Edinburgh
A gothic splendor.
November 2023
There are plenty of exciting things to do in Edinburgh, from stunning architecture and endless winding streets to an awe-inspiring castle perched on a dormant volcano. By day, you can admire artworks in galleries and treasured wonders in museums, and by night, you can enjoy tours, musical and theatre performances, or find your favorite charming whisky pub.
Edinburgh is one of the most fascinating and spectacular cities in Europe. When you arrive in the city, you feel like going back in time. With the city's skyline, cobbled streets, and colorful characters as your backdrop, walking either in the Old or New City (not that new), you never stop looking around amazed. At every corner, there is something to leave you open-mouthed.
The visitor will spend most of his time in the historic center, which is divided in two by the broad green swathe of Princes Street Gardens. To the south, the view is dominated by Edinburgh Castle, built high on Castle Rock, and the long sweep of the Old Town descending towards Holyrood Palace. To the north lie Princes Street and the New Town.
The West End includes the financial district, with insurance and banking offices, as well as the Edinburgh International Conference Centre. All these are of not much touristic interest, but here lies Dean Village, one of the most photographed areas of Edinburgh.
Edinburgh's Old and New Towns were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995 in recognition of the unique character of the Old Town with its medieval street layout and the planned Georgian New Town, including the adjoining Dean Village and Calton Hill areas.
The Old Town
Edinburgh (old town), around 1690
The castle seen from St Cuthbert's Kirkyard
The castle is perched on top of a rocky crag (the remnant of an extinct volcano), and the Royal Mile (the High Street of the Old Town) runs down the crest of a ridge from it, terminating at Holyrood Palace.
Minor streets (called closes or wynds) lie on either side of the main spine forming a herringbone pattern. Due to space restrictions imposed by the narrowness of this landform, the Old Town became home to some of the earliest "high-rise" residential buildings. Multi-story dwellings known as lands were the norm from the 16th century onwards, with ten and eleven stories being typical and one even reaching fourteen or fifteen stories.
Numerous vaults below street level were inhabited to accommodate the influx of incomers, particularly Irish immigrants, during the Industrial Revolution. The street has several fine public buildings such as St Giles' Cathedral, the City Chambers, and the Law Courts. Other places of historical interest nearby are Greyfriars Kirkyard and Mary King's Close.
The Grassmarket, running deep below the castle, is connected by the steep double-terraced Victoria Street. The street layout is typical of the old quarters of many Northern European cities.
Houses at the castle hillfoot. PIcture taken from Greyfriars graveyard.
Upper Bow street
Warriston's Close Stairs
Cowgate. Photo taken from George IV bridge
Cockburn street
Lady Stair's Close
The Writers' Museum & Makars' Court
Candlemaker Row
Holyrood Park
The Colonnades at the Signet Library
National Museum of Scotland
Cockburn street
Cockburn street
Southern Cross Cafe -Cockburn street
Greyfriars Bobby's statue.
Assembly Hall. Picture taken from the Mound.
Greyfriars Bobby and I
McEwan Hall, The University of Edinburgh
Grassmarket Square
Johnston terrace. Picture taken from Castle Esplanade
Market street & Cockburn Street
The Castle
Royal Mile
High Street
High Street
High Street
St Giles' Cathedral
St Giles' Cathedral
Palace of Holyroodhouse
Roxburgh's Close
Canongate
High Street
Victoria street
The New Town
The New Town was an 18th-century solution to the problem of an increasingly crowded city which had been confined to the ridge sloping down from the castle. In 1766, a competition to design a "New Town" was won by James Craig, a 27-year-old architect. The plan was a rigid, ordered grid, which fitted in well with Enlightenment ideas of rationality.
The principal street was to be George Street, running along the natural ridge to the north of what became known as the "Old Town". On either side of it are two other main streets: Princes Street and Queen Street. Princes Street has become Edinburgh's main shopping street and now has few of its Georgian buildings in their original state.
A series of perpendicular streets connect the three main streets.
The east and west ends of George Street are terminated by St Andrew Square and Charlotte Square respectively.
New Town on the background. Picture taken from the Castle
W Register street
New Town on the background. Picture taken from the Castle
New Town, seen from the Castle
Bus in front of The Balmoral Hotel
William Pitt The Younger Statue. Frederick street
Castle street
Princes street
The New Town with Princes street on the foreground
The Mound and the New Town on the background
George street. Xmas amusement park
George street. Xmas amusement park
7, Hanover street
Princes street
Xmas market. Princes Street Gardens
Hanover street and the Royal Scottish Academy on the background
Circus Lane.
The Dome. George street
The Parish Church of St Cuthbert
Edinburgh Waverley
The Mound
The hollow between the Old and New Towns was formerly the Nor Loch, created for the town's defense but used by the inhabitants to dump their sewage. It was drained by the 1820s as part of the city's northward expansion. Craig's original plan included an ornamental canal on the site of the loch, but this idea was abandoned.
Soil excavated while laying the foundations of buildings in the New Town was dumped on the loch site to create the slope connecting the Old and New Towns, known as The Mound.
In the middle of the 19th century, the National Gallery of Scotland and the Royal Scottish Academy Building were built on The Mound, and tunnels for the railway line between Haymarket and Waverley stations were driven through it.
Leith & the Royal Yacht"Britannia"
Leith was historically the port of Edinburgh, an arrangement of unknown date confirmed by the royal charter Robert the Bruce granted to the city in 1329. The port developed a separate identity from Edinburgh, which, to some extent, it still retains, and it was a matter of great resentment when the two burghs merged in 1920 into the City of Edinburgh. Even today, the parliamentary seat is known as "Edinburgh North and Leith".
The loss of traditional industries and commerce (the last shipyard closed in 1983) resulted in economic decline. The Edinburgh Waterfront development has transformed old dockland areas from Leith to Granton into residential areas with shopping and leisure facilities and helped rejuvenate the area. With the redevelopment, Edinburgh has gained the business of cruise liner companies, which now provide cruises to Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands.
Leith's main tourist attraction is the Royal Yacht "Britannia", which is docked at Ocean Terminal.
The Royal boat is considered the No.1 tourist attraction in the UK. Here, one can explore the five decks of The Royal Yacht Britannia and discover what life was like during Royal service on board Queen Elizabeth II's former floating palace. Britannia was launched from the John Brown & Company shipyard in Clydebank, Scotland, on 16 April 1953. For over 44 years, the Royal Yacht served the Royal Family, traveling more than a million nautical miles to become one of the most famous ships in the world.
Dean Village
Nestled along the tranquil Water of Leith, Dean Village traces its origins to the Water of Leith Village, a milling community founded in the 12th century. As a milling settlement, Dean Village was closely tied to the Baxter (baker) incorporation for centuries. Millstones and carved stone plaques with baked bread and pies commemorate Dean Village's historic industry.
Dean Village is culturally significant as a record of Edinburgh's industrial past. The village's transformation from a bustling milling center to a tranquil residential community symbolizes the city's ability to adapt to a changing cultural and economic landscape.
Dean Village is a cherished beauty spot within the heart of Edinburgh. Its proximity to the city center (just a minute's walk from the Mound makes it an accessible and tranquil retreat for locals and visitors alike. The village's connection to the Water of Leith Walkway, its fascinating history, and its picturesque architecture make it one of the city's more popular places to visit.
