28/02/2009

Showing some love for Tollcross

In the beautiful city of Edinburgh, Tollcross gets a bad press. It doesn't have the sweeping georgian terraces of the New Town or the gothic grandeur of the Old Town, it doesn't even have the imposing victorian tenements and cobbled streets of nearby Marchmont and Bruntsfield. Stuck at the end of drab Lothian Road, a mish mash of largely run-down architecture, Tollcross is still my favourite neighbourhood in the Scottish capital, one I'm happy to call home. It's well-located, for a start, no more than fifteen minutes from pretty much anywhere I ever need to go, but more than this, it has a cool vibe and something approaching an edge - things that genteel Edinburgh lacks as a general rule. Tollcross is ethnically diverse, and has a brilliant range of restaurants and food stores, from Japanese to Mexican, Indian to Polish, there's always some tasty new delight on offer. It's also home to the Cameo, one of the coolest cinemas in the world, and King's Theatre. It's near to the funky vintage and second-hand shopes on West port by the College of Art - whose students mean Tollcross isn't lacking in style and creativity. And yes, maybe Tollcross is a little bit sleazy, with a handful of strip clubs and similar establishments and some more divey boozers... but it's all part of the fun. Who wants a polished gem stone when you can have something with a bit more bite?