LL-L "Tradition" 2009.12.28 (05) [EN]

[Lowlands-L List]

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L O W L A N D S - L - 28 December 2009 - Volume 05
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From: Tom Mc Rae <thomas.mcrae at bigpond.com>
Subject: LL-L "Tradition" 2009.12.28 (03) [EN]

In Scotland Christmas is still not as major a celebration as The New Year.
Traditionally the custom of First Footing begins just after January 1st
begins. Families wait at home for their First Foot who really
should be a dark haired man. He will enter bearing a piece of coal, and a
bottle of Scotch. Sometimes bread and salt will also be carried.
The visited family is now FREE. They ply the guest with drink of his choice,
shortbread, and black bun (described very well BY Sandy
as a fruit loaf in pastry). Others turn up and by then all doors should be
open to all friends and even strangers. Intervisiting now begins
and goes on well into next morning. In my time up until the 1960's each home
would have a sumptious spread of cakes, cheese, and sandwiches.
Canned salmon was mandatory on some of those but Edinburgh Scots followed a
ghastly tradition of soaking the fish in vinegar "Tae gie it
sum flay-vurr".
Men and women tended to separate, women to sip sherry or cups of tea, men
getting stuck into the booze and becoming zombies.
Later in the afternoon when they finally awoke they paid for their
indulgences but then it's on to visit other friends.  "Hey Jimmy it's guid
tae see Yer huv Yer New Year" would be the welcoming cry to visitors up
until at least March.
Those days the old First Footing has largely been replaced in Edinburgh by
crowds massing around The Tron Kirk in the High Street.
Gimme the Old Ways any time.
On 29/12/2009, at 2:18 AM, Lowlands-L List wrote:

I would like to suggest that whoever feels so inclined share some of their
local post-Christmas and New Year's traditions.


 Best Regards
Tom Mc Rae
Brisbane Australia
An honest man's the noblest work of God (Robert Burns)

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