Prestonpans - Annemarie's House

This past weekend I had a mini-adventure. I went to visit my new friend, author Annemarie Allan in Prestonpans, Scotland.Prestonpans is a small town along the coast with a thick history in mining, salt, glass, bricks, and... witches.
     Annemarie and I first met through our mutual friend, Jane Yolen. We took the train together when we headed up to Jane's Gathering of Authors at Wayside. All the way there we talked about mythology, folklore, writing and mining. In other words, we completely hit it off and could have talked for hours. Hence, the need for a play date at Annemarie's home in Prestonpans.
      There is nothing like experiencing history through the eyes of a local. Join me and Annemarie as I share this fascinating corner of the world over the next few posts.
     First, I joined Annemarie at her beautiful home. She lives in a section of the East Preston Lodge - a humble name for one of the grandest manors in the town. The top of one of the towers is covered in decorative iron-work in the shape of fuschias. The original builder of the home was in the business of importing this tropical flower to Scotland. It has since become a mainstay of gardens across Scotland. The iron-work was a declaration of their business. The inside of the room is equally impressive. Used as a sitting room it has views of Arthur's Seat, the Firth of Forth, and the bridges to Fife in the winter through this window.Through the center window is the tower - more on that in a future post.And to the east is more of Prestonpans and the Firth.Annemarie made us tea as we sat at her lovely kitchen table and talked and talked and talked. I couldn't help but notice her collection of bones she collects from the local beach. I love bones too, they're beautiful.Annemarie also collects bricks. It may sound like an odd hobby, but each one has a history and story to tell. And after all, that's what we're all about - stories.Stay tuned for some good ones!