Berry beefy men in skirts

The Tartan Warriors discussing strategy, no doubt!

Yesterday we went to the Berry Celtic Festival and it was a real treat.  There was everything you could possibly want. There were different bands marching and playing bagpipes, and Scottish dancing, and stands for the different clans where you could buy clan paraphernalia or get to know fellow clan men.

They frequently have highland games here in New South Wales since many of the original arrivals to this country came from either Scotland or Ireland or other places with Celtic origin. These particular highland games consisted of caber tossing. and lifting and running with big, very heavy rocks, and another variation of throwing a heavy "thingy" backwards over your head, very high, over a bar, like a pole-vault bar. I think it was called "weight for height".

I can now confirm that they do wear underwear under the kilt.

There were several different bands playing and some had dancers as well.

I almost managed to join a band.

The whole family dressed up and ready for the festival.
Mom and Dad didn't want to be in the photo though.

It was also nice to walk around a visit all the different stands. There was also fiddle playing and very mournful singing.

I also enjoyed the weaving and  the one-hundred-year-old knitting machine for socks. My thoughts obviously went to my sister-in-law who loves all that crafty stuff.

Just as we had walked out we could hear over the loud speakers that there were 20 frozen haggis up for grabs. We almost walked in again but stopped ourselves. Both of us remembered when we lived in Scotland and had our first haggis. Certain things are just better enjoyed in the country where people know how to cook them (and even then it is iffy) and in that certain ambiance in which you have it.

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Another example of this is frogs legs. I liked it  when we lived in France but wouldn't go out of my way to cook up frog's legs here in Australia.

Leaving you with some photos from the dinosaur museum in Canberra. I went there last week with our son to renew his passport. No take that back, we went to the embassy for the passport and to the museum for fun photos. The passport formalities were over so quickly that we had time for some sight seeing and wine tasting and lunch in an Irish pub as well.

"A man never knows how to say goodbye; a woman never knows when to say it." -Helen Rowland

I am beginning to think it is true, since this blog entry is becoming very long, sorry about that. Here it is- goodbye!

Canberra's underbelly

Here we were, hubby and me at a local brasserie, no pretentions , but offering very good food. Suddenly there was a kerfuffle. Hubby with his mouth open staring at something behind me, and all of a sudden one of the chefs or maybe it was a waiter yelling at someone who ran out and he, the waiter ran after him.

It turned out that this person had come into the restaurant with a hood and a mask and brandishing a  hypodermic syringe, and wanted cash. The "he-man" waiter yelled at him and when he (the baddie)  tried to run off, he (the he-man waiter) ran after him yelling to the others to call the cops. The cops came very quickly and apprehended the villain and then came the tedious interviewing of all of us, the customers. I had not even taken my handbag to the restaurant since it was very close to the hotel, so I couldn't identify myself.  Sorry I also had not brought my camera but it is all true; it really happened.

This was not the first scary thing today. When I was walking back from the Australian War Memorial I came across a bikie who was laying in the street after having been hit by the car of a young girl. He really looked like he was dead and I was quite shaken up.To the point of dropping one of my favorite cardigans that I had been schlepping around all day, and not noticing it until I got back to the hotel.
However, the cop who interviewed us in the restaurant said the bikie was okay. So thank goodness for that, since I was convinced he was dead.

There was also my 250 dollar haircut!  I strolled out this morning, past a hairdresser and since I needed a cut and highlights, I stopped by. I got in there just after nine and got out just before two in the afternoon. It was a thorough job, every strand was cut seperately. The hairdresser was Korean. But 250 for highlights and a cut, is that normal? It did include cappuccinos and wine though so it was very pleasant.

Back to the War Memorial. I didn't even really want to go but thought that I should. Let me tell you I walked around and tears sprung to my eyes several  times. It covered all the wars and conflicts that Australia has been involved in and there was so much I didn't know. I guess in European schools you tended to learn more of what happened in Europe.  Anyway, if you are in Canberra I recommend that you take time for a visit.

Hundreds of soldiers back from the war

Australian War Memorial

Wall of small photos of the death March in Borneo where more than 1,700 Australians died

Aussie prisoner of war

Typical restrained handshake between father and son on returning
from the war