This episode’s vocabulary
Namesake
noun — a person or thing having the same name as another person or thing.
To site
verb — to exist or be built in a particular place.
Invaluable
adj. — priceless; extremely useful.
Site
noun — a place where something is, was, or will be built, or where something happened, is happening, or will happen.
To draw
verb — to attract attention or interest.
Distinctive
adj. — Something that is distinctive is easy to recognize because it is different from other things.
Dilapidated
adj. — old and in poor condition.
To radiate
verb — to spread out in all directions from a central point.
To reenact
verb — to repeat the actions of an event that happened in the past as a hobby or as a performance.
Questions and answers
Rory, fire away.
Well, I love the ruins of the Arbroath Abbey in its namesake town in Scotland. They're just in from the sea, and they're sited in the center of the town. You used to be able to see them for miles around. And perhaps you still can if you look carefully enough. I haven't been back in a while, but I was looking at houses there. And it seems, it certainly still seems to be the case. But there's been a lot of building and development in Arbroath recently. So maybe it's not so easy to see the ruins these days. They're literally hundreds of years old and they make up an invaluable historical and cultural site in Scotland. They draw visitors from all over the country, and even all over the world, actually, or they used to before the pandemic shut down travel. The whole thing is made of sandstone, which gives it and the other buildings around it this distinctive red look. This is actually a common thing in Scotland. Many houses in Aberdeen are made of granite, for example. Anyway, I digress. They look like how a huge monastery would look if the roof had collapsed in on itself. And only the main walls and columns, the central columns were left. And you would think that would make it look rather dilapidated. But the council has done a remarkable job of maintaining it over the years. And you can almost sort of feel the air of mystery and age radiating from it even from far away. And that's one of the main reasons I like it. Though, I also really like the reminder it gives us of Scottish culture, and the people who work to maintain and promote that. From the people who reenact ancient characters there to the receptionist in the building itself. It's just great. And if anyone ever visits Scotland then this should be definitely on their tick list of things to see if they go there.
What about your friends? Do they like this building?
We haven't talked about it actually. We should, we should go there.
Thank you, Rory! -