Walking by Greyfriars Bobby last month I surveyed a cityscape little changed since the 17th century. I had forgotten how profoundly gorgeous Edinburgh is: its vista sweeping from the lofty castle down the Royal Mile to the palace at Holyrood. Even more magical are its myriad lanes and stairways that move you through the different levels of the city, transporting you through history.
I stopped at Greyfriars Bobby, a commemoration of the faithful little terrier who sat on his master’s grave for 14 years (after all, I was with my own faithful hound). The statue guards the entrance to Greyfriars Kirkyard on Candlemaker Row wherein one can admire great Scottish gothic mausoleums and consider the lore of the 19th-century murderers and graverobbers, Messrs Burke and Hare.