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What makes the world such an exciting and interesting place is diversity – for what may seem exceptional to some is standard to others. Every culture has rituals steeped in tradition, some which can be explained by folklore and others that hail from traditions passed on through the generations. Your personal travel manager can help you immerse yourself in these cultures and consequent rituals.
Picture a romantic wedding celebration in the Scottish highlands, beneath snow capped mountains and surrounded by wild heather and lavender. Serene lochs in the distance nestled in a rugged landscape with an equally rugged kilt clad groom on one knee. It sounds like the perfect fairy tale proposal until your closest friends cover you in a concoction of rotten eggs and excrement.
Fortunately your friends haven’t become crazed by jealousy, as unfortunately ‘the blackening of the bride’ is a Scottish tradition. If being soiled by your nearest and dearest isn’t humiliating enough, the bride-to-be is then paraded around the local pubs followed by a procession clanging pots and pans to announce the wedding.
This ritual supposedly wards off bad spirits and stops fairies from abducting the lucky lady prior to the big day, a major concern in some corners of the Celtic world. The blackening of the bride is also a lesson in humility and a test of loyalty for the groom, if he’s willing to bear the stench to stand by your side then he’s a keeper.
Don’t panic, the tradition differs slightly between regions, from both the future bride and groom being doused to the female escaping the initiation all together.
Travel Managers cant guarantee you’ll meet the man of your dreams in Scotland nor protect you from a foray of food waste, but we can get you there and back safely! Visit http://www.travelmanagers.com.au/ptm-search/
We at Travel Managers Australia recognise the traditional owners of the country where we live and work. We recognise and celebrate the diversity of Indigenous people and their enduring cultures and connections to the land and waters of New South Wales.
