"There's nothing more traditional than a well-dressed Scotsman."
Hello everyone!
We shall persevere and continue on through our trek across Scotland.
Our two favourite Scots returned to their journeying this weekend with a new episode, but because I took a bit of a two-week break to watch some movies and review them on here, I'm still only on episode five of the show instead of six.
Ah well!
This just means that I'll be a week late in wrapping up the reviews, but that's okay.
When it's a good thing, it's definitely a good thing.
So without further ado and more lollygagging from me, here's Men in Kilts, a very traditional episode titled - you guessed it - Culture and Tradition.
As always, links to the previous episodes can be found down at the bottom of the page.
Sam and Graham begin their journey on a motorcycle in Edinburgh this time around - or have they been here before in an episode? Probably, but this is just their beginning now! - because you can't be running around Scotland if you're not properly dressed, which is why they visit one of the oldest tailors to get fitted for bespoke tweed suits.
Lads, you look verra dashing if I do say so myself.
And considering there are scissors in there over 300 years old, I'd say it's a good thing you're heading out to learn some Gaelic after you're done here, before Sam uses them on Graham.
Gaelic, as we learn, is a language not too many people speak nowadays, and was actually prohibited for a time, but the boys put in a valiant effort to learn some of it, while being attacked by midges. If you're a Lord of the Rings fan, you'll remember the Hobbits and Aragorn also suffered from this same affliction during their trek to Amon Sul.
Sam runs off in a manly fashion, saying, to heck with it, let's go find my very own Claire, aka, the lovely lady who was actually a consultant in the initial seasons of Outlander, talking about medicinal properties and purposes of different herbs and other vegetation.
Anyone suffering from a bald pate, rejoice! Apparently, onions help with that, but I'd double check with the missus before rubbing some on your head.
Luckily for Graham, the next tradition the boys visit is basket-weaving, probably as ancient as humanity itself, because how are you going to transport all the herbs and other foods back to your people if you don't have anywhere to carry them in? So they learn how to do it, and Graham actually does slightly better than Sam, much to his personal delight.
And to wrap it all up, to the erstwhile amusement of the viewers, they visit crofters who have lived off the land for generations ... herding sheep.
If this makes you think Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish will be running around, scrambling, and trying to get the sheep to listen to them a la Babe the pig ... you'd be right.
And it is GLORIOUS.
It also illustrates that our two manly men are better suited to just be actors, so they pop open a bottle of Sassenach Whiskey (I'm fairly sure it was Sam's concoction, based on the bottle you can just see in the shot), pour a dram, and toast to the traditions that are still very much alive among Scotland's descendants, them included.
What's more time-honoured than having a wee nip? Slainte!
And tune in next week for the review of the natural beauty of this land we call Scotland (during which, hopefully, neither of the guys gets lost or forgotten somewhere ...)
xx
*images and video not mine
Exemplifying heritage and sophistication, the Traditional Men's Kilt bridges time, reflecting a rich legacy while maintaining contemporary fashion finesse.
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