As the capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh has a lot of weight on its shoulders. To make matters even more extreme, Edinburgh is the second most populated city in the country and the seventh overall in the United Kingdom. This puts Edinburgh in the running with London, Blackpool, Glasgow, and many other metropolises but this ranking looks far more normal on paper than in practice. In truth, Edinburgh's city limits extend a mere thirty miles while cities like London have over four hundred miles at their disposal. In other words, Edinburgh packs a lot of importance in its limited surroundings and one can argue that Edinburgh is even further up in the rankings in terms of people per square mile. Either way, the significance of the city in Scotland's history and current status make Edinburgh all the more important and immediate and it is for these reasons that the city is at the forefront of the mind of every forward-thinking member of the United Kingdom.

It helps that Edinburgh is beautiful. By all accounts there are few cities in Europe that match the level of visual splendor that Edinburgh offers its residents and visitors at every turn. The southern part of the city is flanked by the majestic Pentland Hills. In this case "hills" is an inadequate way to describe the tall and fantastic masses of rock and earth that offer a picturesque view of the world beyond. The Firth of Forth gives those in the north parts of the town an equally beautiful view but anywhere you look in Edinburgh is likely to floor you with natural splendor thanks to the city's placement in the famed Central Lowlands portion of Scotland. Sadly, the visual enlightenment doesn't extend to the olfactory aspect of the city according to many of the residents. In other words, there are parts of Edinburgh that stink. This isn't to say that they are dull or boring but rather that they simply smell bad. This is due to the fact that the Old Town portion of Edinburgh once had open sewers and the residents simply disposed of their garbage by throwing it out of their houses. This earned the city the colloquial nickname of Auld Reekie which translates into "Old Smelly". Fortunately, the Old Town of course has had to accommodate the changing hands of time and now the famous stink is only a memory, albeit a notoriously sticky one.

It is nearly impossible to describe Edinburgh in words, though. Don't let the descriptions of its former stench detract you; Edinburgh is truly one of the most incredible cities in terms of sights and sounds and the city is rightly one of Scotland's most treasured sources of pride. The fantastic skyline is something that can only be explained when one has an image in one's mind to help fathom the incredible stature of it. This isn't to say that there are tall skyscrapers in the city but only that the design of the city is truly the image of perfection in the eyes of even the most discerning architect. Edinburgh has been around for literally millennia but the city still continues to astound newcomers every day with its truly fantastic appearance.

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