Don’t mention the war

Some more great videos from the British newspaper, The Guardian. First, let’s take a break from the Festival and focus on the 2012 Olympics. Sure, the games will be held in London, but that’s barely an hour plane ride from Edinburgh (or about eight hours by bus/car). Edinburgh will be sure to prosper from the ancient games, which means it can expect an influx of tourists in two years time. So it might be prudent to brush up on some of your cultural tolerance.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqGxf1_o-5k[/youtube]

Apparently the British Tourist Authority has issued guidelines on how not to offend tourists of different nationalities. Some of the more interesting (or ridiculous) suggestions:

Never call a Canadian an American (come on, I thought we were all passed the anti-American sentiment).

Don’t piss off a South African by putting your thumb in between your forefinger and second finger – it’s an insulting gesture (it is, I remember that from when I lived in Jo’burg in 2006).

And if speaking to a Mexican, don’t mention their country’s 1840 war against the United States. For those of you who need a brush up on world history, this is the war in which Mexico lost half of its territory to the USA. Still, 170 years later, you would think Mexico would have gotten over it. Are they still harboring a grudge or is Visit Britain completely out of touch with reality? Read the article to decide.

OK, now back to the Edinburgh Festival. A more macabre play is topping the hits this year, Lockerbie: Unfinished Business. As the title gives away, it’s about the infamous 1988 terrorist attack on Pan Am Flight 103, which exploded over the Scottish town of Lockerbie. All 243 passengers and 16 crew members on board were killed, and large sections of debris from the plane landed in the town, killing eleven more people.

The play comes on the one-year anniversary of the release of the man accused of helping to perpetrate the attack, Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi of Libya (he has always maintained his innocence). He was “mercifully released” by the Scottish government last year after medical tests showed he had terminal cancer and would die within a few months. But today he is still alive, and allegations have come forward that Scotland agreed to release him to secure a high profile oil contract from Libya for BP.

But back to the play, performer David Benson and director Hannah Eidinow were inspired by activist Jim Swire, who lost his 24-year-old daughter in the attack.  This one-man show explores Swire’s quest for truth and justice and how he eventually came to believe in – and would try to prove – al Megrahi’s innocence.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89vQYj3i7BA[/youtube]

Book your tickets at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival website.

[Tourist photo by Kyz]