For people who take golf holidays, golf breaks in Scotland represent the quintessential golfing retreat. There are three main reasons for this. Firstly, Scotland has all the best courses – including the world-class Turnberry, St Andrews and Gleneagles, all offering the most fantastic golf holidays available.
Secondly, the scenery is unparalleled and provides the perfect backdrop to a round of golf. Scotland’s rugged mountains, lush green valleys, thundering waterfalls and ethereal mists all help to make an experience you can really savour. Thirdly, Scotland always is simple to get to, either by road, train or air travel.
Anyone who plans a golf break in Scotland is also probably influenced by knowledge of the country’s long-standing affiliation with the game. It is widely accepted that golf originated in Scotland in the 1100s, with the first recorded game played at Bruntsfield Links in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1456.
Even the word ‘golf’ comes from Scotland – it is thought to have come from the Scots word ‘goulf’, meaning ‘to strike or cuff’. When the game was in its early days and, in fact, right up until the mid-20th century, it was usually played with clubs made from hickory wood, which is why golf played with ancient-fashioned wooden clubs is now called ‘hickory golf’.
Traditional hickory golf is catching on in a huge way. You see, there’s a huge secret haunting the manufacturers of modern golf clubs – despite all the ‘improvements’ in golf club technology, you can hit nearly as far with clubs made the original way – with hickory – as you can with the latest club being promoted on the US PGA Tour. What’s more, with hickory golf clubs you can play the game the way it was designed to be played – playing around the bunkers, through the gaps and really thinking about the challenge of the hole.
There are tournaments all over the world for modern-day hickory golf players, and for the last three years one particular tournament has been held in Scotland – golf’s birthplace. The 2007 World Hickory Open took place last month at Craigielaw golf course in East Lothian. As a golf course, Craigielaw is scenically located on the shores of the Firth of Forth with the hills of Fife framing its magnificent backdrop.
Craigielaw golf course presents a challenge for both small and long handicap players. As a result, the course is a well loved for golf breaks in Scotland for players at every level. The layout at Craigielaw is such that the wind is nearly always part of the course’s natural defence. The consensus among both pro and amateur golf players is that the organisers picked a course nearly perfectly suited to hickory golf.
There is a special physical sensation that hickory golf clubs give you. You know if you’ve hit a excellent one just by the lovely feeling coming through your hands and you also know if you’ve hit a terrible one (especially in a cold Scottish wind) as it feels like a cricket ball has landed on your knuckles!
I managed to come third in the Amateur section, no disgrace but I’m coming back for more. And at last I know what I want from Father Christmas – All the best hickory golf clubs: Persimmon woods with Right Temper shafts, a set of matching hickory irons pre-1935, a Cleveland wedge and sand wedge and a Scotty Cameron putter.

Some peeps having a game of rugby at the royal mile in Edinburgh all was going well until the donut patrol turned up lol ((( TURN DOWN SOUND )))

Filmed at NCIS Airsoft Edinburgh, Scotland 24th May 2009 www.ncis-airsoft.co.uk 80 players on site for 8 hours of gaming … softair soft air CALL OF airsoft DUTY GEARS of AIRSOFT WAR HALO BB’S scotland m16 gi gaming gamers uniforms SCOUTTHEDOGGIE Action Extreme MARUI ICS JG AUG DBOYS D-BOYI D-BOYS combat war guns re-enactment bb gun skirmish edinburgh SOFTAIR polska poland p90 g&g toptech JGmp5 mp7 military shooting youtube.com pyro pistols auscam victoria australia australians woodland flowers …

Rugby is hugely well loved in Scotland, and the country offers a fantastic experience for fans of the game.

When Scotland hosts a major rugby match, there is a shift in the atmosphere.

Fans flock to Scotland not just for the thrill of the game, but to delight in the entire hospitality experience associated with Scottish rugby.

Friendship, celebration and sporting camaraderie is part of what makes a rugby trip to Scotland so special. There is also, of course, the top class rugby that is played.

Scotland’s two professional rugby teams are Edinburgh Rugby Club and Glasgow Warriors. The Magners League hosts games between regional sides from Scotland, Ireland and Wales, between September and May.

The IRB World Series Sevens is an international event, with the Scottish finale taking place at Murrayfield at the end of May.The Heineken Cup is an annual Rugby Union competition involving club, regional and provincial teams from the UK, Ireland, France and Italy.

The Six Nations is an international event bringing together the teams from Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, France and Italy.

The Melrose Sevens, held in Melrose in the Scottish Borders, is the oldest rugby sevens competition, dating back to 1883, and is still an vital fixture on the sporting calendar to this day.

Many flagship events take place at the iconic Murrayfield Stadium, in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh.

During key rugby events, the city’s streets are brimming with excited fans, many dressed in Scottish kilts to mark their allegiance to their team.

With a stunning array of architecture, culture and nightlife on offer, rugby fans often make a weekend of it and delight in the full Edinburgh experience.

There is a wealth of high quality Edinburgh accommodation to choose from, although it’s advisable to book as early as possible for top games.

Groups of friends travelling for a match often delight in the affordability and fun of staying in serviced apartments in Edinburgh.

Many Edinburgh apartments are of a particularly high standard, so there’s no need to sacrifice on quality of accommodation.

For rugby fans, attending an event in Scotland is a memorable experience for all the right reasons, combining the thrill of top games with a fantastic weekend break.

More @ www.myhotelvideo.com Location: This hotel is located on the B704, some 6.8 miles south of Edinburgh city centre and only around 14 miles from Edinburgh international airport, while Glasgow international airport is about 45 miles away. The area is full of interest for visitors; Rosslyn Chapel is nearby (around a 10-minute drive) and the Royal Yacht Britannia as well as Edinburgh Castle may be reached in around 30 minutes by car and Edinburgh Zoo is around a 50-minute drive away. …

Mike finally manages to hang 10 on the Scottish surf, maybe next time he will manage a surf board…

Me at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Watch part 1 first www.youtube.com

This video is an introduction to the choristers at St Mary’s Music School and the choir of St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland. We see the young choristers and organists as they prepare in June, 2006, for recording sessions for the Pro Organo CD “Hear My Words, Ye People.” The Choir of St Mary’s Cathedral (Mother Church of the Diocese of Edinburgh in the Scottish Episcopal Church) has been described by the Sunday Times as “one of the UK’s finest cathedral choirs.” It is …

Live at Edinburgh Castle, Scotland 16th July 2009