Edinburgh in sunset/sunrise mode.
A beautiful city, with fabulous architecture and endless history, there are endless photo opportunities here, especially in that golden hour.
Summerhall, an arts complex in Edinburgh housed in a former veterinary college, is being sold.
This is a petition to hope it remains a centre for visual arts, music, dance, theatre and film. It also houses a brewery and a gin distillery, with an excellent pub, so it's got something for everyone!
It's a brilliant space throughout the year - not just during the Fringe!
Only a short walk from the much better-known Rosslyn Chapel south of Edinburgh is the ruin of the fairy-tale Rosslyn Castle, occupying the summit of an easily defensible rocky promontory. A stone castle was first built here in 1304. More pics and info: https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/roslin/rosslyncastle/index.html
Original day off plan for afternoon film postponed, as I realised there was a screening perfectly timed for after work tomorrow, so instead stroll to local, a pint of Jarl, and get on with reading in preparation for Cymera Festival chairing duties.
I've not chaired a gig since before my surgery a few months back, now I have three author events within a month of one another to prep for. Lot of work, but also a lot of fun!
Continuing to read while also reacquainting myself with an old friend, a pint of Deuchars.
Along with Caley 80, my go-to ale for many years.
Really not what it once was, supplanted by newer, better IPAs, but still decent enough pint. On draught in the local (for a mere£3.90!), so indulging in nostalgia. Or should that be "nostalegia"?😋
Best of luck to my lovely colleague and chum, Olivia, who is off to London for the #BritishBookAwards , as she's shortlisted in the Best Bookseller category, for services in bookselling, managing our bookshop events, co-founding the #Edinburgh Womens Fiction Festival, and drinking huge amounts of tea. https://www.thebookseller.com/awards/the-british-book-awards
🌤️ Good morning Edinburgh. Monday’s headlines: Arthur’s Seat helicopter rescue, cookery school shuts, college cuts 'crisis' meeting, Caley brewery plans, Pizza Pilgrims opening + a lifeline for the Ross Bandstand
A surprise in the park today: a mother coot with chicks. Here’s one of the chicks. At first I assumed it was a moorhen chick because of the red beak, but no, its mother was definitely a coot, so it was too.
I had never seen a coot chick before, so the gorgeous golden fluff on its head took me by surprise. And now I understand the expression “as bald as a coot”. #birds#Edinburgh#Scotland
I've just seen Evie Waddell in Edinburgh's TradFest. I'm not well versed in traditional folk music, but this was just brilliant. She sings in Gaelic, Scots and English, and signs many of her songs. She even taught the audience how to sign some bits. She also acts out the words and dances.
Her enthusiasm is so infectious! The whole thing was simply wonderful.
If trad/folk is your thing - or even if it's just good music and a great time - get to see her!
The tiny but award-winning independent book - @TheEdinburghBookshop - is moving! Only a couple of blocks, but to much bigger premises.
It's a lot more than we planned for & will take a lot of work to make it ready, so we'll be adding fundraisers to help, & you can see some architect designs & plans on the bookshop site now https://www.edinburghbookshop.com/newshop
I’m starting to be convinced that the Merlin bird ID app sometimes hallucinates: this morning in the park it thought it heard a Great Bittern. Really?!
It’s still great fun though, and I’m learning from it how to identify more birds’ songs than I ever knew before.
Oh, and we heard AND SAW a dunnock! My first; I’d been oblivious to them until today.
Anyway, here’s a few seconds of peace and bird song from the park, complete with meditating heron.