The oddly shaped ‘inch’ is surely the strangest of the Firth of Forth islands. Its abbey (the Abbey of the Inch of Saint Columba) was out of gratitude to a hermit who had offered him shelter during a stormy passage on the Forth. It consists...
This market town in the North of Ireland has a few things to see on any tours of Ireland. The earliest parts of Enniskillen Castle date from the 15th century. It houses a very impressive military museum. The castle sits on an island between Lower Lough Erne, and...
This village stands on the actual border between England and Scotland. It comprises Gretna Green and Springfield. The village is famous as the place where runaway couples from England came to be married in accordance with 18th century Scottish law. That is by means of declaration before witnesses. These...
This is the largest body of inland water in Great Britain and well worth seeing on any tours of Scotland. It is 24 miles long and varies in width from ¾ mile to 5 miles. There are 30 islands in Loch Lomond. One island is Inchmurrin, which has...
Waterford is most famous for its Crystal. It will be mentioned on any tours of Ireland as such. But the city has a fascinating history. It is set on the South bank of the River Suir and was founded by the Normans. Right on the quay is the ancient...
In North Clare, near the Cliffs of Moher, lies the strangest landscape in Ireland. The Burren is a bare, hilly, area of about 100 square miles. It is devoid of trees and surface water which is unusual for Ireland. Many compare it to the surface of the moon. It...
The coast road north from Edinburgh to Saint Andrews and Tayside is for part of its route a series of links between small medieval fishing villages of similar appearance: St Monance, Pittenweem, Anstruther and, the most north-easterly, Crail. James VI called these royal burghs the...
In Walter Scott’s novel Rob Roy, Andrew Fairservice, the loquacious gardener, refers to the kingdom of Fife as ‘just like a great combined city – Sae mony royal boroughs yoken on end to end… Kirkcaldy, the sell o’t, is langer than ony town in England.’...
There is a large impressive mound, with the ruins of the castle, near the village of Duffus. It is in Moray, and worth a visit on any tours of Scotland. The village is quaint and nearby Gordonstoun School is famous as the choice of British royalty. The mound...
The village of Saddell is on the rocky East coast of the long promontory of Kintyre. It is interesting to see on tours of Scotland because of the ruins of Saddell Abbey. This abbey was founded in 1160 by Somerled, Lord of the Isles. It was finished by...