New Year Sky
January 8, 2010 by Bird
Filed under Blog, Good Stuff, On My Travels, Skywatch Friday, Winter
For new year I was in Edinburgh, and though that city is renowned for it’s phenomenal Hogmanay street party, we were there for a relatively quiet time visiting old friends. On New Years Eve morning we peeped out of our bedroom window to find the sky filled with whirling snow – a sight that we are now very familiar with in the UK, but last decade it was still exciting and new. Despite my love of snow I was hoping that the sky would clear by nightfall as New Year this time around fell not only on a full moon but a blue moon, and as if that were not enough, it was going to be a partial eclipse as well. As the sky began to darken the signs were good – the clouds began to lift, and the early sunset was spectacular as they did so. We set out for a walk.
We wandered through canyons of stone tenements, the chimney tops catching the last salmon pink rays of sun; the air sharpened and pinched at our cheeks and noses. As darkness fell and we wandered along Princes Street it was preparing for a night of outdoor revelry with lights, a funfair and the din of sound checks as the stages were set up ready for the show. And above it all glowered the castle, perched high above the city on it’s snow dusted crag.
The trees that pour down the volcanic slopes on which the castle sits were dressed in lights, and as they twinkled it would not have seemed odd to me if one or more had pulled up it’s roots and begun to stride down the hillside.
But the snow wasn’t done with us yet – the wispy cloud that seemed so thin began dumping huge wet snowflakes on us as we drew level with the funfair, and my friends decided it was time to wander back. It wasn’t such a terrible wrench – soon the huge crowds would come and I’m not so good at dealing with those, plus there were good things to eat and drink and more friends to see back at the flat. And there was still my hope of seeing that special moon. We’d agreed that when midnight came we’d all be standing on the roof no matter how cold, and I have to admit I had a couple of secret peeks out there on my own before that. So the time came and one by one we clambered up the ladder and onto an icy, treacherous roof with our glasses and bubbly and big coats and wooly hats, clinging to the chimney pots for warmth and safety. I did see the moon and lovely it was, but I missed the eclipse despite determinedly checking for it all night long. Here’s what we did see though – the fireworks from the castle lighting up the sky.
I hope you all had a good new year, and that this year will bring your hopes a little closer.
For more beautiful and fascinating images of the sky around the world, visit Skywatch Friday!
Happy New Year!
I know all those sights from my night moonwalk thing from last June, glad I wasn’t doing it in this weather, really would have frozen my tits off hehe.
Love the photographs, I bet you are still dying to get and about and take some icy winter wonderland snaps?
Hope you have a wonderful 2010, I couldn’t keep up with last year and I hope Mr Bird in the Meadow did well in his course
Hi Claire, lovely to see you again! ‘Twas slippery underfoot too – not good weather for a marathon walk so I reckon you are right about that
I have been going nuts all week wanting to go outside but had to stay indoors and get to grips with work etc, hopefully will be getting out to Epping Forest for some snowy shennannigans and will be taking my malfunctioning camera with me!
Happy 2010 to you too, I’ll pop over for a virtual visit very soon. Mr Birdsinthemeadow is currently writing his dissertation (there always seems to be one thing more) and as far as I can tell through all the stress it’s going fine
Happy New Year, Bird! And these pics are gorgeous! Holy cow. I especially love the tenements with their pink sky and the trees that had “…pulled up it’s roots and begun to stride down the hillside.” What a whimsical portrayal! It sounds as though you had a magical New Year celebration. Thank you for sharing it and sharing your part of the world—it is so beautiful there! *New Year’s Hugs*
)
Hi Holly! Happy new year to you too! I don’t normally like New Year – you know, all the pressure and expectation, and sometimes I’d sooner crawl under the table and hide. This was really different though, the city was beautiful and we had the right people around us. It really was lovely. *big hugs back*
Oh wow your photos are just gorgeous!! Happy weekend!
Hi Kim, and thank you for visiting!
Wow…looks like it was a wonderful time!
It certainly was Lana!
Hi Bird and a Happy New Year! I stayed in the Seaman’s League last year and had a small room level with the chimney pots…I took quite a few photographs of them, which I haven’t put on-line yet. Your photos are terrific (looks like it’s spelled wrongly)especially the one above the terraced houses..the salmon-pink sky. It’s so dramatic. But they’re all great…I remember the illuminated trees from last year.
Many years ago, Liz and I performed on the bandstand in Princes Street Gardens…the one behind which the New Year fit-up is put for the New Year’s celebrations.
Happy Memories
love
henry
ps the Seaman’s League is half-way down Princes Street (I think it’s number 100) almost opposite the castle. It would have given me an Ace view of the celebrations…except I had to go back to London at short notice to do auditions for a new shot (damn!) and I missed them.
xh
pps: ’show’ not ’shot’ … although I should be
Just a senior moment
xh
I’ll have to look out for the Seamans League next time I’m up there Henry! So…what were you doing on the bandstand? You can’t just leave it at that! Those gardens are so lovely – a haven when you’ve just arrived in town and have no idea what hit you. I hope the audition was worth doing, to call you away from Edinburgh on Hogmanay
I have lost my comment twice though the reCaptcha stuff…a very happy and healthy New Year..I enjoyed this post..
Oh no Ramblingwoods, I hate that you left comments and they got messed up. reCapcha seems to have changed for the worst when they upgraded it – I know I find it harder to use now also. I’ve never tried the audio option, so I’m going to see if that is any better and make sure visitors know it’s there. If it doesn’t help, I’ll have to look for an alternative. Thank you for warning me.
And thank you for the New Years wishes, the same go back to you