinburgh: Princes Street, the Royal Mile, and the magnificent Palace of Holyroodhouse; the Trossachs, the romantic countryside of Rob Roy; the towering peaks of the Torridon Highlands and the mysterious Loch Ness; and much, much more! Inside, you'll find: 25 distinctive, easy-to-use itineraries, all fully illustrated with beautiful full-color photos; tips on the best hotels and restaurants along each route; exact directions, distances, and driving times for each route; all the sights along the way with highlights for history buffs, nature lovers, and families traveling with kids; scenic side trips, special moments, and recommended walks; and, detailed, accurate full-color route-planning maps. Frommer's Scotland's Best-loved Driving Tours (Frommer's S.).

Best Scottish Castle Hotels


Best Scottish Castle Hotels, with luxurious facilities and outstanding cuisine. Whether you are discovering Scotland's living history or celebrating a special event with friends and family, you'll find your stay at these Castle Hotels of Scotland both relaxing and restoring.

Best Scottish Tours Jacobites


Best Scottish Tours Jacobites. 1715: The Great Jacobite Rebellion: The Great Jacobite Rebellion. Lacking the romantic imagery of the 1745 uprising of supporters of Bonnie Prince Charlie, the Jacobite rebellion of 1715 has received far less attention from scholars. Yet the '15, just eight years after the union of England and Scotland, was in fact a more significant threat to the British state. This book is the first thorough account of the Jacobite rebellion that might have killed the Act of Union in its infancy. Drawing on a substantial range of fresh primary resources in England, Scotland, and France, Daniel Szechi analyses not only large and dramatic moments of the rebellion but also the smaller risings that took place throughout Scotland and northern England. He examines the complex reasons that led some men to rebel, and others to stay at home, and he reappraises the economic, religious, social, and political circumstances that precipitated a Jacobite rising. Shedding new light on the inner world of the Jacobites, Szechi reveals the surprising significance of their widely supported but ultimately doomed rebellion. 1715: The Great Jacobite Rebellion: Tthe Great Jacobite Rebellion.

Bonanzas and Jacobites: The Story of the Silver Glen. This is the remarkable story of Scotland's richest silver mine, near Alva, Clackmannanshire. Its discovery, coinciding with the 1715 Jacobite rebellion, led to an extraordinary sequence of events told here for the first time. It is a true story of fortunes made and lost, and the cast of characters include Jacobites and Hanoverians, lords and ladies, a disloyal servant, a loyal wife, and Sir Isaac Newton. This book has been thoroughly researched from primary sources and is written in a straightforward narrative style. Bonanzas and Jacobites: The Story of the Silver Glen.

Best Scottish Gardens


Best Scottish Gardens. Since 1945, when it acquired its first garden at Culzean Castle, the National Trust for Scotland has become the country's largest garden owner. Its properties include 35 major gardens together with another thirty that form part of other properties acquired for their architectural, historical or landscape importance. The gardens are notable for their range and variety, representing the full history of Scottish gardening, from the late medieval at Culross Palace, through the 18th-century picturesque at Culzean Castle and Victorian formality at The House of Duns to 20th-century plant collections at Brodrick and Inverewe. There are also many charming and intimate small gardens associated with notable Trust properties. Francesca Greenoak's scholarly but easily accessible text describes each garden in detail and discusses its design and plantings, its history, setting and historical and cultural connections. The Gardens of the National Trust for Scotland.

Best Scottish Castles


Best Scottish Castles. The main function of the castle was defensive, to protect the laird and his family from their enemies, in as comfortable surroundings as possible; but the castle also served as the centre of administration of the laird's lands, where tenure, economy and trade were controlled. The Castles of Scotland is the most complete and comprehensive guide available to the nation's wealth of castles. This new edition is the culmination of 10 years' research, and covers more than 2700 castles as well as mansions and historic houses, all alphabetically organised, with detailed maps, visiting information, illustrations, and anecdotes of hauntings and family histories. This is the bible of Scottish castles, an absolute must for all castle enthusiasts and anyone interested in Scottish history. The Castles of Scotland.

Scottish castles and Tower Houses evolved as fortified dwellings that were erected in an environment of weak royal authority and feuding between rival clans. They demonstrated a strong and highly successful design that formed the core of many larger structures. Many of them continued to be inhabited long after the threat of unwanted visitors had diminished and remain excellently preserved for visitors and historians. This book examines these castles and Tower Houses, focusing on their distinctive style that flourished in Scotland in the 16th and 17th centuries. Castles and Tower Houses of the Scottish Clans 1450-1650 (Fortress).

Best Scottish Tours Castles Map


Best Scottish Tours Castles Map. Castles Map of Scotland features a map of Scotland locating over eight hundred castles and fortified houses, an easy-to-use index listing visitor information and attractive illustrations. Index comprises map references, the age and type of each castle, public access details, Historic Scotland and National Trust for Scotland ownership, notable grounds and gardens, telephone numbers and websites. Useful road map of Scotland. Highlights Scotland's finest castles and the best castles for children. Attractive line drawings of a selection of the castles as they appeared at the end of the 19th century, together with a brief account of their history. A brief history of Scottish castles and information on architectural types and periods of construction. Castles Map of Scotland (Pictorial Map).

Best Scottish Tours Roman Scotland


Best Scottish Tours Roman Scotland. As the most advanced frontier construction of its time, and as definitive evidence of the Romans' time in Scotland, the Antonine Wall is an invaluable and fascinating part of this country's varied and violent history. For a generation, from about 140 to 160 AD, the Antonine Wall was the north-west frontier of the Roman Empire. Constructed by the Roman army, it ran from modern Bo'ness on the Forth to Old Kilpatrick on the Clyde and consisted of a turf rampart fronted by a wide and deep ditch. At regular intervals were forts connected by a road, while outside the fort gates clustered civil settlements. Antoninus Pius, whom the wall was named after, reigned longer than any other emperor with the exception of its founder Augustus. Yet relatively little is known about him. In this meticulously researched book, David Breeze examines this enigmatic life and the reasons for the construction and abandonment of his Wall. The Antonine Wall.

Hadrian's Wall. The history of the Wall that ran from coast to coast, dividing Britain in two. Occasionally the Romans would march north and consider the complete conquest of the island; at other times the northern tribes would spill over the Wall to pillage the Roman province. Despite this, for three hundred years, with very few lapses, the peace of the frontier was regulated by the troops along the Wall. Only when the Western Empire fell did the soldiers drift away and the Wall decayed. In their review of the evidence, the authors include details about the Roman army, its religion and daily bureaucratic life on the Wall. Hadrian's Wall (Penguin History).

Best Scottish History


Best Scottish History. Only one period in history is immediately, indelibly and uniquely linked to the whole area of the Scottish and English Border country, and that is the time of the Reivers. Whenever anyone mentions 'Reiver', no-one hesitates to add 'Border'. It is an inextricable association, and rightly so. Nowhere else in Britain in the modern era, or indeed in Europe, did civil order break down over such a wide area, or for such a long time. For more than a century, the hoof-beats of countless raiding parties drummed over the border. From Dumfriesshire to the high wastes of East Cumbria, from Roxburghshire to Redesdale, from the lonely valley of Liddesdale to the fortress city of Carlisle, swords and spears spoke while the law remained silent. Fierce family loyalty counted for everything while the rules of nationality counted for nothing. The whole range of the Cheviot Hills, its watershed ridges and the river valleys which flowed out of them became the landscape of larceny while Maxwells, Grahams, Fenwicks, Carletons, Armstrongs and Elliots rode hard and often for plunder. These were the Riding Times and in modern European history, they have no parallel. The remarkable story of the Reivers and how they made the Borders. The Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers.

Best Scottish Books


Best Scottish Books. Calum's Road is a wonderful read. You can almost feel the passion of the people of Raasay in standing up for what they believe in, and one man eventually getting a result, against all the odds. Calum Mcleod never gave up until he realised his dream. This book is an inspiration in every sense of the word; to follow one's heart and if you fight hard enough, it will happen. Calum's Road.

Best Scottish Food


Best Scottish Cooking. Travelling the length and breadth of Scotland, Sue Lawrence, seeks out all the great raw ingredients Scotland has to offer. From cockles harvested on Barra and venison from the Highlands, to seaweed picked on Auchmithie beach and lamb from Shetland, Sue's celebration of Scottish produce reveals a cornucopia of culinary delights. She has journeyed all over the country to meet the people who farm and produce its food. An Orkney barley miller, a Stornoway black pudding butcher, an Isle of Mull cheese producer, a Dundee sausage-maker and a Brora jam-maker are just a few of the many Scottish food heroes she meets. A celebration of the Scottish landscape and history, as well as its food, "A Cook's Tour of Scotland" contains 120 delicious recipes and is not only a must for anyone visiting Scotland's shores but deserves a place on the cookery shelves of anyone who loves seasonal, healthy, freshly grown, caught or farmed food. A Cook's Tour of Scotland: From Barra to Brora in 120 Recipes.

Best Scottish Golf Links


Best Scottish Golf Links. Along the rugged eastern coast, from St. Andrews up to Montrose and Cruden Bay and Royal Aberdeen, "from heather, whin and sand, to points north," to Nairn and Dornoch. Then to the west coast, to Prestwick and Troon. It's not only the courses themselves that Lowe illuminates along the way, but the winding roads, the ancient villages, the farms and whiskey distilleries, and the people who call this land their home as well. Each step of his pilgrimage is given its due. Scottish Golf Links: A Photographer's Journey.

Best Scottish Buildings


Best Scottish Buildings, Perth and Kinross. Perth and Kinross, at the geographical heart of Scotland, contain buildings which range from the remains of a Roman line of forts and watch towers; the fort at Ardoch, of the first and second centuries, is one of the best preserved and least known of such structures in Britain, early historic hill forts, a remarkable array of carved stones erected by the warrior aristocracy of the sixth to ninth centuries, the wilfully inventive medieval Dunkeld Cathedral, and mottes, castles and tower houses, among them the island fortress of Lochleven Castle and Elcho Castle's assertion of baronial status. The grandiose funerary monuments of the seventeenth century at Scone Palace and the Kinoull Aisle presaged the 'court' classicism of Sir William Bruce, which is exemplified by his own mansion, garden and landscape at Kinross House. Blair Castle's mid-eighteenth century stucco work, unequalled in Scotland, celebrates the magnificence of the Dukes of Atholl, this display challenged in the early nineteenth century by the sumptuous Gothic palaces of Scone and Taymouth Castle. A multitude of smaller country houses embrace a variety of styles, classical, Italianate, castellated and Baronial, while Georgian and Victorian churches, many with superb stained glass, abound. Among towns and villages, Dunkeld is the epitome of a small Scottish burgh while the Royal burgh of Perth has expanded from its medieval core with the addition of late Georgian 'new towns' and civic and industrial monuments of the nineteenth century. Perth and Kinross: The Buildings of Scotland.

Best Scottish Houses


Best Scottish Houses. The lost houses of Scotland. Featured houses include Douglas Castle, Gordon Castle, Guisachan, Dunglass, Mavisbank and Millearne among many others. The lavish photographic content derives primarily from the matchless archive of the National Monuments Record in Edinburgh, but will also draw on Country Life's photographs, local archives, and even the remarkable albums taken by a Perthshire demolition contractor in the fifties as he sought to memorialise his handiwork in dynamiting country houses. Scotland's Lost Houses.

Best Scottish Tours Map


Best Scottish Tours Map. A comprehensive map showing the locations of over 1700 places to visit and things to do in Scotland. Easy-to-use with comprehensive leisure and touring information. Features the locations of over 1700 of Scotland's visitor attractions, including: castles, churches, cathedrals and historic houses, art galleries, museums, distilleries, theatres and leisure centres, country parks, gardens, nature reserves, forest trails and wildlife parks, golf courses, fishing, boat trips and skiing, guided tours of Scotland, monuments, antiquities, scenic and architectural features, camping and caravan sites, Tourist Information Centres and National Tourist Routes. This Scottish map has comprehensive road and motorway information and a distance chart. Scotland Touring Map (Visit Scotland).

Wednesday 27 June 2007

Best Scottish Tours Monzie Castle


Best Scottish Tours Quiz. Which Scottish town is nearest to Monzie Castle ? Find the answer here.

Best Scottish Tours Balquhidder


Best Scottish Tours Quiz. Which famous Scottish Outlaw is buried at Balquhidder ? Find the answer here.

Tour Gourock


Tour Gourock on an Ancestry Tour of Scotland.

Tour Dunoon


Tour Dunoon on an Ancestry Tour of Scotland.

Best Scottish Tours Dunoon


Have your best tour of Dunoon with this detailed map showing a host of attractions including gardens which are open to the public, nature reserves and country parks as well as all official footpaths, bridleways, roads and lanes. Other facilities covered include: camping and caravan sites, picnic areas and viewpoints, selected places of interest, and selected tourist information. The main advantages of this map are the geographical design of the sheetlines to capture the best local coverage, and the coverage of a larger area for value for money. Cowal East: Dunoon and Inverary (Explorer).

Beautiful Scotland


Photographs of the most beautiful villages of Scotland. The Most Beautiful Villages of Scotland (Most Beautiful Villages).

Best Scottish Wildlife


Wildlife Traveller, Scottish Mainland, accompanies you on a journey that begins with the sea cliffs, mudflats and saltmarshes of Southern Scotland, travelling north through farm and woodland to Fife and Angus, the peaks and glens of the Highlands, and Grampian and the Far North. Researched and written by wildlife journalist and photographer, Richard Rowe, this book is a must for anyone who loves Scotland and its wildlife. Wildlife Traveller: Scottish Mainland.

Best Scottish Landscapes


An Encyclopedia of Places and Landscapes, edited by Dr David Munro, Director of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society and Bruce Gittings of the University of Edinburgh. This authoritative, comprehensive gazetteer will include over eight thousand entries on cities, towns and villages, mountains, lochs and rivers, visitor attractions and monuments throughout the nation. Each entry places its subject in an appropriate historical, geological or environmental context, providing essential information of interest to a wide range of potential users. The book starts with an introductory essay on the Landscapes of Scotland. There is also an extensive glossary of terms, including Gaelic words incorporated into many place names, and a detailed bibliography. Street plans are provided for over 100 main towns and cities, as are maps of each administrative area, spread throughout the book. There is a fully indexed full-colour atlas, providing a wealth of extra cartographic information. Scotland: An Encyclopedia of Places and Landscape.

Best Scottish Coastal Scenery


Best Scottish Tours. The magnificent scenery of Scotland's six thousand coastline. From the Mull of Galloway in the south to the tip of Unst in the Shetlands, the northernmost point in the British Isles, and from remote St Kilda out in the Atlantic to the Sands of Forvie National Nature Reserve on the North Sea to capture the enormous variety of scenery that characterises the Scottish seacoast. Some of the sites photographed, like St Kilda or the sandstone peaks overlooking Loch Torridon, belong to the National Trust for Scotland, but many others are privately owned; some, like the majestic Cuillins on Skye, are well-known to tourists, others are hidden coves or remote sea stacks that few visitors will ever have seen. Whatever the subject, be it a wide Hebridean vista or fragmentary patterns of ice on a frozen beach, Joe Cornish, with his artist's eye and his dramatic use of light, helps us to look at it afresh and reveals new and unsuspected beauties. In the text which accompanies his photographs he explains the aspects of each particular landscape that made it special to him, its geology, its flora, its history or its associations. The result is a stunning book book which will delight Cornish's legion of admirers and all those who have found enchantment on Scotland's wonderful coastline. Scotland's Coast: A Photographer's Journey.

Best Scottish Tours Scenery


Best Scottish Tours can create any itinerary to suit all your needs, whether you are after Scottish History, Scottish Ancestry, or beautiful Scottish scenery.