EVERY town and village in Clackmannanshire is unique...indeed, each has its own "taste".
Whether it's a Drumstick lolly or a pickled onion Space Raiders, the Wee County stays true to its catch-phrase: "More than you imagine."
For one woman, who suffers from synesthesia, the sound of each town presents to her a unique taste, feeling or sensation.
Her condition is a neuro-psychological trait in which the stimulation of one sense triggers an automatic experience of another sense.
The phenomena is a genetically linked and it is estimated to affect between 2-5 per cent of people.
This crossing of the senses can take many forms, including "colour-hearing" which is when specific sounds can evoke the experience of certain colours.
In rarer cases, patients record that certain words can prompt a discernible taste for each word.
Author Julie McDowall has this particular form of synesthesia and caused waves on social media recently by offering to "taste" names.
I have synesthesia which means I can "taste" words. Ask me what your name tastes like.
— Julie McDowall (@JulieAMcDowall) 27 January 2019
She was inundated with requests, with eager Twitter users keen for some insight.
According to Julie, Ross is a Greggs sausage roll; Mia is rice pudding; Sandra is a green Polo Fruit; while Donald is a rubber duck dipped in vinegar.
Wendy is watered-down orange juice; Duncan is burp from smoky bacon crisps; whereas Madison is ear wax with chocolate.
Indeed not all, words evoke tastes with some producing images, feelings or smells, as Julie described Ed Sheeran as "the sensation of looking down on a man's head and ruffling his hair".
I'm exhausted. Been tasting words all day. Starting to wilt.
— Julie McDowall (@JulieAMcDowall) 28 January 2019
Exhausted tastes of HP sauce. Start is thick rice pudding. Wilt is a peach rose petal lying stamped and trodden on a wet pavement.
But, possessed by a sense of curiosity, the Advertiser contacted Julie and asked her to take a bit of a synesthetic tour of Clackmannanshire.
The results are...interesting. Buon appetito!
1. Alloa
According to Julie, the biggest town in Clackmannanshire is a squeaky dog toy.
2. Tullibody
Travel a little bit west and you'll find Tullibody: Which is described as little fragrant felt tubes.
3. Sauchie
In a result sure to cheer, Julie says Sauchie is a Drumstick Lolly.
4. Alva
Travelling into the Hillfoots and it's a mixed bag for Alva, which is said to be morning mist, but it smells vaguely of potato.
5. Tillicoultry
Some words need to be split in two, says Julie. Tillicoultry is, therefore, keys on an old cash register and the feeling of shuffling lots of paper or card.
6. Menstrie
At the western edge of the Hillfoots is the sleepy village of Menstrie. Oddly, though, Menstrie is a wooden ruler being whacked against a desk.
7. Clackmannan
Julie says the county town of Clackmannan is a girl's plastic hair clip.
8. Dollar
For anyone with a sweet tooth living in Dollar, the news is that the town tastes like chocolate coins in foil.
9. Fishcross
Fishcross has to be split into, according to Julie. Perhaps predictably, "fish" is just fish, but "cross" is the smell of incense in church.
10. Coalsnaughton
Again, Coalsnaughton has to be broken down. Coal is the smell of coal. However, "naughton" is pickled onion Space Raiders.
- Julie is an author who specialises in Nuclear War. She has a podcast called the Atomic Hobo which can be listened to on iTunes.
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