Fife Tourist Information & Travel Guide

Wherever you are from, we wish you a warm welcome from Citylocal Fife, ‘the business directory in Fife’ based near the Royal Burgh and City of Dunfermline and covering all the ancient Kingdom.

WELCOME to the Kingdom of Fife!

If you are visiting Fife by road from the North or South, then we apologise for taking your money for the privilege of crossing the bridge(s); and rest assured we wouldn’t do that if Dunfermline were still the Capital of Scotland instead of the young upstart, Edinburgh.  It does however indicate that the Scottish Parliament places more value on Fife than Edinburgh.

Dunfermline is a city with many easily accessible and interesting attractions, from its ancient 12th-century Abbey to the restored 15th-century Abbot House where you can enjoy a snack and drink in its cosy cafe, or you can choose to explore the bustling High Street and once you have finished your retail therapy you can relax and absorb the atmosphere in ‘Oolahs’, a modern and well appointed cafe in the High Street.

Andrew Carnegie the world famous industrialist and philanthropist was born in Dunfermline in 1835, and as you explore the City you will find his ‘ghost’ is everywhere, no more so than in his family home, a humble weaver’s cottage which been preserved and extended to include a museum of his life.

Only a few minutes drive from Dunfermline, you will find several villages worth visiting, Culross (another Royal Burgh)  to the West,  is in my view the most interesting, and when you walk along the narrow cobbled streets you can imagine yourself back in the 16th or 17th century. The village is kept in first class order, and the pan-tiled houses with their crow-step gables have been sympathetically restored.  There is plenty to see and do for both adults and children, and if time is short I would suggest that your priority is The Palace (built between 1597 and 1611) which was the home of Sir George Bruce, an enterprising merchant and coal baron. Its original interiors feature some magnificent painted woodwork and ceilings, and it has mediaeval gardens to the rear. The Palace has its own first class tea rooms, and ‘The Red Lion‘, a local pub, has an excellent restaurant with a varied and very reasonably priced menu.

Limekilns and Charlestown although not on the same scale as Culross are also both picturesque coastal villages, with their own character and history, and are well worthy of a visit, especially in the summer months. There is a good selection of beer and meals available at the ‘Ship Inn’ in Limekilns, and ‘The Elgin Hotel’ in Charleston is also worth a visit.
In our next edition we will cover the towns of Aberdour, Burntisland, Inverkeithing Kinghorn and Kirkcaldy as we move up towards the East Neuk  on the way to St Andrews.

Bucovina - A Travel Guide To Romania's Region Of Painted Monasteries

Bucovina is a region of monasteries, unique in the world for their colorful exterior frescoes. Equally well worth the visit are the villages, still leading the traditional way of life, and the stunning landscapes.

The name Bucovina may not mean much to many people, but Bucovina, and its brave princes, played an important part in the history of the Balkans during the XV and XVI centuries, and in particular with regard to relations with the Ottoman Empire. The impressive number of churches to be found there, with their fine exterior and interior frescoes, have been preserved and handed down from mediaeval times, and because of their uniqueness and artistic value, were added to UNESCO's World Cultural Heritage List in 1993. There is, indeed, no other place in the world where such a group of churches, with such high quality exterior frescoes, are to be seen.

The churches were founded, in most cases, as family burial places of princes and high nobles. Each painter, although following the canonical iconographic programme, interpreted the scenes in a slightly different way. The scenes were first painted on the interior walls, and then extended to the exterior ones. The reasons for such vast scenes were both religious and didactic: to promote Orthodoxy and to educate the illiterate.

Tourist information in Romania: The notion of "tourist information office" disappeared after the 1989 revolution because all the local tourist offices were abolished. The travel agencies created by the private sector took over the role of the tourist information offices. They can provide you with the information and services for organizing tours in Bucovina. Because Romanians themselves increasingly prefer to travel outside Romania, the travel agencies are more specialized in organizing international travel. Local tours have been neglected for many years but are now flourishing again.

The private sector is now the most advanced, and appreciated both inside and outside the country for the western level of comfort and services.

Tourist information can also be found in the annual publication of the Romanian Yellow Pages. All bookshops sell travel guides, but it is not so easy to find travel guides of Bucovina in the main towns. An exception could be the newspaper stores.

Our travel guide: Bucovina - A Travel Guide to Romania's Region of Painted Monasteries is an excellent full-color book on a wide variety of cultural heritage subjects from mural paintings and archaeology to architecture and local traditions. It also gives practical information and tips on travel to and in Romania, what to see, where to stay, what to buy and to eat, to get the most of Bucovina.

We hope that you will enjoy your travel to Bucovina!