You Couldn’t Make it Up!

It’s Monday morning and it’s hard to know whether to discuss the weather or Edinburgh’s traffic chaos.

 It’s another bitterly cold day with quite intense flurries of snow which turn to nothing here by the time they reach the ground.
 Still it all feels a bit miserable and then I find out that the North Bridge is closed again for traffic travelling north and for 6 weeks which as you know will probably mean far longer. 
The vast number of buses and cars that use this route now have to divert via Chamber Street,  George IV Bridge and the Mound to get to Princes Street and beyond. All the bus stops have been closed on the diverted route and the tail back of traffic is legendary. 

These North Bridge closures have been going on for over 6 years with one or other carriageway closed for most of that time although recently two way traffic has been possible on one carriage way. You couldn’t imagine traffic chaos getting any worse in the city centre until it does. Added to that,  the whole of the centre looks like a building site now that the Jenners revamp has spilled into St David Street and Rose Street and the massive student accommodation blocks being built at Abbeyhill have closed roads there too.

However some Monday mornings are cheered up by meeting a school friend for coffee at the Ivy and this was that Monday. There is a lovely waiter there who knows us so well by now that without any words passing between us he brings us coffees, toast and marmalade and then a repeat later when we have empty plates. I have to say it did cross my mind that had we decided for a change to have Eggs Benedict, we would have been rather short changed.

The thought of going out into the weather this afternoon is a no brainer. My sudoku is waiting and the virtual log fire is crackling invitingly on the wall although the latter hasn’t helped to warm my feet- that’s where the good old hot water bottle comes into it’s own.

PS No sign of the balconists again today