Got up about 8 o’clock. Walked round town and sea front. Read a bit of Omar Khayyam1. Walked round The Braes 2 in the afternoon. Had walk with Hilda and Ernie at night. Saw Ernie’s shop and got a few things there. Spent a pleasant day. Had walk with Ernie at night.
Omar Khayyám (1048-1131 A.D.) was a Persian mathematician, astronomer, philosopher, and poet. He also wrote treatises on mechanics, geography, mineralogy and music. It is not clear from this diary entry which of his writings had engaged ALL’s interest, but it may have been his most famous work, The Rubáiyát. See also Omar Khayyám at Arthur Linfoot’s Library. ↩
“The Braes”: Kinkell Braes, near the site of a castle which was a noted venue for conventicles in the period following the restoration of the House of Stuart. The Braes are now occupied by modern structures including a caravan park and camp site (position of map marker).
ALL evidently visited the Braes on several further occasions during his 1915 visit to St. Andrews.
See also St Andrews map. ↩