It’s my last day in Edinburgh, sigh… Sad to go today, have had a wonderful time visiting my mum, dad, brother, mum in law, and friends. I’m managed to pack a huge amount in six short days. My highlights have been going to see the kelpies, a fantastic theatre show at the Pleasance #EdinburghFringe – The Curse of Cranholme Abbey – https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/curse-of-cranholme-abbey
Eating lots of scrumptious food both at home (my mum is an amazing Malaysian cook!) and at local restaurants. Walking around the fun and unusual shopping streets, I’d definitely recommend Cockburn Street for its quirkiness!
The final talk that I attended at the Book Festival was on Sunday 23rd of August, The Poems of Iain Banks, with Ken Macleod, a Scottish Science Fiction Writer, and lifelong friend of Iain Banks. The event was chaired by Stuart Kelly. It had been an interesting talk, suggested to me by fellow blogger, Stephen P. Blanchini, his blog is aptly named The Earthian Hive Mind: http://earthianhivemind.net/
I learnt a great deal about Iain Banks from this talk, and was struck by Ken Macleod’s obvious sadness that this lifelong friend that he had had the pleasure of knowing for such a long time was no longer with us. Very sad, it must be extremely hard to discuss a friend you have shared so many memories with over so many years, in such a public way particularly when you have had so much in common. I shall be delving into Iain Bank’s writing, and his poetry to find out more, but at this juncture I don’t feel I can do him justice by writing an in-depth article about the talk as in truth I just don’t feel I know enough about him, yet…. The fantastic thing about these talks is their ability to make you curious, and encourage you to read the author’s work which can only be a good thing. Ken mentioned that Iain’s strangest novel was A Song Of Stone, this features heightened prose, and a strongly dislikeable character. Iain was apparently disparaging about his final novel The Quarry. Ken suggested that The Quarry demonstrates a gentler revisiting of themes that appeared in his earlier novels. Ken said that there is almost an alternating nice hopper, nasty hopper with some of Iain’s books such as Whit, (about a young cult member,) Stonemouth, (this follows a man returning to a small seaport town after leaving due to a sexual scandal,) and Quarry, (which deals with an autistic youth, Kit, and his father, Guy, a misanthrope who is dying of cancer,) fitting into the nice hopper. The Hydrogen Sonata, a science fiction novel set in a techo-utopian Culture universe is possibly more optimistic too, though it takes part in Hell!
Sadly, Iain Banks died of Gallbladder cancer, as a token of the esteem he was held in the asteroid (5099) Iainbanks was named in memory of him shortly after his death. His dying of Gallbladder cancer got me thinking, I myself had a polyp in my Gallbladder which was discovered last year and I was operated on in October 2015. For a long time my symptoms were misdiagnosed, it took a trip up to Edinburgh, and a Scottish doctor to diagnose it immediately. The polyp was most probably benign but still it does make you think, that tiny polyp gave me so much trouble I’m so glad I went ahead and had my Gallbladder removed. Poor Iain.
After the talk the weather was so nice that I felt it would be a crime not to stop for an ice cream, so I stopped right by the large advertisement for the Book Festival that you can see at the top of this blog post. I had a feeling that I should wander on a bit and find somewhere that sold S. Lucas ice-cream, but there was no certainty that I’d find this wonderful childhood favourite which we used to eat in Musselburgh. So I settled for an ice-cream van at this spot, I fancied a chocolate wafer, a Scottish ice cream delight but was a bit disappointed to find that they’d run out, so I had to settle for a humble ice cream cone! Still it was very tasty and I lapped it all up. Of course, the inevitable happened I found a place along in the gardens that sold S. Lucas ice-cream, too late, I should have listened to that psychic voice telling me to wait! I couldn’t really justify buying another ice-cream so soon after the last!
As I ambled my way along Princess Street gardens taking in the sights I came upon the magnificent flower clock, this is a must see if you’re ever in Edinburgh, it is really pretty, especially on a sunny day. The floral clock can be found half way down the stairs into the gardens across from the National Galleries, at the foot of the Mound, commissioned in 1903, it was the first of its kind in the world. Oh, and amazingly it tells the correct time in flowers! How cool is that! Unfortunately my photographs could have been a bit better, there were a few shadows lurking about but still it does give you an idea of how lovely it is. I like how this wonderful display of flowers celebrates Books, Words and Ideas. Of course Edinburgh, my old home town, is the first UNESCO City of Literature in the world, and deservedly so.
So it was time to say farewell to Edinburgh until the next time. Time to go home and see my hubby and my daughters!
I do hope you have enjoyed all of my Edinburgh posts, I have bombarded you with so many of them but my excuse is simply this, I used to live in Edinburgh, I grew up and had many memorable teenage years there.
These miniature statues are currently a feature of Edinburgh’s West End for the duration of the Edinburgh International Festival. The real Kelpies are one of the largest standing equine sculptures in the world, standing 30 metres high, and located within “the Helix” park, Falkirk, a 350 hectare park situated between Glasgow and Edinburgh, Scotland. The Kelpies are the creation of sculpter Andy Scott. Next time I’m up in Scotland I will most definitely be visiting the “real” Kelpies in Falkirk.
Taking photographs of them at different angles, certainly seemed to breathe life into these miniature Kelpies! Also I played about with the exposure, brightness, etc, on a photo editing site: http://www.picmonkey.com/ to get differing effects.
I’m a bit late for Writer’s Quote Wednesday this week as I’ve been away in Edinburgh and trying to catch up on everything now that I’m home, but I suppose it’s better to be late than never!
Anyway if you’d like to participate in this wonderful community of quote enthusiasts here’s the link:
My quotes this week are inspired by my trip to Edinburgh, and in particular to the Edinburgh Book Festival.
There are many more wonderful quotes about Edinburgh, the world’s first UNESCO city of Literature. www.cityofliterature.com
Here are some more of my favourites:
“Stepping into Charlotte Square was like stepping onto the pages of a fantastic new story.”
“City of the mind. A writer’s city.” Ian Rankin.
“It’s impossible to live in Edinburgh without sensing its literary heritage.” J K Rowling.
‘Edinburgh is my favourite city.” Carol Ann Duffy, Poet Laureate.
“This is a city of shifting light, of changing skies, of sudden vistas. A city so beautiful it breaks the heart again and again.”
― Alexander McCall Smith
“Edinburgh is a comfortable puddle for a novelist.”
― Sara Sheridan
“From this height the sleeping city seems like a child’s construction, a model which has refused to be constrained by imagination. The volcanic plug might be black Plasticine, the castle balanced solidly atop it a skewed rendition of crenellated building bricks. The orange street lamps are crumpled toffee-wrappers glued to lollipop sticks.”
― Ian Rankin
“The drinking dens are spilling out
There’s staggering in the square
There’s lads and lasses falling about
And a crackling in the air
Down around the dungeon doors
The shelters and the queues
Everybody’s looking for
Somebody’s arms to fall into
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now
There’s frost on the graves and the monuments
But the taverns are warm in town
People curse the government
And shovel hot food down
The lights are out in the city hall
The castle and the keep
The moon shines down upon it all
The legless and asleep
And it’s cold on the tollgate
With the wagons creeping through
Cold on the tollgate
God knows what I could do with you
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now
The garrison sleeps in the citadel
With the ghosts and the ancient stones
High up on the parapet
A Scottish piper stands alone
And high on the wind
The highland drums begin to roll
And something from the past just comes
And stares into my soul
And it’s cold on the tollgate
With the Caledonian Blues
Cold on the tollgate
God knows what I could do with you
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now
What it is
It’s what it is now
There’s a chink of light, there’s a burning wick
There’s a lantern in the tower
Wee Willie Winkie with a candlestick
Still writing songs in the wee wee hours
On Charlotte Street I take
A walking stick from my hotel
The ghost of Dirty Dick
Is still in search of Little Nell
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now
Oh what it is
What it is now”
― Mark Knopfler, Sailing to Philadelphia
You can see I’m missing Edinburgh already! My old home town! Still it’s always nice to be home, especially as I know that I can go back to Edinburgh again.
There are so many Literary activities you can take part in here are some links that I’d like to share with you:
A fantastic motto to live your life by, Martin Creed’s message: Everything Is Going To Be Alright. Keep positive folks…. Yes, Everything is alright, my mum is doing really well after her operation, I’m so pleased, and relieved. She’s such a strong lady, I’m in awe of her really I am. My brother mentioned that he thought he’d have to wheel her out of the hospital after her operation but no my mum was up on her feet telling the nurses she wanted to go home! Amazing!
I thought I’d share with you this visit to the Scottish National Gallery Of Modern Art. It was one of the highlights of my trip to Edinburgh as I got a chance to go out with my mum, just the two of us, which was a treat in itself. She is still a bit delicate after her operation, no dancing for a while yet, so we had a coffee and a chat in the café and afterwards I did a super fast tour, while she read a book and had a well deserved rest.
I always like to pop into these two art galleries when I’m in Edinburgh. This time I just managed to go to Gallery One, but that’s alright as Gallery One is my favourite, it’s always full of inspiring art, has a lovely shop, and a coffee shop too. It is well worth a visit if you are ever in Edinburgh. Currently there is an exhibition of Roy Lichtenstein’s work at Gallery One, as part of Reflections, which is on until 10th January 2016 so still plenty time to see this free exhibition. The gallery is located at 75 Belford Road, Edinburgh, EH4 3DR, and is easily accessible via bus.
These images caught my eye as I went up the stairs, I liked the idea of looking through the window panes and seeing the view divided into six panes of awesomeness! So I nipped down to the café and told my mum that I wanted to take some photos, and then I popped up the stairs to snap these two images. Yes, I was running around that gallery like a sprinter. We were on a tight time frame, it really was a flying visit, as I was going out later in the day to the …….. yes you guessed it, the Book Festival.
Here’s another view of the same spot from the outside, with a Miró sculpture in the foreground.
Oh and on the way out…. I came face to face with the Sunken Statue, on the way to….. the bus stop!
Kind of sinister isn’t it? This is what happens to you if you spend too much time in art galleries you sink into the concrete of life and partially disappear! That unsuspecting lady and her child making their way out of the gallery better watch out, they’re heading for a Doctor Who moment if you ask me, they’re following the straight line to oblivion! Poor unsuspecting fools. Yes, the sunken statue doesn’t look too happy does he? Can’t blame him, whatever has happened to his nipples? They look hammered in. Must be the shock, poor chap!!
I’m on a bit of a holiday so just a little note to let my followers know that I won’t be posting as much for a while, though I might be tempted to join in the writing #BlogBattle and I will be replying to comments so do feel free to chat. The good news is my mum is doing wonderfully well after her operation, she’s some lady, in her seventies and as feisty as ever! We’re getting our orders, tee hee, she’s a laugh. I think she even had the nurses at her beck and call, sounds like they treated her like royalty!
My journey started off terribly badly I did a crazy thing I turned up at the wrong station! In my defence I’ve never done this before, this was a first. I went to Waterbeach (our nearest station) instead of Cambridge. A few days prior to travel I had picked up my tickets from the ticket machine at Waterbeach, and somehow had it in my head that I was travelling from Waterbeach. So my husband had to try to beat the train! A racing challenge, just up his street! He drove me to the next station on the route, it was a hair-raising drive. I really thought there was no way he could do it but amazingly he did and with a few minutes to spare! Luckily the train was running two minutes late and we’d left the house in good time. Phew!!!!
The train journey was lively to say the least we had the cast of one of the shows on our carriage and they were a boisterous lot, you could tell they were actors, they liked to be noticed. I’ve never heard a bunch of people laugh so much. At one point we arrived at a place called Northallerton in North Yorkshire and they queried whether this fairy tale sounding town existed, I reckon they thought it was some sort of Narnialand.
On arrival I decided to walk through Princess Street gardens to get a feeling for Festival Fever, boy it was busy, luckily I just have one small piece of luggage with me. I arrived at my bus stop, and guess what, wonder of wonders my mother in law was standing there apparently waiting for a bus! What are the odds of that? Amazing. Anyway we had a brief chat and then she had to dash off to find her bus, she was at the wrong stop, apparently all the buses are a bit confusing at the moment with the Festival being on.
So I’m up in Edinburgh, sans enfants and sans husband, I intend on catching up with old friends, maybe visiting the cat café in Stockbridge, going to the Book Festival, and the dance and drama events at the International Festival, and the Art galleries if I get a chance. I shall be going out with my dad for Chinese lunch, visiting my mother-in-law, catching up with my brother and generally eating too much. Yum….
I’ll be helping out with mum, cooking, and generally doing my Florence Nightingale bit. You can see why blogging has to take a back seat. Hope my mum will be able to join us out and about towards the end of next week. Unfortunately it is dreadfully busy in Edinburgh at the moment, with all the excitement of the Festivals, the town is packed so it is not very easy to manoeuvre around if you’ve just had an operation. So we will have a duty to try to keep her in, to ensure she rests, no easy task for a lady who is always so full of energy. Let the battle commence…..
I’ve packed a couple of books to catch up on, a bit of holiday reading. My current read is The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh, which is a rich descriptive read inspired by One Thousand and One Nights, I’m really enjoying this. As well as this I intend to read The Bonesetter’s Daughter by Amy Tan. “A dramatic tale of love, loss and betrayal in Provincial China, told with directness and deep feeling.” Mail on Sunday.
If I finish these two there are a wealth of detective novels in my mum and dad’s house so I don’t think I will be short of reading material, and of course I’m sure I’ll pick up some new novels at the Book Festival. How exciting!!! I love Edinburgh, me home from home, only slight gripe it’s so cold here, I don’t think I’ll be needing that sun hat and shades, a woolly hat would be more useful.
Anyway Happy Holidays, hope if you are going anywhere nice you have a wonderful time.
This is a continuation of an idea that I began on May 6th, which featured Deacon House Café, a great place to stop for a coffee before buying your tickets for shows.
Every August I head up to Edinburgh for The Edinburgh International Festival and Fringe. I just love all the craziness that seems to accompany the city at this time of year. So I thought I’d share with you some of my photos from last year’s festival to put you in the mood for attending this year, or if you live too far away, here’s a little taster for you to enjoy!
Fancy a bit of robot fun?
Look, you can even get your photo taken with him.
Or maybe you’d rather be plastered in a pile of leaflets? That’s one way to get much needed attention! Hope this hard working young man’s work contract includes a tea break, and the odd toilet stop, poor chap. Charlie Chaplin’s smiling down on everyone, he’s ok, he’s got top billing.
If all else fails, wear black, collapse onto the road and stay there, just hope and pray that nobody trips on you as they go pass! Luckily this is a pedestrianized area, no cars, lorries, or buses, thank heavens. The lengths that these performers will go to in order to get their show noticed.
Have you been to The Edinburgh International Festival? Have you performed there? Do let me know I’d love to hear your stories.
I always enjoy travelling up to Edinburgh in the bonnie month of August for the Edinburgh International Festival. There is so much going on, there are so many shows to see, dance acts to watch, comedians to listen to, as well as an abundance of street performers. The city is heaving with excitement and drama. I love it.
So with that in mind I thought I would do a sequence of posts to get you in the mood for the forthcoming Festival, here is my first of these featuring my photographs of Deacons House Café, which is a short walk from The Festival Fringe Box office.
The guy below isn’t one of the merry troupe of actors taking part, he is guarding Brodie’s Close. This is most definitely a spot to stop by. Deacon Brodie was a respected cabinetmaker by day, but he was also a thief by night, and he and his friend and co-crook Smith were hanged at the Tolbooth Prison in the High Street on 1 October 1788, before a crowd of 40,000.
I stumbled upon this quaint coffee house, Deacon House café, 3 Brodie’s Close, 304 Lawnmarket, Royal Mile, Edinburgh on my way to pick up tickets for some Festival shows. It is in the very hub of Festival land within short walking distance of Edinburgh Castle, Waverley Station and George IV Bridge.
The photo below is a bit blurry, so here’s what the plaque says: The ground floor of the café was once Deacon Brodie’s workshop. The vaulted ceiling in the kitchen dates back to 1420, and is one of the oldest ceilings in Edinburgh. This part of the building was the brew house for the Abbey which occupied this site. The Thistle Room upstairs was part of Deacon Brodie’s dwelling. The ornate ceiling dates from 1645. The room is still the meeting place of the Celtic Masonic Lodge. The extraordinary tale of Deacon Brodie, upright citizen by day, and burglar by night inspired Robert Louis Stevenson to write his macabre novel The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The story is depicted in our mural inside.
As you can see they serve a wide variety of yummy food, this is a real gem of a find, well worth a visit, so don’t forget to stop by on your way to buy your tickets for shows!
Opposite the café, if you fancy anything a bit stronger, you can pop into Deacon Brodie’s Tavern, where they sell real ales. The Deacon Brodie Tavern is featured in Nicolson pubs of distinction, see the links below.
I’ll be doing some more on the Festival soon. I hope this little feature on Deacons House café got you in the mood for exploring what Edinburgh has to offer this year, it certainly made me hungry for more…..
