“Warm welcome, beautiful architecture and kind local people” – yep, that’s Aberdeen for you.
Well, maybe not for the Abermoaners, too busy looking at their own narrow prejudices to lift their heads long enough to see the best in the Granite City.
But certainly for the shedloads of North American visitors who descended on the city centre last week, the Silver City by the Sea is an absolute gem of a place.
I know, because I got chatting to a couple of these lovely tourists as they were navigating along Union Bridge in the spring sunshine, map in hand and I was compelled to channel my inner tour guide.
Looking for a kilt shop? McCalls around the corner is one of the best around. That’s where I get my kit from.
Oh, it’s whisky you are after? Head straight up Union Street to the Aberdeen Whisky Shop… great drams, knowledgeable staff who will see you right with a smile. That’s where I get my whisky from.
Real Aberdeen pub? See that sign that says The Grill. Off you go.
Cruise ship tourists were marvelling at Aberdeen
Oh, and have you seen our award-winning Aberdeen Art Gallery? Do you like our Nuart murals? Check out Provost Skene’s House to see what Aberdeen has given the world – and America in particular.
But I didn’t need the hard sell. My newly-acquired Michigan mates were already sold on Aberdeen and its delights, marvelling at our architecture and friendly folk.
As they went on their way, the wife in the duo cupped a hand to her mouth and said with a conspiratorial whisper: “It’s better than Edinburgh”.
Okay, as a seasoned son of Dunedin, she took that too far… but it’s a point made and made well.
It shouldn’t be for strangers to talk up our city
Don’t take my well-met word for it. The P&J did a more forensic job of stopping and asking the cruising Canadians and Americans what they thought of Aberdeen. And the answer was a resounding “brilliant”.
I particularly appreciated the comments of a Texas couple who looked at the Union Street guddle of construction and said simply: “It’s a positive sign of progress”,
They traversed the waste of seas to land on these shores and, at a glance, find a positive where many of those who live here can only see negatives. The doom-mongers should take note, when they are not to busy screaming “it’s all crap” from their silos.
It is a breath of fresh air to have visitors arrive and see Aberdeen with new eyes, picking out that which is good and lovely and marvelling at it.
Of course, just one day in a place doesn’t let you get properly under its skin. They would be blissfully unaware of the carnage bus gates have wrought or the swingeing council cuts waiting in the wings with a catastrophic strike as its attendant handmaid.
That said, perhaps we all need to take a wee step back from time to appreciate what we have got on our own doorstep and cherish it that bit more.
It shouldn’t be for strangers to talk up Aberdeen – that should be the job of everyone who lives, works, plays and loves the Granite City, for all its faults.
Scott Begbie is a journalist and editor, as well as PR and comms manager for Aberdeen Inspired.
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