Fiction, Essays, and Other Things

  I did not have a chance to tour the interior of Craigievar Castle, as I arrived in the off-season. It was regrettable but did not dampen my visit to the castle as, even from the outside, Craigievar is among Scotland’s most unique castles. Newer than many, with a construction starting in the late 16 th century and then a spruce up by William Forbes in the 1620s, the castle has stood more or less intact for four hundred years. Of course, his descendants, who resided in the castle until the mid-20th century, did much to preserve it and the surrounding land. More recently, Craigievar Castle has undergone extensive restoration by National Trust for Scotland which entailed preservation measures for its artifacts and its structure. Most importantly, the volunteers and trustees restored the castle to its distinct pink shade which has made it an icon since the early 19 th century when the Forbes family painted over the original off-white with that warm shade of tonal vibrancy. From th...

  In 2017, while visiting Joshua Tree, a ranger lamented to me the difficulty the park had attracting the casual nature lover as the desert lacks the icons that have become emblematic of national parks such as snow-capped mountains. But the beauty of eco-tourism is that no two places are alike. Nature’s landscapes are as varied as our world is big and the rewards of nature are in its very biodiversity. This also means that there is no place quiet like the forests of New England in autumn. But if a place comes close, it’s Scotland’s Loch Tummel, a stunning woodland with views…well, fit for a Queen. Visitors can make up their own minds if the Queen memorialized in the breathtaking ‘Queen’s View’ is Queen Isabel who fled to the forest after her husband, Robert the Bruce, was defeated at the Battle of Methven in 1306 or Queen Victoria who visited the park in 1866. In either case, the sight, the loch swirling through the Glencoe Mountains, embodies the mystic beauty of the Scottish co...