Taste of Scotland

What a perfect ambiance for a show. 

Held at the mansion of Prestonfield, the guests settle down in anticipation. 

Dinner is served before the show. The portions of the three course meal may look small, but its filling and I couldn’t do justice to it. 

The show starts with Cameron Goodall explaining (with glee and delight) what Haggis is. 

This is followed by a dram of malt whisky from Prestonfield’s famous collection. The three Scotish tenors were introduced with a song and dance sequence. 

There is a scene of Glencoe and the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion followed by the sword dance. 

Some of the guests were invited to the stage and they had a merry time trying to keep up with the professionals. 

 A glimpse of this can be seen in the 22 minute video (the best I could capture from where I was sitting) I liked the solo instrumentals 

 and also the singing by Brigid Mhairi. 

On the whole an enjoyable evening. 

Incidentally I spotted Cameron Goodall the next day at the Military Tattoo helping one of the Bagpipers put on his shoulder straps properly. 

Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2017

Got a good shot of these sailors who were smartly dressed for the parade. 

Had been to the Military Tattoo this year at Edinburgh. This happens to be on the  bucket list for many and so was it for us. We were there well in advance and it was nice to see the stands getting filled up slowly. 

While walking up the Royal Mile towards the castle, I turned back and clicked the sea of humanity who were all going in the same direction. 

The lineup of participants included 250 pipers and drummers, and contingents from Japan, India, UK and US .  You could see the flags of all the participating nations fluttering around the Esplanade. 

I learned later that the stands at the Esplanade can be assembled or dismantled within a month.  The seats were quite comfortable but some liked to have additional cushions, which were available on hire at a cost of one pound.

The Tattoo starts off with the ceremony of theGaelic Toast, where the Piper and the Salute taker have a Quaich (Scottish drinking cup) of whisky. The Piper recites the Gaelic Toast (welcoming the Salute taker to the castle, wishing him, the Queen and everyone present the best) and then they drink together. They have to then kiss the bottom of the Quaich as a sign that no whisky is left behind and wasted.  

The Marines stand at ease while the ceremony goes on. 

 As the night progressed there were projections on the castle which were mostly related to the story enacted or the parade. 

The Indian Naval band appeared with Commander Vijay Charles and 65 musician sailors. There was an array of colourful dancers who danced to Vande Matram. Later, to my surprise they started playing Bollywood numbers.  

As for the Japanese, they had the Ground Self Defence Force Central Band with some special performance on the drums. 

The Band of The Royal Regiment of Scotland told the story of the Jacobites through the breathtaking piece “Ambush in the Glen”

The Royal Navy towed in a Helicopter to add to the effect of a search and destroy operation. 

I think the light and the sound effect played a major role in the whole show.    

We were lucky to get our seats in row K section 5 from where I could capture some of the action with my point and shoot camera. 

After editing / splicing and joining the snippets, it runs for about 41 minutes. It will give you a glimpse of the actual performance which ran for about 100 minutes. At the end of the Tattoo, all the participants come on to the Esplanade and they march out through the Royal Mile.  

Earlier in the day I had clicked the castle from outside.

The link to Part II of the video is here.