The Lee MacLellan Family Story
Scotland: where it all began
Ask most people what is the first thing they think of when you say the word Scotland, and they will probably say bagpipes.
Interestingly enough the Scots didn’t invent the bagpipes (they can be traced to ancient times), although they are arguably the best bagpipers in the world. A bagpipe contest is held each year in August as part of the Edinburgh International Festival.
Bagpipes have always drawn me, perhaps because of my Scottish ancestry. Their wailing, doleful sound seems to personify Scotland to me, and draws my soul into a deeper, ancient time.
The second thing people typically think about: are men wearing anything under the kilts? The answer is yes. According to the regulations of the Scottish Official Board of Highland Dancing (SOBHD), underwear must be worn under the kilt, and the color should: be “dark or toning with the kilt… but not white."
Scotland Geography
Scotland is an island peninsula, linked with England to the south. On a separate island is Ireland, which is only about 9-20 miles to the southwest, depending on where you measure. To the north-east are the Scandinavian countries of Sweden and Norway, home of the Vikings that became a significant population in Scotland over the years.
For its size Scotland has a lot of coastline. If you include the coastlines of the islands, then Scotland has 10,250 miles of coastline.
It has islands as well: 790, of which only 95 are inhabited. (A number of countries have more islands; Sweden has 220,000)
Its' seashore is largely craggy rocks, with some places where small towns hug the cliffs.
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The picture to the left is the town of Crovie, which is so narrow that the townspeople have to park their cars at the southern end of the town (bottom of the picture).