Recently, at work I came across the opportunity to work in Greenock for two weeks.

My immediate thoughts were of women and alcohol (oh and not forgetting the important work-aspect of the trip)
Firstly, I was slightly apprehensive as to what to expect. As someone who has never been to Scotland was forced to base all my expectations of the people of Scotland on common, generalisations and stereotypes that we all tend to develop, however subcontiously. I tried hard to block out the images of men with Kilts, Billy Conoly-type gentlemen and any other images that we tend to associate with 'bonnie Scotland'.
Imagine my dismay as I looked around the airport and there was no glimpse of Sean Conory with an entourage of security guards, nor Loraine Kelly, filming a special edition of This Morning. Instead I was faced a smaller version of Heathrow Airport that I had just left an hour or so earlier.

My first contact with a Greenock native was a rather friendly taxi driver who managed to successfully explain the nature of the religious connotations of the rivalry between the fans of the Rangers and Celtic football clubs. Immediately my visit had proved to be educational, as I had always assumed that the rivalry was simply to do with supporters from different areas.
I arrived at my hotel and I was greeted by two rather-friendly, middle-aged women who
Offered wonderful assistance with booking me in. However, my fantasy of an encounter with a tall, blond hotel bar worker was dashed.

My first day working in Greenock again was all- positive. Apart the obvious difficulty of understanding the Scottish dialects and phrases, I was able to successfully form relationships with my colleagues in the short time that I was there. My only complaint was to do with the ever-constant rivalry (although generally friendly) between the supporters of Rangers and Celtic football clubs within the department. Also, references to alcohol and ̵
6;visits to the pub’ (regardless of the time of day) became rather worrying as to when these individuals managed to find any time to do any work.
However, I am quite sure there are just as many alcohol dependant people working with me back in Hertfordshire.

By the end of my stay, my understanding of Greenock and its people had developed far beyond the generalisations that I arrived with. I have formed very positive opinions of the people OF Greenock and Scottish in general.