Cyprus Stranger Danger: Should We All Be Worried?

Read my new CultNoise article on the recent reports of alleged attempted child abductions in Cyprus, the concerns of British holidaymakers and a ‘stranger danger’ story from my own childhood:

Cyprus Stranger Danger: Should We All Be Worried?

We are often lulled into a false sense of security when on holiday. The sun is shining. There’s a pool and usually a beach only a short walk away. You get to experience new, exotic food. You get to go on day trips and learn about a different culture. You’re surrounded by loads of other holidaymakers and hotel staff who make you feel secure. And you allow your worries to melt away in the basking heat.

But the paradise holiday of British families at the Anastasia Beach Complex hotel in Cyprus quickly turned sour on Tuesday as a gang of men dressed as waiters were allegedly seen taking pictures of children and attempting to abduct them from the resort. Three children are reported to have been lured into the cars just as the child-snatchers were caught.

Construction of Scotland Class: Reflective Blog

Week 2 (6-12 October)
Reflections on class work:

In class this week, we discussed how the perception of Scotland is formed in relation to our speech. I believe that Scottish people find difficulty in differentiating between their informal regional dialect and their formal traditional English tongue. The conflict between these two registers has to a certain extent created an insecurity and even a slight embarrassment among Scots. I believe this to be the case because Scots are continuously re-adjusting their use of language based on who they are speaking to and are at constant risk of being ridiculed for their use of certain words and phrases. We discussed in our tutorial about the need some Scots feel to speak in a colloquial way among peers for fear of being mocked for speaking ‘properly’ and the need they feel to speak in formal English and disregard traditional Scottish words when speaking to people from other nations for fear of being misunderstood or again, mocked.

I think Kevin Bridges illustrates this argument very well when discussing how he alters his speech when performing outside of Scotland and says “No matter how much you try to enunciate, there’s always some from Leamington Spa who’ll say ‘We saw you on the television and I didn’t quite understand everything you were saying’.” I believe Scots are often made to feel embarrassed for using traditional Scottish language but I believe every region of Scotland has a special, almost cryptic, slang sub-language of its own and we should embrace and be proud of our unique speech because it is a part of our heritage and culture.