The nation's ancient capital for more than 500 years, Dunfermline stands as testimony to the Kingdom's rich heritage. Once the birthplace of monarchs and the final resting place of Robert the Bruce, the town is now a thriving centre of fine hotels and restaurants, excellent shops and superb leisure facilities. Falkland also displays its royal credentials in its stately Palace, the favourite hunting lodge of a succesion of Stewart monarchs while St Andrews, once the ecclesiastic capital of Scotland but now better known as a golfer's paradise, is home to our oldest university.
Kirkcaldy, the commercial centre of the Kingdom and birthplace of economist Adam Smith and architect Robert Adam, also houses a superb collection of Scottish Colourist paintings in its fine Museum and Art Gallery. Meanwhile, in the picturesque villages of the East Neuk of Fife, whitewashed buildings with red pantiled roofs overlook cobbled winding streets leading to secluded little fishing harbours, settings which seem to have changed little over the preceding 150 years. They also testify to the strong heritage of sea-fishing that lives on the area.
