....which was not exactly luxurious!

The view from my seat......

The entrance to the organ gallery of the Usher Hall

A Concert at the Usher Hall

Our last activity together before leaving the hustle, bustle and buzz of Edinburgh was to attend a concert, given by the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra, in the Usher Hall. Our seats were in the organ gallery, and as the organ featured quite prominently, we wondered whether we might need earplugs. This proved not to be the case. As it turned out, it was the four sets of tubular bells, right in front of us, that created the most sound! We enjoyed the different perspective of the concert hall and the orchestra, and particularly the conductor, that our seats gave us - and I even managed to sneak a few pictures during the intermission...

Palace of Holyroodhouse, the Queen's Official Residence in Scotland

No sign of the Queen, although August is her month for visiting Scotland. As she is on vacation rather than there on official business, Balmoral Castle is her residence of choice.

Edinburgh International Book Festival

Charlotte Square, just off Princes Street, a-buzz with authors and bibliophiles!

Valvona & Crolla

Valvona & Crolla is THE delicatessen in Edinburgh - and is, of course, oft frequented by the residents of the Scotland Street/Drummond Gardens neighbourhood! Made me think of an Aladdin's cave for food...and this shot shows a selection of the delicacies suspended from the ceiling!

Drummond Gardens

Canine Cyril, of the golden tooth, could well be lurking, just out of sight, in the shade of the hedge.....or maybe his master, Angus Lordie, has his easel set up,

ready to paint a view of Drummond Gardens...

Scotland Street

Seeing the Sights!

From the upper deck of a tour bus or from ground level on the cobbled streets - and even on the trail up to Salisbury Crags, en route for Arthur's Seat (although I certainly didn't make it that far!) - we feasted our eyes on many of the sights of Edinburgh. As this fair city had been the courting place of my parents, many of these landmarks were very familiar to me from the stories told during my growing up years, but I always enjoy re-visiting them.
In recent years, I have enjoyed reading Alexander McCall Smith's books set in Edinburgh, so as I wandered the neighbourhood of Scotland Street and Drummond Gardens, I kept my eye open Bertie, six-year old child prodigy, fluent in Italian and proficient saxophonist. When in the Old Waverley Hotel, on Princes Street, I wondered whether I might run into Cyril, the dog with the gold tooth, slurping beer from a bowl under Angus Lordie's seat....
Interestingly enough, as I checked Scotland Street for number 44 - only to discover that there was no such number! - I met another 44 Scotland Street fan, herself an author (Susan Wilson) who had been giving a presentation on Scottish poets, Hugh MacDiarmid and Sorley MacLean, at the Edinburgh Book Fair. As Susan and I chatted, we discovered that we both live in the Victoria area, and plan to meet up when we return to Vancouver Island!

DON"T Look Where You're Going....

The Skirl of the Pipes...

Representing Clan MacKenzie and Clan Ross

The Tattoo!! (the military variety, not the other kind...)

How to describe this amazing event....? a showpiece musical extravaganza? a colourful, musical spectacular? Over a thousand performers all came together, in the Edinburgh Castle Esplanade, against the famous backdrop of Edinburgh Castle, to perform with military precision. Pipers, marching bands, horses, and even motor cyclists (the motor cyclists all highly-trained young people, sixteens years-old or under, performing amazing feats...) all must have put in many long hours of training and practice to be able to perform as they did. All in all it was a most memorable 90 minutes - being squished in our seats like sardines and being rained upon by decidedly more than a Scotch mist for the last half hour or so, certainly didn't detract from the enjoyment of the event! (Of course, in my estimation, the massed pipes stole the show!)

....on Haggis, Tatties and Neeps!!

 

Dining in the Grassmarket.....

 

Fringe Festival Crowds on the Royal Mile

 

From One Capital to Another

With'hitting the ground running', there was no opportunity to think about recovering from jetlag. Once Sue, and her baggage, had arrived from Central London, where she had spent the previous three days with her middle son, Ken, and family, we checked into the hotel at Heathrow, then set off, via the underground, for Holy Trinity Church, Brompton (HTB) the church where the Alpha Course began, subsequently spreading around the world. We had hoped to meet up with Carmelita, granddaughter of Minna and Eli Rowney, friends of long-standing in Nanaimo, BC, but despite leaving a couple of phone messages, we weren't able to connect... Leaving HTB, we strolled along Brompton Road towards Harrods, and ended up enjoying a much-appreciated meal at a table on the sidewalk, enjoying the surprisingly balmy air and the many lights illuminating Harrods.
In spite of a late night, we were up bright (?) and early the next morning for our flight to Edinburgh. Though too early to check in to the hotel, we were eager to start exploring the cobbled streets and stairways, peeking down intriguing 'wynds' and alley-ways, leading to courtyards, some shady, some sunny. The High Street, from the Castle to the Palace of Holyrood House - dubbed the Royal Mile - is always a-buzz with activity, but never more so than when the Edinburgh Festival is in full swing! We were caught up in the good-natured crowds of festival-goers, enjoying the atmosphere and soaking up the sunshine, as we made our way slowly by a variety of buskers...
Later in the afternoon, in deference to our aching feet, we chose to venture farther afield, but on the top deck of a couple of tour buses, where we were regaled with tales of bygone days, and the colourful characters who walked the streets of Edinburgh then.
After all the energy expended, we were more than ready to sit down, again outside, and dine on.... haggis,tatties and neeps!!

Sharing Sticky Toffee Pudding!!

 

Judy David Esther

 

David Diana Esther

 

Hit the Ground Running....

Hard to believe that it's only just a week since I arrived at LHR....Much has happened and many sights seen. Now in Chipping Sodbury. Timing was great, as yesterday David and Esther - the 'newly' weds of four months - were in town, and available to go to lunch at ' The Squire' in CS, so that was a bonus, and definitely a 'carpe diem moment'. Judy and I had already made plans to go for lunch together, so we were able to combine a b'day celebration for Judy (the day before) with a good visit with D & E. (and it was delicious pub food to boot, in a very relaxing setting...)
As you will gather, I have finally slowed down enough to get an entry onto Flotsam and Jetsam. I had actually tried a couple of times on my netbook en route, as well as at the library in Perth and at the local library, where I discovered that the internet was about to shut down in two mins!! However, finally successful on Judy's laptop. Stay tuned for more news, and maybe pictures......