Auld Reekie
I was walking through the city today, very much on my way from A to B, when I suddenly realised I was about to become a part of their photograph. Some part of me is now on its way home with them, an anonymous face in the background of their lasting memories of the city. Maybe when they get home they’ll have their holiday snaps printed, or more likely show them off from a computer screen or even TV, and there I’ll be, looking purposeful and bored in the corner of a beautiful vista.
It made me stop and appreciate the city I live in, though. It’s easy enough when you’re away to see the beauty and character of a place. Last year, after the exams, I went on a whistlestop tour of the great cities of Western Europe, visiting and revelling in fourteen cities in twenty-five days. Each had a beauty all its own, and I never tired of documenting the places that I saw and the details that caught my eye and my heart.
Time and long experience can make your home fade into the dull backdrop of everyday ennui, though. For the most part, I don’t even see Edinburgh anymore: I only ever think of the streets and buildings in terms of where I’m headed and what might be the best or fastest way to get there. I suppose I’m grateful to be inconvenienced by tourists - they might hold me up when I’m in a rush, but they do help me enjoy my time here.
Now, if only I’d brought my own camera with me, I could let a picture tell a thousand words. Time to sort that out, I think.
This is from the