Ah the brisk Scottish breeze!

One feature of guiding that has always amazed me is the wardrobe choice of the visitors on the tour. The variety is endless.

You get some people who prepared, possibly even excessively, for the Scottish cold. You get some people who are obviously about to go out to dinner or for drinks and are dressed accordingly - nice dresses or suits, which are lovely, but the shoes are the culprit here. The Blair Street Underground Vaults are many things, but good for high heeled shoes is not one of them.

Careful steps help but I can imagine it is rather uncomfortable, although I have never been comfortable in heels to begin with. And then you get the people who seem to have forgotten they were visiting a northern country in mid winter!  One gentleman dressed in only a buttoned summer shirt with jeans, no scarf, no coat at all, on a frosty mid January night for our only entirely outdoor night time tour!

Let this be a tale of caution to you all.. I had a lot of pity for this man but couldn't help feeling like it was a rather foolish decision on his account. Raincoats, scarves, gloves, and leg-warmers- if you're going to Scotland, bring them!