Dr Flo's world tour of scotland - day 2

Actually day 3. Won't talk about saturday since it was Gav's stag doo and what happens at the stag, stays at the stag otherwise people get divorced, jailed or both.

Woke up to a grey sky (surprise) and took a walk down the grass market then toward the college of art (magnificient red building), then the old infirmary and down to tollcross. When i was in my first year here, back in 1997, we called tollcross "the blue wooden fence corner", because the RBS building was in construction and the site was fenced by a very tall and long wooden blue fence. There it is for the bit of history.


Speaking of history, today is a great day for me. Now that i'm done abusing my body ingurgitating favrious toxic product, i can go around the city a bit more and my first destination of the day is obvious.

I'm going home.

Home?

Yes, Home. I arrived in scotland the 14 of april 1997. for the next 3 years, i stayed at 23 colinton road, EH105DR. No need to look it up i still remember everything like it was yesterday (0131 447 9639 was the phone number of the payphone in the corridor). Odd enough, given i cannot remember most things. Anyway, I lived in colinton road for 3 years and i fell in love with my neighbourhood. Hopefully that will show in the writings of today.


From tollcross i cut through the meadows. The Meadows is the Central Park of edinburgh, only it's better. You can golf there for free, and the Old Golf Tavern gives you clubs for a small deposit if you don't happen to carry golf clubs in your purse. Thee park also gives you a great view of arthur seat and calton hill, so the camera is happy. At the end of the meadow is bruntsfield garden, and brunstfield place which was my neighborhood. There you can find the coziest block on earth. There is everything, from a post office to a pub to a off licence wine shop, to a framer, a baker, and even a bead shop. All in colourful woodframed shop fronts. this makes the place as alive and cozy as it can be and that was a great part in what made me love this town.

One of the curiousity of brunstfield is the holy corner. at the end of the block, there is a crossroad that as a 4 churches, one on each corner. hence the name holy corner. And just past the corner is the row of houses where i used to live.



Next on that road is Napier Uni's Merchiston campus. I used to study there, but at another campus further down that road, in craiglockhart. Merchiston notable trivia is that it was the home of john napier, inventor of the logarithm (and the "n" in the "ln").

to be continued...

Dr Flo's world tour of scotland - day 1

photo update later when the connection gets better!

dr flo goes visiting men wearing skirts!


day 1:
Left sweden under pouring rain.. For those of you reading that do not know the swedish weather, this is actually a tradition. The midsummer weekend HAS to be a shitty one weatherwise (the rest of the year the weather is shit but its more a fact than a tradition). The result of this wonderful weather was that i travelled for about 6 hours in soaked clothes and smelling like a wet dog. Awesome!

(photo gbg airport)

Göteborg City Airport went like a breeze, thanks to online early checkin. After that, a mile long queue to the airplane, along with the usual fatass rude monkey that believes that queuing is only for humans and that apes are allowed to jump the queue. The flight itself went just fine. I am now in prestwick. If you have never been to prestwick...well do you know glasgow? yes? ok. it's NOT there!
(photo prestwick)

At the train platform in prestwick, i ended up ona waiting bench next to a canadian exchange student, doing a year in belfast and now interailing around europe. the discussions goes on and on and here we arrive in glasgow central. After a wee walk, we arrive at queen street station where the shuttle for edinburgh awaits. A short hour later, i am back in my most beautiful town on earth, almost 3 years to the day since my last visit!

photo glasgow central, queen street, waverley. princes street.

First impression: changes, lots of it. Much more luxury boutique (vuitton, d&g and co) on rose street, less pubs, more bars....Fortunately, the old change has not change one bit. Cowgate still is the seedy road i kew, and the Mile retained his gothic charm. After a stop at the supermarket to buy the shampoo and other liquids that were not allowed as a hand luggage (apparently you can make an atomic bomb out of a conditioner bottle, perfume and shower gel too....), i'm heading for my home for a week on Cowgate.

(photos grass market)

I live on Cowgate, one stone throw away from the grassmarket, which was the old execution place back in the day where it really was not hip to be a protestant down here. The hostel i took is a converted student dorm (a la volra thams gatan). Spartan comfort, but all clean and cozy. The reception desk sells towels fashioned as kilts...disturbing.

(photo hotel dehors)

My bedroom in on the 4th floor, with a shared bathroom. One shower later, i hit the streets. (...)

Once on the streets, its the same effect as usual. I will alaways be in love with edinburgh. A few steps and from the grass market, i walk up candlemaker row to see again greyfriar Bobby. The cemetery next door is as beautiful as a movie set. The town is, for once, under a glowing sun.

6pm, I meet gav, the groom to be and the reason for my trip here. Thai food on north bridge and a lot of catching up on gav, the family, the friends. Really great. After the meal, gavs goes back home in gullane, more stuff to finish before the stag starts tomorrow!

since then i wander the roads of the city, shooting a zillion photos and grinning....watch this space, we are just getting started!

Le tour du monde du docteur flo en ecosse - jour 1

(mise a jour avec photo plus tard)

dr flo va voir les monsieurs en jupe.

jour 1:
depart de suede sous des trombes d'eau. pour ceux qui ne connaissent pas la suede, c'est une tradition, il faut qu'il y ai un temps de merde la semaine de midsommar (le reste du temps il fait pourrit aussi, mais c est pas pareil, c est facultatif). resultat: tout le transport fait dans des fringues bien trempee....genial!
(photo gbg airport)
Aeroport, check in super rapide (merci le advance check in en ligne), une queue interminable pour rentrer dans l avion, avec l'obligatoire gros tas qui doit estimer que la queue c est pour les humains, donc les truies ont le droit de passer devant. vol sans histoire, nous voila a prestwick.
(photo prestwick)
Arrivé a prestwick, je tape une petite discute avec un etudiant canadien qui fait une annee d echange a belfast et qui a decide de se faire un tour d europe cet été. blablabla plus tard, nous voila a glasgow central, direction queen street, petite trotte a pied pour changer de gare et prendre le rapide vers waverley. une petite heure plus tard, me revoila enfin, apres 2 ans et quelques, de retour dans ma plus belle ville du monde a moi.
photo glasgow central, queen street, waverley. princes street.

premiere impression: changement. beaucoup plus de boutique de luxe autour de rose street, moins de pubs, donc moins de couleurs aussi. heureusement le mile et cowgate n'ont pas changé. je passe au supermarché acheté champoings et autres bombes atomiques interdite dans le bagage a mains, et me voila en route vers mon logi.
(photos grass market)
Je suis sur Cowgate, a un jet de pierre du grassmarket. L'hostel est un ancien dortoir etudiant reconverti. spartiate, mais tres bien. A la reception on vend des serviette de bain qui ressemble a des kilt une fois enroulee. immanquable! (photo hotel dehors)

ma chambre est au 4eme etage, vc sdb partagée, tout est clean, nickel. (photos chambre) une douche plus tard, me voila dans les rues.

La c'est comme d'hab, le coup de coeur. Edinburgh reste une ville speciale pour moi. quelque pas et me voila sur le grass market, puis je remonte candlemaker row pour revoir Greyfriar bobby. Magnifique comme un decors de cinema, la ville est pour une fois sous un beau soleil. vers 18 je rencontre gav (le futur marié et la raison de mon voyage ici). On se fait un thai sur north bridge. puis il retourne sur gullane, on se voit demain pour les 48 heures non stop de stag doo.

Depuis je deambule dans la ville, photos par volee, et je me regale....a suivre.