I’ve been hanging onto this one for a while – since May, in fact, as there has been so much else going on, but I felt it was about time to start sharing my visit to this amazing city.

I’m not, by nature, a city lover. Holidays, for me, are usually about getting out into the countryside and seeing wildlife. This trip came about as a result of the book signing I did at the Marriot Hotel near Edinburgh airport, and I’m very glad I decided to combine a short break with the event.

So without further ado, here we go.

I booked our hotel (Brian flew up to join me) as usual on the internet, taking location into account – near enough to the city centre to walk, but not right in it. Many of the central city hotels look absolutely fabulous, but none of the have car parking, so that was my deciding factor.

The hotel I booked, Masson House, turned out to be inside the University grounds, a really lovely and quiet setting on the edge of Holyrood Park. It’s a modern building, but this beautiful traditional Scottish building greets you as you drive through the gates.