Journeys Near and Far

The Writers' Museum, Edinburgh

If you Love the Written Word, don't Pass up this Museum

In Edinburgh, Scotland, just off the Lawnmarket in Makars' Court, you'll find an overlooked gem that most people miss:  The Writers' Museum.   It's taken me five trips to Edinburgh before I included it in my itinerary, and I highly recommend that you don't wait that long!

Having followed the Robert Burns Trail from Ayrshire to Dumfries and visited Abbotsford, the home of Sir Walter Scott, I was looking forward to learning more about  these writers as well as seeing the museum's extensive Stevenson collection.

The Building

Celebrating the lives and works of three of Scotland's best known writers - Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), Sir Walter Scott (1771 - 1832) and  Robert Louis Stevenson(1850 - 1894), the museum, located in historic Lady Stair"s House in a close of the same name, was built in 1622 for prominent Edinburgh merchant Sir William Grey.  The building is a beautiful example of 17th century architecture, and a fitting setting for collections that evoke Scotland's rich literary past.

The Collections

Inside, you'll find treasure galore:  Manuscripts, portraits and memorabilia such as the writing desk from Burns' house in Dumfries, a rocking horse Scott used as a boy, and the fishing rod, Meerschaum pipe and riding boots world traveler Stevenson wore while living in Samoa.  I especially enjoyed seeing the printing press on which Scott's Waverley novels were printed.

The museum also houses small temporary exhibitions to honor the work of other Scottish writers. 

The museum (entrance is free, by the way) has a nice little shop, where my boyfriend Finlay, who has been kind enough to guide me all over Scotland, picked up a copy of Stevenson's Merry Men and Other Stories to prepare for a future production.

Have you been to The Writers' Museum in Edinburgh?  What did you think?  Can you recommend similar museums anywhere else?

Note:

Edinburgh's rich literary history was  recognized  in October, 2004, when the city was awarded as UNESCO's first International City of Literature.  A well-deserved honor!

If you've read this far, you may also be interested in two other Edinburgh literary activities:  The Edinburgh Book Lovers Tour and the Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour.  Lonely Planet says the latter is one of the best known Edinburgh Walking Tours, so I suppose that will be next on my list!

Also, if you like Robert Burns, follow the Ayrshirebard on Twitter, who tweets "Daily lines of poetry and words of wisdom from the ploughman's poet."  

Holidays Around the World

Happy Holidays to All!

Today, while much of the world celebrates Christmas, many people are celebrating Hanukkah and Kwanzaa is about to begin, I'd like to wish all of you -- no matter what you celebrate -- a joyous holiday season and a Happy New Year.

All across the world, people celebrate the holidays in many different ways, and I thought you might find it interesting to read about some of these traditions.  So I've gathered here a selection of links to articles you might find interesting.

Christmas...

• First, take a look at BootsnAll's Five of Europe's Cosiest Christmas Markets, by Anne-Sophie Redisch.  Redisch writes about the Christmas Markets in Vienna, a city I am very fond of, as well as undiscovered Bratislava, fairy-tale Prague, mysterious Tallinn, and bewitching Rome.

• Then check out WhyGo Italy's Christmas in Italy, where you can read about the legend of La Befana, who flies on her broomstick each year to bring gifts to children. 

• WhyGo Paris offers you Christmas in Paris:  Traditions & Tourism, and  Paris in December so you can learn all about what it's like in the City of  Lights this month.

• Michelle Fabio writes about 5 Christmas Traditions Around the World on BootsnAll.  Learn about carols down under, a celebration of light in Brazil, and of course -- the world-renowned tree in Rockefeller Center, New York City.

Hanukkah and Kwanzaa...

• Click here to learn about Hanukkah in Syria, Russia and Eastern Europe, and learn more about this holiday in Jews Around the World Celebrate Hanukkah on CBNNews.com. 

• What is Kwanzaa?  Read about it here.

New Year's Eve...

And, I would be remiss if I didn't include Scotland's Hogmanay here.  This pagan festival is celebrated throughout Scotland.  The origins of this New Year's Eve celebration reach back perhaps to the Norse, and include customs from the Gaelic New Year's celebration of Samhain. 

If you can't make it to Scotland in person this year, watch this video of Edinburgh's Hogmanay Torchlight Procession.  Although Hogmanay is celebrated throughout Scotland (you can read about some of this year's events on Hogmanay.net), my favorite place to celebrate is Edinburgh.  Learn what's going on this year on Edinburgh's Hogmanay website.

And don't miss these holiday stories on Journeys Near and Far:

• Christmas in Nuremberg
• Gingerbread, Sausages, Prune Men... and Hot Mulled Wine
• The Nuremberg Christmas Market  and
• a series of articles that begins with Holidays in the Hudson Valley

Note:  National Geographic Intelligent Travel Blog did a fabulous month-long series this year called The World of Christmas.  Check it out to see how the holiday is celebrated in 18 cities around the world.

Photos:  Top - Nutcracker in Nuremberg, Germany.  Bottom - Christmas crafts for sale at the Nuremberg Christmas Market.

 

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A Visit to the Beatrix Potter Garden and Exhibition

An Exhibit in Birnam, Scotland, Honors the Author and Illustrator of Peter Rabbit

Last May, when I watched the 2006 biographical movie Miss Potter starring Renee Zellweger, I was immediately drawn to the story of Beatrix Potter's life.  I wanted to learn more about her.  So in June, while traveling in Perthshire, Scotland with my friend Finlay, I was happy to see that there was a Beatrix Potter Exhibition and Garden at the Birnam Arts and Conference Centre in Birnam, near Dunkeld.

The exhibit was small, but charming.  It taught me a lot about Beatrix Potter, the talented author and artist who created the Peter Rabbit books.

Born in 1866, Helen Beatrix Potter grew up fascinated by wildlife and nature.  "Everything was romantic in my imagination," she wrote.  "The woods were peopled by the mysterious good folk.  The Lords and Ladies of the last century walked with me along the overgrown paths, and picked the old fashioned flowers among the box and rose hedges of the garden."

Potter isn't the only one who has been stirred by the natural beauty of Dunkeld and Birnam.  The area has drawn artists and writers since long before Potter was born -- long, even, before travelers ventured by railway into the Highlands.  It's no wonder that the stunning scenery, immortalized by the poetry of Robert Burns and the romantic novels of Sir Walter Scott, became Potter's muse.

Through her interest in mycology Potter met Charles McIntosh, the postman who delivered mail in the Dunkeld area where Beatrix and her family spent many care-free summers.  It is thought by many that Charlie Macintosh was the inspiration for her character Mr. McGregor, and comparing the photos there are some similarities!

When you first enter the exhibit, you'll see a selection of Potter's fungi studies from a collection of originals housed in the Perth Museum and Art Gallery.   Here, in what resembles a Victorian schoolroom, you can sit and browse through a collection of Beatrix Potter books. 

In addition to many wonderful illustrations from her books and information about Beatrix Potter's life, the exhibit also contains scores of specimens from nature that inspired her drawings.  Kids can try their hand at pencil sketches, pretend to be a school teacher at the blackboard, or entertain the adults with a puppet show in a Victorian style theater.

It was Potter's time spent in Scotland where she was free to explore the countryside that had the most enduring influence on her life.  Here she brought her pets and created most of her animal studies.  "After breakfast, " she wrote in her journal, "taking Mr. Benjamin Bunny to pasture at the edge of the cabbage bed with his leather dog lead, I heard a rustling, and out came a wild rabbit to talk to him."  And so The Tale of Peter Rabbit was born...

The Beatrix Potter Garden features Peter Rabbit and many of the other beloved characters from the books.  See some photos of the Garden here.

I picked up a nice little booklet at the exhibit called A Fascinating Acquaintance, mainly about the friendship between Charles McIntosh and Beatrix Potter.  It was published with the help of the Beatrix Potter Society.  You can also learn more about the life of Beatrix Potter by reading these books.

For additional Beatrix Potter places to visit, see this list on The Beatrix Potter Society website.

You can also explore some of the beautiful natural areas in the United Kingdom which Beatrix captured in her exquisite watercolors.  Just download the movie map. (You'll also find some beautiful wallpaper for your computer there).  And:

• In Scotland, follow the A9 north from Perth to explore the Dunkeld, Birnam, Inver and The Hermitage areas, where Charles McIntosh lived and met Beatrix.
• In the Perth Museum and Art Gallery, you can see 25 watercolor studies of fungi by Beatrix, as well as specimens, correspondence and memorabilia belonging to Charles.
• The Victoria and Albert Museum in London contains a large collection of Beatrix Potter's watercolors, including her childhood sketchbooks (call for an appointment to view as material may not be on display:  020 7602-0281 Ext. 212.)

Photos courtesy of Visit Scotland Perthshire (top photo); The World of Peter Rabbit (center photo) and the Birnam Arts and Conference Center (bottom photo). 

Mary Queen of Scots House, Jedburgh, Scotland

"Would that I had died at Jedburgh"...

These famous words, uttered by Mary Stuart  before her death, were a comment on the emotional agonies of the last twenty years of her life. She was referring to the year 1566 when, at the age of 23, she spent six weeks at this house (see photo on left), which you can visit on High Street in Jedburgh, Scotland. 

Mary arrived here after an exhausting 50-mile trip on horseback through the Border hills.  She'd been visiting her wounded beloved, the earl of Bothwell, at Hermitage Castle.  But she soon fell ill and almost died of a mysterious fever. 

Jedburgh, divided by the River Jed, is one of those charming little Scottish border towns that I'd love to call home.  Originally developed around Jedburgh Abbey on a Roman road called Dere Street, today it is a serene market town which gives no hint of the turbulent history that once plagued the Borders area. 

I visited Jedburgh with my friend Finlay when I went to Scotland last month.  We stopped first at the Jedburgh Visitor Centre at Murray's Green, just next to where the buses pull in by the famous Jedburgh Abbey.  As soon as we got our bearings, we went straight to the fortified town house once inhabited by Mary Queen of Scots. 

Mary Stuart, as you may well know, is one of the most romantic -- and tragic -- figures in history.  She had a claim to the throne in three countries:  Scotland, France and England.  Widowed at the tender age of 17, she then suffered as her second husband was brutally murdered by the third.  Most of her adult life was spent as a prisoner, and she was finally executed for treason.

When you tour the house, be sure to get the audio guide.  You'll learn a lot about the house and its furnishings, as well as what fascinated me most -- the life of Mary Queen of Scots, beginning with her carefree early years in France to her captivity and finally, her execution at the age of 44. 

This building is called a Tower House, a fortified structure built to house the local gentry at a time of Border wars and violent family feuds.   The mural on the spiral staircase shows how Mary lived a life of luxury and culture as a child.  In fact, she was crowned at Stirling Castle as a 9-month old baby -- and had to be carried to and held upon the throne so she wouldn't roll off!

In the Banqueting Hall, you'll explore her return to Scotland as a teenager, and learn about her political troubles with the Protestant leader, John Knox. 

Make sure you take a peak at the "Lang Drap" as you walk by...  this 16th century toilet known as a garderobe (to the right of the door leading from the Banqueting Hall into the forechamber) was a great luxury at that time -- most people were still using chamber pots!  By the way, in case you are wondering, the name "garderobe" comes from the habit of hanging clothes in these rooms, as the pungent smell kept moths away. 

Give me a 21st century toilet any day!

In the Queen's Bedchamber, we learned that burning up from fever, the Queen was thought at one point to be dead, but she was saved by her French physician, Arnault. 

In the Last Letter Room you'll learn about Mary's final hours, see her death mask, and read her poignant final letter to her brother-in-law, the King of France.

In this house I learned much about Mary Queen of Scots and the troubled times she lived in, and left feeling deeply touched.  I highly recommend you visit, and tour the gardens as well;  the ancient pear trees are a reminder of times past when Jedburgh was famous for its fruit.

There's more to do in Jedburgh, of course.  After Mary Queen of Scots House, we visited Jedburgh Abbey, another place where you can experience the past, which I will write about in an other post.

• Want to know more about Mary Stuart?  I've heard Antonio Fraser's book, Mary Queen of Scots, is excellent. 
• For more information on Jedburgh visit Undiscovered Scotland.

Photos courtesy of VisitBritain.com.

The Real Mary King's Close

Hidden beneath Edinburgh...

... you'll find a warren of unseen streets.  Below the Royal Mile, on these streets, called "Closes", are the homes of real people who lived, worked and died between the 16th and 19th centuries.  And visitors can explore these dark, mysterious places on guided group tours of Mary King's Close. 

I joined one of these tours on my last visit to Edinburgh. During this fascinating and somewhat eerie experience, our character guide was "Jonet Nimmo", the youngest daughter of Mary King, and she promptly led us down a staircase to a maze of passageways steeped in shadow, far beneath Edinburgh's Old Town.

What is Mary King's Close?

Mary King's Close consists of a number of underground Closes which were originally narrow walkways with houses on either side, reaching up seven stories high.  But in 1753, the Burgh authorities decided to construct an impressive new building, the Royal Exchange (now the City Chambers).  They knocked down the houses at the top of the Closes while leaving part of the lower sections to be used as the foundation of the new structure.  The houses and narrow streets of the lower sections were suddenly buried in darkness.

Who was she?

So who was Mary King, you might be wondering?  Documentary evidence shows that she rented a house at the top of the Close in 1635.  She was fairly well-off, with four children, having moved to the Close after the death of her husband, Thomas Nimmo, an Edinburgh merchant.  It appears that she continued his work to some extent by selling fabric from her rented booth on the Royal  Mile.

The Tour

Visitors walk through the dimly lit alleys, entering the homes of Mary King, as well as a grave-digger's family tragically stricken with the plague, a grand 17th century townhouse and a small, low poor house -- even an urban cowshed! 

Annie

I thought the most interesting room in these tenements was the "Shrine Room", where the ghost of a little girl known as Annie has appeared.  Some years ago a Japanese psychic, Aiko Gibo, came to visit while filming the haunted places of Britain.  The pain and unhappiness she felt inside this room was so strong she couldn't enter.  She felt the presence of a child, who'd been separated from her parents, clutching her trouser leg. 

When Gibo was finally able to enter the room, she communicated with the girl's spirit.  It seems the small girl may have had the plague, and had been abandoned by her mother in order to protect her siblings.  Heartbroken because she didn't have her favorite doll, Annie was thrilled when Gibo had a doll brought to comfort her.  It is said that as long as the doll remains there, the room will never again be disturbed by her spirit. 

Since then, people from all over the world have been leaving dolls and toys for Annie.  You'll see them in a huge, somewhat ragged pile by the fireplace.  People also leave money, which is charitably donated by Mary King's Close (and which has raised thousands of pounds for the Edinburgh Sick Kids Hospital).

For an interesting piece about Annie's Room, including photos of the dolls and toys left there, visit the blog Needled.

Ghosts

Ghost stories abound in the Closes and are an important part of their past.  If you want more information, there is an account that dates these spirits back to the 17th century in Satan's Invisible World Discovered, by George Sinclair.  Or pick up the Official Guide to Mary King's Close in the gift shop, as I did, for a fascinating, colorful description of the Close and the people who lived there.

While ghosts are an integral part of the site's past, the attraction's main aim is to give visitors a sense of the history connected with this absorbing place.  Documentary and archaeological evidence has been found that traces the lives and living conditions of the real people -- including Mary King -- who lived  in these Closes.

I've been on several walking tours in Edinburgh that explore the city's underground areas, but this was my favorite.

Note: The Real Mary King's Close is open 7 days a week (except for Christmas), with one-hour tours departing every 20 minutes starting at 10 AM.  You should pre-book, as the tours can fill up in advance.

If you'd like more information, a good starting point is the Wikipedia entry on Mary King's Close.

Photos courtesy of The Real Mary King's Close.

Websites to Visit -- VisitScotland.com

In the Land of Lochs, Bagpipes, and Nessie...

... you'll find a wealth of things to do!  And to help you plan your trip, go to the official website of  Scotland's National Tourism organization -- VisitScotland.com.

I used this site to plan my last two visits to Scotland and found it to be very helpful.  In fact, when I decided to visit Scotland during the wintertime, I was concerned that there wouldn't be much for me to do.  Was I ever wrong! 

Right now on this site, under "Holiday Ideas and Experiences", you can explore such things as Scottish weddings, food and wildlife.  Or maybe you're interested in the great outdoors, walking, or golf?   

I decided to look for information on Scotland's seabirds, so I clicked on "Wildlife" and got a general overview of  Scotland's wildlife in the Fall.  From there, I went to "News and Features",  then "Features".  A long list of their latest articles, such as "Winter Wildlife" and "Sea Eagles in Scotland" came up.   At the bottom of the list, I found "Scotland -- Seabird Central", which gave me a nice long story about Scottish seabirds, with links to the places where they can be seen.  That brought me to the Scottish Seabird Center (just 30 minutes away from Edinburgh) which I now hope to see during my next visit.

The site also has a section called "Explore Scotland", from where you can click on a variety of places such as "Dumfries and Galloway" or "Orkney", for example, and learn more about them.  There are even itinerary suggestions, like that of Palms, Poets & Pilgrims in the Dumfries and Galloway section, which will show you the landscape that inspired Scotland's national bard, Rabbie Burns.

Of course, you can also book accommodations here as well as find out how to get around. 

I had just one problem with this website:  I found so many things I wanted to do that I couldn't fit them all into my trip.  The solution?  I guess I'm going to have to go back again!

Hamish, the Highland Cow

Visitors Can't Get Enough of this Charismatic Animal

A lot has been written about Highlanders. 

There are the novels of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series, romantic and rich with history, and there are Karen Marie Moning's absorbing time-travel romances.  Then there are the action-fantasy Highlander movies starring Christopher Lambert as Connor MacLeod, the immortal Scottish swordsman, as well as the TV series that followed.

I met quite a few Highlanders while I traveled in Scotland last week, but the ones that drew my attention the most were the shaggy Highland cows with their tousled hair gleaming in the summer sunshine! 

Here, you can see a photo of Hamish, a "Highlander" who wasn't averse to having his picture taken by dozens of tourists in Aberfoyle. 

But Hamish was only the beginning -- it seems everywhere I went, the Highland cow's adorable face peered out at me from calendars, postcards, photos, stuffed animals and other cow-related things.  What is it about these creatures that is so endearing? 

Well, in photographer Colin Baxter's book, The Highland Cow, writer Kenny Taylor says, "...the animal can look drop-dead gorgeous, in a windswept kind of way... an adult Highlander in its element is a bonny beast indeed.  Add a mop-top calf to the group, and few could fail to be attracted."

I wanted to learn more about these animals, so I bought Baxter's book.  In it, Taylor says the Highland breed, although smaller than you might expect by contemporary standards, is suited to the conditions of the craggy uplands and ocean rim of its homeland.  This animal was a mainstay of the Scottish highlands for centuries, giving milk, cheese butter and hair for weaving to families as well as supporting the blacksmiths who made shoes for cattle. 

Taylor writes, "If you see a group of Highland cattle by a roadside field and are tempted to pause and have a closer look, appreciate the moment.  You'll be meeting an icon - an animal as redolent of Scotland's western fringe and glens as the tang of seaweed and the aroma of peat-tinged whisky." 

If you think the Highland cow as is cute as I do, I recommend Baxter's book, The Highland Cow.  The photographs are beautiful.

Note:  Sandy, one of our newsletter subscribers from Oban in Scotland, has a lovely self-catering farmhouse on the shore of a Scottish Loch (near Oban) in the West Highlands of Scotland.  If you're looking for a great spot for a vacation, visit her site!  Also, Sandy told me, "I have The Best Picture of a Highland Cow... sorry Hamish!"  Check out the photo!  I believe she's right. 

Top photo:  Hamish in Aberfoyle, Scotland, by Melody Moser. 

Edinburgh Fringe Festival - Barrie: A Life in Stories

Visiting Edinburgh this week?  Don't miss Barrie:  A Life in Stories

I've just returned from Scotland where I had the wonderful experience of meeting a group of actors.  Their quartet, known as Splinters Productions, is performing as part of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and I recommend that you see their show Home to Neverland:  A Window on J.M. Barrie (formerly called Barrie:  A Life in Stories), which has been getting excellent reviews.

Timothy Ramsden of ReviewsGate.com writes, "Splinters Productions has spent a decade exploring Scotland’s writers and artists, so it’s no surprise they’ve turned their hands to Kirriemuir’s famous son, J M Barrie.  He has been widely subsumed by one of his creations, Peter Pan, as has Arthur Conan Doyle by Sherlock Holmes. But Barrie (1860-1937) was more than a one-fantasy writer as this collage of his work, set within a framing commentary as the elderly Barrie addresses students on his election as Rector of St Andrews University, makes clear."  Read the full review here.

Barrie , Scottish journalist, playwright and children's book author, is most famous for his enduring play and story about Peter Pan (1904), the boy who lived in Neverland, battled the vile Captain Hook, and wouldn't grow up.  If you're a fan of Peter Pan or liked the recent Johnny Depp film Finding Neverland, which follows Barrie's journey to bring Peter Pan to life, or if you want to learn more about Barrie and, best of all, see a mesmerizing performance by a quartet of actors who weave their magic as with the highly successful For the Islands I Sing, don't miss Barrie:  A Life in Stories.  It's being held at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43-45 High Street,  Edinburgh, Phone:  (0)131 556-9579.  The show begins at 7 PM each night through Saturday, September 1st, which is the final performance. Don't miss it! 

Update:  You can still catch a performance of Home to Neverland:  A Window on J.M. Barrie.  The next three performances will take place Thursday, October 2nd, 2008 at the Townmill Theatre, Strathaven; Friday, October 3rd, 2008 in Melrose at the Wynd Theatre; and Saturday, October 4th, 2008 in Selkirk at the Bowhill Theatre.  Shows in additional cities will be held during the period of October 9th through 25th.  See the Splinters Productions website for more information.

Learn more about the Scottish Storytelling Centre by reading their brochure.

Top photo:  The Barrie production, bottom photo: Scottish Storytelling Centre, both by Melody Moser.  Right photo:  JM Barrie.