UK Trip - Day 7: Edinburgh
We began the day checking out a couple art galleries-- The Fruitmarket, a contemporary art gallery on Market Street and nearby Stills, a contemporary photography gallery where we saw this show by Nicky Bird. Themes of the dual fragility and persistence of memory reminded me of some of the issues I am drawn to in my own work.
Edinburgh is a hilly place. Expect lots of hiking and climbing of a lot of extremely steep steps!
Grassmarket street
Following that, we wandered along Victoria Street, Grassmarket, and adjacent streets browsing shops-- Among them were Analogue Books (small artist book store), Red Door Gallery (super cute artsy boutique that I'd love to return to if I lived in Edinburgh), and another Scotland Shop. At some point, we had a late lunch at Chocolate Soup where I had coconut split pea soup and a frozen mocha (wish I'd had more time to try more things there). We briefly stopped at Iain Mellis, a cheese shop that is supposed to have excellent Scottish cheeses, although I soon realized my pitiful lack of cheese knowledge rendered me completely clueless, alas. Although I was able to snap a pic of the shop sign saying "Iain Mellis Cheesemonger"!
Later we visited the Edinburgh College of Art Degree Show. At around 6pm, per Katie's suggestion, we stopped by the Royal Botanic Gardens. The gardens were surprisingly vast and beautiful, a nice little diversion from the city.
Looking for dinner a little after 7pm, we happened upon the Villager bar/restaurant. The place was nice, with interesting menu items, cocktails, and um people. As it goes, it was perhaps a bit hipsterrific. I had a Thai Vegetable Curry and a Xante + Apple cocktail. Unfortunately I did not take a pic of my food... don't really remember why. Before our food came out they brought us a pitcher of water with large pieces of cucumber, watermelon, and mint. It was all really pretty and fancy-like and tasted quite nice, adding a light melon flavor to our water. Yep, I should've taken a picture.
Statue and bar dedicated to "Scotland's most faithful dog" Greyfriars Bobby
In Greyfriars Kirkyard
One of the things I was most excited about doing in Edinburgh was going on a "ghost tour." As there were a surprising plethora of choices, the hard part was deciding which one! We chose the "City of the Dead" tour, which took us through the Greyfriars Kirkyard (graveyard) and eventually to the Black Mausoleum, supposed haunting place of the MacKenzie Poltergeist. At a certain point, I did become slightly uncomfortable (pretty much around the time we entered the Black Mausoleum). It was very dark in there lit only by the guide's flashlight. Then there were the stories of the hundreds of purported cases of individuals "attacked" (scratched, bruised, or even blacked out) by the MacKenzie Poltergeist. Usually those stories don't do much for me, but what I found most compelling was an idea that I had not previously encountered--- that it is the accumulated emotional (fearful, excited, etc.) energy that causes "poltergeist" activity. Supposing that every time people experience extreme emotional states, that energy accumulates in that spot and somehow manifests itself in poltergeist activity. I'm not very good at explaining this but either way it was interesting to think about if only in passing. Being dark in the mausoleum, I kept waiting for someone or something to reach out from the crevices and grab me. There was a good sized group on the tour and we filled the mausoleum-- I suppose it would have been creepier if there was less of a "safety in the herd" feeling. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how adventurous I'm feeling) I did not experience any explicit paranormal activity... Overall the tour was entertaining and educational. Our guide was eccentric, full of crazy stories, and pretty much hilarious! He told us stories about the history of the area including the famed Elephant House cafe nearby where J.K. Rowling wrote early Harry Potter.
Telling crazy stories! (He looks like he's saying "off with his head!")
One last warning before entering the Black Mausoleum
Edinburgh is a hilly place. Expect lots of hiking and climbing of a lot of extremely steep steps!
Grassmarket street
Following that, we wandered along Victoria Street, Grassmarket, and adjacent streets browsing shops-- Among them were Analogue Books (small artist book store), Red Door Gallery (super cute artsy boutique that I'd love to return to if I lived in Edinburgh), and another Scotland Shop. At some point, we had a late lunch at Chocolate Soup where I had coconut split pea soup and a frozen mocha (wish I'd had more time to try more things there). We briefly stopped at Iain Mellis, a cheese shop that is supposed to have excellent Scottish cheeses, although I soon realized my pitiful lack of cheese knowledge rendered me completely clueless, alas. Although I was able to snap a pic of the shop sign saying "Iain Mellis Cheesemonger"!
Later we visited the Edinburgh College of Art Degree Show. At around 6pm, per Katie's suggestion, we stopped by the Royal Botanic Gardens. The gardens were surprisingly vast and beautiful, a nice little diversion from the city.
Looking for dinner a little after 7pm, we happened upon the Villager bar/restaurant. The place was nice, with interesting menu items, cocktails, and um people. As it goes, it was perhaps a bit hipsterrific. I had a Thai Vegetable Curry and a Xante + Apple cocktail. Unfortunately I did not take a pic of my food... don't really remember why. Before our food came out they brought us a pitcher of water with large pieces of cucumber, watermelon, and mint. It was all really pretty and fancy-like and tasted quite nice, adding a light melon flavor to our water. Yep, I should've taken a picture.
Statue and bar dedicated to "Scotland's most faithful dog" Greyfriars Bobby
In Greyfriars Kirkyard
One of the things I was most excited about doing in Edinburgh was going on a "ghost tour." As there were a surprising plethora of choices, the hard part was deciding which one! We chose the "City of the Dead" tour, which took us through the Greyfriars Kirkyard (graveyard) and eventually to the Black Mausoleum, supposed haunting place of the MacKenzie Poltergeist. At a certain point, I did become slightly uncomfortable (pretty much around the time we entered the Black Mausoleum). It was very dark in there lit only by the guide's flashlight. Then there were the stories of the hundreds of purported cases of individuals "attacked" (scratched, bruised, or even blacked out) by the MacKenzie Poltergeist. Usually those stories don't do much for me, but what I found most compelling was an idea that I had not previously encountered--- that it is the accumulated emotional (fearful, excited, etc.) energy that causes "poltergeist" activity. Supposing that every time people experience extreme emotional states, that energy accumulates in that spot and somehow manifests itself in poltergeist activity. I'm not very good at explaining this but either way it was interesting to think about if only in passing. Being dark in the mausoleum, I kept waiting for someone or something to reach out from the crevices and grab me. There was a good sized group on the tour and we filled the mausoleum-- I suppose it would have been creepier if there was less of a "safety in the herd" feeling. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how adventurous I'm feeling) I did not experience any explicit paranormal activity... Overall the tour was entertaining and educational. Our guide was eccentric, full of crazy stories, and pretty much hilarious! He told us stories about the history of the area including the famed Elephant House cafe nearby where J.K. Rowling wrote early Harry Potter.
Telling crazy stories! (He looks like he's saying "off with his head!")
One last warning before entering the Black Mausoleum
posted by Christy | Monday, June 16, 2008
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