Jan 23

Project 52, Week 21

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Ok enough of work - time to go french dancing - name the musical instrument…

IMG_2039

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Jul 14

Ely Folk Festival

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I returned this morning from the weekend of extremes that was the 23rd Ely Folk Festival, held in a field just outside the city of Ely in Cambridgeshire.  A weekend where I needed both waterproof clothing and sun cream.  A weekend where I danced myself silly, and sat around doing very little. 

I’ve listened to music from England, Wales, Scotland and France, played by guitar, violin, accordian, double bass, pipes and drums amongst others.   I’ve ceilidh’d, french danced, and been taught a cajun waltz.  I’ve even danced in the streets of Ely with the molly dancers (briefly before the heavens opened!)  I’ve listened to music in three different marquees (not all at the same time!) and in the pubs of Ely.

A weekend where the fish & chip stall sold out before the beer tent.  Where music was played wherever the musicians gathered together and where impromptu dancing in the middle of a field was not thought unusual!

I’ve met people I already knew well, got better acquainted with people I knew by sight only, and met some interesting new people.  I even unwittingly danced with a ”Witchman” (the daarkside of morris) at the ceilidh (and wow, could he dance!!)  (www.witchmen.com)

Its been energetic, relaxing, inspiring and totally amazing.  My legs ache from too much dancing, my arms from too much poi!  A relaxing soak in the bath has proved rather too relaxing and I am now probably slightly late for the last minute planning meeting for the Plus party next weekend.

All I can say is - wow - roll on the 24th Festival. 

Video to follow…….

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Jul 07

Recipes

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Another one of my hobbies occasionally is cooking, which goes quite well with French Dancing too, as we always head back to Adam & Mary’s for a cup of tea and a bite to eat, where we tend to try out new recipes to share with each other.

I then got to thinking about the sharing aspect, it seems a good idea to me to post some of my favourite recipes here on my blog.  That will actually serve two purposes - one, other people can try them out, and two, I will have an online reference if I’ve forgotten to make a shopping list!

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Jul 04

Videos

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I’ve been playing about with Windows Movie maker to edit the video clips I’ve been taking at the various events, and had a whale of a time - its brill!  Ok, I know its probably quite basic compared to some, but good enough for me.

So, time to post video!  In date order, Strawberry Fair, Peterborough Kite Festival, and the dancing party at Adam & Mary’s.  Hope you enjoy…..

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66fPfSEq8YE]

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yu61pXyQbY4]

[youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGya8WpyxbU]

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Jul 01

I Could Have Danced All Night…..

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….well I could have, if the musicians hadn’t have given up at 2.30am - lightweights!!!

The event - Adam & Mary Cade’s summer party - french and irish music and dancing, barbecue, yummy desserts, bouncy castle and camping.  The Cades erect a large tent with complete with dancefloor and straw bale seats in their garden and invite everyone round for a long evening of dancing.

Given that on french dancing nights (third friday in the month in Ketton, near Stamford) it is normal to dance until the pub kicks us out, then pop next door to Adam & Mary’s for a cup of tea and bite to eat (a bit of a midnight feast really) - the concept of eating first and dancing after was a bit unusual, but we coped!

This is another event where I spent the night shooting video rather than taking photos, and hopefully will get the end result on here soon.  In between filming I did get a considerable amount of dancing in which I thoroughly enjoyed.  We even had visitors from next door when the pub closed, although dancing sober is hard enough (in my book) and the guys who joined us from the pub were really on a loser from the start in that respect!  When the dancing finished, as people gradually drifted off to bed, some adjourned to the house for a chat, others stayed out in the garden, round the brazier, and on the bouncy castle!  Yes, I was one of the mad people on the bouncy castle at around 3.30 in the morning (I blame Adam….).  After trying to jump accross the castle and landing with my nose against the opposite wall (ouch!!), I gave that up as a bad job and watched the others - including Adam on the tree swing (madman).  I finally made it to bed around 3.45am, as it was getting well and truly light, some I know didn’t make it until at least an hour later.

One of the things I don’t like about camping is I that always wake up when its light….so around 7.30am I turned over and tried to get back to sleep!

And then off to an Plus Area conference around 10am after breakfast………no rest for the wicked!

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