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While we were in Sutherlin, we went to the Celtic Highland Games, sponsored by the Douglas Scottish Society, in nearby Winston, Douglas County. We enjoyed watching a few of the games, such as the Youth Competition and the Stone Throw. There was also a lot of music, some modern, some traditional.

There were a few very athletic people, and others with equal enthusiasm! Notice the woman wearing the kilt - more about her later.

From Scottish Games

Here's another enthusiastic contestant, but she didn't perform very well in the competition. Still, I admired her courage.

From Scottish Games

This group of women sang several traditional Scottish songs, mostly in Gaelic, a capella. Very enjoyable!

From Scottish Games

There were lots of pipers...

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...and drummers.

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It was interesting to notice various Scottish costumes people wore.

From Scottish Games

From Scottish Games

From Scottish Games

There's no doubt about this woman's heritage, based on her costume and that beautiful red hair! A sign at the entrance offered free admission between 9 and 10 am to anyone with natural red hair. As we arrived after 10, I overheard someone ask for free admission, and the answer was "Redheads now have to pay double." I'm sure glad my hair has turned gray, erasing any trace of red that was ever there! In fact, this time I qualified for the senior discount, as the age limit was a few years younger than 65.

From Scottish Games

The woman introducing the performers was also a redhead.

From Scottish Games

And here are another couple of obviously natural redheads.

From Scottish Games

Anyone without a costume could easily purchase one.

From Scottish Games

From Scottish Games

From Scottish Games

Or, at least a tie made of the clan's plaid.

From Scottish Games

This quilt was being raffled off. I didn't win. I guess you had to buy a ticket.

From Scottish Games

Various clans were represented. This is the one I belong to, as my Mother's maiden name was Donald. She was a natural blond, and her sister and two of her 3 brothers were redheads.

From Scottish Games

John Lewis was the Donald Clan representative, wearing one of the official tartans in his kilt. It's interesting to see the wide variety of names that belong to clans. A lot of them make sense, such as MacDonald, Donnell and Donaldson. But there are lots more on the clan list, including MacKay (my late husband's name, variant spelling McKay), Hutchinson (his birth name), and Isaacson (his mother's maiden name was Isaacs). In fact, there are more than 200 family names on the list of the Donald Clan!

From Scottish Games

A parade included lots of colorful outfits...

From Scottish Games

...and even a few Celtic dogs.

From Scottish Games

If you were interested in tasting, this fellow would let you sample Haggis, the food that everyone visiting Scotland must try at least once. If you want to know more about this strange and exotic dish, go to www.burnsnight.net/haggis/ and read what Robert Burns had to say about it. But be careful, you'll be surprised if you don't already know the ingredients!

From Scottish Games

We had lunch (no haggis) and I sampled an ale in the Crooked Kilt, off limits to children since they serve alcohol.

From Scottish Games

Finally, here's the same woman from the stone throw competition in the first photo. She's a member of the 3-person musical group called Golden Bough. They performed some beautiful Scottish music, and she was a great performer, managing to dance, play the fiddle and sing all at the same time. I think she also won the women's competition in the games. I can't say for sure, but I don't think the other woman is a natural redhead.

From Scottish Games

You may have noticed a new feature that's now on Blogger. It's labeled "Reaction" and offers a few options. I'll be interested to see if anyone reading this blog uses it. You may still add comments (and I love getting your comments!), unless you're having a problem like a few people who have reported that they can't add comments. I selected the setting for anyone to add comments, but it seems there's a 'glitch' in Blogger.

Also, I just learned of a free service for automatic notification of updates, called Change Detection. Since I'm very irregular in blogging, you may want to use this service to let you know whenever I've entered another post. Go to www.changedetection.com/ I haven't received any spam or experienced other problems in using it, so I think it's safe.

Until next time...