Repositioning to Slateford ‘On the Level’ Think of this as the interval in my four-act, Water of Leith adventure. It occurred to me that it might be fun to return
Category: Europe
April 2021: Edinburgh: Water of Leith Walkway (Part 2)
Colinton Village While modern Colinton is a substantial suburb of Edinburgh, its original heart on the banks of the Water of Leith is known as Colinton Village. It is an
April 2021: Edinburgh: Water of Leith Walkway (Part 1)
Introduction The Water of Leith is the closest Edinburgh gets to having a river flowing through the city centre. In saying that, I’m thinking specifically of the relatively short section
April 2021: Edinburgh: Three Southside Transformations
On the first day of easing of the winter lockdown, when the Scottish Government exhortation to Stay at Home became Stay Local, I rode Lothian’s number 23 bus to its
March 2021: Edinburgh: Walking the Newhaven Tram Extension
Horse-drawn, cable-hauled, and later electric trams operated on the streets of Edinburgh during the period 1871 to 1956. The final vehicles of that era were in the style of their
Jan/Feb 2021: Edinburgh’s Winter Lockdown
With yesterday’s emergence of the UK into ‘meteorological spring’, now seems a good time to give a pictorial review of Edinburgh’s experience of the latest Scottish lockdown. This began on
December 2020: Christmas Cheer(s) in London
Arrival The last trip of 2020, and for an as yet indeterminate period thereafter, was once again to London. Outbound travel was on Sunday 13 December. The first two nights
October 2020: Northern Portugal (Part 7): Pombal
The small city of Pombal is situated 50km southwest of Coimbra, halfway between Porto and Lisbon. The population is a mere 18,000, although there are 55,0000 people in the wider
October 2020: Northern Portugal (Part 6): Coimbra
Coimbra is a city of around 145,000 people, situated 125km south of Porto. A three-night stay there formed the second part of our trip to northern Portugal. Coimbra is Portugal’s
October 2020: Northern Portugal (Part 5): Foz do Douro
Foz is the district of Porto where the Douro flows into the Atlantic Ocean. It stretches northwards from the river mouth through an area that is notable for its lack
October 2020: Northern Portugal (Part 4): Vila Nova de Gaia
As previously mentioned, the urban area south of the Douro and opposite Porto is officially a separate city: Vila Nova de Gaia (“New Town of Gaia”), or simply Gaia. It’s
October 2020: Northern Portugal (Part 3): Porto
With a city population of 240,000 and a metropolitan area that is home to 1.7 million people, Porto is Portugal’s second city. Its ancient name, Portus Cale, may even be
October 2020: Northern Portugal (Part 2): The Douro Valley
Our second full day in northern Portugal was dedicated to another day trip. The Douro Valley is one of the world’s oldest winegrowing regions and is a UNESCO World Heritage
October 2020: Northern Portugal (Part 1): Arrival & Day Trip to Braga
Arrival Less than a week after getting back from Greece, it was nice to be off again, making hay while the sun was shining in this year of travel washout.
October 2020: Athens (Part 6): City Centre Roundup
Thursday On returning to the city from Aegina on Thursday, we had time to fit in a visit to the National Museum of Contemporary Art, also known as EMST. This
October 2020: Athens (Part 5): Excursion to Aegina
Thursday Aegina is another island in the Saronic Gulf, bigger than Hydra and considerably closer to Athens. It is named after the mother of a former king of the island.
October 2020: Athens (Part 4): From Hill to Meeting Place
Wednesday This was another ‘city day’, and just as Monday had begun with an ascent to the Acropolis, so this morning brought another climb. Our objective this time was the
October 2020: Athens (Part 3): Day trip to Hydra
Tuesday We knew that our intention was to take two side trips from Athens to nearby islands, and decided that in order to maximise city-country contrast, we should take the