Wien, woman, and song: "Grandad, why did you ever leave these bonny, bonny shores?"

The bustling streets of Edinburgh.

I am apologizing in advance, this is going to be a picture laden entry! Firstly, because the city and environs are so gorgeous and for the entire time I was there, there was this hot, yellow ball of fire in the sky. Quite unusual I was told.

The city is quite compact and easy to navigate. I was staying on Lothian Road which wends it's way down to the Uni and the National Museum. It also crosses Princes Street, a quite good high street (shout out to the staff at Clark's Shoes!!💕). It was fun to see all the British brands and Scottish tourist rubbish.

Steps into the wee Kirk where Greyfriar's Bobby rests.

Some of the faculty offices at the University.

The "Quad" and a rotunda lecture hall.

Looking down the Royal Mile, away from the castle towards the Firth of Forth. (Dunno where once, twice, etc. are, but I kept my eyes peeled.)

One of the closes off of the Royal Mile.

The other end of the Royal Mile, the Castle!

The heather coloured hills surrounding the city, spectacular.

Part of the skyline from Princes Street Gardens.

It sounds kind of old lady, but I really enjoyed sitting in the park, drinking milky tea and watching people. The crowds weren't horrendous and the pace was leisurely. Plus a great free public washroom near the bandshell! You only rent tea.

Some housing from the Haymarket area.

Haymarket was fun because it isn't a true touristy area in the same way the rest of the city is. People live here. This is an example of some of the housing which I found very charming. It also had a working class feel to it like "Coronation Street."

Part of Arthur's Seat, Holyrood Park.

I didn't get a chance to go through the park as access was partially restricted. There was a "Royal" in residence at Holyrood Palace. I saw their standard flying. This end of the city I did by the "Hop On Hop Off" bus. My feet hurt and I am too short to get a good vista. It was okay.

Simple memorial to such a great writer.

The actual reason I was there was the conference on new research being presented by members of the Association Of Dress Historians. It was truly an amazing experience. The day before the conference, the curator of the "Diversity on the Catwalk" exhibit for the National Museum of Scotland gave us a tour. It was really interesting and quite well done. It highlighted 5 things the fashion industry is struggling with, race, mobility, LGTBQ, size and age. Of course the last one really interested me as I am in 2 diverse demographic groups, the vanishing customer from the high street and media but also one of the largest groups with discretionary income..what gives?

Only one shot of the conference because it was so interesting I forgot to photograph!

The topics ranged the gamut but all were interesting in their own ways. The presenters themselves were an interesting group from really diverse fields and countries. The presentations that I thought that would be a snooze were sooo captivating. It was a chance to really geek out. Plus I got to meet 2 Canadians whose work I have been following for awhile. Total Girl Crush!! Rest assured they are invited to stay with us if they ever come to Vienna.

I didn't go to the dinner afterwards but instead decided to pop over to Edinburgh Fabrics which is in the University district. OMG the neighbourhood was so lively it being so close to the University. Had I only been several decades younger!!

Hard to see, but a shop window welcoming Orange 45's upcoming visit. The one on the upper right is a toilet brush.

Of course everyone's curious about the cuisine of Scotland. Being at bit of a gourmand, I sampled it all. Please note: I did have Fish and Chips but ate it so fast, I forget to photograph it. Also thought about a deep fried Mars bar!

Breaky at Uni.

Jacket potato, Royal Mile.

Dinner at "Bread, Meat, Bread."

Breaky at "Tasty Buns."

Heart Attack Breakfast at Grassmarket.

Lunch at Tasty Cakes/Boozy Bakes. Sticky toffee spice layer cake. Good, but made my teeth ache it was so sweet.

Finally, nothing like toilet paper for motivational thoughts!

Finally, MEN IN KILTS. The moment you've all been waiting for.

Wedding Party at City Hall.

On the Royal Mile. Had to smote a Chinese tourist to get the shot.

Again at the castle.

Outside Princes Park.

And who could forget these lads!

I was quite pleasantly surprised to see many regular men wearing kilts. One guy in particular, was rocking the black utility kilt look but was moving at such a pace I couldn't get a shot. Damn.