This workshop was held over the half-term holiday when a group of young people spent time with photographer, Rebecca Marr and poet, Valerie Gillies. They photographed people, places and artefacts up and down Edinburgh's Royal Mile and wrote poems prompted by their observations and their research into the history of this ancient street.

The final outcome of these workshops was the publication of their poems and photographs in an anthology called Tickets for a Mile, which can be found in the Scottish Poetry Library. Here are just a few of their poems.

The young poets: Stephanie Alonzi, Beth Berger, Rebecca Carnie, Polly Davison, Hannah Fraser, Coleen Kelly, Thomas Kelly, Fiona McDonald, Jerry McDonald.

Hingin oot the windaes

Gossiping girlies, hair done up in curlies,
'Look at my dress!' 'Well look at my perlies!'
'I've got a washing maid!' 'I've got a brain!'
Insult, insult 'You're such a pain!'
Argue, argue, argue, argue
Move to the next windae and start again!

TOP 

View up

Water trickling down the rusty metal window frames
Dull damp moss-coated walls covering the texture of stone
Stained murky windows covered in dust
Nothing to look at but washing above
Hanging from window to window.
Nothing much to look at here.

TOP 

Royal Mile today

The street is busy and crowded
Noise of the cars on the cobbles
People talking to each other
The rubble of the cement mixer.

The stink of the exhaust fumes
Good smells from the Italian restaurant
Chip Shop, sandwich bar
And coffeehouse.

The rounded, rectangular cobbles in long rows
The deepest arched windows glistening in the light
The circular chimneys are smoking
In the street as it is today.

TOP 

Walking down the cobbled street
The sharp clicking of their feet
Over a heart buried among the cobbles
The Heart of Midlothian brings you luck!

TOP 

'Gardezloo!' she shrieked
And from her stairhead she poured the waste,
Onto the busy, cobbled street, the pailful spilled
Into the cracks, the murky water seeped away
Moving gradually downhill.