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The Scottish
Borders, south of the countries capital city, Edinburgh, is an area
of tranquil villages, bustling textile towns and varied scenery,
including a wild coastline running northwards from the border by
Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Visitors can
enjoy a wide range of attractions, including magnificent historic
houses, great Border abbeys, telling their tale of Border feuds
with England, and working woollen mills and craft workshops. Those
travellers lucky enough to choose luxurious Stobo
Castle as their accommodation can also enjoy the superb spa
facilities to be found there as well as the excellent dining and
luxurious rooms.
The
adventures of the old time reivers (Border raiders) are still recounted in song
and ballad today. Drumlanrig's Tower in Hawick, largest of the Scottish Borders
towns, portrays life in former days, while the town of Selkirk claims that its
Common Riding is the largest mounted gathering anywhere in Europe. Sir
Walter Scott, the famous Scottish writer, lived at Abbotsford near Melrose. Visit
his house to see his collections of memorabilia from Scotland's story. Scott is
buried at Dryburgh Abbey, one of four abbeys that once were influential in Borders
life. The abbeys themselves were destroyed in 1544 by the invading armies of the
English King Henry VIII, when Mary, Queen of Scots was a young child. Today, the
ruins remain beautiful and poignant. A major visitor centre at Jedburgh Abbey
explains the abbeys' former importance. The monks first developed the skill of
working with wool, the forerunner of the textile industry that still thrives in
the area today. Lochcarron of Scotland in Galashiels is just one of the many textile
mills and shops where visitors can see manufacturing processes and purchase the
finished goods. The
Romans also passed this way. They named their main camp Trimontium, as it lay
below the triple-peaked Eildon Hills near Melrose. The Trimontium Exhibition in
this handsome little town tells the story of the Roman occupation. Melrose also
has other features to detain you, including an Abbey and a Teddy Bear museum.
This is typical of the area, plenty of interest in towns and countryside, with
walking, cycling, riding and golf - including The Roxburghe, the first championship
golf course in the Scottish Borders. Another
special characteristic is the choice of grand homes and castles to visit. Just
north of the Border, Paxton House is a handsome mansion with a picture gallery
which is part of the National Galleries of Scotland. Floors Castle, on the edge
of Kelso, is said to be the largest inhabited home in Scotland. Traquair House
near Innerleithen is the oldest continually inhabited house in Scotland. Many
of these properties have fine gardens, another Scottish Borders characteristic.
Other gardens to visit include Dawyck, west of Peebles, an outstation of Edinburgh's
Royal Botanical Gardens - and Priorwood, beside Melrose Abbey.
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