Trundling to Dundee via Perth
Alongside other renovations and improvements presently taking place at Waverley Station, this massive water-tank outside the main south wall of the station, seen from North Bridge, Edinburgh, on 26th March, 2012, is being dismantled. It formerly stored water for replenishing steam locomotives between their journeys. I note that it is being carefully dismantled section-by-section and the components laid out and stacked, which suggests that it is to be restored and re-erected somewhere, though presumably not at Waverley as the tank has been disused for years. I wonder what is planned for it?
On my way to St. Andrew Square bus station on 26th March, 2012, I passed by New St. Andrew's House, a hideously ugly office block in the heart of Edinburgh dating from circa 1970. It would surely be regarded as a monstrosity in any circumstances, but what makes matters so much worse here is that many lovely old buildings of typically-Edinburgh style, including St. James Square, the counterpart to Rutland Square at the opposite end of the New Town, and an attractive high-level terrace on Leith Street, similar to that in Victoria Street, were demolished to make way for this ghastly edifice. The building has stood empty since 1997 and its disappearance from the Edinburgh skyline is surely long overdue. Unfortunately, I have little hope that it will be replaced by anything more in keeping with its surroundings.
New St. Andrew's House, former government offices constructed on the site of St. James Square, Edinburgh, seen on 26th March, 2012. I believe I read some time ago that this building is riddled with asbestos, meaning that demolition will necessarily be a slow, dangerous and expensive business. This may be why it has stood empty for fifteen years.
New St. Andrew's House, former government offices constructed on the site of St. James Square, Edinburgh, seen on 26th March, 2012. What sort of arrogance and stupidity would allow a truly hideous building like this to be built in the heart of a city that is world-famous for its Georgian and Victorian architecture? Did they really think it was going to outshine the NB Hotel, the Scott Monument and all of Edinburgh's other architectural treasures? Petty vandals are jailed for far, far less.
A view towards Perth from a bus approaching the Friarton Bridge over the River Tay on the M90 to the south-east of the city on 26th March, 2012. As the bus was bumping and lurching around, it would have been a great stroke of luck if I'd succeeded in pointing my camera at the actual city of Perth instead of an ugly industrial estate. Unfortunately, no such stroke of luck occurred!
A view towards Perth from a bus approaching the Friarton Bridge over the River Tay on the M90 to the south-east of the city on 26th March, 2012.
A view towards Perth from a bus approaching the Friarton Bridge over the River Tay on the M90 to the south-east of the city on 26th March, 2012.
A view from the Nethergate down Couttie's Wynd towards Whitehall Crescent, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The soon-to-be-demolished Tayside House, the ugly, monolithic block which formerly housed Dundee City Council, viewed from Crichton Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The soon-to-be-demolished Tayside House, the ugly, monolithic block which formerly housed Dundee City Council, viewed from Crichton Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The whole seafront area of Dundee between Tay Bridge Station and the Tay Road Bridge is presently being redeveloped, though what can be achieved while the area is torn-through by slip roads, dual carriageways and roundabouts isn't clear. However, Tayside House, the ugly, monolithic block which formerly housed Dundee City Council, is about to be demolished, and it's hard to imagine that whatever takes its place could be any more ugly and ill-fitting. View east from Dock Street on 26th March, 2012.
The southern end of the Tay Road Bridge viewed from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012. At around a mile-and-a-half in length, the bridge is too long to fit into a single photograph even at this distance.
The northern end of the Tay Road Bridge viewed from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
This small jack-up rig just a few yards off the waterfront at Dundee was engaged in geological survey work in the Firth of Tay in connection with the proposed V&A Dundee museum on 26th March, 2012.
A small jack-up rig just a few yards off the waterfront at Dundee engaged in geological survey work in the Firth of Tay in connection with the proposed V&A Dundee museum on 26th March, 2012.
This small jack-up rig just a few yards off the waterfront at Dundee was engaged in geological survey work in the Firth of Tay in connection with the proposed V&A Dundee museum on 26th March, 2012.
A small jack-up rig just a few yards off the waterfront at Dundee engaged in geological survey work in the Firth of Tay in connection with the proposed V&A Dundee museum on 26th March, 2012.
The Tay Road Bridge viewed from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
The Tay Road Bridge viewed from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view across the Firth of Tay towards Fife from the waterfront esplanade by the Tay Road Bridge at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view across the Firth of Tay towards Fife from the waterfront esplanade by the Tay Road Bridge at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view across the Firth of Tay towards Fife from the waterfront esplanade by the Tay Road Bridge at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view between the piers of the Tay Road Bridge from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view between the piers of the Tay Road Bridge from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view between the piers of the Tay Road Bridge from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view between the piers of the Tay Road Bridge from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
A view between the piers of the Tay Road Bridge from the waterfront esplanade at Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
Old quayside warehousing converted into an attractive residential terrace at Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
I came across this old and most unusual-looking vessel in Victoria Dock during my visit to Dundee on 26th March, 2012. At first sight there were few obvious clues to its identity. In fact, it is His Majesty's Frigate UNICORN, built in 1824, and one of the six oldest ships still in existence in the world. Given its obvious historical importance, I'm surprised I'd never heard of it before. I'm also quite surprised to discover that this is the only remaining dock in Dundee, and that it is no longer used for commercial shipping. Ships now berth alongside waterfront quays half-a-mile or so further down the Tay.
A small notice on HMF UNICORN, berthed in Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
A small notice on HMF UNICORN, berthed in Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The stern of HMF UNICORN at Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The Tay Road Bridge viewed between recently-built residential blocks at Thorter Row, Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The Tay Road Bridge viewed between recently-built residential blocks at Thorter Row, Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
A deeply-sunken and precarious-looking building on the quayside at Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012. I hope the recently-built residential blocks nearby have more solid foundations! Note the stone ball-finial at the apex of the gable, which seems to be a particular feature of Dundee architecture.
The unicorn figurehead on HMF UNICORN, berthed in Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The unicorn figurehead on HMF UNICORN, berthed in Victoria Dock, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The gradient board at the head of the 1-in-60 incline between Dock Street Tunnel and the site of Camperdown Junction, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The gradient board at the head of the 1-in-60 incline between Dock Street Tunnel and the site of Camperdown Junction, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The Clock Tower Warehouse at Camperdown Street on the landward side of Victoria Dock, Dundee, now converted into residential flats. Seen on 26th March, 2012.
A close-up view of the clock tower on the converted warehouse at Camperdown Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
Forming a northbound train, Adtranz Class 170 3-car DMU No. 170 418 approaches the head of the 1-in-60 incline between Dock Street Tunnel and the site of Camperdown Junction, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
An unidentified Adtranz Class 170 3-car DMU approaches the site of Camperdown Junction as it runs towards Dundee Tay Bridge Station on 26th March, 2012.
A painted cast-iron street-name sign in Broughty Ferry Road, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
A painted cast-iron street-name sign in Broughty Ferry Road, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
A lovely old blue-enamelled street-name sign in Broughty Ferry Road, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012. There are still plenty of these enamel signs to be seen in the old parts of Dundee. I find the colour, the lettering and the weathering of these signs very attractive, and I think I might begin documenting them wherever I find them.
A lovely old blue-enamelled street-name sign in Broughty Ferry Road, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
An interesting tenement block seen in Broughty Ferry Road, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012, with unusual middle-eastern-style features in red sandstone. I suspect these corner windows will have a spectacular view over the Firth of Tay, but perhaps a slightly less edifying view of the docks.
An interesting tenement block in Broughty Ferry Road, Dundee, with unusual middle-eastern-style features in red sandstone, on 26th March, 2012.
I can never resist photographing a misplaced apostrophe! Seen in Dundee on 26th March, 2012.
This street, surrounded on all sides by huge factories, reminded me of Kirkcaldy when I was wee. Almost all of Kirkcaldy's old mills and linoleum factories have been erased from the townscape now, but Dundee still retains a substantial part of its industrial heritage, and during my visit I noted several old warehouses and mills which had been converted into residential flats. Dens Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
Dens Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
An enamelled street-name sign in Dens Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
An enamelled street-name sign in Dens Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
An old mill in St. Roques Lane viewed from Princes Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The cupola-topped tower on a mill in St. Roques Lane viewed from Princes Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
An old mill converted into residential flats in Princes Street, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
Enamelled street-name sign in the Cowgate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
Unusual and very old-looking chimneys (I think) on a building in the Seagate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
Fire hydrant and blue-enamelled street-name signs in the Seagate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
The very imposing St. Paul's Cathedral at the corner of Commercial Street and the High Street, viewed from the Seagate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
"Designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1853, the cathedral stands on the site of Dundee's ancient castle. Gothic in style, but Gothic with a difference. Tall, graceful columns give an impression of lightness and airiness. Splendid reredos mosaic by Salviati of Venice. Stained glass including windows by Hardman and Scott & Draper. Organ by Hill 1865, rebuilt by Hill, Norman & Beard 1976."
St. Paul's Cathedral at the corner of Commercial Street and the High Street, viewed from the Seagate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
St. Paul's Cathedral at the corner of Commercial Street and the High Street, viewed from the Seagate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
I'm surprised these tall, slender and rather precarious-looking chimney-stacks, seen on a tenement in the Seagate, Dundee, 26th March, 2012, managed to survive the hurricanes that battered Scotland in late 2010.
Tall and precarious-looking chimney-stacks on a tenement in the Seagate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
A very weather-beaten street-name sign in the Seagate, Dundee, on 26th March, 2012.
A view down the Firth of Tay from a Fife-bound bus crossing the Tay Road Bridge in the early evening of 26th March, 2012.
A view down the Firth of Tay from a Fife-bound bus crossing the Tay Road Bridge in the early evening of 26th March, 2012.
A view down the Firth of Tay from a Fife-bound bus crossing the Tay Road Bridge in the early evening of 26th March, 2012.
A view down the Firth of Tay from a Fife-bound bus crossing the Tay Road Bridge in the early evening of 26th March, 2012.