To a great mind, nothing is little

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who was born in Edinburgh, is said to have based his famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes on Professor Joseph Bell, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Conan Doyle met Bell in 1877 while he was studying to be a physician. Bell wasn’t just a brilliant medical diagnostician, but he also had a great skill for looking at a person and telling their trade, place of residence, status in life, and many other things about them which, to his students, and to many who observed him at work, were nothing short of miraculous.

The first zoo animal

Edinburgh Zoo first opened its doors to the public in 1913 and the historic institution has been home to all kinds of incredible creatures since. The first beast to move into the zoo was a gannet, costing eight pence. The gannet was followed by camels, wolves and other creatures.

JK Rowling

The writer stayed for a time with her sister and brother in law when she first arrived in Edinburgh. Whilst it is claimed that JK Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter book in Edinburgh’s Elephant House café, it was in fact written partly at a café owned by her brother in law called Nicolson’s (now the Spoon restaurant on Nicolson Street).

Favourite pubs: the Last Drop…

The Last Drop is located in Grassmarket, a location where local farmers sold their hay. It was also the location of the main gallows in the city. Crowds would flock in huge numbers to see the public executions. The Last Drop Tavern is located next to the famous 18th century hanging spot.

The World’s End

This ominous sounding watering hole commemorates the fact that many of Edinburgh’s citizens were unable to pay the toll levied on people entering the city. The poor, unable to pay the price of re-entry, simply couldn’t afford to leave town. This was, in every sense, the limit of their world. Today the World’s End is just about half-way between Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood.

The wisdom

Not just about Edinburgh, but it’s hard to ignore the wisdom behind the popular phrases. A closer look at some traditional Scottish sayings, says a lot about the stoic attitude of the Scottish: you’re a long time deid (lighten up) keep the heid (stay calm) dinnae marry fur money! (don’t marry for money, you can borrow it cheaper) gie it laldy (live with gusto).