Mars

‘The main street in Stockbridge always makes me stop and look around. It feels like an American’s idea of what a cute European neighbourhood is like. There’s a stationery shop, and a fishmonger, and a butcher, and cute little cafes and pubs. There are three fancy deli shops in one neighbourhood.

When I lived in Glasgow, I was flooded with the idea that people in Edinburgh are snobby and unfriendly, but I actually found people in Edinburgh friendlier. I’d lived in Edinburgh before, and I’d almost been brainwashed into remembering the city as less friendly than it is. One time I was wearing this embroidered denim jacket, and on the way to Glasgow, someone had yelled at me about it, and when I got back to Edinburgh, two people stopped me in the street to compliment me.’

Mars

Notes

The painting mentioned by Mars is The Hunt by Scottish artist Robert Burns. It is part of the Scottish National Gallery collection. It can be viewed here.

The murals mentioned are those painted by Phoebe Anna Traquair inside the former Catholic Apostolic Church, now known as the Mansfield Traquair Centre. Sometimes called Edinburgh's Sistine Chapel, the church is now open only on Open Days, which can be found here.

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