Keeping Cheerful

Our plan of last night to go by tram out west to the Gyle shopping centre turned to dust when we woke up to rain. And so when the #2 bus happened to arrive at the bus stop as we prepared to walk to Princes Street and the nearest Tram stop for us, we took it. We have only been on one of Edinburgh's grossly over budget tram cars once and we have never set foot on a #2 bus which plies its trade between Ocean Terminal and the Gyle

In retrospect, riding the latter was a mistake bearing in mind His Lordship's fragility in the face of urban deprivation. The rain en route did nothing to improve the appearance of the old, soaked tenements in various stages of dilapidation with wires trailing out of windows over the frontage (a bit like being back in Delhi) and further on, the newer housing with squalid back gardens and abused doorways. Then there were long stretches of street, with vacant boarded up shops ripe for redevelopment, all of which added to the gloom of another water logged day.

In contrast, after the hubbub of Georgie, Dalry and Saughton, the new business area of Edinburgh Park, spacious and served with broad avenues bordered by trees was devoid of people and traffic. It seemed that the only thing moving was our bus. Had the carparks outside the buildings not been full, one might have supposed that a mass evacuation had taken place.

In the Gyle, contrary to sensible thought, I bought a pair of sunglasses. Go figure!

This wall of art work is to be found outside the toilets at the top of Middle Meadow Walk. It appears to be a work in progress