Where in the World? Bo'ness, Scotland, UK.

BO'NESS, SCOTLAND

56.0130° N, 3.6035° W

Discovering Bo'ness with Mel.

1. So firstly, where do you live, and how long have you lived here?

I live in a town called Bo’ness (Borrowstounness), we are 10 miles east along the Forth from South Queensferry in the central belt of Scotland. I have lived here 2 years exactly.

2. Has the current Coronavirus pandemic affected your life here, and if so in what ways?

Yes and no, I care for my husband so although I have a small cleaning job which I continue to do, our life is pretty quiet anyway. I am quite involved in my church here as well as attending other community groups and these meetings have had to be conducted online. We were able to visit a neighbour who is part of the wider church and enjoy a flasked coffee in her garden a week or two ago. For people of the town in general the centre of community has moved entirely online, we have several cafes, a few pubs, restaurants and local club that have all had to close for the time being.

3. Once restrictions/ any quarantine rules lift, what is the thing you most look forward to doing here?

I really miss coffee shops, we have a few traditional greasy spoons and other cafes that are all worth a visit for various reasons such as town heritage, hearty breakfasts, salt of the earth company through to delicious meals and fancy cake. I like the balance we have.

4. In more normal times, what would you say is the best thing about living here? Likewise, is there anything you would change?

The green spaces; this town with its history of coal mining, has the largest proportion of green spaces of any town in Scotland. These green spaces lend well to the town’s infamous children’s fair; usually held on the last Friday of the school term which is the end of June. This is not limited to just minors, although various children involved in the parade will have their houses dressed with castles and various themes facades, the adults don’t miss an opportunity for a day of revelry beginning as early as 6am.

I would like to see more things for young people, we do not have much in the way of community centres or activities for under 18s and our recreation centre which is the closest the town has to a gym was under threat last year. Our residential areas are increasingly far from the historic town, often with few larger buildings interspersed for people to get together in large numbers.

5. A friend comes to visit here for the first time and wants to discover the best of what your location has to offer...what is your itinerary for the day?

1: 10am a walk along the shore and up through one of the many paths up through town to Kinneil estate to either visit the house (not open every day and with an entry fee) or explore its grounds (Kinneil estate has beautiful grounds; large woodland, a historic ruin of an old church, a pond and a tended garden) The best may be seen by bicycle.

2: a stop for a light lunch in one of the cafes; supporting local businesses which have struggled over the last 10 years. Then a look round the shops, boutiques and charity shops of the town.

3: after lunch we would head over to the railway museum , if on a day open we would take a trip on a steam engine, and then look around the trains in the collection. If the friend were a car enthusiast I would also take them to see Bo’ness’s classic car museum.

4: 3/4pm for the afternoon we may visit a local farm shop for local produce and a coffee.

If still light and a clear day, we would take a stop at the golf course for a view over the river forth; it is possible to see South Queensferry.

In the evening we would venture up to Falkirk to see the feat of engineering that is the Falkirk wheel- a rotating boat lift that enables boats to ascend and descend 35 of canal lock in one go. Depending on the time of year we would then head over to the helix centre where we would see ‘the Kelpies’ two mythical horse heads rising out of the canal watercourse. Best seen when lit up by night.

For dinner we would head back to the Inchyra hotel restaurant for their Scottish menu or get fish and chips from one of various take aways in town and eat it in Douglas Park with a yet another vista of the river Forth, this time at a level to see Culross where legend tells St Serf threw his staff across the Forth in 700AD and then built a church and subsequent Abbey where it landed.

Thanks so much for taking the time to help us to discover Bo'ness, Mel. Hope to head up there and see you soon!