| Introduction
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Introduction
Edinburgh is Scotland in microcosm. In this lively capital city, buildings do not overpower the spectacular landscape of hills
and crags that march across the southeastern horizon. Yet Edinburgh's buildings - from the old houses of the Royal Mile to
the elegant Georgian terraces and crescents of the New Town - are outstanding complements to the city's natural setting. Few
other capitals seem to reflect the history and culture of their country so potently.
Edinburgh's famous castle sits high on a craggy promontory, Castle Rock, made inaccessible on three sides by steep cliffs
and with a long descending ridge on its fourth side. The city's layout is linear, a pattern set by Castle Rock and Castle
Ridge, down which the Royal Mile descends to the Palace of Holyroodhouse. North of the Royal Mile lies a shallow valley once
covered by swampy Nor' Loch, and now occupied by the lovely Princes Street Gardens, with Waverley Station, the city's main
railroad station, at their eastern end. Above the gardens and to the north is Edinburgh's main thoroughfare, Princes Street,
its south side uncluttered by buildings and thus serving as a splendid place from which to view the castle and Old Edinburgh.
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