Edinburgh

I am a city built on ancient hills, where the wind whispers secrets from the sea. High on a mighty rock of dark stone, my castle stands guard, watching over streets of cobblestone and grand squares. Sometimes you can hear the cheerful sound of bagpipes dancing on the air. For thousands of years, people have called me home. I am Edinburgh, the heart of Scotland.

My story starts long, long ago, even before the Romans arrived. But I really began to grow in the 12th century, when a kind king named David I made me an official town around the year 1125. A long, bustling street called the Royal Mile grew down the slope from my castle. People built tall, skinny houses packed close together. After a big battle in 1513, my people built a strong wall around me to keep safe. For hundreds of years, this crowded, lively area was my whole world. It is now called the Old Town.

By the 18th century, my Old Town was getting very full. I was also becoming famous for something wonderful: ideas. Brilliant thinkers, inventors, and writers filled my halls and coffee houses during a time called the Scottish Enlightenment. To make more room, a contest was held in 1766 to design a whole new part of me. A clever young man named James Craig won, and in 1767, work began on my New Town. Unlike the winding lanes of the Old Town, the New Town has wide, straight streets and beautiful, leafy squares. It was like I had two different personalities living side-by-side.

My new look and my smart residents earned me the nickname 'The Athens of the North.' I inspired so many stories. A famous writer, Sir Walter Scott, who lived here in the early 1800s, wrote amazing books about Scotland's past. When he passed away, my people built a giant, pointy monument for him in the 1840s that looks like a rocket ship from a fairy tale. I also have a famous story about a little dog named Greyfriars Bobby, who faithfully guarded his master's grave for 14 years in the 1860s and 1870s.

Today, my story continues. Every August since 1947, I throw the biggest party for the arts in the world, called the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where my streets fill with music, plays, and laughter. In 1999, I became the home of the new Scottish Parliament, where important decisions are made for the country. I am a city where ancient castles look over modern art, and every stone has a tale to tell. I love it when visitors walk my streets, climb my hills, and become a part of my story, ready to be inspired to create their own.