Scotland

Yves and I arrived in Scotland at the end of March 2000. We found our first flat in Moat Terrace and moved in on April 11th, 2000. The flat was fully furnished and equipped and was on the top floor of our building which gave us a great view of the Pentlands. I used to love sitting in the loungeroom on winter afternoons when the sun would set right in the middle of the room. We had to move out of there in October 2001 because our landlord was getting married and wanted to sell.

We moved to our second flat on Bryson Road in October 2001. Most of the things we used at the new place we had to buy ourselves - we even had to get the carpet done before moving in because it was so bad. Unfortunately the UK, unlike Australia, does not require anyone to do a condition report before moving into a rental property.

When we were looking for a flat, we went to a local supermarket (Sainsbury's is our current favourite), in search of a copy of the Scotsman. You can also get a good seletion of newspapers from a paper shop like Waterstones, or WHSmith. We found that the real estate agencies tended to be more expensive and less personal than renting directly from a flat owner.

For employment, Yves already had a job before we arrived — which is why we chose Edinburgh. We had looked everywhere in the UK before this and though Yves had offers from firms in London, Cambridge and other areas, Edinburgh looked like the most appealing choice. I, on the other hand, had no real work experience to speak of and no qualifications because I was still studying. Acting on advice from an agency in Australia, I registered with the temping agency Kelly Services.

Kelly Services cover mostly temporary work placements in office related jobs such as data entry, reception and secretarial. They fixed up my National Insurance number (N.I.) and everything else I needed to get started. I came over on a working holiday visa which was valid from April 2000 to April 2002. (See the British Consulate for more info on visas.) I got a job through Kelly's the day after registering and have not had any trouble finding work since.

I started working for myself, after finishing up with the Scottish Prison Services (SPS) in March 2004. Prior to that, I had worked for SPS for a whopping 2 and a half years, which Kelly Services placed me in originally in 2001. I worked there as the Data Protection Manager for 14 months. I finished that job in December 2002 and on my last day got a new contract with another department. I then consulted (self-employed) in Web design, Access databases and desktop publishing.

While we lived in Edinburgh, we took regular weekend trips around Scotland, staying in B&Bs, and went overseas a couple of times a year. When we did get around to exploring Edinburgh in depth, we found that it was dotted with all sorts of secret garden pathways, fascinating little streets and crazy pubs in the old town, loads of Ceilidhs every week, gorgeous botanical gardens and it's the home of the Edinburgh International Festival and Fringe Festival (yes — I had been hiding under a rock in Australia and didn't know anything about this world famous festival!).

A great guide to restaurants in Edinburgh and Glasgow can be found on the online version of The List. But we would heartily recommend: Guru Balti Restaurant for Indian Cuisine, or for some hot Italian in a cosy setting you can't go wrong with Piatto Verde (I designed their Web site), both next to each other on Dundee Terrace in Fountainbridge. (Make sure you book if going on a Friday or Saturday night though!!)

In June, when summertime is on the way and the days get longer, the Caledonian Brewery on Slateford Road (5 minutes walk from our flat on Bryson Road) holds a beer festival. This is not to be missed! Sipping one of the many different beers, in the afternoon sunshine, with live bands in the background and lots of happy people with funny accents you could almost forget what continent you're on.

As we did every year, we went to the 2003 Beer Festival and scooped up some free Caledonian Brewery pint glasses in the bargain. The entry fee is usually around £7 which includes a pint glass, 2 half pint vouchers and a programme. You keep your pint glass for the whole festival and get to take it home with you as a souvenier. Some people had gotten so drunk that they left without their glasses so, as you can guess, we have countless sets in our collection now!

Something else not to be missed in Edinburgh's calendar is the Royal Highland Agricultural Show which is on around the last week of June every year. We went in 2000 and 2002, but not 2001 because of the Foot and Mouth outbreak. In 2003 we decided not to go for some reason, and in 2004 I went by myself to try to drum up business for my Web design company but I guess I'd grown out of it because I didn't stay long. I do remember that our favourite part of the show was the Food from Scotland pavilion. There used to be everything from organic venison from the Scottish highlands to whisky liqueurs from the Isle of Lewis and the best thing was, most stalls would give you free samples — but I didn't notice much of that in 2004.

Summer in Scotland is jokingly described as a weekend in July. This isn't too far from the truth, though we have seen some really pretty sunny days. It makes you really appreciate the sunshine when it finally does come out.

The biggest festival in Edinburgh, renowned the world over, is the Edinburgh International Festival and Fringe Festival, held in August each year. Part of the festival is the Edinburgh Military Tattoo. We went to see this in August 2001 and it was fantastic! It's held at the Edinburgh Castle, and features pipers and drummers not only from Scotland but countries from all four corners of the globe.

August is the most expensive time of year to visit Scotland, especially Edinburgh. If you're planning to visit then, I advise that you book your accommodation by June. It's a time when most of the locals go off on holiday to popular British island resorts such as Ibiza for some guaranteed sunshine in summer and some of them rent out their flats. Actually, if you're planning on coming to Scotland for about a month, we recently learned of a scheme where you can rent a flat for a month or so and it works out at around a third of the cost of staying in a B&B. (Try this site: Factotum) Anyway, so in August most of the people you'll meet will be from anywhere else! Nevertheless, the city really comes alive at this time of year and there are things happening constantly for just over a month. At the end of the festival, there is the biggest fireworks show of the year (some say that Hogmanay is bigger, but the end of the festival fireworks are more spectacular. I've yet to see the Hogmanay fireworks since the first year we decided to stay in Scotland for xmas and see them... they were cancelled due to high winds!) which takes place at Edinburgh Castle and heaps of people go to Princes Street to watch.

October is a pretty time of year here. Autumn amazes me every year (we don't really get seasons on the Gold Coast, as it tends to be summer year round). The prettiest places we've been to during this time are the botanical gardens, Bush Estate (near thePentlands which is the area where Yves worked) and the Hermitage in Perthshire.

When winter arrives in November, so too does Edinburgh's Capital Christmas. The dark wintry days are lit up by row upon row of fairy lights, German Markets line Princes Street with hand crafted goods and amazing chocolate covered gingerbread and to warm yourself up, you can grab a steaming hot mug of Gluhwein. (Hot mulled wine, that smells of cinnamon and fruit). There is a giant ferris wheel just next to the markets if you're daring enough to brave the icy winds, and near the foot of the Edinburgh Castle you'll find an outdoor ice-skating rink and fun-fair stalls. Truly a magical place to spend Christmas. (Don't forget to wear about 10 layers of thermal underwear though!)

On March 30 2005, having spent the last five years in Edinburgh, we moved to Toulouse, France.