Queue meets welcome

A significant crossover of forces today. I had to walk over to George Square twice to participate in welcome events for students. The first time, the "queue" (for St Giles) was still in operation and it was "interesting" (to say the least) for my colleague and me to dodge between the queue and the route we wanted to follow. The second time, the queue was gone, as St Giles had closed, and all that was left was the energy of Welcome Week, which was pretty significant around Bristo Square. I didn't participate in Welcome Week last year, and anyway large scale in person events were not allowed. This year, these are back, and it feels like there is an enormous sense of relief. I know that Covid is still out there, as indeed are other respiratory bugs, but at the present time the energy for a new academic year is an overpowering drug, and it feels really good. Two more welcome events tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Edinburgh has shown its face to the world, with two days of wall to wall sunshine. Well done for that. The transport system has been chaotic, and the road closures sometimes hard to navigate, but it has been interesting to see the ease with which the city has adjusted, once again, to being the centre of attention, just two weeks after the end of the festivals (and the bin strike...).