Balloch, Dunbartonshire
Balloch (; Scots pronunciation: ; Gaelic: ''Am Bealach'') is a village in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, at the foot of Loch Lomond. Etymology Balloch comes from either the Gaelic word ''baile'' which means village or hamlet, or the Gaelic ''bealach'' meaning "a pass". Using the former derivation, Balloch means "village on the loch", i.e. the nearby Loch Lomond, but this would be Baile Loch. Geography Balloch is at the north end of the Vale of Leven, straddling the River Leven itself. It connects to the larger town of Alexandria and to the smaller village of Jamestown, both of which are located to its south. It also borders the Kilpatrick Hills. To the east of the town lies the major local authority housing scheme in the area known as 'The Haldane' or 'The Mill of Haldane'. Glasgow is located around to the southeast. Balloch lies on the 56th parallel, at about the same latitude as Moscow. Tourism With its accessible location at the southern end of Loch Lomond and just of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Maid Of The Loch
PS ''Maid of the Loch'' is the last paddle steamer built in the United Kingdom. She operated on Loch Lomond for 29 years and is being restored near Balloch, West Dunbartonshire, Balloch pier. While under restoration, The ''Maid of the Loch'' is open to the public every Saturday and Sunday Easter to October, and closed throughout the winter. She is presently on the slipway near Balloch Pier undergoing extensive repairs to her hull, complete paddle restoration and will be coated in her original livery of white, green waterline and buff coloured funnel before being launched again into Loch Lomond. Construction ''Maid of the Loch'' is the last of a long line of Loch Lomond steamers that began about 1816, within four years of Henry Bell (engineer), Henry Bell's pioneering passenger steamboat service on the River Clyde. In 1950 the British Transport Commission, owner of the newly nationalised railways, made the decision to replace the ''Princess May'' and ''Prince Edward'' with a ne ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sea Life Centres
Sea Life is a chain of commercial sea life-themed aquarium attractions. there are 53 Sea Life attractions (including standalone Sea Life centres, mini Sea Life features within resort theme parks, and Legoland submarine rides) around the world. The chain is owned by the British company, Merlin Entertainments. History Some of the aquariums now called Sea Life predate this rebrand and existed under different designations prior to their consolidation. The original named attraction was Sea Life Centre in Oban, Scotland, which opened in 1979. By 1992, nine other Sea Life units were open. Locations Asia * Sea Life Bangkok, Thailand * Sea Life Busan, South Korea *Legoland Japan, Japan *Legoland Malaysia, Malaysia * Sea Life Shanghai, China *Sea Life Sichuan, China (Opening in 2024) In November 2015, Merlin Entertainments announced that over the next 10 years it would invest £50 million in India, some of which will be used to open Sea Life centres. In January 2017, Merlin Entertain ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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National Parks Of Scotland
The national parks of Scotland ( gd, Pàirc Nàiseanta) are managed areas of outstanding landscape where some forms of development are restricted to preserve the landscape and natural environment. At present, Scotland has two national parks: Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, created in 2002, and the Cairngorms National Park, created in 2003. Unlike the national parks of many other countries, the national parks of Scotland are not areas of uninhabited land owned by the state. The majority of the land is in the ownership of private landowners (including conservation bodies such as the National Trust for Scotland), and people continue to live and work in the parks. Although the landscapes often appear "wild" in character, the land is not wilderness, as it has been worked by humans for thousands of years. Like their English and Welsh counterparts the national parks of Scotland are effectively "managed landscapes", and are classified as IUCN Category V Protected Landscape ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Balloch Castle (West Dunbartonshire)
Balloch Castle is an early 19th-century country house situated at the southern tip of Loch Lomond, in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Balloch was a property of the Lennox family from the 11th century, and the old castle was built in the 13th century. In the 19th century the estate was purchased by John Buchanan of Ardoch, who demolished the ruins of the old castle and erected the present building. The Tudor Gothic architecture is the work of Robert Lugar. In 1915 Balloch was bought by Glasgow City Corporation, and has been leased by West Dunbartonshire Council since 1975. The estate was designated as a country park in 1980, and since 2002 has been part of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. Although the house has been periodically used for visitor facilities and council offices, it is now included on the Buildings at Risk Register. Balloch Castle is a category A listed building, and the estate is included on the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland. H ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Balloch Country Park
Balloch Country Park is a country park on the southern tip of Loch Lomond in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It was recognised as a country park in 1980, and it is the only country park in the Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, Scotland's first national park. Balloch Country Park features nature trails, guided walks, a walled garden, and picnic lawns with views of the Loch. It was originally developed in the early 19th century by John Buchanan, a partner in the Glasgow and Ship Bank, and the gardens were significantly improved by the Dennistoun-Browns, who bought the estate in 1851. Buchanan also built Balloch Castle, which now serves as the park's visitors' center. Balloch Castle Balloch Castle was built in the Scottish baronial style as a residence in 1808 by the architect Robert Lugar at the order of John Buchanan of Ardoch. The new castle used stone from an earlier castle built near the current site by the Earl of Lennox in 1238 and occupied by the Lennox ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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WWII
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers. World War II was a total war that directly involved more than 100 million personnel from more than 30 countries. The major participants in the war threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. Aircraft played a major role in the conflict, enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and deploying the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II was by far the deadliest conflict in human history; it resulted in 70 to 85 million fatalities, mostly among civilians. Tens of millions died due to genocides (including the Holocaust), starvation, mass ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Renfrew Ferry
The Renfrew Ferry is a passenger ferry service linking the north and south banks of the River Clyde in Scotland. The service, operated by Clydelink without subsidy, crosses between Renfrew and Yoker, close to Glasgow City Centre and is the last Clyde crossing this far upstream. History Originally the service operated from King's Inch, further upstream on land which is now the site of the Braehead Shopping Centre, but moved around two hundred years ago to better serve the town of Renfrew. In the 1960s there were many other crossings operating close to the Renfrew Ferry, mainly serving the dominant shipyards of the Clyde. The Erskine, Whiteinch, Partick, Govan and Finnieston ferries have all stopped providing the services as bridges and tunnels replaced them, but the Renfrew Ferry, being at a point where both tunnelling and bridging are difficult, has survived. It is the last operational Clyde crossing this far upstream, and the closest to Glasgow City Centre. The service was pa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Luss
Luss (''Lus'', 'herb' in Gaelic) is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, on the west bank of Loch Lomond. The village is within the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. History Historically in the County of Dunbarton, its original name is ''Clachan dhu'', or 'dark village'. Ben Lomond, the most southerly Munro, dominates the view north over the loch, and the Luss Hills rise to the west of the village. Saint Kessog brought Christianity to Luss at the early 6th century in the Early Middle Ages. A number of early medieval and medieval monuments survive in the present churchyard, including simple cross-slabs which may date to as early as the 7th century AD, and a hogback grave-cover of the 11th century. A well-preserved late medieval effigy of a bishop is preserved within the modern church. The present Church of Scotland place of worship was built in 1875 by Sir James Colquhoun, 5th Baronet, in memory of his father, who had drowned in the loch in December 1873. T ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dumbarton
Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the capital of the ancient Kingdom of Strathclyde, and later the county town of Dunbartonshire. Dumbarton Castle, on top of Dumbarton Rock, dominates the area. Dumbarton was a Royal burgh between 1222 and 1975. Dumbarton emerged from the 19th century as a centre for shipbuilding, glassmaking, and whisky production. However these industries have since declined, and Dumbarton today is increasingly a commuter town for Glasgow east-southeast of it. Dumbarton F.C. is the local football club. Dumbarton is home to BBC Scotland's drama studio. History Dumbarton history goes back at least as far as the Iron Age and probably much earlier. It has been suggested that in Ancient Rome, Roman times Dumbarton was the "place of importance" named as Alauna in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tourism In Scotland
Scotland is a well-developed tourist destination, with tourism generally being responsible for sustaining 200,000 jobs mainly in the service sector, with tourist spending averaging at £4bn per year. In 2013, for example, UK visitors made 18.5 million visits to Scotland, staying 64.5 million nights and spending £3.7bn. In contrast, overseas residents made 1.58 million visits to Scotland, staying 15 million nights and spending £806m. In terms of overseas visitors, those from the United States made up 24% of visits to Scotland, with the United States being the largest source of overseas visitors, and Germany (9%), France (8%), Canada (7%) and Australia (6%), following behind. Scotland is generally seen as a destination with beautiful scenery combined with thousands of historic sites and attractions. These include prehistoric stone circles, standing stones and burial chambers, and various Bronze Age, Iron Age and Stone Age remains. There are many historic castles, houses, a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |