Quick hits: Highland Games, what's up with Perquimans, and WNC gets a medical school

Games bring Scotland to Western N.C.
"For more than half a century, Grandfather Mountain has hosted the Highland Games, a celebration of Scottish heritage through athleticism, music and dance," says the Citizen-Times.

"But the event, beginning Thursday at MacRae Meadows, may draw particular interest this year, according to Catherine Morton, marketing director with Grandfather Mountain.

" 'In the world of travel and tourism in 2009, everybody is looking for a way to have recreation and unique experiences, and they also don't want to spend a lot of money doing it,' Morton said.

" 'This is a far-away place that isn't far away,' she said. 'You can sleep in your bed but feel like you've spent the day in Europe.' ..."


What's in a name?
"The mayor of Hertford, N.C., has been known to quiz newcomers about his home county of Perquimans," says the Virginian-Pilot.

"His most often asked question is about the meaning of the name. Always a good tour guide, Sid Eley has his answer ready and a theory about its genesis.

" 'It's an Indian word that means land of beautiful women,' he said.

" 'I've heard one story - but I don't have any proof of this - that the men would go to the Outer Banks on fishing expeditions and this is where they left their women. And none of them had ugly wives.' ..."

WNC takes first steps toward medical school

"Like their classmates around the state, four UNC School of Medicine students spent the first day of their third year of medical school taking a tour of the hospital they'll be working in and getting their identification badges.

"But unlike their classmates, the four women who sat practicing suturing on pig's feet Monday afternoon are the first to receive their training at the medical school's newest branch in Western North Carolina and among the first in the country to participate in a new way of educating medical students," says the Citizen-Times.

"The pilot program that started this week establishes a branch of UNC School of Medicine in WNC for the first time, bringing the four third-year medical school students to the mountains for two years to learn clinical skills.

"The program is a collaboration among the UNC School of Medicine, UNC Health Care System, Mission Hospital, the Mountain Area Health Education Center, the Western North Carolina Health Network and local physicians. ..."