News.Scotland.Org

Always known to be in the good books, Scotland has now been known for its dangerously bad driving roads. According to charity Road Safety Foundation, Scotland is the most dangerous place to drive in Britain. With a higher proportion of killer roads north of the Border compared to other regions, Scotland was given the highest risk rating followed by north-west England and Yorkshire.

Five roads including a stretch of A86 south of Kingussie, the A97 near Huntly and the A6088 at Hawick due to its possibility for fatal or serious collision that is more than 15 times higher than the lowest risk roads have been Branded “high risk” for Scots. The reports that covered 28,000 miles detailed that almost one-third of all accidents and crashes occurred in Scotland junctions and it has highest risk highways.

Dr, Joanne Hill, the Road Safety Foundation director wants the council to spend more on the safety on most dangerous stretches of roads than paying for emergency services and hospitals. She had also said that when the road budget was getting tighter they need to give more emphasis on saving lives with less amounts- low cost, high-return counter measures.

Single carriageways were found to be six times more risky to motorists than motorways and also drivers were found seven times riskier on major roads than minor ones. A 5% reduction in the number of fatal accidents has been seen in the recent years.

• Improved road- A40 between Llandovery and Carmarthen
• Safest region- West Midlands

The Cat and Fiddle, A537, has met with fatal and serious collisions which rose from 15 within three years, 2005 and 34 between 2006 and 2008.  Most crashes were seen to be happening during the summer in dry and daylight conditions.

Tayside is once again in the news, this time it’s for a good reason, the annual report of the force has  shown that the crime rate in Tayside has dropped significantly. The drop is expected to be 12.5 per cent, which is the lowest level in a decade. This plunge in crime rate has come as a good sign for Tayside  followed with a drop in the violence and robbery cases.

This was possible only because of the efforts put on by the dedicated and hardworking police force, who all were working really hard to achieve this goal. Along with local policing the police officials continued monitoring the cross-border drug enforcement, murder enquiries, missing person enquiries and many other cases. Keen study was conducted in each and every aspect, to curb the rise in crime rates.

It was noticed that, an overall decrease of 12.5 per cent crimes were reported, along with a drop of over 2000 victims of such crimes in Tayside. Other than that, violent crimes like, robbery and racist crimes also showed a substantial drop in this period. Vehicle crimes too showed a fall, which in all means came as a great achievement by the police.

Justine Curran, the force’s Chief Constable, expressed his happiness with this feat by his team and felt really pleased by the way things have turned around for Tayside.  The fewer crimes and violence with high quality of local policing has made the place safe to live in.

If you are planning to take a well deserved Scottish break, think beyond the lochs, the skiing and the mountains for a change this holiday.  Coach holidays in Scotland would be a refreshingly new experience. The interesting things to do in Scotland, spectacular sights around and not even a single moment to get bored, coach holidays have evolved to be one of the most popular attractions in Scotland itineraries.

There are many packages on offer including 1 day to 2 or 3 day coach tours from various parts of Scotland. You can choose the one that suits your tastes. Enjoy a leisurely stroll through the vast expanses of sandy beaches of Aberdeen, soak up the hustle and the bustle of Union street or take a cultural sojourn to discover the architectural marvel of some of the well preserved castles and mansions including the Edinburgh castle, the most notable feature of Scotland.

Scotland is a thoroughbred family holiday spot and a sports holiday destination alike. There are many fantastic amusement park with fun rides and adventure rides and lot of outdoor leisure options like golf, skiing and nature trails.

The bucolic hinterlands of Aberdeen has many activities that you can indulge in. the adrenalin  buffs would find the extreme sporting options such as rock climbing, canoeing, kayaking, yachting and surfing  truly irresistible. Even the uninitiated can pick up the threads of this exciting sporting events as there are guides for teaching activity sports. Scotland has history, culture, fashion and cuisine in abundance and Edinburgh has many fabulous dining options and watering holes that pour out some of the finest spirits on earth!

Inverness is north of Scotland with post card pretty settings is another must see spot. Famous for its hiking options and nature trails, this is just right to take  a break from the fast paced life and to chill out. This city in the Highlands has everything you could ask for including white water rafting, surfing, racing, quad biking and dolphin spotting among others; not to forget the exceptional highland games, bagpipes , kilts and more!

A coach holiday is a great way to see and visit new places such as Scotland and Shearings. These offer great value for your money and a perfect holiday idea for families, corporate groups or even the fun loving stag and hen groups who are in quest of something new!

It’s showtime in Scotland! The great Royal Highland Show 2010 organised by the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland will happen here from 24th to 27th June. This time, Edinburgh-the capital city bags the opportunity to host the show in Ingliston near Edinburgh Airport. This will be an event of pride and joy for the local Scots here. During these four days of event you’ll see thousands of families flock to Ingliston to touch, taste, see and hear all that Scotland has to offer by way of entertainment, children’s activities, shopping and fashion, food and drink, and the finest from the animal kingdom.

The Royal Highland Show is a showcase for Rural and Agricultural products and produce. There are large exhibits of agricultural machinery and supplies, equine supplies and outdoor sporting goods. A wide variety of rural, agricultural and environmental associations set up stall to promote themselves. Livestock exhibited include sheep, cattle, goats, horses, ponies, donkeys, and poultry. The shows most prestigious livestock honour, the Queen’s Cup, rotates between the champions of the various types of livestock. Exhibitors compete for the prestige of winning not only a prize ticket, but also for prize money and trophies worth over £1 million. It is the UK’s largest agricultural event and the longest lasting one sponsored by new Holland .

The food and drink arena offers considerable opportunity for taste-testing and has a demonstration kitchen, offering visitors suggestions on home to prepare and serve the products on offer. The shopping areas are extended into the main show ground by market-style stalls. Other businesses, including banks, supermarkets and food producers have their own arenas to promote their commitment to farming, food production and agriculture.

Outside of the exhibition halls and livestock rings, there are a wide range of competitive and display events, including international sheep shearing, show jumping, driving, tug-of-war, dog obedience trials, falconry, farriery and other rural pursuits. Towards the evening you can enjoy musical events from different bands and musical groups.

You can make advance ticket bookings and purchase show tickets online. Children under age 16 accompanied by family, are allowed free entry to the show ground. Car parking facilities are also available.

Now await the day of the great event, to see all that is best on offer by Scotland!

Kelvingrove Park, witnessed a sparkling display of acts, dance, musical treats this Sunday for the Scotland’s biggest multi-cultural festival -“Annual Glasgow Mela”. Being in its 20th successful year, this festival attracted a huge number of people, with crowd attendance crossing over 40,000 this time.

The festival highlighted, the tradition and culture of India by a mix of performances put up by various artists, singer JK who grabbed the award for the best newcomer at the 2010 Brit Asia Awards was also part of this years festivity. Apart from JK, Bangara legends too enthralled the crowd by their dazzling performances.

The main attraction of this Mela were the street theatre  performances, real sand urban beach sports zone, food stalls from the east and many such attractions. The Mela showcased the earthly touch of the Indian soil far from the Indian sub-continent.

In case you are planning a summer getaway to Scotland sometime soon, then check out the Aberdeen youth festival, which is a major cultural event in this part of the world. Aberdeen is  a well bred tourist destination that is well suited for family vacations, romantic holidays and adventure holidays alike. From top of the crop bars , restaurants , galleries and museums, Aberdeen will leave you spoilt for choices.

There are over 15 castles in and around Aberdeen, which would take you on a nostalgic sojourn to its impressive past. Kids would enjoy the Storybook Glen, just 5 miles from the city centre where the children can get  to know their favorite characters or enjoy the adventurous activities around. There are comedy clubs, museums and theater performances. The Whisky lovers can  head straight for Moray to explore the unique taste of the famous Scottish drink.

The 2010 Aberdeen International Youth Festival, which is scheduled to be held at various venues around the city from July 28th to August 7th will draw various young performers and companies from around the world take part in various events including  modern dance, classical music and many other art forms. This year’s specialty is the Rhythms of Africa, a spectacular show of dance, music and story telling featuring artists from Africa, which will be held at  the Beach Ballroom on July 30th.

The festival parade which will be paint the streets of Aberdeen in a riot of colors will be held ob July 31st, which will have a pipe band and a parade by youth belonging to  different communities of the region. The festival will also be held in various other destinations including  Peterhead, Montrose, Inverness and other locations.

A place that brushed with fame during the 60’s and 70’s as a breeding site for snowy owls, Fetlar, one of the smallest Shetland islands, Scotland has again got into the good books for being regarded as the place that has seen the biggest population rise anywhere in UK by 45 percent. With the population rising to 70 and may reach 100 by 2019, this switch has been remarkable for an island that had temperatures reaching only around 17C.

An island that is bursting with mouth-watering wealth of wildlife watching opportunities, it is known as the ‘Garden of Shetland‘ for its fertile soil and good beaches.

With scarce amenities like a shop, campsite, community centre and a primary school, it has been surprisingly interesting to know that people felt it too good to make this place as their home. A regeneration project led by islanders has resulted in this major success- 45 percent increase in population.

Driving a great community spirit and a favorable place for children to roam around just as in old fashioned-times, people felt Fetlar as the right place to stay inspite of its inadequacy in amenities and harsh weather. Without worrying about traffic, drunken driving or drugs, the people of this area have felt free to keep their doors open all the time.

With the population of Feltlar increasing considerably, there are hopes of building more accommodation facilities with the help of council housing and also of providing renewable potential energy and a cafe.

A recent study has revealed that unhealthy living is almost universal in Scotland with more and more health hazards reported. This shocking report came after a Scottish health survey conducted by the University of Glasgow, which suggested that, health of everyone in Scotland seems to be at risk. Above all, the most common disease which was found in most of the people of richer community was smoking, drinking, poor diet, physical inactivity and obesity.

This eye opener results shows that about 97 per cent of Scottish people are having one or the other risk factors (smoking, drinking, poor diet, obesity amd physical inactivity), meanwhile 55 per cent have three or more such and 20 per cent with  four or more risk factors.  Many doctors and health experts and researchers expressed that heavy alcohol consumption, smoking and poor diet is making life of Scots unhealthy with vulnerability to many health hazards . The health woes doesn’t ends here, further reports by analyst shows that obesity is also another health issue which Scots are facing with two-third of the Scottish people affected with it.

With the health standards dropping among Scots, its the need of the hour to bring in some concrete plan to keep a check on the prevailing health issues among people along with a need to change the living style, and adapting a healthy life. It is evident that Scotland has got a top rate for deaths caused due to heart ailments and alcohol, and if the prevailing lifestyle among Scots remains the same, then the health issue will get more worse.

Scotland tourism need not always mean kits, castles, caber tossing, haggis and bagpipers. These days Scotland is promoting archaeological tourism to enable the guests to delve deep into the glorious past of Scotland and its culture.

Tony Robinson of  Blackadder fame is the poster boy for Visit Scotland’s latest initiative of promoting  archaeological tourism. The tourism board has developed  convenient  five-day tour packages for the guests to explore and experience the 10,000 year legacy of Scotland. An archaeological wonderland, Scotland has many forts, medieval monasteries and stone circles. The archaeological trails would take the visitors to the unexplored  northern and western islands of the country. Island chains like the Orkneys, Shetlands, and Hebrides has many archaeological masterpieces that are well preserved. The rugged terrains and extreme weather conditions have kept these remote island chains largely unexplored.

Skara Brae,  in the Orkneys off the north coast of Scotland is the most popular of it all. This amazing  Neolithic village  founded about 5,000 years ago is listed in  UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The tiny habitats made from local stones are sunk into the earth to protect these from natural vagaries and inclement weather conditions. The shelves, hearths and stone furniture of these homes are still in good shape and one of the houses even has a toilet with a drain.

The itineraries also give useful tips on historic hotels, travel options and B & Bs in the area. So, what are you waiting for? If you think you have done it all and seen the prominent landmarks of Scotland including palaces, castles and dingy ways, it is high time that you turn your gaze to the past. Take a trip down the memory lane and pick up interesting information on the culture and the ways of living of your forefathers.