Scotland

Capital Edinburgh Largest City Glasgow Official Language(s)

English, Gaelic, Scots Government Constitutional

monarchy Queen (of the UK) Queen

Elizabeth II Prime Minister (of the

UK) David Cameron MP First Minister of Scotland

Alex Salmond MSP Area 78,772 km²Population Around 5.2

million

Scottish people Scottish people have a

worldwide reputation for warmth and friendliness.

The Scots love people – and they like to make others feel at home

Ask a stranger for directions, buy something in a local shop, eat or drink in a pub or restaurant or put on the kettle in your workplace kitchen and you’ll be met with a smiling face and a friendly “Let me help”, “Tell me more about yourself” or “How are you?”

Bagpipes, haggis and kilts Everybody knows the cliché of the piper

on the shortbread tin. But have you experienced the breath-taking reality of a hundred pipers skirling in uplifting unison? This isn't an image from Scotland's cultural past: it happens every August at the Edinburgh Military Tattoo and on Glasgow Green.

Or take food, for example. We all know the stereotypical notions of traditional Scottish fare - haggis, porridge and whisky. Not anymore. Scotland's new elite of super-chefs like Gordon Ramsay, Nick Nairn and Andrew Fairlie are taking the country's incredible natural produce – our beef, venison and seafood – and elevating them to Michelin starred levels.

Or that the kilt is making a comeback on the catwalk as designers like Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood and Glasgow's own Jonathan Saunders take traditional Scottish dress to places the clan chiefs never dreamed of.