Arrive Magazine - January/February 2011

Despite varying levels of authenticity, however,

merry celebrations of Scottish culture can be found in the nation’s capital, especially around the Jan.

25 birthday of lauded poet Robert “Rabbie” Burns (1759–1796). Revelers gather for suppers of haggis (a sausage “pudding” cooked in a casing of sheep’s intestine), neeps and tatties (turnips and potatoes), free-flowing whisky, readings of Rabbie’s works and toasts to everything from the lasses to the national dish. Nowadays, the evening often finishes with a ceilidh (pronounced KAY-lay), which brings attend-ees to their feet for partner-based square dances and long, spinning reels.

Washington, D.C., adds its own flavor to the Burns Night tradition, thanks to events hosted by local chapters of the University of Edinburgh Alumni Club, the St. Andrew’s Society and the Royal Mile Pub in Wheaton, Md. Guests rent kilts and sporrans from tartan haven The Scottish Merchant in Old Town Alexandria, a Virginia port town founded by Scottish immigrants.

Visit thecapitalscot.com for information on events throughout the year, such as the Virginia Scottish Games each September, where sweet fiddle notes and mesmerizing bagpipe drones echo into the surrounding hills. Would Burns approve of our efforts here? Aye, I reckon so. —Corinne Whiting

Celebrating “Rabbie” Burns.

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