Highland fun
Bagpipes skirl, cabers fly across Ontario,
When the bagpipes skirl, the highland dancers take the stage and kilted competitors hurl cabers across the Ontario highlands like superheroes, it’s all in the spirit of Cuimhnich air na daoine o’n d’thainig thu.
The Gaelic phrase means “remember the people from whom you have come.” And it’s at the heart of the dozen or more Scottish festivals that take place every summer in Ontario.
“Our motto is ‘it’s Scotland, without the airfare,’ ” says David Radley, president of the Fergus Scottish Festival and Highland Games, taking place Aug. 7 to 9, in the small town north of Guelph, about 100 kilometres west of Toronto.
This three-day blitz of all things Scottish is one of the largest and longest-running competitions of its kind in North America. Founded in 1946, it sells about 20,000 tickets each year.
Like other Highland games, from Kincardine to Durham, its biggest draws include pipe and drum bands that stir the soul and come from around the world to compete, highland dancers doing the fling or sword dance, and “heavy events” which include a Scottish version of the hammer throw and of course the caber toss, which sees big men competing to see who can toss a large tapered pole or caber the farthest.
And then there’s the raucous parade of the clans, a procession of tartan-clad groups with surnames such as MacTavish, Campbell and Donald.
Given that almost one in five Canadians is of Scottish descent, it’s not surprising that celebrations of “the twa lands” (Scotland and Canada) are popular. They also attract plenty of folk with nary a drop of Scottish blood, says Radley.
And they show there’s more to Scottish festivities than Robbie Burns Day, when the haggis, whisky and tartan come out in honour of the beloved Scottish poet’s Jan. 25 birthday.
Scots built this city and their roots run so deep in Canadian history — from politics and business to education and the arts — that the culture has been largely embedded. There are enough famous Scottish-Canadians to fill a book — as author Ken McGoogan showed in his 2010 book How the Scots Invented Canada — but the distinctive heritage is still alive and flourishing in traditional music, dance, food and clan identity. Culture You don’t have to be Scottish to give highland dancing a whirl. Meghan Bold, 35, who has been doing the fling since she was 7, holds $14 payas-you-go lessons this summer at her Bold Steps Dance Studio, at 240 Avenue Rd., and at 2210 Queen St. E., #6.
Rather learn to dance a jig? The Toronto branch of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society offers beginner classes, monthly dances, annual formal balls and outdoor dancing in the park, including Dufferin Grove Park on Aug. 27. Country dancing involves couples dancing in formation in groups. But you don’t have to come with a partner. People of all ages are welcome, says convenor Glenna MacDonald, 69. “It keeps you young.”
Two Toronto regiments with pipes and drums bands encourage musicians to sign up and also teach beginners: the renowned 48th Highlanders of Canada Pipes and Drums and the Toronto Scottish Regiment Pipes and Drums. Eat and drink Scotland isn’t the first country to come to mind when thinking fine cuisine, but Donna Wolff, owner of the Caledonian, 856 College St., says Scottish fare gets a bum rap.
“It’s hearty comfort food, a little taste of home,” says Wolff, who hails from the highlands in Aberdeenshire and opened the combination pub and whisky bar in 2010. Tennent’s Lager is her bestselling beer and those who appreciate a fine dram of Scotch can sip one of the 270 malts she has in stock. She urges everyone to at least taste haggis (sheep entrails mixed with oatmeal and spices). Order a small side dish alongside a Scotch egg as an appetizer, or as part of the popular haggis, neeps and tatties dinner.
At the other end of town, High Street Fish and Chips in Don Mills, 55 Underhill Dr., offers Scottish favourites such as Melton Mowbray pie (minced pork and aspic), tattie scones and haggis. Eat in or take it out. (Note: It’s closed now for holidays and reopens Aug 11).
If you’re in the mood to dine at home, Allen’s Scottish Butchers at 2151 Weston Rd. is the go-to spot for local Scots craving haggis, blood pudding, steak pies and other old country meals. The family business is open Thursdays through Saturdays.
For handmade Scottish sweets, stop by Mary Macleod’s Shortbread, a wee shop east of the Distillery District at 639 Queen St. E., where “the first cookie is on us.” Macleod, 81, who was born in Scotland and started her business in 1981, is known for her traditional buttery shortbread as well as new flavours such as maple crunch, espresso chocolate or cranberry almond. Play Toronto Scottish Rugby Football Club was started by a bunch of expats in 1953 who wanted to show the Canucks how the game is played. It’s still going strong, with competitive amateur teams for men, women and youth. Home games are at Fletcher’s
Fields in Markham ($6 admission). Shop Want to flip through a book about your ancestral clan, or see what you look like in a kilt? The Scottish Company, 2001Leslie St., has been selling old country items from tartans to teas for the last 20 years.
Owner Bill Somerville, who immigrated to Canada in 1967, says his wife April opened the shop because it was hard to get items they craved from back home. They stocked it with thistle-patterned china, tradi- tional pewter flasks and quaichs (a traditional “cup of friendship”) and gems embedded with the stems of heather. Made-to-measure kilts are sewn on the premises, and full kits are available to rent. The “food hall” has everything from frozen Scotch pies and tins of mushy peas to jams, Scottish oats and toffee.
William Glen and Son,1825 Avenue Rd., has an active kilt-making and rental business. It also provides full regalia and decor for weddings and other celebrations. Learn
á Toronto’s statue of the iconic Robert Burns was unveiled at Allan Gardens in 1902 to the famed pipes and drums of the 48th Highlanders of Canada. To learn more about the history of the 48th Highlanders, a reserve regiment and the first in Ontario to wear kilts, visit the 48th Highlanders of Canada Museum at St. Andrews Church, 75 Simcoe St.
á A statue of Canada’s first prime minister Sir John A. Macdonald, who was born in Scotland, is at the south end of Queen’s Park at College St. and University Ave.
á The last residence of Toronto’s first mayor, the spirited William Lyon Mackenzie, who took office in 1834, the Mackenzie House, at 82 Bond St., is a public museum, restored to its original 19th-century appearance and full of artifacts and historical documents from that era.
á Part of the legacy of Toronto Scots lies in a green and peaceful place that’s ideal for a summer walk. Plot U at the Mount Pleasant Cemetery, 375 Mount Pleasant Rd., was bought in 1886 by the St. Andrew’s Society of Toronto, and features a large stone monument among the headstones of Torontonians’ Scottish ancestors. The society, a charitable group set up in 1836 to help settle Scottish immigrants, now donates to an array of local groups and holds cultural events, from Robbie Burns dinners to dances and an annual charity ball.