Edinburgh in Winter

Well, to start of this blog, I thought it would be a nice idea to talk about this, my adopted city, in the winter time.

Coming from the tropics, as I do, it can be unsettling (and certainly exotic) to find oneself in a city so untropical, with nights that seem to start earlier than they have any business doing, and that last way beyond our waking hours.

Cold, but seldom below freezing, it is the pervasive dampness of the Scottish weather the part that is most unpleasant about this environment. But at the same time, it allows me to experience Christmastime in a way that I simply can't back home, with big coats and gloves, scarves and hats, my breath forming clouds in front of me at every step, and maybe snow. That is, if we are lucky. Still, chances are way better of it snowing in Edinburgh than of a single snow flake falling in Mexico City.

Edinburgh goes through several phases during the year. In January, winter is at its hardest and people generally hide themselves at work, at home, and at the local pub. Some hardy souls can be seen jogging or playing in the parks, but the city's bustle acquires this characteristic hurriedness of not really wanting to be outside. February and March are time for the Six Nations Rugby tournament, and the whole city seems to be submerged in the rugby environment. Spring arrives in May or thereabouts, and while the weather can still change in a matter of seconds and become patently horrible, it is these months when we enjoy long days, sun, and being able to walk in sandals. The parks become a haven for young people looking to simply lay on the green grass, play on the grass, enjoy a picnic on the grass, or smoke some grass. Pub activity, previously confined to within the pub itself, has moved outside, and those few pubs that happen to have a patio, terrace, or at the very least a generous portion of sidewalk in front can see their patronage increase dramatically.

August brings about THE FESTIVAL. Actually a collection of festivals, including the Fringe, the Military Tatoo, and the Book Fair, the Festival once again transforms the city into a bustling, thriving place where random performers populate the streets, outnumbered only by the hordes of young people in costumes trying to steer you into this or that venue to watch or take part in whichever performance they are working for, or with. September brings about a different kind of bustle, that of students returning to Edinburgh after the summer break, or arriving for the first time to begin their university studies. Many of them can be seen wandering the streets close to their respective schools, some with their parents, some by themselves, more often than not in groups of several. At night, this wandering transforms itself into drunken stumbling (a favourite sport amongst young people in this latitudes), situation that happens again and again, night after night.

Finally, winter arrives, the original topic of this post before I digressed. A German market next to the Scottish National Gallery, mulled wine in many bars, and a very Christmasy spirit that can't really be erased by the gloomy clouds and rainy weather. Wind, hail, rain, all of that pales when I can walk out of my building one fine day and see the Meadows, white with frost, the air cold and crisp, and the sky blue and cloudless. Cold sun, as it is - an interesting phenomenon for us tropic dwellers. And a beautiful one.