As I depart Scotland, I have find mixed feelings. It has a great culture of sandwiches and pubs. And those who know me understand that this is not a fondness to be taken lightly. A word about their sandwiches is in order. It’s so refreshing to find that even the generic sandwiches you find in company canteens and convenience stores have a bit of imagination to them. At home, if you get a turkey sandwich it would consist of turkey and bread. Here, it might have bacon, pesto mayo, and pickle. By the way, I’ve no clue what they pickle here that goes on sandwiches. It’s brown and pasty, but awfully good if you’re brave enough to eat it. And the beers are so much more interesting. I can’t imagine why some of the locals drink Bud. But then I don’t drink Genny in my neighborhood either.

And I also like the music. Not bagpipes mind you. They grate on your nerves pretty quick. But the popular music here is mostly 70’s and 80’s rock and roll. They play it live in the clubs, pipe it onto the airplanes, and in restaurants. I’m probably just getting old, but the techno hip-hop rap stuff that passes for popular music at home has an effect on me similar to bagpipes.

All in all, Scotland seems to be one of those rare places that while not terribly exciting to visit, it would be a right fine place to live… if you could afford it.