Here are more guestbook comments that have been imported from the original site. I kept them here in fairness to all the people who took the time to add their thoughts.
David McBrearty, from Canada
Hi John, I have to say how much I enjoyed your site. I’m an ex-pat living in Ontario for the past 34 years, and I came across your site when I was searching for some old Scottish sayings. I suppose I was feeling a little nostalgic, trying to remember some of the things my old granny used to come out with. Probably the one she used most was :
“whit’s fur ye’ll no go by ye.”
So between that page and the one on Scottish humour I had a great time re-living my past. Thank you, and keep up the good work.
Sunil, from United States
Hi John, This is an excellent site on Scotland. I plan on visiting your country sometime in the next 2-3 years or so. I Have always been curious about the region and the culture, and Scotland is one of the few places I have not been to as of yet. I’m looking foward to visiting even more now.
Keep up the good work with all that excellent information coming, and I wish you a lot of success with your interesting and well informed website.
Sunil.
Marina Santos, from Brazil
This is a very good site. I have followed the progress for almost one whole year and you work very hard putting on a lot of information.
I have not been to Scotland yet, but maybe in the next two or three years I pay a visit. I like hiking and you have good hiking in Scotland, so I will come for that. You also have good history, I enjoy reading about your history and your castles. The more I read the more I like, so I hope I will see you some day pretty soon. Thank you for the site.
David Cross, from England
Hi John, I just wanted to say what a great site you have here.
I’m a regular visitor and every time I come back you have added something new, you really do some amount of work here. It was your site that decided us on having a holiday in Scotland and it was fabulous. My wife and I are outdoor types so we did some walking and cycling. The cycling routes up there are first class and there are great woodland walks everywhere you go. We stayed in Helensburgh for the two weeks we were there, so we were handy for exploring Loch Lomond and Loch Fyne and it was magnificent. We’ll be back again next year. Thank you.
Stephan Fournier, from Nantes, France
I am writing this to tell you of the great time we had in Scotland.
Myself and my three friends were over for the hiking and climbing.
It was fabulous, we walked the West Highland Way and we also managed to climb your Ben Lomond. It was very cold at the top but the views were quite staggering. I would also like to say that on the occasions when we had to ask directions everyone was very helpful. I have read about the cycling on your website and I think that next year we may return for this.
Steve Gould, from Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Hi John, Your ‘Discover Scotland’ website is wonderful. Useful, interesting, easy to read…. You’ve done a great job.
My Father is Scottish. His father was born and bred in Greenock, and his mother was born in Edinburgh. (My mother’s family is Russian/Ukrainian.) When I read the line you wrote “…we can glorify failure, we never give up, and we don’t take ourselves too seriously.” I said outloud: “I am so Scottish.”
My Grandfather was a great man. Sharp as a tack, and brilliant. He died in 1988, but I can still hear him counting “one, two, shree, four..” LOL He had all kinds of wisdom and expressions but the one that I try to live by, and pass on is: “A genious doesn’t know all the answers, a genious knows where to GET all the answers”. He said that often, and he always found the answers.
My Granmother (his wife) had an expression or ‘saying’ she always said when someone commented or ‘judged’ a project or job that was not finished. The saying basically said don’t make any conclusions till the job is done. Words in the saying that I can remember are something like ‘fools’ and ‘half-baked’, I just can’t remember the whole thing.
Do you have any idea ? Ever heard anything close ? This has been driving me nuts for weeks. I’ve been searching old proverbs on the internet and haven’t had any luck. That’s how I found your site and some of the ‘sayings’ you have I had heard but long forgotten. The one about the blind horse, for example.
Hope you can help me out with that old Scottish Saying. Again… Great work !!! Fantastic web site.
Cheers from Canada,
Steve.
Emma, from Sydney, Australia
I lived in Edinburgh for just over a year (I’m Australian) and found it fascinating that everyone used the word “outwith”… I protested that there was no such word and when we looked in the dictionary the Scots were very surprised to see it did not exist!
I’ve never heard of anyone but a Scot saying this word and you all say it!
Miss Scotland terribly and would move back there in a heartbeat if I could. Loveliest people on earth.
Jennifer H, from United States
Hi there! I just wanted to say that I really love your site.
I have never been to Scotland, but have always wanted to go, and your site has been very informative and entertaining. I especially like the page on Scottish humor, especially the portion dedicated to schools.
As a future teacher in the U.S., I can tell you that it’s not just unique to Scotland – it’s happening here too! As a fellow webmaster, I love how clean and organized your site is. It’s beautiful! I can only hope mine will someday be as well organized as yours. Thanks for making a wonderful site for anyone who’s interested in going to Scotland, like me.
If plane tickets weren’t so expensive right now, I’d be there tomorrow!
Joe, from Canada
You have a very nice site. My great great great grandparents were kicked out of the island of Barra around 1820 to make way for sheep raising, and they moved to Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia.
I still hope to visit someday even though I’m 71 years old.
Johnny, from Ardmore, United States
What a great site you have … Only In Scotland had me laughing for ages. Sorry I’m not in Scotland, I moved on some time back in 2001 to the USA.
When I was 9 years old, I met the Big Yin, in a Drymen fair, he was drinking at the time … so I goes up to the bar, and says look … there’s billy over over there, pointing like you do at 9 years old … he said hey how ya doing? and put out his hand to shake mine. I’m shaking like a leaf, cause this guy is famous right? Anyway he tried to make me feel big.
He said “you have a great hand shake for a kid of you age”. I said thanks mate. Anyway I had been showing goats at the time, with my aunt, and got some goat droppings on my right hand …. I didnt tell him, and he didnt notice either!
Ilona, from Netherlands
My visit here was a very pleasant experience. I can hardly say I had a ‘wee’ laugh because I roared with laughter.
You have a funny way of writing, I like it!
Is it allowed to copy the ‘school 1977 vs school 2007’ part and paste it in my own weblog? With reference of course. It’s recognizable but fun.
I have been in some parts of Scotland and I love every inch of it.
Coincidently my best friend who lives in Holland for quite some time, is from Lochgelly. So I know a lot of Scotland and his people and I even try to learn some Gàidhlig but oh my! what a difficult language to learn so it probably will stay in the try-phase.
Best regards!
Ilona
Matt Elliott, from Sydney, Canada.
I found this wee website and it was great to see a fellow Scot who is so proud to be Scottish.
I was born in Australia but my family is from Glasgow and I can’t be any more prouder to be Scottish. I love every thing about Scotland, the most beautiful place on this wee planet.
Alba Gu Brath
Debi Ternent, from Canada
I Have been to the Scotland 3 times and am planning to return next year for a one month visit (10 days each in) England, Scotland, Ireland and Republic of Ireland with my cousin and our friend who have never been.
I love the United Kingdom and am of British descent.
Is there any place I can contact for brochures to unique places of interest? Let me know.
Cheers to all,
Debi.
Jim Russell, Tampa, United States.
Hello John,
Thank you for this great site! From as early as I can remember, I have loved anything and everything to do with Scotland! Which makes perfect sense considering my ancestors came from Inverness, where I still have relatives.
I have had the great joy of visiting Scotland three times in my career as a Tour Leader in the travel industry.
Some of my favorite places are Edinburgh and of course my ancestral home area, the Highlands.
One of my favorite experiences has been the Jacobite Steam Train ride from Ft. William to Mallaig and a wonderful visit to the Isle of Skye.
I am planning to return to Scotland for Halloween of 2010 with a group of about 35 fellow fans of “things that go bump in the night.”
We’re planning to do ghostly Glasgow, all the haunted sightseeing in Edinburgh, a Murder Mystery in Dalhousie Castle, and of course, Loch Ness!
Thanks again for your wonderful site and all this great information!
Jim
Margaret Woods, from England
What a week that was. We have just come back from Scotland and the weather was dreadful, it rained for five days. We went to the Scottish Highlands the first half of June expecting fair weather but it wasn’t to be.
Don’t get me wrong, the place is absolutely beautiful, especially Glencoe and Loch Ness and it’s just as well we had the car so we managed to do some sightseeing. We probably would come back, but next time we’ll wait until the last minute, check the weather forecast and book a hostel