Dundee, the center of the region of the same name, is the fourth largest city in Scotland.And in terms of population density, it is even second only to the capital.The city is located at the entrance to Tay Bay, on its northern shore.Dundee is sometimes called the "City of Discovery" after the ship on which Scott sailed from here to explore the Antarctic.At the same time, it is one of the warmest and sunniest cities in the country.Dundee is also considered a city with a rich literary heritage: many journalists and writers were born or studied here.Once every two years, Dundee hosts an international award ceremony for literature.
A LITTLE HISTORY
Dundee stands on a hill that was an active volcano in prehistoric times, but has long since died out. The first information about Dundee as a city reached us from the 12th century, and since then the English and Scots have been constantly fighting for the city. In the Middle Ages, the city lived mainly from fishing, and more precisely - from whaling. After learning to process jute with whale oil in the 19th century, textile factories began to appear in Dundee. Later, cotton and wool production enterprises were added to them. In the same period, ships began to be built in the city, but now this industry is completely closed. The collapse of the railway bridge, which connected Dundee with the opposite shore of the bay, became a national tragedy. This happened in 1879. during a storm, and a train traveling on the bridge fell into the water. The sad event, which took the lives of 75 people, was described by A. Cronin in "Brodie's Castle". The present bridge stands a little to the right of the old one.
HOW TO GET
Dundee Airport receives flights from London.The other nearest airport is in Edinburgh, almost 100 km to the south.Bus services from various companies connect Dundee with many other Scottish cities.You can also drive to the city on the A90 and M90 highways from Perth or Aberdeen.
ENTERTAINMENT AND SIGHTS
Dundee is a very interesting city, whatever your interests, with ancient castles and beautiful city parks, science centres, lots of museums, historic ships in the harbor and almost guaranteed to have the best weather in Scotland.
Several beautiful medieval buildings have been preserved in the city, although the architecture of the city is mainly low-rise buildings of the Victorian period. In the 60s Dundee was built up with typical high-rise buildings, but today they have exhausted their resources and are falling into disrepair - especially since the population is slowly but steadily falling. The most well-preserved of the old districts is Cowgate with a section of the city walls from the mid-16th century. Another similar complex of buildings is Garden's Land in the High Street, some parts of which also date back to the mid-16th century. The Hauf City Cemetery is the same age.
The old building in the city is the tower of St. Mary's Church, built at the end of the 15th century and reconstructed in the middle of the 19th after a fire.Called the Old Steeple, this nearly 50m tall tower has long been the tallest building in Dundee.Today you can climb the tower.The church itself forms part of the city's church complex, which also includes the church of St. Clement (late 18th century) and the old church of St. Paul and St. David (first half of the 19th century).These three churches in the eastern part constitute the main historical asset of the city.
Other significant city churches are the Gothic St Paul's Cathedral, built in 1853, which stands on the present High Street, on the site of the former Dundee Castle, and the Roman Catholic St Andrew's Cathedral, also built in 1853.
Dundee also has several castles: in particular, Mains Castle in Caird Park, built in 1562. on the site of an earlier building.This castle of rough stone with a square six-story tower is very well preserved, and today weddings and weddings are held here.Another small castle, Claypotts at West Ferry, was built around the same time;it has an interesting layout in the form of the letter Z. Dudhope Castle, built in the 13th century, but subsequently significantly remodeled, looks completely different.During the Second World War, it was used as soldiers' barracks, so in the 80s.it needed serious restoration, but today this light and plastered house with many low cone turrets looks very nice.
Brian Molko of the iconic British rock band Placebo grew up in Dundee.
The McManus Gallery building in Albert Square, built in 1867, looks very convincing and beautiful. in the Gothic Revival style. Inside there is a museum and an art gallery with a collection of fine and decorative arts, as well as an exposition devoted to natural history. After the building's most recent restoration, the museum reopened in 2010, but most of the McManus collection is now housed in the old Carnegie Library on Barreck Street.
The town also has a jute museum, Verdant Works, housed in an old jute mill. Several museums are also open at the University of Dundee - for example, the D'Arcy Thompson Zoological Museum and the Taysaud Museum of Medical History. Modern interactive exhibitions and installations can be explored in the Sensation Science Center, which was opened in 2000. This is a very interesting scientific and educational museum: the main emphasis in all expositions is on robotics and the practical application of scientific discoveries.
Science lovers should also find time to look into the Mills Observatory - the first in Britain, built specifically as a public observatory and still the only one in the country that is open to the public all the time. The observatory's seven-meter dome is unique in its own way, one of only two papier-mâché domes preserved in Great Britain. A Victorian telescope is installed inside (of course, the observatory also has a newer 2013 telescope). The observatory stands on the wooded Balgey hill, in the park of the same name, one and a half km west of the city center, and a walk here through the park among cypresses, strawberry bushes and violets will be very pleasant in itself.
Perhaps the funniest attraction of Dundee is the bronze monument to the heroes of the comics about Beano and Dundee, desperate Dan with his dog and Mini Minx. They are very well known in the UK: the University of Dundee even has a separate course devoted to the study of comic book literature.
Low Hill Fort was built in the Iron Age.Today, the First World War memorial, erected here in 1921, stands in its place. Several docks remain on the shore, including Camperdown and Victoria.Interesting high and narrow "Cox Stack" - "Cox Pipe".This is the red and white chimney of the former Camperdown jute mill, named after jute baron James Cox, who later became mayor of the town.In general, quite a few old jute mills and enterprises remained in Dundee, which were later adapted for a wide variety of needs.
One of the attractions of the modern city is the university tower, built in the 1960s and 1970s.At that time, only one building was taller: the Old Steeple.And the newest Dundee museum opened in April 2014 on Market Street - it is a transport museum with a collection of old cars.
