Edinburgh in Inverness
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Transcript of Edinburgh in Inverness
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8/10/2019 Edinburgh in Inverness
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19www.inverness-courier.co.ukFRIDAY, JANUARY 2, 2015
HOLDING a generous glass ofwhite wine, I settled back intothe sofa as our host regaledus with tales of his career as adesigner.
Wallace Shaw (top right)spent 22 years in New Yorkand was design director of thefashion house Donna Karanand Pringle of Scotland. Hethen ran a bed and breakfast inSpoleto, Italy, before returningto his native Scotland andcombining the two strandsof his professional life in
Wallaces Arthouse in Leith, abed and breakfast that doubles
as an informal art gallery,with paintings and drawingshangings on walls andpropped up in the hallway.
Located in the heartof Edinburghs reviveddocklands, a stones throwfrom two Michelin starredrestaurants and numerousbars, Wallaces Arthouseis an upper floor flat inLeiths Grade A listed former
Assembly Rooms. It does notadvertise its presence and
you have to ring the buzzeroutside (make sure you knowthe flat number as there is nosign), make your way throughthe communal hallway andclimb the stairs to find Wallace
waiting for you on the landing.Te two guest bedrooms
are large and comfortablein a homely way, with rugsscattered around the woodenfloors and more artworks. Likethe rest of the flat our room
was idiosyncratic, with a small
knot hole in the wooden door(which did not lock) and abathroom pod containing atoilet, sink and shower.
Wallace, however is thestar. He treats paying guests asfriends who have come to stayand is keen to chat and debate.
Travel
Wallace Shaw the
host with the most
Te perfect base for exploring on footDESCENDING the steps offQueenserry Road we entereda different world, a ew metresbut seemingly miles away
rom the teeming capital cityabove our heads.
We had dropped downinto Edinburghs Water oLeith, two centuries ago apowerhouse o mills andworkers cottages but nowa backwater popular withwalkers and people willingand able to pay or a house or
flat a ew minutes walk romPrinces Street.
urn right and the riversidepath takes you past the RoyalBotanic Gardens, eventuallyreaching the Firth o Forthat Leith. urn lef, as we did,and you reach historic DeanVillage, ollowing the river andits tree lined banks throughthe citys suburbs which youreach by climbing one o themany flights o steps up out othe river valley.
It was part o Edinburgh wehad never explored on ourmany visits and it providedus with a ascinating day.Managed by the city counciland completed in 2002,the 12-mile route runs romBalerno in the west to Leith.
We took in only a smallsection, emerging first intoRoseburn where we paused
or tea in a ca mentioned inone o Iain Banks novels, anextract rom which is ramedon the wall. Ten it was backdown into our secluded world,walking along the oppositebank and climbing up to theScottish Gallery or ModernArt or more tea, this timesprinkled with visual ratherthen literary culture.
Eventually we headed backto the bustling city withoutmanaging to reach the vague
goal we set ourselves at theoutset, the Water Leith VisitorCentre, and resolvi ng totackle another section nexttime.
Our base or this breakwas perectly located orabandoning the car andexploring on oot. Te KnightResidence is a luxury blocko sel catering apartments inLauriston Street, not ar romthe Grassmarket.
It has been included inglobal travel agency Expediaslist o the worlds top hotels
or the past seven years and itis easy to see why. Standardsare uniormly high, rom the
urnishings to the helpulnesso staff through to the smalldetails, such as the essentialsin your breakast and starterpack, which is included in theprice.
Pick your times and therates are very reasonable,with two bedroom apartmentssleeping our with their ownlounge and kitchen available
rom 127 per night. I, likeus, you buy ood rom themetro supermarket aroundthe corner and eat in itbecomes a cost effective wayo visiting Edinburgh in style.Tere is a secure car parkaround the back and no travelcosts i you are happy to walk.
You can reach the Royal Milethrough the Grassmarketor, more scenically aroundthe base o the castle, whilePrinces Street involves awalk through Princes Streetgardens.
On our second day wemeandered more centrally,scoring another first or us byclimbing Calton Hill, an easierwalk than Arthurs Seat butone which arguably rewardsyou with equally good views.Tere is also more to see onthe hill itsel, rom the slightlypoignant memorial to theScottish soldiers and sailorskilled in the Napoleonic Wars,abandoned unfinished in1829 when the promoters ranout o money, to the NelsonMonument. Erected in theshape o a telescope as amemorial to Lord Nelson andhis men, this was completedand includes a ball on topwhich drops at 1pm each
day, enabling the ship in theForth and moored at Leith toaccurately set their clocks.
Another advantage overArthurs Seat is that there isa small cae atop Calton Hill.More tea and cake.
ales of his days in fashionover wine on our arrival werefollowed by the pros and consof Scottish independence atthe generous breakfast, which
you take at his kitchen table.He is a congenial host andsome guests even invite him
to accompany them on daysout.Leith itself is a short bus
ride or 30 minute walk fromthe centre of Edinburghand has only been part ofthe city for a century. It waspreviously a wealthy townin its own right, earninglucrative revenues from tradeflowing in and out of thedocks. Te townsfolk fiercelydefended their independenceto the point where Leith andEdinburgh had differentgauges of tram track, meaningpassengers had to changeat the boundary. Eventuallya lack of space to expandforced Leith into the arms of
its larger neighbour, althougheven then a referendum
vote showed a majority ofresidents wanted to stayseparate.
It has a lively feel. Manyof the dock buildings arenow restaurants and hotels,
the Scottish Governmenthas a large waterfront officecomplex and although thedocks are silent, money stillflows from the sea in the formof cruise liners disembarkingthousands of tourists.
Having explored Leith theprevious evening, next day
we decided to keep to thecoast and drove to Portobello.
A former seaside resort,the stalls, Punch and Judybooths and holidaying cityfamilies are long gone to bereplaced by cafes, joggersand mothers with young
children enjoying the beach.We walked eastward alongthe promenade, eventuallyreaching the harbour atMusselburgh, seeing adifferent side of Edinburghand gaining a greaterunderstanding of its history in
the process.Returning to Wallaces late
in the afternoon, too tiredeven for a glass of wine inthe lounge, we found fourmacaroons waiting for usin our room. It was a typicaltouch.
Wallaces Arthouseis more expensive thansome boutique B&Bs andis probably not for thoseunwilling to socialise withtheir host and fellow guests.But for a stimulating,individual experience, itscores top marks.
Edinburgh provides all kinds of visitoraccommodation in a range of pricebrackets. Robert aylor and his wifeSusi decided to split their short breakin the city between two contrastingtypes, an arthouse bed and breakfastand a luxury self catering flat
Wallaces Arthouse
Address:41/4 Constitution Street, Edinburgh EH6 7BG,Rates:115 or a double room and 105 or a single room pernight. Includes continental breakast.elephone: 07941 343714
Email: [email protected]
Online: www.wallacesarthousescotland.com
Te Knight Residence
Address:12 Lauriston Street, Edinburgh EH3 9DJ.Rates:One bedroom studio apartments rom 97 per nightand two bedroom apartments rom 127 per night.elephone: 0131 622 8120Email: [email protected].
Online: www.theknightresidence.co.uk
One of theapartments at TeKnight Residence.
WallaceShawprovedto be anexcelllenthost.
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