A few months ago, we had received a
letter from Mr. Donald L. Reid of Ayrshire,
Scotland, informing us that there is yet
another place on this planet that shares
the name of the capital city of Bihar,
Patna.
Since then, we, at PatnaDaily.Com, had
been toying with the idea of sharing
this information with our visitors but
for one reason or another, the idea
remained just that, an idea!
This past December, however, things
changed as Mr. Reid, a social historian
who has written a number of books on the
Valley of Doon in Scotland, its rich
history and culture, once again
expressed his fascination with Patna,
Bihar, and the fact that his beloved
town and our equally-beloved city shared
more than just the name.
After exchanging a few emails, we, at
PatnaDaily.Com, could not help but be
drawn towards the culture and people of
Patna, Ayrshire. We asked Mr. Reid to
give us more details about his town in
particular, and Valley of Doon in
general, so we could share this
wonderful information with our visitors.
Mr. Reid not only provided the text and pictures for
this feature, he went one step
further and sent us a personally
autographed copy of his very absorbing
book "Robert Burns' Valley of Doon - An
Ayrshire Journey Down Memory Lane". |
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The book gives fascinating details of
the entire Valley of Doon, the home of
Robert Burns (January 25, 1759 – July
21, 1796), the world-famous poet and the
national bard of Scotland.
It is at the Valley of Doon Burns wrote
"Auld Lang Syne" that is sung across
Scotland at Hogmanay (New Year), and
other poems and songs including "A Red,
Red Rose," "A Man's A Man For A' That,"
"To A Louse" and "To A Mouse" that
elevated him to a poetic height that is
enjoyed by only a handful of
littérateurs in the world.
Today Burns is revered and loved not
only by the Scottish but also by every
literature or poetry lover on this
planet.
Coming back to Patna, Ayrshire, we
believe our readers will enjoy its
history and culture particularly in view
of the fact that the two Patnas, though
separated by thousands of miles,
mountains, rivers and oceans, do in fact
share some commonalities (river, mining,
war memorial??) understanding
of which could go a long way in
appreciating the richness and goodness
of both very historical, culturally rich
cities.
So without further delay, let's begin
our wonderful journey to Patna, Patna
Ayrshire, that is.
- Editor, PD |
