welcome to my neck of the woods

Yesterday, in preparation for the start of classes on Monday, I took a quick spin around campus... and found some beautiful sites worth sharing.

My path from the flat to campus begins here.

Turning out of Kincaid's Court, my dormitory, I take a right and head up these stairs. On the way to campus, I pass the National Museum of Scotland and walk by Potterrow, a collection of buildings dedicated to serving students by providing everything from sweatshirts and sandwiches to free advice and a quiet place to study.  In five short minutes I find myself in the heart of campus...

Bristo Square, the center of the humanities campus!

Welcome to Bristo Square! Picture here (above) is Teviot Row House, the first purpose-built Student Union in the world. The Unions built at other schools, both in the UK and around the globe, were modeled after this bad boy. Today, Teviot houses countless halls used for meetings, societies, and studying -- and its numerous winding stairways lead you to its jazz lounges, softly illuminated dens, and seven bars (including my favorite, The Library Bar), perfect for those more relaxed moments of Uni life.

McEwan Hall, located on the right side of Teviot in Bristo Square

Across from Potterrow lies McEwan Hall, the graduating hall (and home to many musical performances each year) of Edinburgh Uni. Named after the founder of a Scottish brewing firm, the nineteenth century building is a former civic hall. Its large dome and beautiful architectural features dominate this side of Bristo Square -- and its inscription, Wisdom is the principal thing, therefore get wisdom, and with all thy getting, get understanding. Exalt her and she shall bring thee to honour, is one of my favorite details I've found thus far here in Edinburgh.

The Dugald Stewart Building, home to the philosophy department

Moving deeper into campus, beyond Bristo Square, one passes the Dugald Stewart Building, named after a Scottish Enlightenment philosopher and currently home to the Philosophy, Psychology, and Languages College within the School of Humanities. It was here where I met my Personal Tutor, my main academic advisor, for the first time. He's a jolly, quite rotund professor of Skepticism with whom I've already shared a few bouts of witty banter -- a promising start, I believe!

Entering George Square...

Next stop on our tour is George Square, adjacent to both Teviot and the Meadows (pictured in a previous post). Surrounding the central grassy area sit dozens of Georgian terraced houses, built to house the wealthiest residents of Edinburgh in the eighteenth century (most notably the famous Sir Walter Scott!). As I learned on my tour with the Rector, grassy George Square itself is communally shared by the owners of the surrounding buildings. Today there are three such owners-- two divisions of the Uni and the Church, which owns only one building. But because of Scottish laws of shared ownership, the Church "owns" one-third of the central Square. Interesting, huh?

Peering over the iron fence into the lovely George Square

After walking around George Square to the opposite side, we find ourselves at the Uni's main library :)

The Uni itself was established by in 1582, but the library collection actually predates its founding by three years (indeed, the huge collection deeply influenced the founding of the Uni-- what else can one do with so many books?). Today the collection finds it home in a twentieth-century, eight-story purpose-built mammoth of a building. Upon completion it was the largest library in the UK, as each story is an acre in size. This is one spot I'm most looking forward to exploring in the coming months :)

On the way back through George Square I found a sunny bench upon which to catch up on my Berkeley and Hume before classes commence.
(jeans - Primark, flats - Anthro)

A view of David Hume Tower, another Uni building, from my bench

Walking from George Square to Nicholson Street, I stumbled across this beautiful building -- the old inscription above the arch reads "Ladies College." Good choice, sistas!

Almost to Nicholson Street, I pass the city's main Mosque. In the rear is the Mosque Kitchen, a student favorite for its heaping servings of delicious halal fare and low prices (my favorite thus far is lentils in yellow curry).
"Tasty Curry in a Hurry!"

Nicholson Street!

Only steps away from both my flat and Bristo Square is the bustling Nicholson Street, a winding avenue home to dozens of stores, such as Poundstretchers, Tesco, and countless charity shops. Several theaters and cafes reside here, as well, so the crowds are assuredly a mixture of students and locals. On the small streets branching away from Nicholson one can find some of Edinburgh's best pubs -- several of which I've already explored, thanks to Uni pub crawls ;)

This place is bringing lots of new sights, new smells, new people... and it's starting to feel like home. 

Laur