The next morning we rented a car from Waverly Station, and drove south to Galashiels which is close to the border of Scotland and England! It was about an hour drive! We found the cutest little cafe right outside of Melrose Abbey before it opened!
We went to Melrose Abbey, and it was amazing. We went right at 9:30 when they opened and we were the only ones there! It was such a cool experience!
It was finished being built in 1146!
A lot of nobles, and even a King were buried here!
Melrose Abbey was destroyed by the English in 1322 and was rebuilt. Then it was partially destroyed a few more times, one of which was when the Scots wouldn’t let their infant queen marry the future King of England! The last monk that lived there died in 1590! A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.
Robert the Bruce’s heart is buried here. And yes, you read correctly. His physical heart. Way back in 1389 it was very common for people’s bodies to be buried where they lived and their hearts to be buried where their “heart lived.”
Seriously, probably my favorite sites during the trip!
We started to drive to Dryburgh Abbey and had to pull over a few times just to marvel at the scenery that is Scotland.
I’m not even kidding you when I say that I cried. I can’t believe how beautiful our Earth is! We are so blessed!
We did a small walk to a statue of William Wallace… you know..
And of course, it was a beautiful day and perfect scenery! Apparently the town the town the statue is looking over is where he was born!
The next Border Abbey we visited was Dryburgh Abbey! It was completed in 1150, like 864 years old now! I highly recommend it!
No wonder these take like 100 years to build, they are so intricate!
Some family tombs!
The picture on the left is looking down as the picture on the right is when we were on ground level.
These were seriously so wonderful! The coolest ruins we saw on our whole trip.
