It's like most of those bloody heather 'n' haggis stereotypes: they are a figment of the Tourist Board imagination. The only times I ever saw kilts were at weddings. Oh - I once saw one being worn by a piper with a begging bowl up in the Trossachs.
Well we do actually see men in kilts going about their day to day business on the IoS, not many of them I agree, but none the less still quite a few, so yes, it does still happen.
At the outer reaches of the island, there are still many remote areas inhabited by farming communities, no doubt owned for generations by the same clans. We are also finding that there are quite regular clan gatherings, where the Clan will come together from all over the world, for meetings on the IoS or one of the many smaller surrounding islands, followed by the inevitable
kaylee.
But I do agree that the further south you go and nearer you get to the borders, then the more the kilts and the bagpipes are shown for the tourists and happy snappers. But when I first saw a quite elderly gentleman, in the depths of winter, wearing a kilt, then I knew it was the real deal. Also the real kilts that I have seen so far in day-to-day use, are not the brightly coloured tartan things that you see hanging in shop windows, I think those are more for the wealthier tourists and the weddings etc, no these kilts are actually quite drab with very muted colours.
Sorry Slobodan - I have really wandered off topic here haven't I?
Dave
