Scotland Revealed

 

ABERDEEN REVEALED

Aberdeen, AKA the "Granite City," with its stunning, sparkling granite buildings and monuments, has the third largest population in Scotland with notable fishing and shipping industries, a lively cultural scene, beaches, distilleries, and, of course, castles.

Aberdeenshire is known as "castle country" for its more than 250 castles. We did a tour of Fyvie Castle, known for its history and ghostlore, with a fantastic tour guide who was a great storyteller.

Fyvie Castle is a massive castle with an impressive interior, beautiful gardens, and landscapes owned (in order) by the Lindsays, Prestons, Meldrums, Setons, Gordons, and finally, the Leith family in 1889. It was put onto the open market in 1982 and is now owned by The National Trust for Scotland.

The Weeping Stones Curse

But it was the ghostlore that made this castle more thrilling and exciting. Over 500 years ago, Thomas the Rhymer, a prophet renowned for his gloomy predictions and ill temper, announced that he wished to visit Fyvie Castle. The castle's great doors were opened and left open at all times in anticipation of his arrival. But years passed, and for 7 years, Thomas had not visited the castle. When he finally arrived, a freak storm emerged with a strong wind that slammed the doors closed in his face as he approached the entrance.

When the castle was first being built, stones were removed from church lands by demolishing a chapel that fell into a nearby river. Three stones were taken from the boundary markers of the castle lands. Thomas's curse decreed that until all three stones were found and reunited, a hex would remain on Fyvie. The firstborn sons of the families that lived at Fyvie would never inherit the castle.

One stone was recovered and has been protected ever since. The other stones were never found, and the curse remains on the castle. Through the generations since the curse, the castle has passed to second sons or daughters and, in some cases, more distant relations, with the natural heirs being lost to wars and sickness.

The weeping stone also has an unexplainable physical property. Even though it is kept in dry conditions in a wooden bowl in the charter room, the stone oozes moisture and ‘weeps' when tragedy is going to strike the owners.

Supposedly, the curse is so powerful that the weeping stone found and kept in the castle still exerts its evil influence. A curator examining and preparing the weeping stone for display to the public suffered random health problems after spending considerable time near the stone. He and a surveyor twisted their ankle the first time. The next time, the curator sprained his knee, and the third time, when he prepared the stone for the showcase, he was rushed to the hospital in the middle of the night with kidney stones. 

The Murder Room

The curse continued, and in 1601, when Lillias Drummond failed

to produce an heir after birthing five girls, her husband Alexander Seton locked her in a tiny garret where she starved to death. A few days later, he married Grizel Leslie, a servant, and they actually had the audacity to celebrate their wedding night in the room below the "murder room."

But they were not alone. They heard moans and heavy sighs outside their bedroom window on their wedding night. Seton comforted his terrified wife, assuring her it was just the wind. But the following day, when he opened the window, he found the name D LILLIAS DRUMMOND etched into the solid stone of the outside ledge. The mysterious impression remains there while Lilias's spirit, the "Green Lady," frequently returns to the old castle's stairways and corridors, bemoaning her betrayal, leaving the delicate fragrance of rose petals and sometimes a portent of death in her ghostly wake.

 

Inside Fyvie

Coat of Arms.

Ornate coat of arms ceiling tiles.

Music room, complete with massive organ.

Romulus and Remus

Our next adventure, combined with lunch, was a lesson in Scotland's traditional straw weaving. My meager attempt (below) could have been better, but at least, with significant help from our artisan instructor, I managed to complete the task.

Once again, we enjoyed our centrally-located hotel, The Sandman Signature, where my luggage was taken to a different room from the one I was assigned. Not only that, but the hotel itself was a maze, which I could have navigated if the desk clerk had directed me to the hidden elevator in the lobby.

Meet Fair Isle Lang Lugs (AKA Lot Number 34)

SOLD... £3,400 ($4,162 US)

Artist: Jenny McHardy

Sponsor: Aberdeen Performing Arts

There has to be a zoning story behind this interesting blend 

of The Point - Aberdeen's 43 modern apartments and the granite tower. 

His Majesty's Theatre for the Performing Arts

bathed in purple lighting as the evening approaches.

Footdee (AKA Fittie), is an eclectic, small fishing village 

at the south end of Aberdeen beach, half a mile east of Aberdeen's city center, which traces its history to medieval times, with a first recorded reference dating back to 1398.  

We ended our evening with fantastic tapas at Cafe Andaluz. I enjoyed crisp-fried classic calamari served with fresh lemon and smoked paprika aioli, spicy roasted king prawns in olive oil, chili, paprika, garlic, and two glasses of tempranillo wine.