Festival Waste

There are many levels to Edinburgh.

The old town is built with streets towering across streets that are far below. Buildings extend up from these lower levels into the light of the streets above.

Such buildings have entrances and exits both far below and up above.

Makes for some very confusing staircases.

This turned out to be a tragedy late one night a few years ago when the building that used to stand here burned to the ground. On that night you could see the sky lit up from the flames all the way from Leith. I remember the night well as a group of friends huddled round a top floor window and peered up the hill towards the flames.

Little did I know at the time that it was my old office burning down.

I used to work in this building back when I worked at the University of Edinburgh. It was a maze of hotch potch passageways that led to a variety of establishments both on the bridge, Chambers Street, and far below on the Cowgate.

I used to be able to exit my office into the stair, a few flights down and then through a fire escape and into the cellar bar beneath Chambers Street. Or, I could go a few flights further down to the bars facing onto the Cowgate. Now, how many office do you know that have a choice of bars you can discreetly access without ever leaving the building, nor be seen entering from the front?

Interesting days.

The fire fighters never stood a chance.

Within this maze of staircases there was no way the fire could be stopped. All they could do was manage it to prevent it spreading to nearby buildings.

Edinburgh watched part of the old town burn to the ground.

However, in Edinburgh at Festival time nothing is wasted. Since this building is still yet to be rebuilt (I believe due to wrangling between all the myriad of former owners of property within the building) there is a patch of waste ground in the middle of the old town.

Currently people are working hard to create a temporary venue on this patch. They did so last year, even building a scaffolding staircase all the way up to Chambers Street to provide access from "street" level.

In a few days this will once again be a thriving venure / bar / workplace.

Until September when all will be removed and once again the weeds will continue their unabated reclamation of the old town.