First Footing at the Fringe

Seeing your first Fringe show in Edinburgh 'of the season' can induce giddy excitement - touched with trepidation - in adults. It's a bit like, when as a young kid, you can't get to sleep on Christmas Eve because you're not sure if what you will receive will be what you wanted. Will the show you're about to see get the thumbs up or the thumbs down? There's always the chance that you might uncover something special.

Last night, I saw 'The Art of Dumping and Dating' at the Assembly Rooms on George Street. Initially, I feared that the show was going to be an awful mistake. That's part of the beguiling beauty of the Fringe you never what you're going to see is a goer or a dud. David Florez's comedy got a definite thumbs up, though it took a few minutes for the laughs to start rolling. The show traces the dating, development and end of the relationship of two characters. The show runs until August 25.

The Assembly Rooms has been the site of several notable firsts down the years as listeners to the Old & New Towns, Walk Talk Tour, audio walking tour of Edinburgh can discover. Hear how one famous writer revealed his identity as the author of a famous collection of novels in the Assembly Rooms, and how another writer received the Freedom of the City of Edinburgh there. To hear an audio sample from the Old & New Towns, Edinburgh travel guide, please click here.

Independent travellers in Edinburgh can explore the city on foot - always advisable, particularly during the month of August - with two audio downloadable walking tours of the Scottish capital.

Each professionally produced and narrated Walk Talk Tour mp3 guided tour of Edinburgh comes complete with Where & When pages, which provide information about the admission charges and opening times along each tour's route.

With a Walk Talk Tour you're in charge. No need to shuffle along as part of a guided tour, wishing you could stop and have a cup of coffee. Both of the Walk Talk Tour Edinburgh city walking tours can be completed in two hours, though you're free to spend as little or as long exploring the sights - and at this time of year the delights of the various festivals - as you wish.

Each Walk Talk Tour city guide is composed of commentary points. Listeners hear about a particular attraction, before receiving clear, easy-to-follow instructions outlining how to reach the next commentary point. In addition, each Walk Talk Tour downloadable travel guide comes complete with a free map - for customers to print off - so you won't miss a thing.

Both the Royal Mile & More podcast guided tour and the Old & New Towns iPod travel guide cost just £5.95 each. Customers purchasing both tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount, meaning you only pay £9.52.

What are you waiting for? Why not do your bit the environment and your waistline and discover Edinburgh today?