Bonfire Night

November 5th is Guy Fawkes night, also know Bonfire Night or Fireworks Night.

I hadn't heard of Guy Fawkes night until coming to Edinburgh.  It is a bit of a strange holiday in my opinion.  Essentially, in 1605 Guy Fawkes tried to blow up the British Parliament but was caught guarding the gunpowder he and his fellow plotters had placed beneath the house of lords.  To celebrate the fact that King James I survived the plot on his life, he lit bonfires around London.  So now as a tradition every November 5th in the UK, people light bonfires to burn effigies of Guy Fawkes and light fireworks. So they celebrate Parliament almost being blown up, but not quite.  And boy do they take this tradition seriously!

My first encounter with Guy Fawkes Night was last year.  I had decided to stay late in the library and study.  After a while there was an overwhelming smell of smoke in the library.  However I couldn't see any smoke, the smoke detectors weren't going off and the few people around me seemed perfectly calm.  After I left the library I was able to figure out where the smell was coming from.  Outside!  The air outside smelled like a bonfire.  And there were fireworks going off everywhere.  And the number of fireworks only increased as we went into the city.  People were setting them off in the street, in their gardens and in parks.  There are also professional displays set to music.

So this year I decided I wanted to be in the city for Guy Fawkes night.  And I was not disappointed.  I was able to sit in my bedroom and watch the fireworks out my window.  Not a bad way to spend an evening!

The view from my sofa

Now the other thing is, Fireworks Night really turns into fireworks week.  Starting on Halloween there are fireworks every night and there are still fireworks going off tonight!  Although the winds gusting to over 50 miles per hour tonight does seem to be hindering their fireworks displays.


Finally a picture that goes with my last post.  The winning Dick Vet Hockey Team!