Imperial Cathedral of Speyer Leaving Strasbourg, I returned to Kehl, and then back on the boat, with the next stop Speyer in Germany. The highlight here was a visit to see the Imperial Cathedral of Speyer, which is one of the world’s finest and largest Romanesque cathedrals and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 173
Strasbourg Back on the Rhine, the next stop was Kehl, in Germany. From there a bus journey took me over the border into France and the city of Strasbourg. This has to be seen to be believed. I can imagine looking up the word picturesque in the dictionary and see the name Strasbourg. It is … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 172
The Black Forest On leaving Basel in Switzerland, next stop was Breisach in Germany and from there a bus up into the Black Forest, which is quite amazing to see. It’s been the background for many a fairy-tale that came from the brothers Grimm and although a number of the stories they collected came from … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 168
Kunstmuseum Basel Along with the various excursions to towns and villages around Scotland this year, there was also a trip to Europe, travelling down the river Rhine. A flight to the Netherlands and from there a plane to Basel in Switzerland, resulted in spending two days before setting off, taking in the sights and sounds … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 167
Kinneil House I took a trip over to the Kinneil Estate in Bo’Ness over the weekend. I had no idea there was so much history dating over a period of 2,000 years on display here. There is a house, a museum, the Roman Antonine wall, renaissance wall paintings, James Watt’s Cottage, a Roman Fortlet, and … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 165
St Fillan’s Church Next door to Aberdour Castle is St Fillan’s Church. He was a 7th century abbot of Pittenweem. Coincidentally, I visited Pittenweem last year as noted in Part 134 of this blog. As with all the early Saints, their back-story is scant and surrounded in myth. According to the guide book, St Fillan’s … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 162
Aberdour Castle There are a number of locations that were used in the filming of the Outlander series, and I visited another one recently. Aberdour Castle is one of the oldest in Scotland and well worth a visit. It is a strange combination of preserved buildings and ruins, along with a restored walled garden and … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 161
Croatia I took time out to head over to Croatia, staying in a small place called Mlini. It’s a beautiful place on the coast and a half hour boat ride from Dubrovnik, which was my main reason for the trip. The television series Game of Thrones used Dubrovnik as the main filming location for King’s … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 158
Canine Connection I often cut through the grounds of St Cuthbert’s Parish Church while out and about during my lunch hour. Aside from being a useful shortcut from the bottom of Lothian Road into Princess Street Gardens, it’s a picturesque and fascinating corner of historical Edinburgh and well worth a visit. One feature to keep … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 156
Linlithgow Palace Revisited I’ve renewed my membership for Historic Scotland which means I now have free entry into Linlithgow Palace. When I visited last year I walked around the grounds which is free, but this time I took the car all the way in and parked up in the grounds and spent time wandering around … More Inside the Fiction Factory – Part 155
The Fiction Factory 