Visit to St. Andrews
The famous beach from Chariots of Fire, West Sands Beach.
Finally got around to visiting the picturesque town of St. Andrews a couple of weeks ago. The sky was a lovely shade of blue and the sun was shining and the weather made the whole town absolutely lovely! St. Andrews is a smaller town, so we were able to park the car and walk about and take in the sights.
First off, we stopped at the magnificent ruins of St. Andrews Cathedral. The cathedral, built in 1158, was the largest one ever built in Scotland and fell into ruin after the Scottish Reformation. Today you can walk amongst the ruins, look at the old graves, and admire the still impressive architecture.
The nave.
The cathedral is located right next to the bay so we walked along the cathedral walls and enjoyed the views.
St. Andrews Castle
Right down the road from the cathedral ruins are the ruins of St. Andrews Castle. There has been a castle in this spot since 1189, although the current ruins date from the 1600s. It changed hands multiple times during the Wars for Scottish Independence, was once used a prison, housed James I of Scotland, was the birthplace of James III, and was a pulpit for John Knox before it fell into disrepair, and significant portions of the castle were used for the creation of piers in the bay. The castle though can still be visited today and is in the care of Historic Scotland.
University of St. Andrews
Of course, we had to visit the University of St. Andrews which is very lovely. The University is spread out all about town, but we wandered into the quad for some pictures.
The garden in the quad. I really adore British gardens.
Some rather famous individuals have attended here, including six Nobel Laureates, and most recently, Prince William and his wife Catherine.
We poked about the town a bit more, drank coffee at Taste, had ice cream at Jannattas Gelateria (which was absolutely fantastic!), and dinner at Cromars which was just voted "Best Fish and Chip in Scotland for 2016". Having friends local to St. Andrews who were willing to show us around definitely gave us an edge in the eating department. :)
We did not walk down to the famous golf course, but I'm sure we'll be back and can visit it then. Since St. Andrews is considered the "home of golf", it might be nice to say we've been there at least.
St. Andrews was such a charming place to visit and I'm hoping to making another trip over there soon. It's a wonderfully walkable little town which a rich history and excellent food. :) It's an easy trip to make from either Edinburgh or even Glasgow and well worth the time.