Reflections on Edinburgh

We’ve been out of Edinburgh for 3 months now. Returning every day for work has kept some continuity but there’s no doubt that it’s been quite a change for us. To provide a memory aid and combat rose-tintedness, I thought I would make a list of things I miss and don’t miss about living in Edinburgh, now that I have a better perspective on it.

Things I miss:

• The immediacy of things. Cinema right around the corner. Shop right across the road. 3 pubs on my doorstep. 10 minute walk to work.
• The older lady in the Odeon who looks a bit like Mrs Doubtfire and says “thank you dear” when you give her your ticket.
• The guy in the shop across the road. Over 10 years we barely exchanged more than a handful of sentences, yet he still knew to buy in boxes of Space Raiders to feed my addiction! And his wife who always tried to short-change me.
• Ricebox – the greatest Chinese delivery service ever, with the most surly telephone operator you could imagine.
• Cable TV and in particular Cable broadband!!!
• The Real Foods shop. A wonderful selection of vegan food at extortionate prices, some sorry looking vegetables and oats. Lots and lots of oats. Staffed by our friendy Spanish neighbour, Nervous Boy and Weird Hairstyle Aussie Girl.

Things I don’t miss:

• The street cleaning machine that would travel down my street at 4am.
• Drunken idiots screaming at/fighting with each other at 2am.
• Junkies in my stairwell.
• The cold rattling windows in winter (all 9 months of it).
• The regular vandalism of my car.
• The constant noise and light, 24 hours a day.
• Having no friends living nearby.
• Carrying shopping up 3 flights of stairs.

So in summary, it is now quieter, with less local stuff. Which is fine by me. Instead I’ll drive to the cinema, binge drink in the house and bore friends and family with tales of how good cable broadband was.

My Days of Rice and Salt

Today I successfully finished reading “The Years of Rice and Salt” by Kim Stanley Robinson. All 772 pages of it. Off and on it took me about a year to get through it.

It is an alternate history, assuming that the entire population of Europe (with a few small exceptions, go Orkney!) was wiped out by the bubonic plague around the year 1200-1400. The story is told through the reincarnations of a small group of souls, and covers the period from the plague up to modern times.

Reading it was a real labour at first, as the first 100 pages or so were pretty dry and a bit confusing. However once I got past that the story really got going and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Robinson is an expert at characterisation and brings each of the dozens of characters and locations vividly to life.

It was interesting to see a world without Christianity, and in particular it’s effect on the North and South American people. All in all it came across quite realistically, albeit perhaps a little idealistic in places – a criticism that could also be levelled at his Mars trilogy of books.

Now I need to find something else to read. Iain M Banks “Use of Weapons” awaits me, but I think I’ll try something a bit lighter next.

Any suggestions?