Friday 30 January 2009

View of the beach

As requested, the view from yesterday's tenement building which is, of course, on the Portobello waterfront.

Thursday 29 January 2009

Beach house anyone?

Imagine: you wake up in the morning, stumble out of bed, open the curtains.... and look out over a sandy beach and the sea (well, estuary...) - how amazing would that be?!

Tuesday 27 January 2009

Cool turret on Newhaven Road

Every morning I pass this little turret on the end of a terrace on Newhaven Road. I've been meaning to take a photo of it for ages; it looks even better with the dark clouds behind it!

Monday 26 January 2009

Cold Monday

A frosty Monday morning... our car was cold too!

Sunday 25 January 2009

Addressing the Haggis

Today we celebrate Robert Burns' 250th Birthday - well actually, we did it yesterday (partly to give us a chance to sleep off the whisky and partly to have the party coincide with Mr Dido's birthday). We organised a proper Burns Supper at our house, complete with all the toasts and addresses. This is my good friend Alex addressing the Haggis, and doing so brilliantly!!

Friday 23 January 2009

Portobello Baths

These are the Victorian baths in Portobello. They are being looked after by Edinburgh Leisure, and include a swimming pool, turkish baths and even normal bath tubs that you can use if you don't have one at home!

Thursday 22 January 2009

Seagulls on the beach

Another impression of a cold but bright Saturday afternoon on Portobello beach.

Wednesday 21 January 2009

Portobello beach

Portobello beach (to the northeast of Edinburgh) also goes by the name of 'Edinburgh's Seaside'. Like many 19th-century seaside towns it has gone through some rough patches but the beach is still as lovely. We caught a few hours of sun here at the weekend, before the rain and gales set in. I'll show a few more pictures over the coming days.

Tuesday 20 January 2009

Cold, cold January

So yesterday was supposed to be the most depressing day of the year? No money left after Christmas, no holidays in sight, no sunlight, hmm... well how about a nice cheerful picture to represent this particular state of mind!? (And no this picture was not taken as or converted into B&W...)

Monday 19 January 2009

Ross's favourite graffiti

OK, one more then. I was walking past these on my way back from a meeting, together with a male colleague - who, incidentally, is much more of an expert on graffiti than I ever will be. Not surprisingly, his favourite was this one.

Sunday 18 January 2009

My favourite graffiti

This is my favourite bit of graffiti on the Potterrow wooden fencing (see yesterday's picture). As I am totally ignorant of these things I have no idea what it stands for or represents; I just like the shape and colours of it, and I also like how it stands out among the many tags.

Saturday 17 January 2009

Graffiti in Potterrow

This is the footpath from South College Street along Potterrow, in the University area just to the south of the city centre. Graffiti such as this is rare in Edinburgh's city centre, but here the walls and wooden boards along the pavement have been full of it for as long as I can remember. Great for colourful pictures on a dreary January day!

Friday 16 January 2009

Students protest against war

Anti-war protest by students on Bristo Square, yesterday lunchtime.

Thursday 15 January 2009

That path...

Well after a bit of tweaking and testing the camera seems to be working again. Fingers crossed.

Not the most picturesque image today, but a topical one nevertheless. This is 'the path' where on 31 December 2008 some poor soul discovered the head of a woman in a blue IKEA bag.

Wednesday 14 January 2009

Sorry!

Apologies once again for the long gap in posting. There's a problem with my camera in that it keeps turning itself off. At first I thought it was something to do with the batteries but it now appears to be the camera itself. (It's a Canon S5 IS if anyone has any suggestions!)

I took a few pictures on my sister's camera at the weekend so am waiting for them to come through to start posting again.

Thursday 8 January 2009

Lights in trees

I am feeling really rubishy today with a cold and sore throat, so I'm afraid today's picture is a stock photo I took a few months ago but never used! At the various festivals - summer or winter - Edinburgh's trees get lit up beautifully. At the moment they're taking down all the winter decorations... which is why January always feels much darker and more depressing than December!

Wednesday 7 January 2009

Bonfire and Vikings

The torchlight procession (see yesterday's picture) ended on the top of Calton Hill where a large bonfire was lit by the Vikings of Up Helly Aa.

Tuesday 6 January 2009

Torchlight Procession

On 29 December we took part in the annual Torchlight Procession, which starts on the Royal Mile and finishes with a bonfire and fireworks on Calton Hill. It's an amazing experience being part of this river of light with around 20,000 (!) people taking part. You buy your torch for £6 on the Royal Mile (the money goes to a city charity) and queue up, or you can simply watch the procession snake down the Mound and onto Princes Street. Highly recommended if you find yourself in or around Edinburgh for Hogmanay! (pic courtesy of Difa!)

Monday 5 January 2009

A Fresh Start

After an inexcusibly long absence, I am finally back! It may not surprise you that keeping up to date with the blog is one of my main New Year's resolutions.

Happy 2009 everyone!!