2005 has been and gone, but here's some of the stuff that we got up to...
And there it was gone... DERT 2005 was held in Preston, the weekend of 4th - 6th March 2005. It was a really good weekend, and not just for the ludicrously cheap beer that Preston sells! This years DERT was a MASSIVE event with a huge number of teams entering. Gaorsach were in the open category, and we really enjoyed the dancing - not just dancing ourselves, but watching the other teams too. We think that we just about held our own, and managed to have a laugh as well, despite the pressure of competition! Due to the rather different way of judging the event this year (see the DERT website for details) we can't actually tell you where we were placed, but we got about 68%, which we thought was pretty good! We had a great time, largely down to it being such a friendly event, and everyone being so supportive. We had a team in the competition, and also a 'DERT virgin' team in the exhibition. Not sure who was more nervous!
Many thanks to the organisers, they really did a superb job.
Guess we'd better start getting ready for DERT next year in York then...
Eight dancers and 2 musicians performed at Ellon Gala, north of Aberdeen, on Sunday the 5th of June. It was organised by the Round Table, and was held at the Meadows from 1pm. The gala was a family fun day, with lots of stalls and attractions. We had a couple of spots during the afternoon, and were very grateful that the rain held off during the afternoon! Some of the belly dancing team who were on before us were wearing far less than we were, and so we felt a bit nesh being all wrapped up when we were waiting to go on, but I think that we'll stick to our nice warm kilts for the foreseeable future!
Yes folks, we were at Scone Palace once again this year! Just the one day this time though - Saturday 2nd July, and what a cracking day it was as well. We managed to avoid the rain this year, which is always a good thing! The usual suspects and supporters came along to this great family day out, and made the most of the fine weather and the food and beer tent... We did several spots throughout the day, and made impromptu appearances as and when. The best way to dance rapper - a hit and run kind of affair, leaving people wondering what on earth it was that they'd just been witness to.
Out for a whole weekend this time, so there was no excuse to miss us! We danced at Traquair House for their annual fair on the weekend of 6th and 7th August - weekend of dancing, camping and much merriment. Traquair House is the oldest inhabited castle in Scotland, and is situated about 30 miles south of Edinburgh, and about 100 miles north of Newcastle, in truly stunning countryside. Well worth a day out, even without us being there! More details of the house and the fair can be found via the link below. When Gaorsach weren't getting lost in the house maze, they danced around the house grounds at various points over the weekend, however, on the Sunday the weather turned a bit (very) foul. However, in true rapper team stylee, we did the only thing that we could - found the Traquair House Brewey Shop (purveyor of fine ales, available in all good offies), discovered that it had a fantastic wooden floor and the smallest possible dancing space known to mankind, and we danced in it. Oh yes - there were gasps of amazement from the viewing public, not to mention gasps of amazement from the rest of the team who had visions of us breaking something and then having to shell out for it... All was good though - never let it be said that a rapper team doesn't fulfil its promises!
HO-HO-HO!!!!!!!!!! Jingle bells, wassail, mulled wine and all the usual stuffings and trimmings were on in Aberdeen over the 3 weekends leading up to Christmas. Obviously the best time to go was the weekend of the 17th and 18th December, when Gaorsach strutted their Christmassy stuff around the streets in the hope of bringing some Christmas cheer to the thronging masses. Yes, despite the blistering cold, the biting wind and the driving snow, Gaorsach braved the elements of a very wintery Aberdeen, and danced at various spots over the weekend. We weren't sure that we could compete with the tap dancing turkeys (I kid you not), but we tried anyway, cheered on my consumption of some particularly fine mulled wine, and a look around the great stalls that were on the markets. The last booking of 2005, much enjoyed by everyone, and we're looking forward to 2006. Merry Christmas!!
