As one of the most beautiful towns in all of Scotland, Kelso has a very high reputation to uphold. Scotland is as well known for its gorgeous landscapes and towns as it is for its bagpipes and kilts. Any Scottish town that isn't near a loch of some sort is in danger of being frowned upon by its peers so it is with great surprise that Kelso is so widely adored for its stately landscape. Fortunately, the fact that two pristine rivers, the Tweed and Teviot, meet right where Kelso begins helps matters greatly.
Part of the reason for why Kelso is so beloved is the fact that its appearance is far different from most Scottish towns. This would normally be seen as an ugly duckling kind of mindset at best and an anti-Scottish attitude at worst but, for some reason, Kelso's differences contribute to its popularity. Within the town you can find such anachronistic wonders as Georgian architecture and cobbled streets. While not decidedly un-Scottish, these features are rather unique and charming no matter where they are and in Kelso they achieve some kind of newfound beauty.
Beauty isn't strictly defined by age but austerity most definitely is and one would be hard-pressed to find a more austere local in Scotland than the famed Kelso Abbey. Though it is now largely tarnished and ruined, this somehow makes the Abbey all the more immediate and current and it works in much the same way as the atypical streets and architecture in town: It isn't common, it isn't normal, but it just simply works. The Abbey was built in the 1100s and within a century it was considered the greatest and most magnificent abbey in all of Scotland. Anybody who has been to Scotland knows that there is no shortage of stately abbeys in the country and many of them were destroyed or ruined in the mid 1500s because of the "Hard Wooing" involved with Mary Queen of Scots. Kelso Abbey was one of the abbeys hit hardest and by 1587 it was officially regarded as a derelict building.
Floors Castle, while considerably younger than Kelso Abbey, is nonetheless equally admirable in scale and scope and it is one of the most sought-after landmarks in Scotland for that reason. It was built in the early 1700s for the Duke of Roxburghe and so in actuality it is technically a house but one wouldn't know that simply from looking at the imposing edifice. The view of the castle from the other side of the River Tweed is particularly astonishing and it is something that must be seen to be believed. The castle still stands proudly although it is a bit worse for the wear. Either way, it is a gorgeous testament to what can be accomplished by man and it fits in perfectly with the theme of Kelso: Kelso is a town that plays to its own soundtrack and this is made evident in everything from its houses posing as castles to its French cobbled roads posing as Scottish streets.
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