Hyperreal

I went to Stirling yesterday to dance in the streets. Here’s what happened…

Before I left I was a little concerned about the weather. It was a bit drizzly in Glasgow, and the forecast for Stirling was very similar to the one for Glasgow. Tiggerbabe, however, reassured me that the busk was on, and the weather would be fine.

So, figuring that it if did rain, it wouldn’t be too bad, and I’d at least have some company, I headed off.

When I got to Stirling, on route to the Albert Halls, I came across some sort of military parade – RAF to be exact. This meant that after that had finished there’d be lots of “men in uniform” wandering around town. Perfect target, some would say, for a Ceroc flyer.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. We had just met up, waiting for a few key people, when it started to rain. And it was heavy. We took shelter in the Halls’ cafe, had a coffee, and waited… As it neared 1pm, the rain wasn’t showing much sign of giving up, but nor were we. We decided to head off to our arranged “dance floor”, and hope the weather would improve.

Which it did!

By the time we had all got to the main street, and got the equipment set up, it had stopped raining at the sun had come out!

We danced for about two hours. Unlike last time I busked, it took me very little time to put the flyers down and pick up a girl to dance with. So, lots of dancing, a fair amount of leafleting, and quite a bit of stopping to catch my breath. Great fun!

At one point I was approached by a woman who told me she was up on holiday from Sussex or Surrey, in England, but did Ceroc dancing, and then asked me for a dance. This was a pleasant surprise, normally the tourists are telling you they aren’t local, and don’t want a leaflet, even though there could well be a Ceroc venue close to where they come from. I told her about the forums, and she suggested that she might have a look. I don’t think she’ll get this far though… Anyway, it was nice to have a couple of dances with her, and I hope she enjoys the rest of her holiday.

Besides meeting visitors from far-off lands, it was a pleasure to meet some of the Stirling crew, and the few folks who came from Perth and Dundee.

Once again, after it was over, Franck laid on refreshments in a nearby restaurant/bar. I think it was called Pivo. Quite a nice place, though their fish-heavy menu might put me off going there in other circumstances.

Also supplied by Franck were tickets to a Charity Ball being held at the Corn Exchange in Edinburgh last night.

The only thing stopping me going was transport to and from the venue. (I could probably get there using train and taxi, but getting home after 1am would be a problem.) Fortunately, I managed to find a kind soul (thanks!) who was able to give me a lift there and back!

And so I headed home, tired, but smiling.

Hi to everyone who was there, thanks to the ladies for the dances, cheers to Tiggerbabe for a fine selection of music, and even more thanks to Franck for everything.

Stirling was pretty good for a visit. Must go back soon!