The Greenock mental crew go north in search of Kulture

Friday night and my new season ticket to Caley Stadium has the bonus of my watching Inverness Caledonian Thistle (Caley) playing against Greenock Morton in the Scottish Championship (which in old money used to be the first division). However as in England-shire, money doesn't just talk, it stands on the table and shouts! Ergo since sponsors need to have their product liberally sprinkled with stardust, the 1st division then becomes the "Championship".

 

You have to hand it to the Morton faithful, about a bus-load had made their way to the Highlands Capital to support their team. A journey that I can personally attest to as being more than arduous and very much time consuming, especially when the game is televised on the BBC Scotland channel. The sight of supporters wearing the precious team shirt and a pair of shorts this far north (oh but one had a "bunnet") is testimony to constitution of the Greenock man and the couple of women who were likewise attired.

All this way and probably not getting home till circa 1 a.m. is the stuff of legends (not to mention the fortitude of their insides with a modicum of "Buckie") was not repaid by the team as Caley stuffed them 5-0.

My easy 15 minute drive home is minuscule by comparison to the Greenock fans.

Thomais joins the Gaels in the IRA

From the outset I suppose some clarification would not go amiss here, the IRA in this context is not (despite any Irish leanings on my part), the Provisional Wing of the Republican Army, but is in fact the superbly furnished Inverness Royal Academy and the Gaels is the start of my cultural journey into all things Gaelic in the Highlands by my enrolment for the beginners course in the traditional language of Scotland.

Schools have certainly changed since my time in the "Convent" confines of St Michael's in Irvine in the latte fifties, with the redoubtable Sister Pauline as Headmistress and effectively Reverend Mother of the other sisters. This one is obviously top of the range and the facilities are bordering on sumptuous.

Cum suil air an ai te seo mo charaidean !

The Pensioners are playing with their balls in the long grass.

All right that is enough of the smutty innuendos and supposition on the part of the limited readership of these innocent "Ramblings". However, Wilma and I actually got to "play" with each other for the first time in real golfing terms. 

In the past, it has been Bunty playing and me acting as some sort of John Jacobs as she progressed with the search for the  elusive sweet spot in golfing terms (take your mind of the other connotation if you will).

We couldn't have picked a better day as the sun shone and the temperature hovered at a fine  18 deg C. The weather was fine as was the mood of the two riders on the electric buggy. 

Such reverie was shattered with the opening shot on the first tee as yours truly, skelped the ball into the trees on the left side of the fairway. The bonus being it hit a tree hard enough to bounce back out and into the semi-rough! It was all down-hill from then on! 

One lost ball but more shanks than a porcelain factory of toilet manufacturing. Bunty too had her trials but nonetheless, it was good to get out and look the part of golfers even if that was as close to being golfers as we got !

Stabat Mater sans Lachrymosa

Oh my joy is unconfined, I'm back singing with a choral unit that sings some of their repertoire in Latin ! My first rehearsal with Inverness Choral Society has been an absolute delight, notwithstanding the friendliness of the other members of the choral unit, the first piece we rehearse is Rossini's "Stabat Mater". Next up will be Vivaldi's "Credo".

There's no "Lacrymosa" here unless it is "tears of joy ". 

Even the voice test after the rehearsal was good enough and I've never had to go through one of those in the past. So it is "Pax vobiscum" from ironically, the Free Church of Scotland in Smithton in a touch of irony !

Bunty is taking the "Hump"

No dearest Wilma hasn't literally taken the hump with yours truly. 

The fact is that we've booked a holiday to the "Rose Red" city of Petra in Jordan to dispel the cold from our OAP bones this coming winter. However, I know from experience that there is a considerable amount of walking involved to fully appreciate the Nabataean city in the desert and even a walk to the Caledonian Canal  today focussed my attention on my perambulatory ability. 

When we had shuffled back to "Ashgrove" it was decided that we'd be better off doing a Danube cruise thereby cutting out walking for me an potential mal de mer for Bunty. It seemed to be a reasonable compromise with me only having to parade around the deck like Midshipman Walker.  

Not so, since the flights are already booked to Aqaba the deposit had gone to the original booking. Then it came to me in a flash. When I last visited Petra nearly a quarter of a century ago I seem to remember that there were four legged forms of walking. Not wishing to break the back of a donkey then it has to be a camel.

Bunty though is asking for lessons pre-trip. I think not as there is a distinct shortage of camels in Inversneckie. Hey Hoh !!!

Both of us can now take the "Hump" practically and metaphorically !  Salaam Alakum !!

"Johnny Lobster" tells a tale of missed opportunities

Yesterday saw the first oratory delivery of mine concerning; the "Highland Soldier" to an audience of approximately 80 tourists from such diverse countries of Russia, Canada, USA, South Africa, Australia and of course England, Scotland. Ireland and Wales.

It really is a joy to spend time with the diverse nations that we get in the Chuil Lodair (Culloden in Gaelic) Exhibition Centre. People from across the globe give hope that the bunch of clowns we have as politicians are the minority.

In essence this battle was lost as a culmination of a series of unfortunate circumstances on the part of the Jacobites not the least being, Cumberland and his soldiers were determined there should not be another defeat like the Battles of Prestonpans and Falkirk. In addition to practising volley firing the troops were taught a form of bayonet fighting; the first time in the British army that the use of the bayonet was the subject of tuition. ... 

What if ???

"Kulture" in the Toon Hoose

Bunty and I took to the Town House last night for an absolutely superb concert given by a young Russian married couple pianist Oxana Shevchenko and her husband, violinist Alexei Osipov. An extremely varied and technically demanding programme of Beethoven, Ravel, Stravinsky, Saint-Saens and Liszt stretched their combined talents to the limit with Oxana being the lead musically since she had the dominant role, being involved in four of the five pieces!

The Town House does provide an intimate atmosphere for these concerts as the audience is limited to about 120 and the stage is no more than 20 yards from the back seats. 

"Lisztomania" was the film by Ken Russell featuring the "Who's" Roger Daltrey and it describes the real fan fever for the hedonistic Ferenc (Franz) Liszt and when you listen to the piano maestro's wizadry on the keyboard as produced by Oxana Shevchenko in this concert you can understand why he was the ultimate musical star of his era.

Trembling "Tia" spooks the adults

5 a.m. and the CO2/Smoke Detector goes off for low batteries. That in itself is no real problem except the reaction of "Squirt" is to seek reassurance from the adults. She never normally goes up the stairs as she knows from experience with Bunty it is an area out of bounds.

Sleep is not her concern though as the bedroom door is sprung open with the force of a human and Bunty and I are half expecting to be bludgeoned by some ne'er do well! Instead we have the least protective guard dog in the Western World crawling in and jumping up to try and hide herself between us. 

"Alfred the Chicken-Hearted"

Cuil Lodair's Laurence Olivier rehearses

The Government soldier above is busy learning his lines for  his debut of Laurence Olivier proportions in  "A Highland Soldier".

• Life in the Highlands was very hard with a barely subsistence level of existence, his shirt was about the only item of clothing owned and made out of linen.
• The Highlands per se stretches diagonally across Scotland from Lochranza in Arran in north easterly direction to the outskirts on the northern side of Stonehaven.
• It was basically feudal in terms. With the Clan Chief effectively owning all the land and his "Tacksman" sub-letting plots of land to the members of the clan.
• This was paid in a form of "Feu" which was still payable up until 2000 when "Feu Duty" per se was abolished.
• Clan Chiefs had the only say, and in effect their word was law! 
• The term "Jacobite" comes from the Latin (Jacob) for James! The Jacobites were followers of King James II
• This is not a war between England and Scotland, nor is it a battle between Catholic and Protestant.
• This is a form of civil war about the Monarchy.

Seumasachas Righ an Alba

Super Caley Go Ballistic Rangers are Atrocious

A bit of poetic licence from this septuagenarian Celtic supporter, since this headline was "de rigeur" some 17 years ago, when Caley beat my team in the cup !

Now resident in the Highlands capital, yours truly has invested in a season ticket for the Caley Jags. Watching Celtic is out of the question from a logistical perspective, but in any event I should be supporting the local team!

The Traveller sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see !

Nothing so profound from me, but the words of GK Chesterton in relation to tourism. After another day at the battlefield of Culloden, I'm still in amazement of the variety of nationalities and the friendship shown by them all.

No cruise ships today but from 9 a.m. bus loads of tourists from Australia, Canada, Germany, Denmark, France, Bermuda, USA, Japan, Eire and of course England, Scotland and Wales!

My task is to study for the carrying out of presentations at set periods and with set programmes. To this end I'm closely studying the work done on the existing presentations by the team who've been here since the outset of the new centre some 8 years ago!

My own small contribution at this time is the "Plaid" demonstration; for this purpose I'd to enlist the help of two American guys from Florida and they were a pair of gems entering into the "Haute Couture" for Highlanders with spirit and good humour. This shows how a length of material would be made up from a single length circa 6 metres long and about 1.5 metres wide into a sort of outfit come sleeping blanket for the Highlander.

The  point of this is that; all the visitors (and they run into thousands) have been a delight to volunteer for and share information to on the battle, the weapons, the kit and life in general for the Highlanders whilst being still dressed as a "Johnny Lobster" from the Government Army!

Saor Alba !!