Central Scotland - Scotland - page 396

like sharks and piranhas, as well as seals and touch pools with rays and other sea creatures. You can even arrange
guided dives with sharks. It's a little cheaper if you pre-purchase tickets online.
Culross
POP 500
An enchanting little town, Culross (koo- ross ) is Scotland's best-preserved example of a
17th-century Scottish burgh: the National Trust for Scotland owns 20 of the town's build-
ings, including the palace. Small, red-tiled, whitewashed buildings line the cobbled
streets, and the winding Back Causeway to the abbey is embellished with whimsical stone
cottages.
As birthplace of St Mungo, Glasgow's patron saint, Culross was an important religious
centre from the 6th century. The burgh developed, under laird George Bruce, by mining
coal through extraordinary underwater tunnels. When mining was ended by flooding of
the tunnels, the town switched to making linen and shoes.
Culross Palace (NTS; www.nts.org.uk ; adult/ child £9.50/7; noon-5pm Thu-Mon
Apr-May & Sep, noon-5pm daily Jun-Aug, noon-4pm Fri-Mon Oct) is more a large house
than a palace, and features extraordinary decorative painted woodwork, barrel-vaulted
ceilings and an interior largely unchanged since the early 17th century. The Town House
(tourist office downstairs) and the Study , also completed in the early 17th century, are
open to the public (via guided tour, included in palace admission), but the other NTS
properties can only be viewed from the outside.
Ruined Culross Abbey (HS; www.historic-scotland.gov.uk ; admission free;
9.30am-7pm Mon-Sat & 2-7pm Sun Apr-Sep, 9.30am-4pm Mon-Sat & 2-4pm Sun Oct-
Mar) , founded by the Cistercians in 1217, is on the hill in a lovely peaceful spot with vis-
tas of the firth. Part of the ruins were converted into the parish church in the 16th century;
it's worth a peek inside for the stained glass and the Gothic Argyll tomb.
Above a pottery workshop near the palace, Biscuit Café ( www.culrosspottery.com ;
light meals £3-6; 10am-5pm Mon-Sat, 11am-5pm Sun) has a tranquil little garden and
sells coffee, tempting organic cakes and scones and tasty light meals.
Culross is 12 miles west of the Forth Road Bridge. Stagecoach
( www.stagecoachbus.com ) bus 78 runs to Culross from Dunfermline (25 minutes, hourly
daily) and to Stirling (50 minutes, hourly Monday to Saturday).