I (really) hate fish
Thursday September 14th, afternoon and evening
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I was picked up by Angus around noon, and we took the scenic route over the moor into Houston, where Nigel lives. Angus told me a lot about the history of the village we went through, and it was a very enjoyable ride. I was then left with Nigel, as Angus had to go to a meeting.
Nigel is quite an interesting man: he has been a barrister, cop and fighter pilot. He plays many instruments and we spent the afternoon playing and singing together. He has talented children as well, and his son Kyle let me listen to his band’s CD a bit - pretty impressive stuff.
Angus rejoined us in the later part of the afternoon with his accordian, and we played more music until Adrienne was dropped off and it was time to head out to the folk club. We went into Glasgow to a club, had dinner (I tasted some of Angus’ haggis, which I didn’t like but was told it wasn’t very good) and then watched a concert.
First up was a local fiddle group (including Angus’s lady-friend Anne) which was quite enjoyable to listen to. Then came an Englishman singer/songwriter whose name suddenly escapes me. He was very talented, but chose soothing songs and we all nearly fell asleep. So we left at intermission and heading back to Nigel’s to sing and play some more, this time with Anne and her fiddle. I sang “Amie” (by the Pure Prairie League in the early 70s) a well-known song in the US, but they’d never heard it. It’s bluegrass/country and has a lot in common with Celtic music. Nigel in particular really seemed to enjoy it. In turn, I got to hear and play many Scottish and Irish songs.
It was a great day.
Friday September 15
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Today we met at Alan and Liz’s house (where Adrienne is being hosted) and left as a group to take a boat tour into Glasgow. That was a fun trip, with lots of interesting information about the ship building that took place there. It was about 20 minutes on the boat, and the weather today was beautiful - one of the best days so far.
In Glasgow we took the subway over to the Kelvingrove Museum and spent some time there. Much like the Smithsonian, but on a smaller scale. I spent most of my visit in the Ancient Creatures wing, but did manage to see the kitschy Elvis statue. I also managed to walk under a full-sized Spitfire airplane without noticing it until it was pointed out to me by one of our Rotary guides.
For lunch we went to “A Play, A Pie and A Pint” - a lunch theater show. Your fee gets you lunch, beer and an hour-long play. We saw “Sea Change”. It was well done, and the opening line is the title of this post, with a bit of liberty taken on the second word which was not “really”. It was also very heavy and somewhat depressing. Something about the future and having to kill to stay alive, and the sea coming to take everyone anyway. They do 15 different shows in 15 weeks, with different directors and cast. It’s a great idea, actually.
Melissa and I popped into the Town Hall building at George’s Square - amazing interior design (I will post pictures) -
Outside we ran into two mounted police officers. They posed for pictures and were very polite and were thrilled to take one of the Greensboro PD patches Melissa has. Their horses were enormous - I can’t remember what breed though.
We caught up with the others at the People’s Palace and Winter Garden. This is another museum, this one about the history of Glasgow and her citizens. Some fascinating stuff, but by then we were more interested in the ice cream they were selling.
Alan and Liz hosted a dinner party last evening for all the Team and our host families. Great food, a wonderful meringue pie and good conversation. Alan made sure I always had a drink, so I was quite knackered by the time it was over. I started with beer, had a tall gin and tonic, then some Glenmorangie whisky and finally topped off with a nice port. I made a point of not standing up until I had to, but managed to walk OK when the time came. No ill effects the next morning, either.
Jason