Ceilidh’s galore!

Last night there was a harvest Ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee) held at Greyfriar’s Kirk (Kirk means church). It was loads of fun! My friend Kate has two other Canadians in town visiting her and so they got to come along and see what a Ceilidh is all about. Unlike the last two I went to, this one had people of all ages, from young kids to grandparents! There was one man–Walter–who just looked as if he has been going to ceilidh’s for his entire life. He was decked out in his kilt and dancing with the vigor of a 20 year old! Mind you these dances can be exhausting! You are jumping and spinning the entire night, and all of my friends agree that there is something about the live Scottish music which just brings a giant smile onto your face. Pictured above is me with our resident Scottish friend Adam in his full Scottish outfit. There are typically a few things which make up this traditional dress: a kilt, a sporran (the tiny bag which falls in front; sporran is the Gaelic word for purse), a kilt pin (which holds the two pieces together at the front), and a Sgian dubh (pronounced skee-an doo) which is a small dagger which sits in the sock.

fun fact: Scottish boys are not given their real kilt until age 21. At that point, a proper tartan will be hand woven and colored. The kilt plus everything else which makes up the Scottish dress can cost over £800.

We danced from 7 until midnight. We were sweating, laughing (at how bad we were), and smiling. Moral of the story: if you ever come to Scotland you need to go to a Ceilidh.