http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/ Welcome to Been there. Your tips on the places you know - that you love, live in or have just visited - are what make this guide. http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33818 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/33818 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/31580 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/31580 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/30769 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/30769 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29913 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29913 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29894 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29894 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29259 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/29259 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/27466 The splendid Jupiter Artland, a contemporary sculpture garden in the grounds of Bonnington house, just outside the city.
An impressive selection of art work from some of Britain's biggest names - Andy Goldsworthy, Anthony Gormley, Anish Kapoor etc. When you need a break from exploring, treat yourself to tea and cake from the chrome vintage caravan cafe, and hang out with the peacock.
And if that's not enough to tempt you, did I mention the miniature donkeys?]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/27466 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/23614
Set up by a group of ethnic minorities in Edinburgh, Mela means ‘gathering’ in Sanskrit and is a celebration of cultural diversity in Scotland.

The festival has a laid-back vibe, with food stalls and a craft market alongside the main line-up of theatre, music, film, and visual art from around the world, from Zimbabwean Theatre to Bollywood Dance.

It's only £2 for an all day pass, but some single events are free.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/23614 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19438
Never fear, checkout www.festivalpreviews.com. This website hosts video preview clips of the shows so that you can see for yourself whether you might like it. The site also has festival clips from Brighton, Adelaide, Avignon, Tokyo, etc etc.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19438 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16630
Only a portion of the entire holding can be shown at any one time. Accordingly a selection is rotated periodically, with special exhibitions mounted in the Dean Gallery, where there is, in addition, a permanent show of the work of Eduardo Paolozzi - a local hero with an international reputation.

Entry is free. The galleries have shops, selling scholarly material as well as postcards and gifts, and the Cafe Newton in the Dean Gallery is particularly attractive, with good food at sensible prices. The staff at both galleries are welcoming and helpful.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16630 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7991
With free internet access, an art gallery, vegan and vegetarian food and stunning entertainment and events during and outside of the festival, this is the craziest place in town for dissidents and thinkers.

No matter if you want to watch films, read the latest protesting leaflets, or drop off your clothes and old books in the free shop, the Forest is the space for you. Just around from the university, it constantly changes.

It’s usually open from about 11am -11pm, licensed - sometimes with bring-your-own bottle - and during August it’s open till 3am. Also, it sells famous organic heather ale and seaweed beer.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7991 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7783
Climb to the top of the tower and enter a darkened room with a white circular table in the middle. At the appointed hour a guide appears for the ritual. Above the table in the summit of the tower is a complex arrangement of ropes and pulleys that ingeniously manipulate a variety of lenses. The guide, by means of these, can make images of the streets below appear on the white table, complete with people and traffic. So clever is the system that it is possible to zoom in on individuals, who appear with the most startling clarity.

Visit the Camera Obscura and be captivated by its archaic charm. There is a fascination about this mechanism, which ensures that any subsequent visits to the city will include a return to the Outlook Tower.

And forget the camcorder.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7783 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7782 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7782 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7781
Situated on rocky outcrops, the castle rears over Princes Street, the main shopping thoroughfare, and an elegant, wide avenue, graced by public gardens with the tapering spire of the Scott Monument at one end.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7781 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7777 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7777 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7505 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/7505 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/4405
Not quite so lively is the Dean Cemetery, located at the side of the gallery. But it’s still wonderful to stroll through the trees and read the names of forgotten scholars and captains of industry on mossy mausoleums and gravestones.

Old and new melted into one another. Dali might have liked it.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/4405 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1981 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1981 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1581 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1581