News.Scotland.Org

Scotland is about to get a new walking route called as North highland way. This 114 mile walk way between John o’Groats in the east to Cape Wrath in the west will be one of the best hill walking route with tons of scenic views. It is expected that this new route will be one of the most beautiful walking routes in Scotland starting right at the tourism mecca of John o’ Groats.

The coastal landscape remains the splendid attraction of Caithness adding more charm to the walking trails. Well, it is learnt that walking has been an all time favourite event in Scotland which is enjoyed by both locals and tourists. Looking at figures we can see, these walking tours do contribute a lot to Scotland’s economy with £244 million contributed in the year 2007.

The interest for these walking tours has shown an increase in recent years with around 86 per cent of visitors taking walk trails as part of their holidays which show how people are liking this. Scotland being blessed with many picturesque and scenic outdoors do holds a variety of such areas which are perfect for walking tours any day.

And with the proposal of this new North highland way it seems tourists will surely love to explore this all new route,dotted with plenty of scenic sights.

New Source : Scotsman

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A row took over the tram issue with a resident group in Edinburgh’s west end claiming that traffic diversion for tram work is causing air pollution. It was only two week before we featured a news about the new tram service which is about to get started in Edinburgh. But the Moray Feus Resident’s Association has expressed worries over the rise in air pollution due to the traffic diversion to many residential areas.

According to them the levels of nitrogen dioxide had doubled in such areas due to traffic casuing a serious threat to the health of residents. It is learnt that busy streets like Princess Street have been closed due to tram project. Sad thing is that the project which was initiated to keep this Scottish capital clean and green is facing great criticism with increase in air pollution.

The resident groups are demanding for    a  relaxation of the traffic regulation order which keeps Princes Street closed to public traffic. Though the tram project remains a developing project but now time will tell how the council will manage to control the raging issue of air pollution amidst the traffic regulation

Related News :

• Edinburgh to get tram service

News Source : BBC News

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The wildlife and nature-based tourism has resulted to be one of the key revenue gainer for Scotland contributing over £400 million every year to Scotland’s economy. All credit goes to the picturesque outdoors and scenic landscape which attracts many nature lovers and activity enthusiasts to Scotland. The newly collected figures do shows an increase in the number of people turning out here for whale watching, angling, shooting and other outdoor sports.

The rivers, mountains, woods, plains, hill-sides all adds to the scenic charm of the country. Scotland’s natural bounty offers the best outdoors for a mix of sporting events. Every year loads of tourists do visit Scotland for enjoying its outdoors and natural charms. Figures suggests that over £200m is generated by activities like whale watching, wild-life tours and bird watching. Meanwhile country sports too contributes to the revenue by £130m a year. But hill-walking remained the top favourite outdoor activity among tourists, with one in every four visitor going for hill walks.

Meanwhile the claims from SNH reveals that, the natural environment sector plays a vital role in providing employment opportunities to over two lakh people and remains a key sector for the growth of Scotland. The government is also initiating more ideas to enhance the natural wealth of Scotland and attract more visitors.

News Source – Scotsman

Be free to talk more about this news in our Scotland news group section.

The sleep deprived students in Scotland are taking  a lesson or two on how to get enough sleep. Sleep Scotland, a charity organization, is trying to teach the Glasgow teens the importance of adequate sleep. They are recommending the children to sleep for  nine hours at night by keeping off from  late-night TV and computer games.

Experts say teenagers become moody, irritated and uncommunicative if they are sleep deprived. Many students get only as little as 5 hours of sleep and go to bed after midnight even during weekends because they remain hooked to the online games and web browsing. Sleep deprivation can also lead  to depression and obesity.

Fiona Patterson, head of health and well-being  of Bellahouston Academy in Glasgow, one of the schools participating in the sleep lessons, called the survey results “absolutely shocking.”

Getting sufficient sleep will not only enhance the academic performance of the students  but also their overall alertness and smartness. This pilot  program of offering sleep lessons may develop into a full time program in schools around Scotland in the days to come. EIS, the largest teaching union in Scotland has welcomed the move and opined that it would ensure the overall well being of the students.

Irregular sleep patterns of the youth might adversely affect their biological clock and  the quality of their sleep, according to the National Sleep Foundation, which strictly advices the teens to avoid the computer, the TV and the phone, and choose any relaxed leisure activities at night to ensure a good night’s sleep that would allow the students to get up well rested and refreshed the next morning.

Scotland’s crime rate is soaring at such a fast rate that recently it has been listed in the world’s most violent countries. Adding to the crime chart is yet another report which states that knife crime culture is at a high in Scotland, with the convictions merely reaching a ten-year high. This news has come up as an alarm for the Scottish government, which need to put a check on this raging issue.

Looking at the reports we can see an increase of 21% in the number of knife crimes in Lothian and Borders last year. It was also known that the rate of killings carried out with knife in the country was also at the highest in the last five years. In many parts of Scotland the crimes with weapons have gone up, in Lothian and Borders itself about 431 conviction cases were reported last year involving such offensive weapons which is far more than the crimes recorded in 2007-08.

All these reports have raised a serious question on the security of the people in Scotland and also asked for a concrete measure to control these knife crimes.

News Source – Scotsman

Be free to talk more about this news in our Scotland news group section.

Finally the new logo for the 2014 commonwealth games was launched amidst some chaos and fanfare.  It all started when the logo was found to be almost identical to the design created for the Common Guild 2007. Both the designs do had similarities which triggered a hullabaloo, with the game organisers claiming that the logo was an original piece of artwork.

Meanwhile Glasgow Tory MSP Bill Aitken said that he will be raising the issue with Games organisers due to the similarities among the two logos. The new logo has similarity with the old logo which raises a question on the originality of this new design. On other hand the game organisers strongly felt nothing to suspect regarding the logo, and it is well matched for the money paid for it.

Now it has to be seen that, what will be the fate of this new logo which has triggered a debate over its originality. Whatever the results might come, but all sport enthusiasts do hope this confusion won’t effect the preparations of the Glasgow 2014 games.

News Source :  Scotsman

BBC Scotland has developed a project that is aimed at telling the history of the world by setting up a digital museum of world history that will have over 60 items sourced from museums across Scotland that have both national and international significance. Some of the items on display list include .BILLY Connolly’s big banana boots, Dolly the Sheep and the oldest football in the world among others. Ranging from the tooth of the sperm whale  to the travel pass from the First World War, the displayed items are interestingly different and diverse.

The  Connolly’s banana boots, originally made by the renowned artist John Byrne for the play The Great Northern Welly Boot Show in 1972,  is being sourced from the People’s Palace and Winter Gardens in Glasgow, where it is stored. Angela Robert, project manager for the BBC’s ‘A History of the World in Scotland’, said that the public would be encouraged to upload pictures of any historical objects or antique pieces that may shed more light on the culture and history of Scotland. Priceless heirlooms and collector’s items with  a legacy of their own would be the specialty of this exhibition.

The historian Michael Fry drew up his own list of 100 items that are tell tales  Scotland’s history and culture while BBC chose 60 items including the early banknotes, the Paisley shawl  and the Bell Rock lighthouse among others. Things used by the Scots withing Scotland were given preference nonetheless  some articles of historical importance collected  from other parts of the world were also included in the  list.

For a small  country as  Scotland, the cultural diversity is simply amazing and this digital museum would showcase the cultural diversity for the future generations.

Pic Source: BBC.Co.UK

The family of Sir Harry Lauder, one of the greatest entertainers and ambassador of Scotland is selling the memorabilia of the former. This rare collection of personal artefacts includes costumes and signed photograps, and cabin trunk.

Being an entertainer Sir Harry has travelled the world as a top entertainer and even became the first British performer to ever sell a million records. Expert in his art he not only was a entertainer but also wrote Roamin’ in the Gloamin’ and I Love a Lassie.

Reports have suggested that the sale will be held in Edinburgh today at the Shapes Auctioneers.

Edinburgh will soon be connected with a city-wide tram network providing people a safe and hassle free transport system. According to reports these trams will start its operations by the start of next month. This £500m project will benefit the people to commute easily and its also one of the most technically advanced projects. It is predicted that it will take two more years before the tram line linking Edinburgh Airport with the city center and Leith will be ready.

The head of transport at Edinburgh city council, Marshall Poulton said, This tram is a good quality product and will be comfortable,quite and pleasant ride for travelers. Meanwhile it is also felt that the increase in traffic will also be solved with the onset of this tram service.

Good thing about this project is that amidst all the opposition in the initial stage, now this ambitious project is all ready to be put into test. Hope the people of Edinburgh will enjoy their ride in these trams.

The Main Event 2010, the  only event in Scotland, dedicated to corporate events, hospitality and entertainment, will be bringing together some of the best event suppliers of Scotland at the SECC Glasgow on 11th  March from 9:30am – 5:30pm. Touted as one of the best B2B exhibitions in the whole of UK, this free event will attract not just entrepreneurs and business houses but fun loving families and groups as well who would be drawn by the entertainment options, stage shows and interactive sessions. Over 100 exhibitors are expected to participate in the show this year with many guest speaker sessions and special guests to make the exhibition a diverse experience.

Organized by QD events, SEC showcases the business events programmes and deals with many aspects of corporate team building and  merchandising, which would be tremendous use for the business houses in particular. The basic objective of this event is to unravel the latest trends in business world and to help you build the right connections with the best that Scotland has to offer.

The talk shows of special guests at the  MCL Theatre  will feature many renowned speakers  including Scotland’s own ‘Dragon’ fresh from the Den, Shaf Rasul, and T in the Park founder, Geoff Ellis who would share some of the best kept entrepreneurial secrets and success formulas from these self made luminaries from the business world apart from musical shows as well.