It was peak rush-hour on Edinburgh’s South Bridge, as buses, cars, bikes and pedestrians tried to navigate their way around a coach-load of passengers and a mountain of suitcases piling up on a pavement.

It was my first glimpse of chaos on the streets this year ahead of the annual collective endurance test that is the summer festivals season in the Scottish capital.

Some of those participating over the next few weeks will almost certainly have spent months, if not the last year, working on shows, programmes or entire festivals.

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Other unsung folk working behind-the-scenes will be simply trying to ensure the city simply keeps on running on smoothly as possible.

There will undoubtedly be many people living and working in the city centre who simply cannot wait for the circus to leave town.

The Hub is the home of the Edinburgh International Festival. (Image: Andrew Perry)

But I’m sure they are vastly outnumbered by those people who simply cannot get enough of the celebration of culture that explodes on their doorstep every August and will be filling hundreds of venues across the city now until the end of the month.

I’ve been one of them for 30 years now.

My first encounter was when I decided to stay in Edinburgh for the summer after my first year studying journalism.

Baby Reindeer star Richard Gadd regularly performed in small venues at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. (Image: Supplied)

I couldn’t believe the transformation of the normally quiet closes and courtyards of the Royal Mile as I found them filled with noise, colour and, well, chaos. Every time I walked past The Mound I found myself drawn in by the huge crowds gathered around street performers.

It was completely........

© Herald Scotland