I was staying in Stirling for the weekend for a writers’ conference and had the opportunity to visit Stirling castle for the first time. It was a stirring experience and well worth the climb up the hill.
My visit was on a cold dank November afternoon with the daylight rapidly turning into ‘glooming’. Wanting to know more of the history of this magnificant castle I attached myself to a guided tour which started at 3.30 pm. Dusk was certainly approaching. For the first half of the tour I was the only participant. (fortunately four others joined us later.) For an hour I was regaled with stories of the the terrible atrocities the English had inflicted on the Scots (though there was aggression on the other side as well).
I tried not to say anything which have betrayed my English accent, even worse a southern English accent. I hope the guide was so busy delivering his spiel that the irony of the situation was lost to him.
I survived but had to ask myself the question, will the situation change on 18th September next year? (The date of the Scottish referendum)
Carol, an English woman