Two years ago I wrote Fringe 101, or, “how to Edinburgh” and now we’re going for lesson two: what to pack.
Comfortable walking shoes
Yes, it’s a festival. That doesn’t flatten out a city built on a volcano nor does it smooth the cobbles. A huge part of the Fringe is off the bus and tram routes; you will be walking and you’ll be walking a lot. Last weekend I made the mistake of wearing my blue glittery Conversalikes and had very sore feet for two days and slightly sore feet for two more. Wear shoes you can walk up hills and on very uneven pavements in.
Kindle
I find I spend a lot of time queuing at the Fringe. Venues only let you in five or ten minutes before the show starts and I’m yet to find one with allocated seating. So I read. I’m not a big ebook person but I inherited the Kindle and I find it very handy for events like this. So much easier to carry and if I finish a book – just open another!
The Fringe app
This is by far the easiest way to find and book tickets. There are nearly 5000 shows on; spontaneity is fun but I really don’t know how to navigate this chaos without it. And I speak from experience. Two years ago I went with a severely ailing phone that just couldn’t run the app. A matter of weeks later, it burned itself to death in a way that astonished even the Carphone Warehouse guy but before that, it made the Fringe very difficult.
The bank card registered to the app (you don’t get to see a photo of this one, obviously)
Book through the app and then swipe your card at a pick-up point and the machine will spit out your ticket. If you don’t have the card with you, I imagine collecting your tickets will quickly become frustrating although I also assume there’s a system for dealing with this issue. As it is, there’s quite some joy in booking a ticket from the app while waiting in the queue for the machine and printing it ten seconds later.
A plan
Even with the app, you’re going to need some idea of what you want to see, and if you’ve already heard of the act in question, you should probably have your ticket booked well in advance. I have a timetable, split into fifteen-minute boxes, with names, times and venues. It’s had some scribbling – shows added, shows moved, transport arrangements turned upside down – but that’s fine. It’s guidelines, not actual rules.
Liquid
Scotland may be chilly and rainy but Fringe venues are hot, most of them unpleasantly so. I have yet to see an act that doesn’t claim to have the hottest room in the city (my personal candidates for hottest are all in the Gilded Balloon). Take liquid everywhere. If you can chill it or freeze it beforehand, do. I carry a tiny bottle of superconcentrated squash because I’m a child and I don’t like plain water. Give me sugar and flavour. I mean, ideally you’d take a space-age coolant suit with you but outside of Farscape, that’s not an option.
Waterproof
Yes, I did say “it’s hot” and also “it’s rainy” in two consecutive points. It rains regularly yet unpredictably in Edinburgh. Maybe you’ll get lucky and be in a hot venue during a downpour or thunderstorm, although if you’re in the Underbelly’s upside-down purple cow tent when the thunder starts, you’ll be evacuated. I can vouch for this personally. Maybe it’ll drizzle throughout your entire visit. Umbrellas and Fringe crowds don’t mix so leave that behind but do bring your raincoat. If you have waterproof trousers, it’s not a terrible idea to bring them too.
I’ve sat and looked at this post for a few days now and I can’t see any other essentials for surviving the Fringe. Is there anything you think I’ve missed?