Venerable, dramatic EDINBURGH , the showcase capital of Scotland, is a historic, cosmopolitan and cultured city. The setting is wonderfully striking; the city is perched on a series of extinct volcanoes and rocky crags which rise from the generally flat landscape of the Lothians, with the sheltered shoreline of the Firth of Forth to the north. "My own Romantic town", Sir Walter Scott called it, although it was another native author, Robert Louis Stevenson, who perhaps best captured the feel of his "precipitous city", declaring that "No situation could be more commanding for the head of a kingdom; none better chosen for noble prospects." The centre has two distinct parts, divided by Princes Street Gardens , which run roughly east-west under the shadow of Castle Rock . To the north, the dignified, Grecian-style New Town was immaculately laid out during the Age of Reason, after the announcement of a plan to improve conditions in the city. The Old Town , on the other hand, with its tortuous alleys and tightly packed closes, is unrelentingly medieval, associated in popular imagination with the underworld lore of schizophrenic Deacon Brodie, inspiration for Stevenson's Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde , and the bodysnatchers Burke and Hare. Edinburgh earned its nickname of "Auld Reekie" for the smog and smell generated by the Old Town, which for centuries swam in sewage tipped out of the windows of cramped tenements. Set on the crag which sweeps down from the towering fairytale castle to the royal Palace of Holyroodhouse , the Old Town preserves all the key reminders of its role as a capital, plus a brand new parliament building rising up opposite the palace. A few hundred yards away a tantalizing glimpse of the wild beauty of Scotland's scenery can be had immediately beyond the palace in Holyrood Park , an extensive area of open countryside dominated by Arthur's Seat , the largest and most impressive of the volcanoes. In August and early September, around a million visitors flock to the city for the Edinburgh Festival , in fact a series of separate festivals that make up the largest arts extravaganza in the world. Among the many museums, the exciting new National Museum of Scotland houses ten thousand of Scotland's most precious artefacts, while the National Gallery of Scotland and its offshoot, the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art , have two of Britain's finest collections of paintings. On a less elevated theme, the city's distinctive howffs (pubs), allied to its brewing and distilling traditions, make Edinburgh a great drinking city. The presence of three universities , plus several colleges, means that there is a youthful presence for most of the year - a welcome corrective to the stuffiness which is often regarded as Edinburgh's Achilles heel. Beyond the city centre, the most lively area is Leith , the city's medieval port, whose seedy edge is softened by a series of great bars and upmarket seafood restaurants, along with the presence of the former royal yacht Britannia , now open to visitors. The last decade has seen an upsurge in style, sophistication and good taste in Edinburgh's cafés and restaurants. Café culture has hit the centre of the city, with tables spilling onto the pavements in the summer, and this has been matched by the rise of a clutch of original, upmarket and stylish restaurants , many identifying their cuisine as "contemporary" or "modern Scottish" and championing top-quality meat, game and fish. As with most large British cities, the culinary map of Edinburgh is colourful and global, with long-established Chinese, Indian and Mexican places competing with outlets for Thai, Japanese, North African and Spanish cuisine. Generally, small diners and bistros predominate, many adopting a casual French style and offering good-value set menus. Traditional Scottish cooking can still be found at some of the more formal restaurants, and inevitably some tourist-oriented places offer haggis and other classic clichés. Edinburgh excels in vegetarian restaurants, including a couple of classic Indian vegetarian places, and seafood - it's long been a speciality of the Leith waterfront, and you'll now also find a number of great seafood bistros in the centre of town. The Royal Mile and aroundBISTROS, CAFÉS AND DINERS Café Hub Lawnmarket. Colourful, well-run café in the Edinburgh Festival centre, with light modern meals served right through the day and evening. Teas, coffees, snacks and drinks also served. The large terrace... read more >>The New Town and the West EndBISTROS, CAFÉS AND DINERS Glass & Thompson 2 Dundas St. An unusually airy deli with huge bowls of olives and an extensive cheese counter; scattered tables and chairs mean you can linger over a made-to-order sandwich, an irresistible... read more >>North and west of the New TownBISTROS, CAFÉS AND DINERS Café Mediterraneo 73 Broughton St. A great little place with a deli counter and a small dining space serving Italian food in unpretentious style. Not a red-checked tablecloth to be seen. Moderate. ... read more >>South and west of the Old TownBISTROS, CAFÉS AND DINERS The Apartment 7-13 Barclay Place, Bruntsfield tel 0131/228 6456. Hugely popular, highly fashionable modern diner, with IKEA furniture, sisal flooring and abstract modern art on the walls. Their "Chunky,... read more >>Leith and NewhavenBISTROS, CAFÉS AND DINERS Daniel's , 88 Commercial St tel 0131/553 5933. Top-grade bistro in an attractive setting on the ground floor of a converted warehouse in Leith. Food is from the Alsace region of France; the tarte flambée ... read more >> Inevitably, Edinburgh's nightlife is at its best during the Festival, which can make the other 49 weeks of the year seem like an anticlimax. However, at any time the city has plenty to offer, especially in the realm of theatre and music . The club scene is lively, with some excellent venues hosting a changing selection of one-nighters. In the bigger venues, you may find different clubs taking place on each floor. Most of the city-centre clubs stay open until around 3am. You can normally hear live jazz, folk and rock every evening in one or other of the city's pubs. The city has permanent venues large enough to host large touring orchestras and ballet companies; elsewhere you can also uncover a lively comedy club and a couple of excellent art-house cinemas . Edinburgh has a dynamic gay culture, for years centred round the top of Leith Walk and Broughton Street, where the first gay and lesbian centre appeared in the 1970s. Since the start of the 1990s, more and more gay enterprises, especially cafés and nightclubs, have moved into this area, now dubbed the "Pink Triangle". The best way to find out what's on is to pick up a copy of The List , a fortnightly listings magazine covering both Edinburgh and Glasgow (£1.95). Alternatively, get hold of the Edinburgh Evening News , which appears daily except Sunday: its listings column gives details of performances in the city that day, hotels and bars included. Pubs and barsMany of Edinburgh's pubs , especially in the Old Town, have histories that stretch back centuries, while others, particularly in the New Town, are unaltered Victorian or Edwardian period pieces. Add a plentiful supply of trendy modern ... read more >>ClubsThe Bongo Club 14 New St tel 0131/556 5204. Great venue above a car park near Waverley Station, attracting some of the most interesting DJs around. Look out for the mighty Messenger Sound System monthly on Saturdays and Club Latino monthly on... read more >>Gay clubs and barsBlue Moon Café 1 Barony St tel 0131/556 2788. Coffee, drinks and light meals available at this long-standing friendly café-bar which attracts a mixed crowd. Mon-Fri 11am-10pm, Sat & Sun 9.30am-10pm. CC Bloom's 23 Greenside... read more >>HogmanayHogmanay is the name Scots give to New Year's Eve , a celebration they have made all their own with a unique mix of tradition, hedonism, sentimentality and enthusiasm. The roots of the Hogmanay are in ancient pagan festivities based... read more >>Live music pubs and venuesHenry's Jazz Bar 8 Morrison St, off Lothian Road tel 0131/221 1288. Edinburgh's premier jazz and hip-hop venue, with live music every night and regular top performers. The Liquid Room 9c Victoria St tel 0131/225 2528. Good-sized... read more >>Theatre and comedyFestival Theatre Nicolson Street tel 0131/529 6000. The largest stage in Britain, principally used for Scottish Opera's appearances in the capital and other major orchestral performances, but also for everything from the children's show ... read more >>Concert hallsQueen's Hall 89 Clerk St tel 0131/668 2019. Converted Georgian church with a capacity of around eight hundred, though many seats have little or no view of the platform. Home base of both the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Scottish Ensemble, and much... read more >>CinemasCameo 38 Home St, Tollcross tel 0131/228 2800; bookings tel 0131/228 4141. A treasure of an arthouse cinema; screens more challenging mainstream releases and cult late-nighters. Tarantino's been here and thinks it's great. Filmhouse ... read more >>The Edinburgh FestivalThe world's largest celebration of the arts, the Edinburgh Festival is a massive explosion of cultural and artistic expression, with every available performance space in August - from the grandest concert halls to pub courtyards - helping... read more >>Edinburgh's other festivalsQuite apart from August's main Edinburgh Festival, the city is now promoting itself as a year-round festival venue, with number of different events well established. The climax of various Christmas events is Edinburgh's Hogmanay , one of the... read more >>
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