Remembering Edinburgh… city of mysteries, legends and medieval architecture

Scotland, is seen in the thoughts of many as the country of mysteries, witches burnt at the stake, legends, dark corners and medieval architecture. We love the Scottish, their accent, landscape, history, heritage, famous Scotch whisky and tartans...

So, to close these “remembering” posts, I have chosen to honour Edinburgh, a UNESCO World Heritage Ste since 1995. It is the second most visited UK city after London. In my view, it is an excellent destination for a cultural holiday and five days should be ample time to see everything.

A couple of years back I stayed in Edinburgh in March.  The weather was cool and sunny, with occasional cloud. I visited some stunning places, walked through the city and parks and enjoyed the soul of this charming city.

I have put together a selection of photos, taken with my old compact camera, and will tell you a little bit about the places I visited. I hope you really enjoy the tour!

To start with, Edinburgh is divided into the Old Town and the New Town. The Royal Mile is the most famous and busiest street of the city. It runs for about 2 km and entertains us with curious narrow alleys, souvenir shops, hotels and pubs, with Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace standing at each end. The main streets forming the Royal Mile are Castlehill, Lawnmarket, High Street and Canongate.

View looking at the Royal Mile

The inside of St Giles’s Cathedral offers beautiful stained glass windows and the famous Thistle chapel. The funerals of important Scottish personalities are held there.

The statue of one of the world’s greatest philosophers, David Hume (1711-1776)

Fun attraction, isn’t he sexy in his kilt?

Gorgeous pubs where you can drink a good pint of beer or a “wee dram” of Scotch whisky, in a very warm and eclectic ambiance…

Edinburgh Streets

Edinburgh Castle is a historic fortress located at the top of the Royal Mile on an extinct volcano at the summit of Castle Rock.

Edinburgh Castle Gatehouse

The views from the Mons Meg siege gun....and Foog’s Gate

Holyrood Palace is located at the bottom of the Royal Mile. The Palace is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. It is also setting for state occasions and official entertaining.

Holyrood Palace

Forecourt fountain of Holyrood Palace

I loved the ruined nave of Holyrood Abbey, a romantic and mysterious place

 

In the gardens of Holyrood Palace

The Royal Yacht Britannia is where we discover what life was like on board the Queen's floating royal residence. This beautiful boat tour is very interesting and well documented with audio guides. It takes two hours to see everything.

Mary King’s Close is located on one of the Royal Mile’s alleys. Mary King’s Close offers a tour of the underground world of the 15^th and 16^th centuries. It is not a frightening place, but sometimes we feel uncomfortable because of the sinister true stories about people who died there. (I took no pictures there).

Scotch Whisky Experience, we visited this virtual whisky distillery where they explained the manufacturing process. It also offers the possibility of tasting before the end of the visit.

Nice bottles of whisky

Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh is a scientific centre for the study of plants and one of the world’s largest plant collections.

North Bridge

The Scott Monument and Gardens

Clinique Sonic System purifying cleansing brush

Hello ladies, I have been wanting to do this article to tell you about my favourite beauty  appliance for some time now! I have been hugely enthusiastic about the Clinique Sonic System purifying cleansing brush since the first time I tried it. I have been using this brush as it should be, every evening, for a year now...Now I feel I can finally tell you all about this marvellous tool and I would definitely recommend this product to you ladies.

In the past, I've never really been tempted by this type of product because I was apprehensive.

I have extremely sensitive and reactive skin and I simply thought that a brush would not really do any good to my skin.

In April of last year, I went to Marionnaud to take advantage of 20% discounts and bought a new perfume, Chanel No. 5. The sales lady explained all the advantages of this brush which CLINIQUE had released recently. I was won over by the fact that it was developed by a dermatologist in Switzerland and I was seduced by its small size, convenience, affordable price and effectiveness. I thoroughly enjoy this brush! Using it daily in the evening for just 30 seconds, my skin is smoother and healthy looking. My moisturiser seems to have a better effect in my skin. The timer feature is very good. I have never noticed any skin irritation at all, even after the very first use. It is very gentle and yet so effective. I cannot think of anything negative to say.

Clinique Sonic System purifying cleansing brush, what is it?

It is an innovative sonic facial cleansing brush, dermatologist-developed and Swiss-engineered. It's waterproof and can be used for all skin types.

This brush is used for what?

The Sonic movement offers deep yet gentle cleansing. The angled tip targets the T-zone and other hard-to-reach areas and allows the skin to regenerate better by removing makeup, impurities, sebum and pollution. This reduces clogged pores, spots and imperfections. The skin becomes healthier with less dryness-related wrinkles, because the skin cleansing optimises the efficiency of any treatments that are applied afterwards.

How is it used?

*Use once daily for 30 seconds (and no more than 60 seconds).

*Apply cleanser to moistened skin or on the brush head.

*Massage in a circular motion for 15 seconds on the cheeks using the white bristles.

*Massage in an up-and-down motion for 15 seconds on the T-zone using the green bristles.

*Rinse, pat dry and moisturise your face. Rinse the brush head after each use.

How much does it cost?

Clinique purifying cleansing brush: CHF 137.00 at Marionnaud

Purifying cleansing brush head: CHF 22.90 (replace every 3-4 months for best results)

Worth every penny!!!

This post, like all my blog posts, is not sponsored.

JiaWei Chinese Restaurant

One Wednesday, I picked up my good friend E. at her work place and we went for a girls' dinner out. She said “Sweetie, I want to take you to a genuine Chinese restaurant”. I was excited because I've been dying to eat real Chinese food: you know, the kind not adapted to our European palates. I wanted to find the flavours I tasted while I was in China.

My friend E. had chosen JiaWei for the occasion, so we went to the buzzy, multicultural area of Pâquis.

At the restaurant we received a friendly welcome and were shown to our table.

JiaWei is decorated in a typical Chinese style: classic, no-frills but clean and welcoming.

Here is the happy ME, choosing a delightful meal in the company of my friend!

We loved the professional, smiling service and the cool atmosphere. The diners were all Chinese apart from two ladies at the table next to ours. I realised that this is THE place for Chinese food in this town.

Most importantly, we loved the authentic, tasty food which was plentiful on the plate. The cuisine is uncompromising and the food quality is good. The prices are reasonable. Our feast came to CHF 86,00. I strongly recommend this place to you and, as the restaurant is often packed, do not forget to book a table.

Our dinner started with Taiwanese homemade hot tea. E. ordered Honey Green Tea, I chose Milk Bubble Tea.

We then ordered from the vast menu of Chinese cuisine.

I suggested that we got some Dim Sum to share; homemade dumplings (boiled pork). 

After sharing this starter E. ordered a noodles soup, Braised Beef with lots of fresh vegetables.

I went for a regional speciality, GongBao Chicken with a very spicy peanut sauce. It was served with Fried Rice and I asked for a portion of Chinese vegetables Pakchoi with Oyster sauce. Everything was light, with the most incredible flavours.

For dessert, they offered us a big piece of really delicious fresh pineapple.

After dinner we headed to the station for E to catch her train. As for me, I strolled back home to the other side of the city, a nice walk to digest that hearty meal.

 A simple and perfect girls' dinner out...

JiaWei Chinese Restaurant

Rue de Lausanne 56

1202 Genève

Tel.: +41 22 738 95 53

Open daily 11:30-14:30 and 18:30-23:00

The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (2003)

In the Chicago of the 1890s there lived two men, both handsome, both blue-eyed, and both unusually skilled at their chosen professions.  One was an architect, the builder of many of America's most important edifices; the other was a murderer, one of the most prolific in history and a harbinger of an American archetype, the urban serial killer. Although the two never met, their fates were linked by a single, magical event, the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Beneath the gore, the smoke and the loam, this book is about the evanescence of life, and why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging the impossible and others in the manufacture of sorrow. It is the story of the conflict between good and evil, daylight and darkness.

Author: Erik Larson was born in Brooklyn in January 3, 1954. He is a journalist and nonfiction author. He is a former staff writer for the Wall Street Journal. He has written for many prestigious publications; the New York Times, Harper's and Time magazine, to name a few. He lives a quiet life in Seattle with his blind-date wife and three daughters. He loves to cook, he likes to play tennis, he drinks too much red wine and he enjoys dry humour.

My thoughts: I love Erik Larson, he has an attention to detail and a way of telling stories that get you hooked. He entertains as he educates.  I discovered Erik Larson's works in 2007, when I read his nonfiction thriller, “Thunderstruck”, another great story.

“The Devil in the White City” is two books in one! A historical account and a crime thriller, I could not put it down, I literally devoured this book. The entire length of my time in this book was marked with moments when I would stop reading, only to eat, to rest my eyes or to tend to some other minor interruption. Really mesmerising! I read “The Devil in the White City” in December 2014 for Christmas...No, I assure you, this is not a joke. To me, “The Devil in the White City” is more than just a dark story. It is a historical book that recounts actual facts, two parallel stories: the designation of good and evil. Why do some men use their intelligence to do good and others to do harm?

I picked this book up in Payot on Chantepoulet in Geneva. This store catered well to the Anglophone public and I relished its peaceful atmosphere which was most conducive to spending time to choose a book.  Sadly, it has recently closed.

Facts About The Reader’s Tales

My lifestyle and book review blog covers many subjects from cake and cocktail recipes, fashion and beauty, through to craft, hotels and travel. I publish 3 posts per week: Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays.

This blog is my escape, a hobby devoted to my passion for beautiful things. It is a place where I let my creativity blossom. I need it. I love doing it and have fun with it. I love my simple life: my friends and family are the most important thing for me.  Everything I write here is genuinely me, even though I don’t expose too much of my personal life, I am a girl who cherishes my  little bit of privacy.

Type of blog?

This is a personal blog, a virtual album, written in first person as a diary. It is as I dreamed it would be: easy to read and free of links, gadgets, publicity, etc... It is just a page of my thoughts with pictures to illustrate, shared with a group of people who have the same interests. It was originally created just to keep in touch with my school friends and family who live abroad. But, little by little, it turned into something else, bigger, with more and more page views (friends of friends, former colleagues, acquaintances and bloggers).

Is it difficult to write in a foreign language?

Yes, of course. It takes more time, especially, when I review the books I read in other language editions. I always strictly translate the cover notes, then do a little bio of the author and finally add my thoughts by using simple words to tell what attracted me, the circumstances, what moved me, my feelings. English not being my mother tongue, sweetheart (my other half) checks my texts without changing my style and meaning.

How I organise my blog?

I prepare some of my blog posts in advance, especially book reviews.

But the remaining posts, I can only write a few days after the event, because I cannot predict what will happen, even though I always have a programme. I don't create a scenario.

What kind of cameras do you use?

My primary camera is a Nikon D330 and I occasionally use a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W50 compact camera or my SAMSUNG Galaxy A3 smartphone. All my photos are edited using NikonView2. I don't use Photoshop for photo manipulation.

What kind of computers do you use?

I use a Sony VAIO Laptop.

Do you have a Facebook account?

No I don't, nor any of the other social media for that matter.

What would you suggest to an expat or to a tourist visiting Switzerland?

Although Switzerland is tiny, there is so much to do in this country. You couldn't possibly fit it all in on one trip! I invite you to read my section on Switzerland: charming villages, festivals, restaurants, cafés, shops, museums, thermal spas etc.

Please drop me a line at: thereaderstales@yahoo.com