Highland holiday

In between teaching R.L. Stevenson and J.K. Rowling, I made a weekend trip to the Scottish Highlands, where I got to take a charming rail journey from Fort William to Mallaig. Here’s the famous Glenfinnan Viaduct, used in the Harry Potter films, among others. And here is beautiful Loch Ness. I’m pretty sure I saw […]

The Orangery

My favorite building on the Dalkeith estate is the ruined orangery. Once topped with glass and filled with palms and figs and banana trees, the orangery required a ton of coal each day to keep it warm. The ovens beneath the structure sent heat up through vents in the floor. Built in the 1800’s, it […]