edinburgh

However, if you can ride it out, Edinburgh is great - the prettiest city in Britain, I would say. Loads of good restaurants, pubs with reasonable opening hours, great record shops etc etc. I dunno about clubs etc - there is a pretty good regular artskooldisko - but then Glasgow is only 50 minutes away for that kind of thing. Have fun!

Having said that after a number of years with Glasgow in the ascendant Edinburgh appears to be on the rise and certainly is looking more prosperous, prob a result of the Scottish Parliament. Typical city in having some dodgy areas (Niddrie, Granton, Muirhouse) but other prosperous areas (Morningside, Cramond), Leith (down towards docks) was considered rough but is becoming increasingly gentrified as Parliamentarians and ancillary staff moves into area.

Architecturally prob one of the finest cities in UK although it lacks the genius of a Rennie Mackintosh or Thomson which Glasgow has. Not too sure pop culture wise though plenty of great pubs/restaurants, Glasgow having edge over past 15-20 years but ‘high’ culture exceptionally well served. Anyway it is a beautiful city and as Stevie T said Glasgow’s only 50 mins away.

Plug, go to AJ’s café in the Royal Mile esp. for the cakes. It is my sister’s partners though; mention my name and you may get a discount (or prob not.)

Glasgow is also ace. But then I even like Dundee, Aberdeen being the only Scottish city I'm not keen on.

Let's see, based on past encounters: Glasgow -- quite grand, spent three days there in 1992, had a wonderful wander around the city, will be seeing it again briefly this Sunday. Dundee -- only drove through it but I really liked the geography and look of the place, and of course Billy Mackenzie of the Associates was born and raised there, so clearly it is a place of Divine and Holy Goodness. St. Andrews -- where Jane the Glorious went to uni, and a nice spot it is, golf course and everything. Inverness -- didn't really spend much time there, but it and Nairn, where Jane's parents live, do both benefit from the setting.

quite a lot of good stuff coming to edinburgh nowadays.

and glasgow is not far away...

Well?

so, who else is in edinburgh these days besides calum and leigh?

It has the smells of Scotland, apparently. What's not to love?

[Word of warning it will be incredibly cold in Feb. Bring 2 jackets.]

[and 2 hats <<:]

Um I am in Edinburgh too, I know I am a persistent lurker but I only just moved up here so if you're having a FAP can I come? I need to get out of the house more.

(I'm told they occasionally have fetish nights at the Edinburgh Dungeon. That's probably the best thing about it)

(I definitely would recognise alext on sight, because we were at university at the same time, and I think had mutual acquaintances)

None of you would recognise me, however I am sort of cheating because I've only lived here for two months and know about three people. I work at Peckhams though so if you know where it is come in and say hi and buy some expensive food.

Bluerapa Thai near Haymarket is a really nice family-run restaurant that I end up going to quite a bit. Very nice chicken curries.

Bookshops have been disappointing thus far: The Edinburgh bookshop on Bruntsfield Place didn't have quite the selection, whcih I hate saying as the staff are friendly.

otoh I paid a visit to the Edinburgh Iyengar yoga centre just down the road - beautiful building and yoga is always good. Going to a basic class once a week for the next little while. The intermediate classes are earlier in the evening this term, which is the only downside.

Bruntsfield has some nice coffee shops, and this italian ice cream shop - will be investigating more over the next couple of weeks.

Might try Kalpna next week: http://www.kalpnarestaurant.com/

have you moved?

He is commuting, I think.

when are you coming to glasgow xyzzzz

Yeah Ward I have been thinking about paying a visit/FAP-ing in Glasgow ever since I got here for this Mon-Fri (at the moment) work assignment.

Things just haven't been at their best at all however I think we are about to turn a corner here so I hope I can revive the glasgow thread and visit in the next week or two.

This week's discovery - the two vietnamese places I've been going to around Haymarket are owned by mother and daughter. Thought there was a link as both have the same types of paintings - all by the mother, which just fill up both restaurants.

The Italian ice cream shop is good, think I'm going back there tonight. Might have a shed load of ice cream for 'dinner' instead of actual food.

L'escargot Blanc on Queensferry street is excellent French cuisine with the best Creme Brulee I am likely to ever have outside of France.

Bar Italia on Lothian also outstanding on the pasta front (gotta say I avoided it for a while as I dismiss anything that is called Bar Italia as a tourist-trap but a colleague recommended it). Has excellent ice creams too.

Edinburgh film house is great, also on Lothian.

And that is the end of Edinburgh for me.

http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQGrT0CgihRhztJIm3OWSjv557l6K4FAFCm5NQKF70phUUbekegtQ

Where next?

*googles* ah ok then :-)

xp = Landan town

Although I haven't had final final confirmation but here is hoping.

I am loose in Edinburgh for about 90 minutes this afternoon before my corresponding flight to London, may see if I can check out that crème brulée

flying from scotland to london? madness.

oh the train is lovely but these flights aren't paid for by me. plus london city airport is like 15-20 minutes from my front door by public transport B-)

(xp) No, getting a coach from Scotland to London and vice versa is madness. I should know.

Bah, held up by rain in the national portrait gallery, not the worst way to spend an hour maybe

The seafood joint at the airport was truly awesome last time out, looking forward to that more than anything here tbh

That "Haste Ye Back" sign in Rothesay? I was there on Sunday. The other sign there made the news the day we were there (which we failed to spot, despite having a Gaelic speaker in our midst).

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/08/27/eilean-bhoid-penis-island-isle-bute-typo-sign_n_8049120.html

there's an 18thC portrait in the gallery that's the spit of someone i went to school with. doppelganger. it was very unnerving when i saw it. reminded me of the beginning of John Dickson Carr's The Burning Court:

Fastened to the page was an old but still very clear photograph of a woman. Under it in small neat letters had been printed: Marie D’Aubray: Guillotined for Murder, 1861. He was looking at a photograph of his own wife.

don't add a note. kindle sneakery.

kindle sneakery

Sounds like an up and coming actress who has already made a splash in a couple of indie films and is now poised to cross over into the mainstream.

ha ha. it does. along with her peer Amazon Chicanery.

That's great but I don't know why it sounds like a plausible name. Who laid the groundwork? Zooey Deschanel, Leighton Meester (not indie), Diablo Cody (not an actress)?

there were some lovely portraits but predictably enough my favourite room was the sports gallery. that golf painting is something eh

anyone know much about leith? never been and i might take a wee daytrip soon.

proclaimers + hibs + irvine welsh is all i know

the local police will have concluded their questioning

If i moved to edinburgh i'd be in leith. Good restaurants, good pubs. Nice buzz.

I saw the "Haste Ye Back" sign later at the airport gate.

On my last evening I took a South African colleague to Shebeen, a South African restaurant on Dalry Place (he has lived in Scotland for 20 years and didn't know about it, as I suspect he doesn't eat out too much).

Not mad about it, full on meat but the Durban curry with hollowed out loaf was reasonable. Certainly worth a visit.

I didn't see yr review of the bull and castle anywhere yet I cry foul

We have many lifetimes..

me and mrs. bean have two evenings and an early morning in edinburgh ca. early july. what do we do in/near the city centre? where do we eat? note: not big consumers of alcohol.

take a couple hours and walk along the top of the Salsbury crags - just a short walk up from parliament.

(or take a few hours and do Arthur's Seat)

note: not big consumers of alcohol.

:(

others probably better placed to chime in but

this place is a very nice scottish take on neo-nordic style food (but can be pricey): http://www.timberyard.co/
for a less expensive option, posh pub grub done well (and the neighbourhood it's in, stockbridge, is good to walk around): https://scranandscallie.com/
if you're lucky it may be dry, and even maybe sunny, in which case this place is essential: http://www.marysmilkbar.com/

Fwiw I'm happy to have a beer, scotch, whatever. But - due to gastro issues - I can't have much more than one.

after years of occasionally popping into the glasgow thread and threatening a move back there, i've found myself instead moving to edinburgh. confusing. what's good around here? is there a music scene of note or will i be finding myself heading to glasgow for all of that?

oh yeah, perhaps it's relevant that i live in gorgie, but tbh having lived in london for seven years getting from one side of edinburgh to the other feels like a gentle morning stroll

no one can answer because edinburgh is just populated by airbnb guests

People I know in Edinburgh are always moaning about the music scene and having to go to Glasgow to see stuff. Still a great city to live in, I think.

What kind of music?

Braw Gigs are good if you're into weird noise/metal/punk/other stuff: https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Cause/Braw-Gigs-117804704978695/ // http://brawmusic.tumblr.com

Hmm, I'd recommend reading The Skinny https://www.theskinny.co.uk/ for info on upcoming gigs, culture and events across the central belt.

These are a couple decent Edinburgh gig promoters that spring to mind:

https://www.facebook.com/songbytoadrecords/

https://www.facebook.com/nothingeverhappensheresummerhall/

Although I'm now in Manchester and haven't been along yet this will surely be a fun night which is ran by some friends that used to do the massively entertaining 'This is Music' gig/club nights
https://www.facebook.com/supperclubedinburgh

Other irregular dance all night club nights (10pm-3am usually) that are grand: Stacks (soul/Motown/Northern Soul), Unpop (jangle pop/twee/C86), The Egg (Rock 'n' Roll, Garage, New Wave, Psychedelia,Soul and Punk) and Mjolk (Scandi Pop).

Keep an eye on the Wee Red Bar https://www.weeredbar.co.uk/listings.htm at the Art School and Henry's Cellar Bar https://www.facebook.com/Henryscellarbar/ for some more alternative stuff.

You're also not far from the best pizza in Edinburgh - Pizzeria 1926 - Napoli style pizza at phenomenal value.

Oh and I have to say since you're in Gorgie check out Hearts if you like football and have no Scottish football allegiances. Great stadium and it looks like it will be a great wee season for us (we will definitely fall apart by mid-October).

I should note Stacks and Unpop have been fairly dead for a while but I think revives were round the corner?

great, thanks! will keep an eye on all of these.

yeah we're right next to tynecastle. my childhood / hereditary scottish football allegiances are to rangers, so i'll be happy to ditch that and pretend i'm a lifelong jambo.

tbh glasgow is dying on it's arse right now with the abc and art school closure, due to fire, the arches closed due to council incompetence. you're better off where you are with access to Summerhall.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoMtbK35Ahw&fbclid=IwAR3pHlcXnPE9LVoK-1w2P29arumy4c646gWFv7Akya0EuLRakuu_kCl3G2M

“It’s Edinburgh ya fuckin wank” 🤣

pic.twitter.com/NhhADIdiCS

— SCOTTISH BANTER (@scottishbants2) August 14, 2022

Filmhouse has closed

So fucking sad