Happy Hogmanay from Edinburgh!

The Hogmanay festival kicked off with the Torchlight Procession. Fake Vikings (the Up Helly'AA Vikings from Lerwick) led the way with a wooden boat doused in something that smelled like lighter fluid. Accompanied by pipers, drummers and a brass band along the route, the procession wound from St. Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile, down the Mound, along Princes Street and up Calton Hill. A Highland Coo effigy loomed atop the hill. The boat was set ablaze and as the fireworks began, the coo was lit from its backside. Sarcastic and real ooo's and aaa's surrounded us as we held our torches and watched the fire grow. When the coo was fully ablaze, it lurched its head forward. The crowd appeared to take it as a sign the party was over, so I finally got a full glimpse of burning straw coo. We paid our respects to the boat blaze and called it a night. Rumor has it, the locals leave during Hogmanay, or at least stay far far away from Princes Street. In the next few days, we'll see if there's a reason for the rumor.