Edinburgh City Apartments

There is no question that when traveling in the UK, staying in self-catering units like this one is the best option by far. We did this last year when we were in Cornwall and York and it sure works for us. You can get up when you want, make coffee, have a slow breakfast then face the day.

There seem to be quite a few units available for rent in Edinburgh. We people we decided to rent from have some very nice, centrally located units. When we were first here we stayed on Jeffrey Street, about three doors down from the Royal Mile and a short walk from the Airport bus or the rain station. This time we are in Greyfriars, very close to the University of Edinburgh, the meadows and of course the Greyfriars church.

On top of that I really like the way the people we are renting from handle things. There are lots of options but I would recommend them to anyone wanting to visit this city. They are Edinburgh City Apartments Check out their site.

What a Great City

We walked quite a bit at home before we left, trying to make sure we could handle anything this trip threw at us. We did it primarily because of Hadrian's Wall which starts in a couple of days. I don't think we ever could have imagined how much we'd walk here in Edinburgh.

This town is really made for walking and where we are staying, a few feet off the Royal Mile, is ideal. Everything it seems is within a reasonable stroll. Even so I feel like we have barely scratched the surface. There is so much here to see and do.

The town in divided into old and new, new meaning built between the end of the eighteenth century and the early 19th century. The old town, built along a ridge of volcanic rock along each side of the Royal Mile which stretches from the castle to Holyrood Palace, the Queen's residence here. (We can't visit it however since Prince Charles we are told is in residence although there is certainly no sign of him in the shops) The new town is laid out to the North of the old one, kind of, down the hill and across the railway tracks. It is all very geometric and Georgian and a lovely contrast to the winding cobblestone, different levels, steep stairs and narrow closes the old town offers..

The castle can be seen from almost everywhere. Even in a modern city it predominates, in the early years it must have been such an omnipresent reminder of the undercurrents of unrest which so often swirled around Scotland.

The Oxford Bar

I have been on the Rebus trail so in seemed fitting that we drop in at the Oxford Bar around 7:oo this evening.

It is smaller than I ever imagined. Fifteen or twenty people would absolutely fill the front room of the bar up. The back room is a bit bigger but there isn't much to it.

The place has a clubby feel to it. It is very much a local pub and those having a beer were local clientele. Everyone was quite nice though and they didn't seem to mind a stray Canadian dropping in for a pint.

No sign of Ian Rankin though.

The Elephant House Cafe

We had lunch today and the Elephant House Cafe. It is a lovely space with very high ceilings and huge south facing windows. It is full of University of Edinburgh students working away on projects. They seem very tolerant and don't seem to hurry anyone along.

The claim is the J. R. Rowling worked on her first drafts of her Harry Potter series in that same sun lit room with her daughter asleep in the chair beside her.

It is a great spot to chill out for a while and it has a great view of the castle. It is on the George IV Bridge which is quite something onto it's self. The street runs north/south and the east/west streets and is about five stories above the east/west streets. So what seems to be the ground floor in the photos is actually the fifth floor.

I think you have to see it to understand it.

The Witches Memorial

It took us quite some time to find the Witches Memorial. Every time we walked up or down the Royal Mile we looked for it to no avail. This afternoon Shelley spotted it on the side of a building up near the castle.

It was a fountain originally but now there are flowers planted in it. The memorial recognizes the fact that there were over 300 witches burned in Edinburgh. The last one in 1722.

If someone accused you of being a witch it was a bit of a no win situation. The accused were often bound with their thumbs tied to their ankles and the accused would be dunked in a pond. If you died the perpetrators were comforted by the fact that you were innocent and would go to heaven. If not, you were obviously a witch, so they burned you at the stake.

Practicing this this type of tough justice was finally abolished in 1736.

St Leonards

Shelley has been very tolerant with my need to find locations from Ian Rankin's Rebus novels. We were walking down from Arthur's Seat and just found ourselves just down the street from St. Leonard’s Police Headquarters.. Anyone who has read the Rebus novels knows the Inspector worked out of St. Leonard’s. At least for most of the books he did.

I had Shelley take my picture right outside the station's main door. I thought it might be fun to go in and ask for Inspector Rebus but, of course, we all know he is retired and I don't remember the Edinburgh police having that kind of sense of humour so we just moved on before they arrested us for loitering.

Scottish Parliament Tour

Shelley and I had a rare treat late Wednesday afternoon when Tricia Marwick a Member of the Scottish Parliament gave us a tour of the five amazing buildings which make up the Scottish Parliament. I met Tricia when she spoke to the Fair Vote Canada AGM about electoral reform in Scotland. She invited me to get in contact with her when we came to Edinburgh and we met late afternoon. She gave us a tour most of the public never get the opportunity to see.

The controversial structure was designed by Catalan architect Enric Miralles and officially opened in 2004, three years late and millions of pounds over budget. Still the subject of some controversy it is a stunningly magnificent, if eccentric structure. Although from the outside it consists of five separate buildings, one dating back to the 17th century, on the inside the transitions from one to the other are seamless.

The space is quite wonderful and we had a great tour guide in Tricia who knows the building inside out, quirks and all. We were quite taken with it.

This isn't really Shelley's First Visit

Shelley usually says this is her first visit to Edinburgh but, she actually lived here as a babe in arms.

Her father, Neil Banks, was a United Church minister and he studied at the University of Edinburgh, School of Divinity, New College and the family lived here for a year or so, The "New College" by the way was built in 1846.

We went in and talked to the warder and explained the reason for our visit. He let us in so we could wander around and take a good look at the facility.

Edinburgh is a Walking Around Kind of Town

Edinburgh is a town made for walking. Most things you might want to see are within a reasonable walking distance. That would make it easy if Edinburgh was flat. Believe me, it isn’t

We started our day with a walk along Cowgate then walked up the hill to the Royal Mile and along to Deacon Brodie’s Close where we had some good strong coffee and some toast. The restaurant is located in what they claim was where William Brodie, the deacon’s son lived, William was a respected councilor and cabinet maker who often plied his craft in peoples homes. The only problem was that he duplicated the keys of the houses he was working on and went back in the evening and helped himself to their belongings. He basically was a reno-man by day, burglar by night. He was caught and hung in 1788, ironically on a scaffold of his own design.

They claim that the image of Brodie and his two personas gave Robert Lewis Stevenson nightmares as a child and subsequently served as the inspiration for his Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

The Castle

We spent the rest of the morning walking around Edinburgh Castle. It is a pretty amazing place built right into the hill which is really a volcanic plug somehow never scraped away by the glaciers. It is so steeped in history that I hardly would know where to start. The evidence of first structure built here goes back to the 11th century. It is an predominant, imposing presence which can be seen all over the city. Unfortunately the entrance way is marred by huge bleachers set up so the tourists can watch the military tattoo. Not being a big fan of that kind of military pageantry, from my perspective it only serves to block the view of the castle from those walking up the street to visit.

The picture is of a cannon nicknamed Mons Meg. like many things here the reason for the name is obscured by time. It is not your "run of the mill" cannon however. It was built in 1445 and weighs almost 8 tons. It was designed to fire stone cannon balls weighing 400 lb two miles or more. No mean feat. It could only be fired half a dozen times a day or so because of the tremendous heat generated by the explosion.

It was last fired in 1681 on a ceremonial occasion. The barrel exploded apparently. No word of the fate of soldiers who were firing the gun at the time.

The castle still serves a military purpose and makes for a fascinating visit on a great many fronts. If you visit don't miss the dog cemetery, the prisoner of war exhibit or the Scottish Crown Jewels.

Fleshmarket Close

One of the things I look forward to in Edinburgh is digging up locations and situations which turn up in Ian Rankin's Inspector Rebus novels.

Fans will remember his 2004 novel Fleshmarket Close in which two skeletons, one of a woman and another of an infant which turn up under a cellar floor during a restaurant renovation.

Well, this is Fleshmarket Close.

One hates to think of how they came up for the name for this narrow passageway.

Well We Made It

It was a long haul but, we are here.
We left Regina at 11:00 Monday morning and arrived in downtown Edinburgh at just about 11:00 Tuesday morning, local time.

It was pretty smooth going without a excessively long waits between flights.

Everything worked the way it was supposed to.

The new double decker Emerites Air Airbus A380 was at the gate in Toronto while we were there so we had a good closeup view. Very big!

We had a walk, ate lunch and now it is nappie time, at least for a short one.

The picture is looking across Edinburgh's Old Town with in the distance Salisbury Crags and Arthur's Seat behind it, taken from our roof top terrace.