Edinburgh, Castles and medieval history

A city that always caught my attention and that really is one of the cities I'd like to know one day is Edinburgh. Edinburgh is the capital and second largest city in Scotland after Glasgow.

It is located on the east coast of Scotland along the Firth of Forth and has been the capital of Scotland since 1437 besides being the seat of Scottish government.

Edinburgh is a city with rich history, one of the things I like are castles and Edinburgh has castles. The city is divided into two districts, the Old Town and New Town, which were designated by Unesco as a World Heritage Site in 1995.

Edinburgh is a city with many attractions and is renowned for its annual Edinburgh Festival, the biggest festival of live events in the world. During the festivals the city's population doubles. Another thing is that Edinburgh is the second most visited city in the UK after London with around 13 million tourists per year.

Areas of the center

The historic center of Edinburgh is divided into two large green areas by the Princes Street Gardens. To the south the landscape is dominated by Edinburgh Castle, sitting on the extinct volcanic plug that is Castle Rock, and the long strip that Old Town is aiming for its edge. To the north lies Princes Street and New Town. The gardens were made in 1816 in what had been the Nor 'Loch. To the west of the castle lies the financial district, housing insurance and banking buildings. Probably the most exciting building, with its large circular building made in sandstone, is the International Conference Center in Edinburgh.

The Old Town

Old Town is an interesting place to go because it has preserved its medieval structure of their buildings and much of the Protestant Reformation. One end is closed by the castle and the main artery, small streets called closes or wynds routes down the hill on both sides of the main street in the form of a crossroads. You can find great places that mark significant sites such as St Giles Cathedral and the Courts. Other notable sights include the Royal Museum of Scotland, Surgeons' Hall, Edinburgh University, and numerous underground streets, which are relics of old school building.

New Town

New Town has two main streets: Queen Street and Princes Street. Princes Street has become the main shopping street in Edinburgh, there are few Georgian buildings. These streets were connected by a series of perpendicular streets.

But Edinburgh has many places of interest to know, among them stands the National Gallery of Scotland, with works by Botticelli, Raphael, Titian, Velasquez, Watteau, Paul Gauguin and others. Other museums in the city are the Royal Scottish Academy, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art, the Dean Gallery, the Museum of Scotland, Royal Museum, the National War Museum of Scotland, the Museum Edinburgh Museum of Childhood and the Royal Botanical Gardens. It is noteworthy that most of the museums are free.

So if you like castles, history and everything associated with the Medieval, Edinburgh is an ideal city to visit.