Rhapsody in green and red

Whoever said that green and red don't go together? This gentleman was enjoying a cup of coffee along the Middle Meadow Walk, not far from yesterday's musicians.

Middle Mozart Walk

I spotted this group of musicians on the Middle Meadow Walk, near the University. I suspect they were music students trying to earn a bit of money in their holidays - anyway, they were really good! Let's hope they made a bit of money.

Accidental kilt van

A truly Scottish offering for you today. I was trying to take a picture of the gorgeous Ramsay Garden apartments below the castle, when this van turned up and stopped right in front of me on the Mound, as if trying to say - here I am! Pick me! Pick me! So I did.

In Scotland today, kilts - and particularly the full Highland Dress outfits such as shown here - are a perfectly acceptable alternative to a suit or morning suit. They're often worn at weddings and other official events. At ceilidhs (Scottish dances, best thing ever!) kilts are often worn with a more informal, 'Jacobite' shirt - mainly because it'd be way too hot to wear the kind of heavy jacket seen above!

Wine leaves?

Drinking wine al fresco - who doesn't love summer?! I took this picture from the other side of a beer garden in New Town.

July Theme day: "No..!"

Today's theme is a sign that says 'no'.

To see how the other 171 participating City Daily Photo Bloggers interpreted this month's theme, go here.

Ducks ducks ducks

Yesterday I took my camera along to the the twentieth Stockbridge Duck Race on the Water of Leith. Exactly 2008 numbered ducks were sold in aid of local charities, and at 3pm they were thrown off a bridge where they all raced for the finishing line, a few hundred metres along the river. More photos of the event, and the 'Duck Wardens' whose task it was to shepherd the ducks along, are here.

The Great Scottish Summer

In Scotland we often get four seasons in one day, so when you want to get the best out of the Scottish summer, you sometimes have to persevere a little...

Shells & the Queen Mother

Before you accuse me of having too much time on my hands, consider for a second what an ENTIRE room of this would look like - and then imagine a ceiling of pine cones in the shape of a Scottish flag, put the two of them together and you will reach some approximation of the small-scale monstrosity they call the Queen Mother's Memorial pavilion in the Royal Botanic Garden. Honestly...

Informatics Forum

Today I went on a tour of the new Informatics building on what used to be the Crichton Street car park site. There's no other way to put this - everything about it is stunning!!! This is one of the floating staircases in the central atrium. I love the light and the bright colours everywhere.

Sunset on Royal Yacht

This is the Royal Yacht Britannia by sunset, in front of Ocean Terminal. This ship was used for business and pleasure by the Queen from 1953 until it was decommissioned in 1997. It is now permanently moored in Leith and you can visit it - not cheap but highly recommended!

Graduation Day

All of this week the University of Edinburgh's summer graduations are taking place, and today it was the School of Arts, Culture and Environment handing out the degrees. This graduate is on her way up the stairs of Minto House to the History of Art reception. I quite like the slightly solarised effect - no photoshop!

Tenement windows

Windows in a tenement building on Merchant Street, near the Grassmarket. You can see the 'close' or shared stairwell through the windows on the left. You see this type of sash and case window a lot in Edinburgh, although many of them have now been replaced by modern plastic (double-glazed!) ones.

Majestic Tour

The first week of summer also heralds the beginning of the proper tourist season in Edinburgh. Although the city is a popular city break destination throughout the year, during summer - and particularly during the August Festivals - the place goes truly mad. With the Film Festival now underway, it won't be long before the crowds descend onto the city centre and many of them will go on "hop-on hop-off" bus tours such as this one, which has as its main destination the Royal Yacht Britannia, permanently moored at Ocean Terminal in Leith. However, at 9 in the morning this bus is still rather empty!

Wind on the water

I took this photo a few days ago inNewhaven harbour, on the same night I took the lighthouse picture. Although the light and the clouds were beautiful, still almost, in this picture I tried to capture the cold wind you often get at sunset, coming in over the water of the Firth of Forth.

Ale, glorious ale

Yesterday we were at the Scottish Real Ale Festival in the Assembly Rooms. You pay £4 for a glass and then go round all the different exhibiting breweries to sample the various brews. Mmmm....

We also met a couple of the judges from SIBA, who had had rather a lot of the good stuff:

Light and the lighthouse

This idyllic picture of the Newhaven lighthouse belies the fact that I was nearly blown off the pier trying to take some pictures, not to mention my hands almost freezing off!

Pillar & Arms

This is the upper part of a memorial pillar on Bristo Square, with a beautiful cast-iron lantern on top. The bottom part represents the City of Edinburgh coat of arms (you'll see it better when you click on the image to get a larger picture).

The coat of arms consists of a shield with a three-towered castle on a rock, with two 'supporters': a maiden and a doe. The maiden was probably adopted as a supporter because Edinburgh Castle was once known as ‘Castrum Puellarum’ (Castle of the Maidens). This Latin name was probably given after a Gaelic or Brythonic name sounding like ‘maiden’ but meaning something else. The doe or hind represents St Giles, the city’s patron saint.

Finally, the crest above the shield takes the shape of an anchor and rope probably because the Lord Provost of the city also held the office of Admiral of the Forth.

Old Town contrast

I'm back! Though I adore the buzz of London it's so nice to be back in Edinburgh, where the pace of life is so very different, the air so much cleaner and the commute so much easier!

This is a view from Chambers Street looking up towards the 'back' of the Royal Mile. I love the contrast between the white render and the old stone. The white building of flats is actually about ten stories high (this is only the top of it) and has its entrance on the Cowgate. Because of its steep hills, Edinburgh is very much a three-dimensional city, where buildings often have an entrance at different street levels - which can be very confusing when you're trying to read a map!

Pretty straggly flowers

This is the last photograph in my 'ode to green spaces' series. I have no idea what these flowers are called (suggestions please?) and should probably point out that I can take no credit whatsoever for the state of the garden; our wild and wonderful bit of green space is the work - and sometimes that means laissez faire - of our neighbour Frank.

I'll be back from London tomorrow and look forward to catching up on all your posts over the last four days.

Lily? No Iris actually!

Here is the latest in the series of flowers from my garden, which is inhabited by a substantial number of foxgloves, buttercups, a large clematis and general weeds. But I was amazed to find this beauty in amongst the rest - and even more amazed that I actually managed to capture its delicacy rather succesfully (I'm normally not so good at these things). One more tomorrow, then I will hopefully have emerged from the city where there are very few flowers and very many people!

Foxgloves

And here's the second installment of my 'ode to green spaces' - same bee! (I'm still away.)

Ode to green spaces

I'm going to be away for a few days so I am posting a series of photos of flowers - and the occasional bee - that I took in our garden this morning. Let they be an ode to green spaces - and enjoy them while I'm enjoying London!

Degrees of certainty

Yesterday I attended the opening of the Degree Show at edinburgh college of art. This is a work by Johannes Sailer (MFA Sculpture), who is definitely one to watch.

Gullbatros?!

It's been a while since I last posted a Newhaven picture, so here's a nice one I took a couple of weeks ago. This seagull seems quite comfortable on the stern of the St Rognvald of Newhaven, named after a 12th century Earl from Orkney who ordered the construction of the St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall but was murdered by a Scottish chieftain before its completion.

... and the view from Eildon Street

And as promised, this is the view you get from yesterday's street - over a large playing field and some rather unkempt tennis courts, over Stockbridge and onto the old town and Edinburgh Castle. This has to be one of the prime spots for the New Year and Festival Fireworks!

Eildon Street

You can find this street off Inverleith Row, close to the Botanic Garden. These houses are fairly typical examples of the type of terraced housing in the more affluent areas of the north of Edinburgh such as Inverleith and Trinity. Some of these are actually flats whereas others are still complete houses. They're gorgeous!! But what's even more stunning is their view onto the old town ... see tomorrow's post!

Allotments

This is one of several areas of allotments in Edinburgh - they are usually hidden from view but you get a good look at them from the railway line cycle paths. As many people don't have their own gardens, these patches are in huge demand, and some of them have waiting lists of up to seven years!

P.S. This post is dedicated to my mum whose birthday it is today! She's got green fingers and although she doesn't really grow vegetables she has somehow managed to cultivate a fig tree in the front garden.

Private eye

Who are they? What are they talking about? What is she doing with that tennis racket? ... and why am I spying on them having a nice time?!

George Square Garden

A haven of peace in the middle of the University. I am posting this photograph mainly to be able to show you the contrast in August, when during the Festival this lovely green space is totally transformed into the much loved, colourful and vibrant outside cafe and venue that is the Spiegel Garden.

Stones - George Square

As promised, another photo of lovely stonework on one of Edinburgh's older buildings. As you can see, the walls were recently repointed. The little stones inbetween the larger ones give the walls a pretty but peculiar effect, and I've never seen this anywhere else. These buildings are on George Square and were originally built as fashionable town houses in the 18th century, the most famous former inhabitant of the square being author and historian Sir Walter Scott. Unfortunately, most of the square was demolished in the sixties to make way for modern university buildings.

In the middle of the square is a lovely park (see tomorrow's post) which is used mainly by students but comes into its own each August, when it is totally transformed to the fabulous Spiegel Garden.

Lift off

On Bristo Square you often find kids on skateboards and bmx bikes doing jumps - thankfully my camera has a decent zoom because it can get quite tricky navigating the square itself! The building in the background is the McEwan Hall, the graduation hall of University of Edinburgh designed by Robert Rowand Anderson in 1874.

Coffee, p(o)lease!

One of many old police boxes that were converted into little coffee shops. They were originally built as mini police stations, often with a phone on the outside for members of the public to contact the police. In England they're usually blue but in Scotland they're often red.

Cycling on the railway

I took this picture this morning on my way to work. It's part of a wall along one of the cycle lanes that run where the old railway lines used to be. They are brilliant green spaces in the middle of the city (see below), used by cyclists and pedestrians alike – and even the odd city fox!

It is hard to believe these days, but back in the 19th century there used to be an extensive network of railway lines in North Edinburgh. The Edinburgh Leith & Newhaven Railway opened in 1842 and connected the city centre with the old chain pier in Trinity, which was used by steamboats. Within a few years the line was extended to Granton Harbour, from where train ferries crossed the Firth of Forth to Burntisland in Fife. However, by 1890 the new Forth Railway Bridge put the Granton train ferries out of action, so from then on trains were only used by local passengers and for goods. In the 1920s, the arrival of trams eventually signalled the end of passenger transport on the trains. By the 1960s only very few goods trains were still running, and in 1986 the last line was closed.

Colours & Comics

This little row of shops on Candlemaker Row has clearly seen better days, but the colourful exteriors still manage to turn what is essentially a dreary little street down to the Grassmarket into something that is essentially Edinburgh.

Azaleas at the Botanics

On Saturday, I spent some time in the beautiful Botanic Garden, just north of the New Town. The weather was absolutely glorious as you can see, and the garden was full of families, groups of friends, sun lovers and plant lovers! Opposite the glasshouses there's a large field with azaleas - the flowers are getting to their end now but the range of colours was still amazing! My two-year old niece also enjoyed herself, running back and forth on the grass and posing very prettily in front of a large bush of pink flowers - a post for another day!

Theme day: My Local Shop

Crolla's of Newhaven sits at the bottom of my street and clearly is closed on a rainy Sunday afternoon - quite right too! It is the epicentre of village activity. No idea if it bears any relation to the famous Valvona & Crolla Italian enterprise elsewhere in Edinburgh?

Chambers Street

Chambers Street runs parallel and just to the south of the Royal Mile. Its neo-classical, almost French-chateau architecture dates from the second half of the 19th century, when a slum-clearing programme destroyed a densely built residential area. Only the University's 'Old College' at the east end of Chambers Street predates the street itself. The street is named after William Chambers of Glenormiston (guy on the pedestal), the Lord Provost of Edinburgh who backed the 1867 Edinburgh Improvement Act that led to the slum clearances, which led to the street... get it?

The building in the background is called Minto House; it originally consisted of a church (to the right) and a large residence (to the left). It is owned by the University and houses the subjects of Architecture and History of Art. Directly opposite Minto House is the Royal Museum, now closed (see 17 May).

Sea Pink and Silverweed

Idyllic eh? Yet this is not some countryside meadow with a church in the distance, but instead it was taken in the middle of Edinburgh's Old Town and in one of my very favourite places - the roof-top garden of the National Museum of Scotland. Once you've taken the lift up to the 7th floor (remember, it's free!) you get the most amazing view of Edinburgh Castle and the city centre. You can even see the water of the Firth of Forth way in the distance. Plus, it's a wonderful suntrap on a beautiful day like today, and a great place to go and eat a sandwich in your lunchbreak!

You can also get to the roof-terrace by stairs from the 5th floor of the Museum - this is what that looks like:

Rocky indeed!

To demonstrate the point I made about the castle on 26 May, here's a picture from the Grassmarket to show that it really does sit on a pretty impressive bit of rock! The Grassmarket itself - known for its quaint shops, pubs and 'vibrant' wildlife on a Friday and Saturday night - is being partly pedestrianised in a bid to make more of its picturesque character (hence the digger and roadworks).

After I took this photo I walked on past the second-hand bookshops in the west end of the Grassmarket, when I noticed this print in the window of an antiquarian printseller (apologies for the reflections but the picture was taken rather surrepticiously to avoid conflict with the owner):

The first stones

I love the colours, textures and shapes of stone walls of buildings - and I love how the type of stone used in a city can give it a distinct character. For example, Edinburgh (creamy-grey sandstone), Glasgow (red sandstone) and Aberdeen (granite) have very similar architecture but completely distinct characters because of the traditional building stone used.

As part of this blog I will try and photograph stone walls all over the city, to build up a collection of snapshots that map the surfaces of Edinburgh's urban fabric! Here's the first one, taken on Willowbank Row.

Low tide

Yesterday was a gorgeous day in Scotland and a bank holiday for some. With the benefit of the sunshine I returned to Newhaven Harbour for a few pictures of some of the boats moored there. Apparently it's quite cheap to have a boat at Newhaven because there is only a small window of opportunity at high tide to manoeuvre out of the narrow opening next to the lighthouse (see photo of 13 May). And as you can see, low tide means really low water here!

Edinburgh city centre (view part 2)

As promised yesterday, here's the view part 2! With of course Edinburgh castle to the right and the rather less photogenic St Andrew's House (large bulky office block to the left).

What I find facinating about this picture is the deceptive evenness of height of all the buildings. Edinburgh slopes up quite steeply towards the city centre, and the castle is on a huge big rock that towers over everything else again - yet you would never guess that from this angle. Secondly, the towers/turrets/domes on the skyline itself are not at all in a straight line, but instead they are on two parallel streets half a kilometer away from each other. From left to right, you see: the top of St Giles cathedral (Royal Mile), the tower on the Balmoral Hotel (Princes Street), the Hub (church on Royal Mile), the Scott Monument (gothic spire on Princes Street).

Edinburgh hills (view part 1)

They say that, like Athens, Edinburgh was built on seven hills. To be honest, some of these hills were not so much built on as built around, and that goes for the two in this photo: Arthur's Seat & Salisbury crags to the left and Calton Hill to the right and closer to the camera. The former sit in a large area of wild parkland called Holyrood Park and at its heighest point Arthur's seat (far left) reaches 251m - not bad for a hill in the middle of a capital city! Calton Hill is not nearly as high and boasts a collection of rather odd but nevertheless iconic monuments. Needless to say, the view from both these hills onto the city is fabulous.

This picture was taken from our friends' fourth floor flat in the north of Edinburgh, looking south-east. If you were to continue turning to the right (so facing south) you'd see the city centre and the castle - so come back for tomorrow's view part two!

Eurovision madness

The Eurovision Party is a time-honoured tradition at our friends' house - if 'your' country gets 12 points you hit the Skittle vodka (yes, that's really vodka with red or green sweeties dissolved in it...). See above for the poor sod who drew Russia - though the combination Armenia - Azerbaijan also earned a respectable amount of shots!

Old and New

This is a great view of old and new from the top of Whale Brae, over the roofs of the old buildings to the new Platinum Point developments at the Western Harbour! Especially when the light from the sun setting over the Firth of Forth catches the shiny facades of the highrise. It always reminds me of those backdrops you get on filmsets, as if it's not quite real.