Relocating to Aberdeen

Relocating to Aberdeen? Background Information.

Aberdeen lies between two rivers, the Dee and the Don in the North East of Scotland. The valley of the Dee, is celebrated for its angling and royal associations and reaches west to the foothills of the Grampian Mountains. Glorious countryside borders the city to the north and south, whilst miles of unspoiled coastline and golden beaches border the city to the east.

Aberdeen's success was established on the time-honoured trades of agriculture, fishing, food processing, textiles and papermaking. With a population of approximately 202,370, it is Scotland’s 3rd biggest city and, as such, is large enough to provide all the rewards of city life, including an excellent theatre, first-class shopping facilities and varied sports amenities. For all its scope and modernity, though, the city keeps the sense of intimacy of a far smaller town.

Aberdeen is famous for an architectural skyline that’s commanded by graceful granite buildings, a lot of which enjoy an ancient history. Close to the city centre is Old Aberdeen, where the fortified 15th-century St Machar’s Cathedral stands on a headland looking out on the River Don and cobbled streets are bordered with attractively restored houses, some dating from about the 17th century.

Education in Aberdeen

The ancient University of Aberdeen is, as a matter of fact, a unification of two universities, King’s College and Marischal College. Nowadays, its 14,000 students study in a range of grand buildings, many of which are in the Old Aberdeen area. A second, more recently-established university, Robert Gordon, functions from numerous places in the city, with its main campuses located at Schoolhill and Garthdee. Aberdeen’s academic constitutions are really closely associated with the business community – this being among the reasons why the city wins in appealing to so many high-tech businesses.

Well-known as the Flower of Scotland, Aberdeen takes great pride in the parks and gardens that are dotted throughout the city. Duthie Park is one of the most dramatic, with its greenhoused Winter Gardens drawing in visitors throughout the year. In the spring, crocuses and daffodils colour the city’s riverbanks, roundabouts and verges, and, in the summer, millions of roses bloom along roadsides and in formal beds. Throughout the wider region are gardens renowned for their beauty, such as the celebrated formal garden at Pitmedden and the beautiful walled gardens at Drum Castle and Crathes Castle.

Within Aberdeenshire itself, there are a lot of great castles to be explored. Both Crathes Castle, near Banchory, and Castle Fraser, by Kemnay, have been rejuvenated to their original grandeur, although others – such as Dunnottar Castle, near Stonehaven, and Slains Castle, near Cruden Bay – are atmospheric ruins. The region also offers a Whisky Trail, as well it might, given that the area boasts over half of Scotland’s whisky distilleries.

The geographic expedition for oil and gas has evidently had a terrific affect on the economical life of the city. The offshore industry produced great economic riches and thousands of jobs, and resulted in the formation of exceedingly efficient services and facilities.

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