Dunfermline: A Librarian's Dream!

Today was a fun day as we headed south towards Edinburgh.  It was our final full day here in Scotland, although I must admit, had it been our first day ever, we would have missed a LOT of the countryside due to the thick fog and rainy morning we experienced. 

But once we crossed into the Kingdom of Fife, the weather was much more promising.  Our first stop was Auchtermachty, a village southwest of Dundee.  We had decided to stop here simply because it had been a village where Dr. Findlay, a Scottish television series from the late 90's, had been filmed.  We thought it would be fun to see some of the houses that had become familiar in the show.  We had stumbled upon the entertaining cast of characters during the pandemic and had enjoyed watching all of the episodes. 

I think it's fair to say that the show aired so long ago that there is not much memory of it left in Auchtermachty.  Or, if there is, we couldn't find it. 

But we did find this:  a war memorial

library, which was closed until 2:00 today,

and a church with two bells in the tower. 

The village is nestled in the hillsides with the Lomond Mountains to the west, and really is a very charming place to drive through.  But there wasn't much activity there today.

We then hopped into the car and drove to Dunfermline, one of our favorite villages from past visits.  I had read that the town had built a new library and history center and wanted to check it out. 

The building stands near Dunfermline Cathedral and the Abbott house.  

And, I have to say, it is amazing!  It is a quite large building with several floors, (unfortunately I did not take a photo) and it appears that about half of it is a library.  There are floors filled with reading rooms, and reference rooms, as well as a special children's library.  We didn't really focus on the library part of the building, but I could see where this would be a real gem for book readers!

The building is split into two separate sections, and the one of interest today was the history side.   This mural greeted us as we walked up the steps.

And just around the corner stood a cow and its calf.  I'm sure there is a joke in there somewhere, but I just don't get it.  Please feel free to enlighten me if you do.

As many libraries do, the Dunfermline library has a traveling exhibit on the second floor, and the subject matter involved Vikings.  Some of the panels were interesting to read, but it really wasn't something that I wanted to delve into, particularly since there were human remains displayed in some of the cases.  Just a bit too gory for me. 

Here's a quick synopsis for you:  Wooden carvings of the Viking subjects whose history was featured .

Panel boards like this, describing the timeline of the vikings, and what each of those featured had done to warrant being displayed.

and this is what I found to be extremely exciting....portable seats hanging on the wall!

Let's just say that one is extremely interested in reading about Vikings....but there is a LOT of information to absorb, and, perhaps, the legs are tired while trying to read.  Well....just pop over and grab a little folding seat!  There were several stands of these located in various parts of the history section.  

I don't know about you, but I think that is pretty awesome!  There have been plenty of times when I've been in a museum when I'd just love to be able to have a wee rest.  How perfect is this?

If you haven't guessed by now, I wasn't a fan of the Viking exhibit.  I wondered around, and back in the corner, found this cozy area set up for kids to enjoy.

and this was the view through the window.

Back to the other side of the building, and we were finally in the history section.  There stood this huge Jaquard weaving machine that would have been used by locals in Dunfermline to make the special tapestry like fabrics. 

The display cases showed various tools related to automated weaving and explained how it related to the town of Dunfermline over the years. 

Fabrics were in demand from this village at one time.

There was even this model loom which had been made by William Halley in 1938. He was born in Dunfermline.  His model caught the eye of Queen Mary and she asked for it to be brought to Buckingham Palace. 

Elizabeth (the future queen) and her sister, Margaret, each wove their own coronation napkin during the demonstration! 

Next to the model stood a clock from the mid 1700's that had belonged to a local,

and a Royal Chair, that dated from the 1700's.  The chair was made specifically to be used at the Royal Palace. 

  

There was a painting of King James VI of Scotland, and a hologram that featured King Charles I describing how he had been born in Dunfermline and executed there as well.

The history was really so well presented, with a long time line stretching down the exterior hallway.  Every now and then there was a question about a particular notable on the timeline, and when you lifted the circle, the answer was presented.  What a clever way to teach history!

And, the views while walking along were stunning.

We then moved into the nostalgia room, which held items familiar from the past.

I'm pretty sure my mom still has one of those scrub boards and the soap to go with it!

These ducks remind me of a set that my Aunt and Uncle had hanging in their home.  That wallpaper would have fit in as well. 

Pretty sure my kids had this Fisher Price garage.

And I KNOW we have this game as we were just playing it with our grandchildren about a month ago.

What fun it was reminiscing about so many items on display!

On a serious note, the museum also covered the tragic events of World War I, featuring one of the residents in particular. 

He was killed his very first day in battle. 

There were some small display cases brimming with various items that had been donated by local residents.

Then, we moved onto the life of Andrew Carnegie.  He was born in Dunfermline, the son of a weaver.  His parents emigrated to the United States when he was 12, and he raised up the ranks through the railroad system due to his uncanny ability to hear morse code and translate it by ear.  He eventually became extremely wealthy with his involvement in the steel industry. But, he was determined to give back away his fortune for the benefit of others.  He has been responsible for hundreds of museums around the globe. 

But although I was quite familiar with his history, I did not realize that he was personally responsible for donating the money for the dinosaur that stands in the Carnegie Museum in Oakland, PA.

or the stained glass windows that are in the museum as well.

There was a wealth of information detailing the man who was determined to give his fortune away for the betterment of man.  Really, this museum/library is quite a gem and a real treasure for the town of Dunfermline. 

By now, we decided that we needed a little break.  We found a little cafe with a lovely view as well.

Then we headed to our hotel, which is really quite lovely.  Apparently, Mary Queen of Scots stayed here at one time.  I didn't pick it for that reason.  I chose it because it is 6 miles from the airport.  And, hopefully a super easy drive in the morning. 

Plus, it has a lovely restaurant, where we enjoyed a delicious dinner, and I even treated myself to a sticky toffee pudding.(sharing, of course.)

 Pretty much the perfect ending to a glorious trip.  I hope you enjoyed following along! 

Revisiting the Fife Coastal Trail

So, here we are, back in Edinburgh, and loving the experience.  It sure doesn't hurt that I found this awesome place to stay for quite a reasonable sum.  In fact, this just might be the deal of the century and you can surely bet that we aren't complaining!  This place might just go down on the record books as our best experience yet.  I suppose we'll all just have to wait and see, won't we?

Marty was eager to get out and show Suzie a section of the Fife Coastal Trail, and so we just ignored the cloudy and chilly weather, bundled up and headed to the train station to start the adventure.

Marty's enthusiasm was quite obvious, as he was determined to photograph Suzie just about every step of the way.  For awhile there, I felt like a bystander to a professional photoshoot. And, Suzie, being the sweetheart that she is, happily complied. Wasn't it nice of her to appease her uncle?

We began our adventure by boarding the train in Haymarket Station and riding it across the firth into the Kingdom of Fife.

The Royal Burgh of Burnt Island would be our starting point  with Aberdour as our destination. 

We soon alighted in Burnt Island

and began the trek through this Royal Burgh.

When one follows the signs,  as those of us shown above, it's fairly easy to follow this trail in this section. 

But, when you are in the company of someone (who shall remain nameless)  who does not follow the signs......well.....what can I say?   The fact is, you can't climb over the railroad tracks, (which is a great safety precaution.......and probably why there are signs to follow).   No worries, a little diversion here and there has become fairly common as of late.  At my suggestion, we headed back to the marked trail and were soon back on track.

The beginning of the trail at this point is really scenic, with a stone wall along either side.

Walking along, one can well imagine carriages traveling on this ground in past centuries.  It is quite obvious that those walls have been standing for quite a long time.

Today, the trail was enhanced by flowering gorse, adding a splash of color along the way.

This trail is always so scenic, and today, it was enhanced with variant weather conditions as we watched storms looming over Edinburgh in the distance.

We were fortunate to never see anything more than a few raindrops on our walk today, and we were well prepared for the cold in the air.  It certainly appears that other areas where not equally fortunate. 

Finally we were on the silver sands of Aberdour.

and, obviously, the girls were loving it.

As we headed  back towards the trail, we ran into a local man who was very excited to meet us.  He shook Marty's hand and welcomed us to Aberdour,  giving us a rundown on the all the exciting amenities that Aberdour had to offer.  We were polite and listened to him quite attentively as he obviously had no idea how often we had visited here.  He really was very entertaining, and the girls loved hearing his cute accent as he talked with us.  And, it reminded me of just how welcoming the Scots have been, and continue to be, to us.  You just don't see that kind of hospitality too many places.

We began the trek up these steps to the top of the cliff.

where, once again, we were awed at the sheer beauty of our surrounds.

I never tire of seeing these views.

Marty continued his role as photographer.

and Suzie certainly seemed happy to comply.

And, of course, Marty couldn't resist the selfie at the top.

If you were the least bit curious about the weather, I'd say that photo should clear up any questions that you might have had.  Brrr!!!

We finished the trail, and walked up the hill into the town of Aberdour, making our way to the lovely castle that stands on the edge this quaint little village. 

I soon learned that an episode of Outlander was filmed at this castle, which explained the number of visitors that were there today, as well as the few cafes that had popped up since our visit just a couple of years ago.  This has always been one of my favorite castles in Fife, and one of the most well preserved and scenic ones in my opinion.  You just can't beat the convenient location to the train station, that's for sure!

Speaking of which, it was time to head back, so we once again hopped the train, this time taking it towards Edinburgh.

We made it back to the B&B just in time for the High Tea that we had reserved at 3:30.

It was to be served in the library, so we headed there to find the table all set up and ready for us.

Isn't this just lovely?

Believe me....those items were as wonderful as they look in this photo.

We had hoped to treat Suzie and Amy to high tea, but when we tried making a reservation at the Dome on George Street, it was already fully booked.  When I realized that our B&B offered this luxury, as long as we made a reservation, it certainly seemed worth trying.

We had the library completely to ourselves to savor our treats and just relax after once again walking a record number of 9.7 miles.  No wonder we were beat! 

This is our last evening in Edinburgh, and we certainly did try to make the most of it.

Amy leaves tomorrow from Edinburgh airport, while Marty and I accompany Suzie back to London  on the train, where she will get back to her studies and Marty will retire from his photography duties.  And we will head home on April 1.

Yep....we travel back on April Fools Day.  And, tonight we turn back our clocks for the second time in a month.  And that's no April Fools Joke.

Oh well..... perhaps we'll get a chance to snooze a bit on the train.

I'll keep you posted!