:: windy wonderland

Faye headed off back to England this morning after what seemed a very brief visit. I had one day off, Tuesday. Faye had said one day how she'd always wanted to ride on one of those beautiful old-fashioned carousels, and it just so happens that at the moment, in Princes Street Gardens, there are not only two of these, there is also a Christmas market, a "Bungydome", an ice rink and a giant Ferris wheel. It's the annual Winter Wonderland, a real festive overload.

So on Tuesday afternoon we took ourselves off to town on the bus. We had a quick shop in Jenners - which has scandalised the city last year by having a fake Christmas tree instead of a proper one - before heading out into Princes St.

The Ferris wheel wasn't lit up. "It's probably shut because of the wind," I said.

Too true. It was windy, indeed. But it wasn't just the wheel. The Christmas market was shut too. And so was the Bungydome. And the ice rink. And both carousels.

Wah!

We stiffened our quivering lips and shuffled off to look for sustenance. We were too late for lunch, too early for dinner. We tried shopping, but the shop shut five minutes after we arrived. We went to a pizzeria I knew in Leith Walk. It hadn't opened yet. Finally we staggered into Valvona & Crolla, a lovely deli, and ate what was left of their lunch menu. After that we had a drink in the Slug and Lettuce (once Faye had overcome her squeamishness! slugs are to her what spiders are to an arachnaphobe) and then we went to see The Incredibles. A great little movie.

We had a bit of a struggle finding where the bus left from - they keep changing the stop and no-one seems to know which is the right one - we decided to go by train. Very pleasant, and a nice walk home.

I was really disappointed not to get a ride on the carousel, but we've vowed to try again next year.