The kilt cannot be universally accepted

[Jimmy]

I can't help feeling there's a lot of nonsense here.
I am in Russia now, and have worn it since I arrived. (now more than once).
Impoverished it certainly is, in the border region I cross from the Baltic States to Leningradski region, but it's the most comfortable clothing known, so what do I care?

People are usually very polite or even enthusiastic and it's a sort of passport to make people speak English to me (including in the bus ferrying us from the terminal to the plane).

I was met at the airport in St Petersburg check in counter by the most incredible smile from the pretty Russian girl who checked me in.
she said WOW, "that is beautiful!
I always dreamed of buying or wearing a kilt like that!"

I just turned around and said "well you work for an airline, just tell them to put you on a flight to Edinburgh and go do some shopping".

Russians are a bit taken aback by a fairly bright and clearly visible kilt, but they don't know it cost me so little for an amazingly rugged piece of clothing which has already lasted a year in all kinds of conditions, and I am invariably thinking only of my comfort first while they are ignoring their own discomfort or poor dressing, and usually in denial.

I can say now with some personal experience, there's 2-3 exceptions where a kilt is NOT acceptable:-
1/ under a car when you are being showered in oil and filth.
(I wear some dirty old hacked up trousers which got damaged skiing.

2/ Skiing, pretty obviously.

3/ wearing a kilt at over 30-33C is not a good plan. It's way too hot for that.

That's the only real exceptions I use.

Anything between 5-25C is ideal depending on the weight of it, and it's the only thing which puts you head and shoulders above anyone else when it's literally tipping down with rain.

(You don't get wet and soggy in a kilt, but you sure do in jeans!).
In fact I don't bother with umbrellas any more.

Lastly and most importantly I discovered keeping a steady temperature (NOT TOO HOT, not too cold) improved health out of all recognition.

In normal clothes get in and out of public transport, you are assaulted by changes in temperature constantly, from sweating like fury to freezing cold and windy in a street.

In a kilt in the Moscow metro when autumn , winter comes, you just shrug it all off as if nothing had happened, while people are struggling with excessive warmth at +25C in thick winter clothes, then fighting with the sweat making them cold as soon as they hit a street at -10C.

Anything from -25 to +5C is fine by me, but that is when you tend to get the real looks.
It's not then the "cross dressing" kind, but "HOW ON EARTH" does he do it, and in some cases "he's crazy" or "tougher than iron".

Funnily enough I didn't even so much as catch a cold last winter, while everyone around me went down with flu!

Yes I like your post, its more or less one of the most positive posts that I have read on this site, perhaps a wee bit of nonsense here and there like you don't get wet and soggy in a kilt. In my opinion the worst time wearing the kilt is when it is raining heavily, ' a drookit kilt is no fun at all'
I wore my kilt in Moscow a number of years ago when Scotland were playing there, lots of kilties about obviously, and we were well received, of course it was more or less the city centre that we were in.
I loved your comment from the pretty Russian girl at check in, saying that your kilt was beautiful, its great when you get a remark like that.
You say that you are fine with very low temperatures down to -25 degrees, that is cold, I have worn my kilt in sub-zero temps but that is low, even with undergarments, its still very cold, how do you do and keep everything safe and intact?
I can imagine the the looks and comments as you have stated wearing the kilt in that cold but everyman to his own and I admire your attachment and conviction towards the kilt