July 2022 Edition
McNaughtan's Bookstore, Edinburgh
My soul is a hidden orchestra; I do not know what instruments, what violins and harps, drums and tambours, sounds and clash inside me. I know myself only as a symphony.
(from Pessoa’s The Book of Disquiet.)
Hello friends,
Hope you’re doing well!
I just came back from Edinburgh.
It is easily the most beautiful city in the UK that I’ve ever been, and it has become my second favourite city in the world after Prague.
I arrived there on Friday and went straight to the @toppingsedinbookshop, which was kindly recommended by @hatfulofjournals
They had a gorgeous poetry section.
Poetry section at Toppings & Company, Edinburgh
I was searching for Pessoa‘s poetry there, when I noticed 4 teenage girls, around 13-14 y.o., who were also looking for something.
I noticed one of them picking up works of Ezra Pound, the other of Byron. The other two also got some poetry books but I didn’t notice the authors they had chosen.
Ten minutes later, I saw them again at the till.
They were having a chat with a guy who was scanning their books:
'That makes 63 pounds in total.’ - said the guy with his mild Scottish accent.
‘Books are so expensive.’ - replied one of the girls - ‘That’s why I got a part-time job after school, so I could pay for those’
‘We all got part-time jobs because of this’ - said the other, who was holding the collection of poetry by Ezra Pound in her hands.
This all happened literally 30 minutes after my train arrived to Edinburgh. I was stunned!
Wonderful, rich, well-curated bookstores with exceptional architecture and…
…Teenagers who worship poets not celebrities?
I felt as if I was transferred into another dimension. A dimension where everything is the way it should be.
I was next in the queue, so when those teenagers left, my turn came.
I told to the same guy that I am going to get bankrupt in Edinburgh over the weekend, because of the city’s
amazing bookshops.
He was super excited to write down the names of some other stores on a piece of paper so I could check them out.
Well…. All I can tell you is that I am checking property prices in Edinburgh right now. I want to live there.
The ceiling of St. Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh
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