A walking traverse of Portobello

The car was sick and I found a garage called Rentec over in Portobello. I drove over from Stockbridge and did the long walk back. The day was mild and although cloudy the light was soft wand warm.

As I walked up the Portobello Road I saw this mausoleum poking up between the houses of a side street. I went to investigate. It turns out this is a private mausoleam for William Henry Miller and his family. It was built in the 1860s. Miller was the MP for Newcastle Under Lyme and died in 1948.

It is an imposing piece of monumental masonry and strange for not being located in one of the many grand cemeteries in Edinburgh (the piece of land it stands on was consecrated). The marble friezes depict scenes vaguely Romano-Greco-Egyptian of celebration on one side and war on the other. The sculptor was Alfred Gatley.

I wandered on and up over Calton Hill to have a toastie on top - not a euphemism - and to puzzle at the National Monument built for the Scottish soldiers killed in the Napoleonic Wars. It is loosely based on the Parthenon and funds ran out in 1929 before it could be finished.

Later still after a stop at John Lewis for a bit of Christmas shopping I turned off Broughton Street and found myself in the George V Park. It turns out this was once the site of Canonmills Lough - an artificial lake built to power the area's local mills including paper mills and a playing card manufactory. This was drained and became the site of a now defunct football team and then the site of the Royal Patent Gymnasium - a sort of pleasure park-cum-fitness centre.

The centrepiece was a floating circular serpent that took over 200 rowers to propel it.  The park is now under threat from an RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland) proposal to demolish local offices and construct a monstrous and towering office block. There were many signs in protest at the proposals - appeals against which have to be in by tomorrow.

The Cannonmills Loch was also the site of much curling when the loch where Princess Street Gardens now stands was drained.  And also the site of a 1000m tunnel to Waverley station that became the biggest air raid shelter in the IIWW (it could house 3,000 people).

My last stop was at the Tile Studio just over the bridge from Cannnonmills which has an amazing collection of stone and tile floor coverings.

I'll put up an extra of the National Monument.

The car's sickness was its solenoid - whatever that is - and should be fixed tomorrow. I might see if I can get a lift over to the garage (Terry?).