When I arrived in England all those years ago, I got a job as a housekeeper/companion over the Easter holidays to an old money family in the country. This was followed by a job as a nanny (yes, really) just north of London to a nouveau riche family. Old money family usually means very nice and welcoming. Nouveau riche means snobby and not very nice. And this was true in both circumstances. It was here that I developed my 'dislike' of young children. I pretty much taught them 'please', 'thank you' and 'excuse me' and when to use them.
I had met another Australian nanny in the village and we planned to leave and go to Edinburgh and that's what we did. We got a flat - 12 Dalkeith Road and settled in. A New Zealand girl, Vicki, joined us and we were set. I worked as a cleaner for a while and so traipsed all over Edinburgh. Then I got my first-ever real office job, data entry at Cadell Plumbing.
My main claim to fame there was that I lived 10 minutes away from Ramsay Street on Neighbours. I remember going in for morning tea and the girls all talking and me not understanding a word - a Scot in full flight is incomprehensible! My other claim to fame was that within two weeks I was outputting as much as some who had been there for years (piano playing hands) and they were offering me a full time job.
So my first stop this morning is 12 Dalkeith Road. I had no recollection of it being as far away as it is! Google Maps listed it as a 20-minute walk. My walking with only vague directions and a 25-year-old memory took at least double that! There was some interesting sights along the way - some looked vaguely familiar. I would have walked these streets all the time.
After going round a long way, keeping Arthur's Seat on my left and asking directions from a lady walking her dog (always a good indication of a local), I finally came to it.
It wasn't the Great Grog shop back then!
Number 12 is the one with the green 'To Let' notice. We were on the top floor and looked out over Arthur's Seat - can't see it from the street. I loved sitting in the window, looking across to the Seat, listening to music and writing letters home - coz that how we used to communicate - weekly letters sent through the post!
I tried looking up Cadell Plumbing but they don't seem to exist anymore. And they were at least a bus ride away, so I'm not going to look them up. Instead I take a walk along Arthur's Seat - I feel no desire to climb it as I have done it before and it's monstrously steep.
Nice walk though...
This leads to the Palace of Holyroodhouse - the Queen's home in Edinburgh. I stop for a great coffee, a sit down and a peak in the gates.
Then it's up the Royal Mile - so called because it's the mile between Holyroodhouse and Edinburgh Castle - except it's 1.4 miles... It starts off fairly simply before becoming the tourist Mecca that it is further up.
The Royal Mile has a heap of closes off it - tiny side streets, or alleys, leading down where people used to live and work. They were named after people or what happened on the streets. Hate to think what happened in this close...
I love how the stairs are worn down so they're almost a downhill tread. There are heaps of closes, so cute and all much easier to go down than to go up! This is a hilly city!!
Back to sit for an hour before heading out again.
It's off to a different blast from the last - The Real Mary King's Close - a close from 1635 that had been covered over when they built the Royal Exchange and only rediscovered recently. It's the only close named after a female and that shows how important she was. She was left a couple of properties and a title when her husband died and she worked to raise her standing.
I added these photos coz you can't take any on the tour - it's basically the basement of a government building and they don't want people taking photos there! It's a fantastic tour and gives great insight into the lives of the people in the 17th century. The description on the brochure says, "Buried deep beneath the streets lies the city's deepest secret; a warren of hidden streets that has remained frozen in time since the 17th century."
Our guide is Stephen Boyd (real name is Daniel - they guide the tour in full character). He is excellent! He leads us down into the close and into one of the lowly homes. Basically one room for a family of 8 to 10 or more. There is a bucket for the latrine which is emptied just out the door twice a day. They call out 'gardyloo' as they throw it, a variation of the French 'gardez l'eau' - or 'throw the water'. This would then drain down to the river.
He shows us some wall decorations made at the time and preserved. Also told the story of a woman who killed her daughter's husband when he demanded the unpaid dowry. She was sentenced to death in the typical way for females - hands bound to feet and thrown into the river - the same river that the latrines drained into. They couldn't execute the daughter (even though she was innocent) as she was pregnant. They asked her to come back after the baby was born. She was long gone.
Into more upmarket areas, three rooms for the family instead of one. The last remaining family didn't want to move and demanded £300 - which was a lot of money in those days. This family had one of the first flushing toilets and he was so proud of it he had it positioned so that if the front door was open, it could be seen from the street. He'd leave all the doors open to do his business and the neighbours would come and see...
Lots of information, a lot about the plague - pneumonic and bubonic - the doctors who wore heavy leather coats and the mask with the long beak/nose. This held herbs and lavender to ward off the smells.
A place on the close for the souvenir photo to be taken - it's quite ghost-like.
Great, great tour!
The next blast from the past was the White Hart Inn, where we would go often to listen to Denny - the Scottish folk musician, or just to sit and chat with the locals. Loved this place a lot.
As the sign says, it's Edinburgh's oldest pub. Robbie Burns used to drink here. Inside it's tiny but much as I remember. I don't remember them doing meals but maybe I just didn't order any. I ordered vegetarian haggis, neaps (turnips) and tatties (mashed potato) and whiskey cream sauce. Unfortunately they didn't have any tatties so I got chips instead. And it was delicious!
Had a chat to the bartender about the old days. He said it was great to hear about the old days. Now to see if I can stay awake to go back at 9:00 to hear some music...
Managed to stay awake and headed down the Grassmarket - all of 1.5 minutes away...
The ceiling has quotes on the beams. You can sort of see them here...
There was a guitarist playing and singing a few songs. Had a sparkling water and listened for a while before heading back. Just like the old days...
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