Sunday Stroll- A "Close" Call

Close: A narrow Edinburgh Street passing between two

tenement buildings, which at one point would have
been closed off at either end by gates

'The Town Below the Ground' a book by Jan-Andre Henderson, a local tour guide with an interest in Edinburgh's underground and slightly occult history, was the inspiration for this weeks Sunday Stroll.
This was one of my second hand books I picked up last week on the topic of Edinburgh's legendary underground city. This morning seemed to be sunny one minute and showering the next, so we deemed it unsuitable for our original plans, but perfect to stuff some cameras in our pockets and go explore the Old Town.
We infact live in what is known as Edinburgh's Old Town, the setting of both Henderson's book and numerous tours for visitors and those interested in unearthing Edinburgh's unearthly past. We conducted our own self-guided tour based on some of the locations mentioned in the book to avoid the cost of hiring a tour guide and to avoid having to go into these areas at night! We wove through alleyways, always remembering to look up, as so much can be learned about Edinburgh's past from the varying height of its infrastructure.

Edinburgh was built on seven hills now hardly evident as the city grew both up and down, essentially closing in some areas, using some as foundations and others dug underneath existing structures. This city planning at the time was one concerned with defence of its Castle, a product of eventual over-population within the cities existing defensive wall having been built upon a landscape formed by volcanic activity and mottled by glaciers. So, though at first glance the old town might appear to have even roof lines, it actually consists of bridges, vaults, various levels and building ranging in height from 3 to 14 stories tall. Some of the remaining architecture dates back to the 16th Century, but all is covered with the stamp of time- blackened by the elements and years of pollution, mossy and worn, windows and doors sealed up with stone, with uneven cobblestone streets and steep, greasy passageways. All hints about what once was, Old town also has its share of modernized apartments, repurposed buildings, tourist attractions and grafilthy tags.

Had it not been for the ghost stories and snipets of history I had read, our day would have been without event or discovery, making our way from A to B through an area that might otherwise go unnoticed. We recounted the rumours, we peeked over embankments, we searched for clues or signs of life long gone. South Bridge for example, which I walk over nearly everyday and appears to be more of a street than a bridge, was built 1785-88 and consists of 19 arches though only one of which remains visible.

Cowgate Arch crosses over an area once the slums to the cities poor, having been home to criminals and squalor. Cowgate's reputation of being the notorious underbelly of Edinburgh remains. Though no longer home to poverty and crime it is now ironically the location for many of the Burgh's dance clubs and bars. So basically, once a seedy area always a seedy area. (ahem)

This picture was taken around 1860 by William Donaldson Clark of Cowgate arch. If you live here you will note the light coming from where ANOTHER arch was once visible, but has since been filled in. I was beyond thrilled to find this picture after having scurried around the streets last Sunday, stories bouncing around from my book, hunting for clues to the past and aching to see signs of those hidden arches to no avail. (I later found out this artist died after falling off a tram car in the very neighbourhood I currently reside! Strange coincidence I'd say!)

And this little gem of technology is a map of our journey, and 'neat-o'...it's interactive! You can zoom it to see some local landmarks or change it to satellite view to actually see the building for yourselves and read a bit about their current occupants.

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View Close Adventures in a larger map
That is all for today:

I don't know which is creepier- the haunting stories of Edinburgh's hidden underground or Google Earth being able to track our every move by satellite and cell phone!

Hope you enjoyed my Sunday Stroll!

erin x arches