Vacation Plans -- United Kingdom

Hi, Margo, one day we can meet somewhere (when we're both rich) and talk about it. I fly cold, or I fly with lots of background, kind of depends. In any case, I sure do like a sense of place, and love to just roam around, pretend I live wherever it is. Often skip sites and sights I should see in favor of wandering side streets, side towns. Just read a wonderful book on a town north of Rome...

but back to the thread. Piffka had on this trip an agenda to fill. I have roamed with her a bit, with her taking me around Seattle; she likes the small scene too...

I like to discover that "sense of place" as well. I love to stay one place long enough that I feel homey, but that's a big luxury because it takes time.

About the offal... It was a somewhat dark dining room, and I was a little nervous (but feeling wild & racy enough to order haggis, while my two conservative men, Mr.P & the R, acted like I might be poisoned & was definitely nuts). Tripe is long & purply gray, I think. <shudder> The haggis that came on my plate looked like a dark poultry stuffing with large crumbles of chopped up but otherwise unrecognizable food, all the same. It was good, spicy but good. I do not want to know exactly what was in it and have no idea if this was regulation, standard haggis or not.

I ordered the tripe in a french restaurant in NY this year and my a2k buds looked at me as not completely crazy but with a certain wonderment. They were right, I couldn't finish the entire dish, but when else would I do that? Plus, the restaurant had good desserts.

Oh, I remember that! Well, I'd been getting a little jaded, what with three-course dinners every night. Was avoiding the beef, not excited about the salmon and so I'd become adventursome with poultry. (that sounds weird!)

You know that that "homey feeling" can get a bit dangerous, because you want to return too often. I have that problem with London. It has a somewhat "homey" feeling, and I feel rather comfortable there, but the per diem can kill a budget real quick. <sigh>

Piff, you mean to say you have been to Scotland and never tried the deep-fried Mars Bars?

Now those do jade the palate, or so I'm told.
My son has tried them....he loves them!

I had had haggis once - "complete haggis" (in Aviemore), so to say, including being served accompanied by a piper (former pipe major with Royal Scots Greys).


I still like bagpipes.

I had haggis in Aviemore too!

Well I'm a sceptic, I don't think Haggissesses really exist. You might have eaten something they called haggis, but how do you know it was real? For a start I dont think anything like that could actually breed in captivity. They might have been wild at one time, native to the more remote hills in Scotland, but didn't Mel Gibson kill the last one?

Maybe we need to look around Aviemore for the Haggisesses's hills?


McTag -- I looked but never saw a deep-fried candy bar of any kind. I would probably have tried it!

Mine in Aviemore was definately a wild one, like the others, which had been aeaten in that family (some were kept stuffed on the walls).

However, I've heard that they are now on the red list and that some animal-right-organisations are even asking for a ban on Burns Suppers and/or complitely on haggis!

Walter, it is hard to read about a ban on haggis and then have my eyes drop to the word, bacteria!

Why were you in Aviemore?

The then girl friend of the brother of one of my Scottish friends (you can follow? ) had opened a guesthouse after leaving the army.
Where we stayed a couple of days before doing a greater highland tour.


Of course eateing haggis is culture, agreat cultur. And bacteria ... well, you know, how this artificial haggis is produced

I could just barely follow that you, with a comrade from the army, visited his brother whose gf provided accommodation. Sounds fun!

As to haggis... uh. No, I have never delved deeply into how this is made except that offal was involved... possibly sheep's offal and it was cooked in some organ. Which one? I can't remember. How do you know I had artificial haggis? WHAT is artificial haggis? (What is real haggis?) The vegetarian haggis last time -- it was not nearly as good.

Well, actually it was a friend, I knew since school times and he lived (and lives, now being Dean of the Faculty of Solicitors in Dundee and Director of Studies at Dundee Univerity's Law Department) near Dundee.
I was up there a couple of time ... later with the navy. (That was really funny: "unfortunately" I was always called on duty, when they were going abroad or doing some interesting exercises.)


Read here the true history of haggis.

And HERE are lots of more links, including 'normal' recipes as well as a vegatarian one.

Walter, I see you are a haggis-afficianado. Had a hard time enjoying those recipes since I don't normally eat mutton or lamb, heart, liver or lights.

This is what the stuff I ate looked like (don't look too closely!):

aaaaaargh!

'tis real

-the horror, the horror

Since I've noticed before that you are a great gourmet - "The natives of Cheshire greatly enjoy milk and butter" [William of Malmesbury, 1127] - I will re-think my experiences with haggis.

<chuckling> I think you just got dissed, too.

[I've seen how haggis is being made.]