Today we discovered that there is no railway from Edinburgh down to the most famous places in the borders of Scotland. So we purchased a day explorer ticket on the bus and headed down to Melrose. After taking this first bus trip, we had no idea where we would end up and which buses we would be taking to get there. There are about four separate bus companies in the Borders. They all have different timetables and often different stops, so I will say the whole outing felt adventurous.

Melrose Abbey was only a few steps from the bus stop in Melrose Market Square, and it was a beautiful ruin. The sun revealed blue sky just long enough for some photos. Then we walked in the rain to the first restaurant in sight for an early lunch.

Despite the rain, we left the restaurant to find a bus to Dryburgh or Jedburgh to see another abbey. We could find no timetables mentioning Dryburgh at all, so we took a bus to Jedburgh. The sky clouded over and the wind rushed in when we arrived at the abbey. We watched a video describing the abbey's history, then walked through the ruins rather quickly, as the abbey acted as a huge wind tunnel with no roof to soak up the cold rain.

Both of these abbeys had no roof. They were each built in the 12th century, attacked several times, and restored at least once. In the 12th century, King David I encouraged the building of many abbeys an cathedrals throughout Scotland. Most were occupied and built for different orders of monks. But the Borders have endured much fighting between the English and the Scots, and even sacred buildings were not exempt from the constant violence.

DETAILS: I highly recommend a day trip to the Borders. The countryside is beautiful, and the towns are quaint and less touristed than Edinburgh. For seven pounds, you can purchase a day explorer ticket (on the bus) to Melrose from Edinburgh. Make sure you talk to someone at the office (across from the train station) about WHICH STAND the bus leaves from, and pick up free timetables there. Both of these abbeys belong to Historic Scotland, and members get in free.