Edinburgh:

Edinburgh, one of the most iconic and romantic cities in the world, is considered a fine sight in all weathers, with the spires of the Royal Mile Stacking up to the impressive Edinburgh Castle and the stately stone-built New Town overlooking the Firth of Forth. Edinburgh is awash with renewed vigour and energy too, with the Scottish Parliament reassembling here after a 300 year hiatus.

A good deal of impetus for this revival has come from the tourist industry. Edinburgh has been a popular destination since the early 19th century when turmoil abroad made it an essential stop on the aristocratic Grand Tour, the Victorians went further still; with the melancholy imagination of Sir Walter Scott as the driving force, the image of Edinburgh’s turbulent history, tragic Queen of Scots and Highland Dress sense was borne into romantic relief.

Today, Edinburgh is still the picturesque home of lost causes, from the Calvanists to the Jacobites, but this is tempered by a thoroughly modern outlook and a sense that the city belongs on the continental map. With its brisk winds, mellow twilights and long views, Edinburgh reconciles all its contradictions, and that is the best thing about it. A city of big skies, wide-open spaces and little dark corners, it demands exploration on foot.

Take a stroll around the extinct volcano of Arthur's Seat in Holyrood Park and you'll see whole new districts taking shape below the Old Town, not least around the Scottish Parliament building itself. Head down to the docks in Leith and wonder at the 1950s homeliness of the former Royal Yacht Britannia berthed in the gleaming new Ocean Terminal mall. These developments would certainly like to emulate the success of the Museum of Scotland - an ambitious framing of the whole country's history in a few thousand square feet of contemporary design. And then of course there’s Edinburgh’s world famous Arts Festival in August, which is still going from strength to strength.

Not for the first time in its long and colourful history, Edinburgh is undergoing a revival. Indeed,the Scottish are well known for being proud of their Scotland, justifiably so too. However, while those living in places like Glasgow never grow tired of boasting of their cities and their country, residents of Edinburgh are markedly more placid: obviously comfortable with their lineage, but in no rush to broadcast it from the hill tops. Such reserve suits Edinburgh really quite well. It attracts visitors not through screaming a list of its good points at the top of its lungs but with a subtle, politely put invitation. Even the ubiquitous and sometimes tacky souvenir stalls that dot Edinburgh’s Royal Mile appear mindful not to spoil the illusion that Edinburgh exists within another age.

Although there a few obvious exceptions, Edinburgh gives off a tranquil, regal dignity. The design of the buildings in Edinburgh New Town is sombre, considered, often commanding, but the structures in the less well-ordered Edinburgh Old Town also hold on to an effected polish. Edinburgh’s parks are large and, as is often the case, rather majestic. Even Edinburgh’s traffic, both people on foot and vehicles, appear to travel at an unhurried pace. Big city hustle is mostly missing in Edinburgh.

Edinburgh receives a lot of its character from its colourful past, which sometimes conspires to engulf it. The city’s tourist trade is almost completely focused on its history: an ancient wall here, a ghost walk there, and, soaring high above Edinburgh on its lofty perch, the magnificent Edinburgh Castle. Apart from those people travelling to Edinburgh on business, or those that visit in August to witness the hectic assortment of cultural events, few come to Edinburgh for its present and future.

That being said, it seems that finally, Edinburgh appears keen to join the 21st century. Its neighbour Glasgow has its finger more firmly pressed to Scotland’s contemporary cultural pulse, but the last ten years has seen Edinburgh reinvent itself: with top-end restaurants, luxury hotels and a swathe of modern constructions. However, Edinburgh’s much revered and respected history stays with it: the imposing monuments, the inviting pubs, the colossal old volcanos; but there’s now much more to see.

Edinburgh is divided into four distinct areas. The Royal Mile, The Old Town, The New Town and Deans Village and Stockbridge.