It is now a year since I said my final goodbye to living in Dundee. Roughly this time last year I handed back my keys to my flat near the football stadiums and headed back up to my old life in Aberdeen, just days after I shot ouzo on my leaving night and didn't even make it out (to the award winning student union).

It is also one month past that Dundee was shortlisted for the UK City of Culture Award 2017. Which many not familiar with the city found shocking with someone even calling it a "token Scottish dump". But for anyone who has lived there and experienced it hands on you'll know that this city has a lot more to offer than someone asking you for 50p at the bus station.

I love Glasgow and still consider myself an Aberdonian, and even though it would have been nice if my home city had been shortlisted after putting forward a bid, truthfully I do believe that Dundee deserves this award more.

And if you still need convincing, let me list the reasons. Dennis and Gnasher were born here and I've taken many a drunken photo next to the Desperate Dan statue. In two weeks I'll be heading through to attend one of my favourite yearly events where the computer games industry (one of Scotland's strongest industries, with Dundee as its centre point) shows off some of its upcoming talent (many of which studied at Abertay - rated one of the best universities in the world for computer games courses). My favourite nightclub ever is still situated down a Dundonian alleyway, which is now becoming a popular gig venue. I spent my very last St Patrick's day as a student at an Old English play (as you do) acted out by Dundee University students. I was a member of the Abertay Dance team who last year became winners at an Edinburgh dance competition. There is Dundee Contemporary Arts, which even did some blogger outreach, and also the Dundee Rep Theatre which, along with the National Theatre of Scotland (and a few other people), produced Other Dundee which I would have totally took part in if I had been still living there. And there's also The Rusty Hip Collective. Then there's the universities: Abertay which produces computer gaming talent and allows students to graduate in pink dresses and Dundee University who's rector played my favourite film villain before that Welsh guy (we're talking about Hannibal Lector).

Don't tell me Dundee doesn't have fucking culture.

To Dundee, City of Culture 2017 and somewhere that will always have a place in my heart. ♥

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Two weeks ago I received an e-mail asking if I wanted to attend an event where I would get to sit about drinking cider.

To which I said yes.

The event was part of the Koppaberg happenings competition which have taken place in London and Manchester (I believe?) and in early July it was Glasgow's turn! I headed along on a Thursday night with my pal Louise to their branded van situated outside the Buchanan Galleries where we were greeted by the staff who had driven up to Glasgow from London (and were adjusting to our weather!) and got to sample some of their ciders before the winners of the competition came along.




A main part of the campaign is to promote their lesser know variations of cider so the two options available that night were elderflower and cranberry. Both were delicious but for the rest of the night I helped myself to maybe about five elderflower ciders. Like a lot of flavoured ciders these two go down really easily and if you weren't told they were alcoholic you might believe they were just simply juice (could cause a lot of mischief with that...).

But they were still alcoholic so my bladder filled quickly and had to dash to the cinema to pee (and run home at the end of the night) and had that 'feeling drunk when you're alone in a toilet' feeling. (I'm really glad I can share this stuff with you guys)

Maybe it's the eternal students in me speaking but I still don't think there are many other ways to spend any night than drinking cider out the back of a van with some friends. However, cider is admittedly usually associated with poor young people but Kopparberg does a good job of making it feel grown up and I would completely recommend these flavours rather than the simple pear or cider variants.

Morag x

P.S. I attended this event as a PR request and received the numerous bottles of cider for free however I have not been paid to write about it.

[Edit June 2014: I've began being a lot more serious about veggie alcohol choices, and now know Kopparberg isn't one of them]

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If you're into alternative fashion then the #altblogger tag is coming.

Toodle pip!