Move along now, nothing to see hear

Last summer, a colleague told me about a little gem of a park off Edinburgh's Royal Mile which didn't appear to be regularly frequented and was an oasis of calm during what can be a hectic summer in Edinburgh.

As you do, I googled the name of the park (a picture of which you can see here) and one of the sites which popped up was Nothing To See Here - which offers an eclectic mix of little known but ultimately rewarding places to visit.

I was reminded of the site today by a visit to the Co-Op store on Leith Walk. I was down there on a hunt for other stuff and fancied a drink and a snack. As you can imagine with Burns Night upon us, there is a lot of Scottish produce being promoted for the Burns Supper on Tuesday. My eye was caught by that Scottish staple - the Tunnock's Caramel Wafer - at £1 for a pack of eight - now that is a bargain.

When a friend was 48 a couple of years ago we bought him one for every year of his life as he was a notorious fan. I thought they would last him a year at one a week - with a break for his summer holidays - no chance.

So if you can't get them at this price - here is a link to the Nothing to See Here site about visiting the factory in Uddingston.

http://www.nothingtoseehere.net/2008/01/the_tunnocks_factory_uddingsto_1.html

Bon Appetit.

More tea Vicar??

Ahh - the sales - like Xmas itself, they seem to start earlier every year We bought next year's Xmas cards in a sale before Christmas this year.

Our main sales shopping was over in Glasgow and focussed on walking / hiking gear And having trolled along around Glasgow's bijoux boutiquettes - we needed a feed.

Glasgow has some pleasant places for tea - and we stopped off at Bradford's on Sauchiehall Street which I understand is a Glasgow institution. And for the same price as a Mochafrappachocochino grande with extra pistachio syrup, we had a sandwich, scone with fresh cream and jam plus lashings (am I sounding a bit jolly hockey sticks here) of tea. All in a very pleasant atmosphere of Glasgow gentility.

£3.50 well spent.

Fit and Working Again

Well - one of them anyway.

Yes 2011 is now hitting us between the eyes. I went back to work last week but with the number of "Out of Office" replies to e- mails - it looks like many are taking the opportunity to carry on the festivities until tomorrow.

So what to do about the extra pounds. Edinburgh Leisure has a nice idea - and one designed to get more punters through the doors. They are offering - and available from the link below - a free gym / swim visit during January. With a swim now knocking on for near £4, that's quite a saving should there be a family visit.

We have been going swimming with friends for a few months - and it's a great relaxation after a working day - with a satisfying mix of exercise and social interaction.

http://www.getyoursparkback.co.uk/

The link looks now to be fixed as originally it offered a free swim in September - this was only accepted after a little friendly discussion with the staff.

Anyhow - enjoy- and help say goodbye to those Xmas excesses.