If it's not Scottish...

[sff_corgi_lj]

(doncha lurve Mike Myers?)

So: What I Did at the Scottish Festival

Naturally, because it's over 85°F outside, you've got a bunch of pale people wearing layers of wool in full tropical sunlight. Ye-ahhhh, good idea. :)

They get you right inside the gate, they do -- British Food Connection is the first tent you come to, passing a collection of 'This Scots person invented this!' signs. They've got golden syrup and tinned spotted dick and a big ice-chest of Irn-Bru... all that sort of stuff.

After passing this, and the SASSF tent selling their T-shirts of the bagpipe-playing alligator under the palm trees, you come first to the Clan tents. There is no MacMillan tent, I want to point out. I believe there never has been. I am an orphan.

Past the row of clan tents, the merchants and competition sites start. The dancers they try to get done ASAP, so the poor things can not keel over of heat stroke. My friend Cole, who goes by Nicholas the Storyteller nowadays was set up right next to the irresistable stoneware merchant (whose card I've terminally misplaced [severe frown]) -- that was a nice surprise!

Shopping was, as always, evil -- in that I don't have the money for what I want! The Scots Corner always has good things, and The Celtic Trader is THE place for music. I caninically resisted (for once), but Doreen bought a Silly Wizard CD at my recommendation. She also drooled mightily over the silver knotwork jewelry set with amethysts, but that's what she resisted.

The Wee Scot Lass was set up near the live-steel weapons folks. They have droolsome pointy things there, and one of their crew puts on a scathingly funny weapons demo intermittently. We didn't get to see it while we were there, though. The Lass has some entirely nice cloaks with deep hoods for about $80; the edges are serged, so they look a tish modern, but they're well put together. It's not a bad price. However, her chemises for $50? Pfaugh. I'm textile-challenged and I can put together one of those myself, diolchynfawr, except maybe for the entirely unnecessary ruffle at the bottom.

After watching the Border Collie herding demo, we (Doreen, me, her two kids) walked over to the food merchants, where British Marketplace was papering the festival with their fliers, so I could order my box of sausage rolls from Cameron's British Foods. They keep a genny running for a reefer truck and bring a supply of boxed and frozen foods for larger sales. The kitchen trailer they brought as well was kept well busy serving up individual servings of sausage rolls (banger rolls, really), meat pies, bridies, chips and drinks.

We walked back to the earthen bank behind the stage-trailer to watch (somewhat obstructed) the opening ceremonies with two colour guards and a parade of tartans. Don't ask me to explain why, but I got a bit choked up at 'God Save the Queen'; then I knew hardly any of the words for 'O Canada,' but at least I can hum along well. Of course, the American National Anthem was next. Doreen's kids returned to their climbing tree, she and I sat down, but I had to go ask a random person about his excellend Ddraig Goch t-shirt (not on sale there! Alas!), and hence to the Society's membership tent where I met three Westies and Bonnie, who does 'Westie Rescue of Florida'. It's good to know where dog rescue people are.

At that point, I'd started to run out of time -- yes, I'm at work again -- so we meandered out then, collecting my food and my beautiful stoneware 'batter bowl' with a picture of Prongs stag stamp on one side.

It's a shame they can't afford (time, etc.) to have the Festival run more than one day....