Published in Scotland Magazine Issue 14 on 2/5/2004.

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So much more than a castle (Edinburgh)

Roddy Martine has spent most of his life in Edinburgh and loves it. Here he explains why.

When I first arrived in Edinburgh as a 12-year old schoolboy, my first impression of the Scottish capital was of skylines.

I had never really noticed the skies in England where I had previously lived. They were there, of course, watery and pale, but in Scotland, it is different. The further north you go, the stronger they become.

More often than not they appear swollen and leaden, but they can also be silver streaked or azure blue puffed with white. When the sun sinks to the west, they become gold or even scarlet. Scotland’s skies are big, even in the cities.

Edinburgh, like Rome, is built on seven hills, and that is what enables it to stand sentinel over the surrounding landscape.

At its heart is a mediaeval castle on a volcanic rock, separating the cobbled uniqueness of its Old Town from the glories of a spacious three centuries old New Town; to the south, there are glimpses of undulating hills; to the north and east, the Firth of Forth and distant shores of Fife.

It is only then that you remember that the capital of Scotland sits on an inlet of the sea.

And Edinburgh has its own river too, the Water of Leith, which flows unseen through its midst, curling a distance of 22 miles from its source in the Pentlands to the Port of Leith.

Long neglected, for some decades silted up with effluent from the various grain, paper, snuff and flax mills, tanneries, and glue works along its course, this sparkling stream has been brought to life again by the creation of a pedestrian.....

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By Roddy Martine

Section : Regional Focus

Page number : 46