Xmas in Glasgow

Just spent a lovely afternoon/evening at Graham and Eamonn's house in Glasgow.

Glasgow Tapas

Had a great night tonight - took a few friends across to Glasgow to catch up with Katrina. We ended up at La Tasca, a great Spanish restaurant with great tapas, great sangria, and very nice desserts.

The mob on the way over was Fiona, Lindsey, Dylan, George and myself. We ended up meeting up with Lindsey's other half Gordon after dinner for a quick drink. He's a nice guy - was good to meet him.

Not much else to say other than it was a great night - I'm very happy with my life here in Edinburgh.

More travelling...

Well, I've done some more travelling - this time to Iceland. I've been before but was quite looking forward to visiting again, since the date for the last visit was probably 2000, 2001 at the latest. I had fond memories of wandering around the town, as well as an early evening visit to the Blue Lagoon - two things I was keen to repeat.

This trip was Thursday lunchtime to Sunday morning - a really good length of time, leaving us plenty of opportunities to see galleries, eat well, do lots of walking, as well as hiring a car on the Saturday for a wonderful day of driving and visiting other things I hadn't been able to see on my previous visit.

Reykjavík is a great little city. This time I felt a bit closer to the city, I was doing more walking around and began to be able to take shortcuts through lanes, recognise street names, and even in one instance give directions to a cafe I had not yet even been to.

Highlights of the city section of the trip include the Culture House where there was two fantastic exhibits - one on the creation of a nearby volcanic island over the last 50 years and it's resulting ecology, the other on the Icelandic Sagas - including original documents and books! Most amazing.

We also found a great little coffee shop, an amazing vegetarian place for dinner and a very cute organic cafe where we spotted the lead singer of Sigur Rós. We also hung out at Sirkus which is Björk's local bar, but she was on tour. Still a fun place though.

Saturday saw us driving out to the Geysir area - the Great Geysir not particularly active anymore nowadays, but we got to witness it's little brother "Strokkur" shoot off a few times. I was informed that apparently seven tourists a week scald themselves when they unbelievingly test the water to see if it is actually hot. Idiots.

Next stop after Geysir was Gullfoss, a pair of waterfalls further out. Great stuff - although freezing cold out there. Quite a popular destination, there were many people out on the rocks overlooking the waterfalls. I'm amazed sometimes by the safety at these attractions - in Australia you'd be fenced back 100m from the edge by huge wire fences, just for your own safety. Here you're free to plunge down the crevass if you wish. Bless.

The drive then took us to the famous Blue Lagoon where we hopped in the pool, ignoring the light rain pattering onto our faces. And again, I loved it. So relaxing and interesting and well, just something I want to experience more regularly.

I'd like a "yearly holiday destination", the creation of a nice routine where I can say "oh, I go every year". Sure - there's the skiing trips, but I'd like somewhere different as well.

Next trip for me? A weekend in Munich to catch up with Dylan. Looking forward to it! :)

There are more Iceland pictures on my Flickr pages.

Doors Open Day: Glasgow

This weekend just gone saw the annual Doors Open Day in Glasgow, I was lucky enough to be in town so I was quite excited about wandering around the city and poking my nose in places where it wouldn't normally go.

Doors Open Day is an opportunity for buildings that are not normally open to the public, to open their doors and show people around. I believe the concept started in Glasgow and has now spread to quite a number of cities. Basically it's a great opportunity to snoop around some very fancy buildings, plus if you get a good guide you can really find out some interesting history.

I finished my cello lesson with my friend David, and together we decided to take a wander into town via any open building on the way. First stop was a pair of churches in Dennistoun, basically back to back on the same block that have recently amalgamated - a month of worship in one church, then the next month in the other, and so on. They're getting architects in to determine which is the most viable church to move permanently into.

I quite like both churches but fell in love with the Gothic ceiling in the second, so that one gets my vote. In the second church we also had the services of a quite camp tour guide, who even allowed us to climb inside the workings of the pipe organ, and showed us a particularly interesting ladder up into the roof-space. He gave us a fascinating history of the building and of the parishes in the region. We probably spent longer there than we had originally planned, but he was quite animated and good for a laugh.

We then wandered further into town, stopping at the Lodging House Mission. It wasn't a scheduled stop but it was open so we wandered in. We were then treated to about 10 minutes of preaching about what they do, who they help, what services they provide. I guess Doors Open Day is a great way for the public to see inside the buildings, I guess we shouldn't begrudge the regular inhabitants the chance to tell people about their organisations as well as the building. It wasn't as pretty as the other churches we'd seen, but interesting nonetheless. It followed the same style, with a gallery on the second floor, but in this case it had been closed over and basically the whole church moved upstairs, with the downstairs converted (no pun intended) to the mission.

A stop for lunch, whereupon David's partner Kenny joined us. We wandered further into town, and stopped at the Britannia Panopticon, apparently Britain's only surviving music/theatre hall. I think "surviving" is quite an optimistic way of looking at it, as it was quite run-down, it's certainly not in use. There were some jolly people there singing and carrying on as if it was the old days, and you could certainly feel the atmosphere in the building. Downstairs is an arcade, apparently raising money for the renovations for the hall above, which I think is a great idea.

Second-to-last stop for the day was the "Greek Thompson Church", a wonderful church designed by the architect Alexander Thompson. The colour of the interior style reminded me of Australian parliament buildings, especially with the curved pew-layouts. But I loved the decor! His colour and style is very loving and very ornate, it's a very beautiful building to be inside. Apparently there were three churches by Thompson in Glasgow; one burned down and another was bombed, so this is the last. We were treated to a brief yet interesting history of the building, it's current owners, and the issues they're facing during the renovations of the building.

The renovations needed were quite visible - there was paint peeling from the ceiling, and plenty of buckets on the floor to catch the tripping from the leaky roof. With a bit of TLC this building will certainly be amazing. Joining us at this point was one of David's friends who also took delight in building.

Last stop for the day was the Royal College of Surgeons & Physicians where photography unfortunately wasn't allowed. Still, we enjoyed looking around their building which is actually three manor houses joined together to produce the one hall. Wonderful interior design, and a couple of fascinating libraries in that old style with a mezzanine layer accessed by a beautiful wrought-iron spiral staircase. Just before we left we were treated to some amusing anecdotes by a guy in the Livingstone Room at the hall, who had some funny things to say about Dr Livingstone.

We then wandered down to the CCA for a drink and the day was done. I was tempted to head back to Glasgow for the Sunday to see some other buildings but it never eventuated. Maybe next year!

You can see more photos of the buildings we visited on my flickr pages.

Rickshaw Run place

Oh my god! Fi and I have gotten a place on the Rickshaw Run, Winter '08!!

We'd all but given up due to the demand, there's only 50 places, but now we've got one! Well, if Fi can get the time off from work.

What is the Rickshaw Run, I hear you ask? Well it's a madcap trek, using a motorised 150cc rickshaw, starting in Kochi (southern India), all the way through to Kathmandu in Nepal. Suggested routes vary from 1944 miles, to a whopping 2569 miles.

We're nuts, absolutely nuts. There's no support at all. Just a cricket match and then the keys to your rickshaw, a quick wave and a "righto chaps, see you in Kathmandu".

More details to come, and yes this is a charity event so those of you reading this, we will BLEED YOU DRY for sponsorship!

Stay tuned! Very exciting.

Pentlands Walk

Joelle, Matt, Lindsey and I went for a stroll through the Pentlands - the usual starting and finishing places for me, catching the bus to Balerno, and home again from Penicuik. It's the inbetween that usually changes for me - sometimes I'll walk all the peaks, sometimes half, or sometimes just sticking to the flat. This time we just stuck to the flat, as I had guests who weren't that used to long walks.

I was pleasantly surprised to have them come with me; Matt & Joelle were only in Edinburgh for the weekend, and it was great to have them put 4 hours aside for a walk through the Pentlands - I hope they think it was worth it. I love the walk, and do it as many weekends as I can, but I realise not everyone is as crazy as I am.

The weather was glorious for the walk - we stopped for a snack lunch down near Threipmuir Reservoir, chatting away all the while. Joelle was taken by all the purple heather, whilst Matt was taking all the pictures! Be sure to check out his website at some point as I'm sure he'll have much better photos than I on there :)

Lindsey and Matt saw their first highland cows - due to the nature of the walking around the Pentlands we ended up in the paddock right next to two of them, which was great as it was the closest I've ever been too.

Due to public transport being a pain from Flotterstone (the usual start/end for people walking the Pentlands) we had to walk through to Penicuik, which I don't mind as even though it's not through the hills, it's down some lovely country roads.

We ended up home with about 15 minutes before we had to leave to go see a show at the Fringe - all quite happily exhausted, and very pleased at having spent 4 hours in the very beautiful Pentlands.

Fringe Review: The Ballad

The Ballad was one of the only shows I saw during the Festival that I didn't pick - maybe that's better as when it's someone else's choice, and it's bad, you have someone else to blame.

In this instance however, I have someone else to thank profusely; this show was incredible. Billed as a love story without words, the story instead is carried along by mime, dance, and aerial dance. Boy meets girl, girl likes boy, girl and boy shag, have a baby, girl dies giving birth. Very 90s. This story starts a little cheesy, but then again it's a great starting point for the direction this piece takes you.

Of course you've read all my other reviews, therefore you'd know I'm a huge supporter of any show that encourages the active suspension of disbelief. The dancing in this show is very freeform and contemporary, it's lovely, but I found myself breathless with the aerial work - it was very easy to ignore the harness on the girl and just appreciate the extra dimension the choreographer has opened up by enabling the girl to be flown. It's simply beautiful, and magical. It looked so effortless, and certainly enhanced the already magical feeling of the piece.

The show is predictable in places, tacky in others, but I found it wasn't too much of either - this is probably the tackiest show I've seen in a while (aside of Eurobeat but that's another story), and as much as I am loathe to admit; it's perfect tack. It's presented in such a beautiful way that it seems completely appropriate.

The Ballad has some darker moments, aided along by the beautiful score played by the composer herself, seated at the front right of the stage at her piano. Looking very Tori Amos-like, she plays along with the action, beautifully complimenting the dancers with appropriate music and impeccable timing. From time to time she utters deeply haunting vocals - a couple times at improbable moments, but her vocals at the end leave you disquieted - the perfect ending for a wonderful piece of theatre.

The Ballad played at Zoo Southside.

Fringe Review: The Last Five Years

The Last Five Years tells the tale of the five year relationship between Cathy and Jamie, with an interesting twist - Cathy's tale goes backwards, whereas Jamie's tale goes forwards. They progress through dating, co-habitating, getting married, and then the breakdown of the marriage. In the show Jamie gets increasingly bitter and ends up leaving Cathy, whereas Cathy starts from her breakdown and goes right through to being hopeful for their future together (which we already know is doomed).

It's a great format, and offers many opportunities for clever staging - the two actors only really share the same "time" right in the middle of the show, when they get married. Well, Jamie gets married, Cathy gets "unmarried".

Unfortunately director Russell Hope has missed quite a few of these opportunities to take the strange format of the show and run with it, so to speak, instead dumbing it down slightly, and the actors end up flip-flopping between their own timeline (backwards and forwards respectively), and the timeline of the other actor onstage, thus going from happy to sad to happy all in the space of three songs, it's a bit perturbing. I would wanted Hope to have embraced the idea of the timelines running in opposite direction and made more of it.

Nadim Naaman's Jamie is superb. He comes out on stage looking like a dweeb and you think "oh god, this is a college production" but then he opens his mouth and the awe sets in; Naaman has an incredible voice, perfectly suited for this role. He's likeable onstage, relaxed, friendly, and even when you want to dislike him you still can't help but feel sorry for him.

Hannah Wilding as Cathy is also a great casting, she plays the part perfectly, switching seamlessly between neurotic wife to swooning fan. Jason Robert Brown's script and score doesn't leave much chance for sympathy for the role of Cathy, yet Wilding draws you into her madness and I think you end up understanding her a little more than you normally can if you just listen to the CD.

However. Wilding's voice is not healthy right now. I saw the show on the night of the 22nd, and a review from an earlier performance agrees with me; her voice is suffering. I couldn't be sure if it's due to over-use, not warming up, or more likely; she has a cold. You can see the poor girl suffering as her voice refuses to behave - at times she hit completely wrong notes but had to stick with them, and other times she was quite flat in her upper register, switching to belting when she probably shouldn't, just to get the note out. I really feel for her, it's a terrible time to have your voice give up on you, but such credit to her - she rallies through and performs admirably.

It's a great script and score, and Naaman & Wilding certainly do credit to it. As I said I wish the director had pushed the split timeline idea a lot more, and I also wish I'd seen it on a night where Wilding's voice was up to scratch. I can hear that underneath the scratchyness and flat notes that she does have a great voice, it's a pity I didn't get to hear it.

The Last Five Years plays at the Pleasance Dome (Potterrow for you locals) until August 27.

Fringe Review: Paranoid Park

I didn't know what to expect from the film Paranoid Park, except that it was directed by Gus van Sant. I found out after that the screenplay was also written by him, from an original book.

Paranoid Park delves into the lives of teen skaters in Portland, Oregon, following a young skater "Alex" after he is involved in the accidental death of a security guard.

Co-Cinematographer Christopher Doyle was at the showing, introducing the film as "teen art", and then we settled in to watch. And such a beautiful film - it evokes memories of the casual style of Kids, more following the actors around rather than directing the action. All of the actors in Paranoid Park had never been in a film before, and this shows on a couple of the parts, but certainly not the lead "Alex", played wonderfully by Gabe Nevins.

This film doesn't seek to justify the lives of skaters, the accident that occurs, or in my opinion even celebrate the lives of skaters, merely lift the lid a bit and reveal the culture therein. It's such an easy film to watch - just sit back and let the ideas and visions wash over you. It's filmed in a format reminiscent of Super 8 - a square format, with a very early technicolor feel to it, evoking memories of the first family footage on video cameras, which certainly assists in the relaxed manner this film was shot. Christopher Doyle makes fantastic use of light throughout the film, there is a scene in the film where "Alex" showers after the death of the security guard - it's quite a long scene in the scheme of things, but it's utterly entrancing. No, not like that - you only see his head and upper shoulders, the shot is enhanced completely by the sound and light choices, it's fantastic.

One of the things I think they did so well in this film was give the audience time to think for themselves. So many films drag the audience along in the story without stopping for breath. Paranoid Park has so many points where you've really nothing else to do but consider the situation at hand - it's a little uncomfortable to begin with, as audiences are not often asked to get involved like that - but by the end of the film you're thankful for those moments where you're left with beautiful imagery and time for your own thoughts.

It's a brilliant, beautiful film, and it's definitely going in my DVD collection when it's out.

Paranoid Park info at IMDB.com.

Fringe Review: Eurobeat - Amost Eurovision

Eurobeat - Almost Good.

Eurovision is certainly an institution to the Europeans, but to a downunder Aussie like me, it's a mystery. I never "got it". I'd see the English go nuts every year, I'd hear Brits talk about it incessantly, about who they'd chosen to represent them, but I could never understand what all the hype was about.

Apparently Eurovision is already a parody of talent. Eurobeat then is a parody of a parody, and to someone uninterested in the original franchise, this show doesn't rise above the fact that it's just tacky. I can understand why the performers in Eurobeat were performing badly, but without that love of Eurovision, this is just a collection of bad songs.

Yes - the performers did well, the dancing is energetic (if a stereotype of already bad dancing), and their voices, yes, are very good. The production values are high - it's a good set, and the pre-show entertainment certainly turn the whole event into a spectacle.

Glynn Nicholas plays one of the Eurovision hosts, seemingly doing the only character I've ever seen him do. Not very inspiring, and cynically I would say he fits into the category of those who have to produce shows to cast themselves in as they're not talented (or versatile) enough to other people to want to cast them. I knew he was involved in the show, but was honestly disappointed to see him on stage. I was unaware of the fame of the other co-host, so the pair were remarkably unfunny to me.

I won't say that this is a terrible show - I'd say it's probably an excellent show for those people who love Eurovision. I'm just not one of those people.

Eurobeat - Almost Eurovision plays at the Pleasance Courtyard (around the side) until August 27.

Fringe Review: Out of the Blue

Wow, what a lively show. The boys are constantly moving, living and dancing from within their music. What seems slightly over-exuberant at the start of the show is completely natural by the end of it - these guys love their music so much, it's like you're seeing what they're like when they're alone in their rooms and singing just for the love of it. As I say it's slightly odd at the beginning, but it gets you hooked.

I've heard the music of Out of the Blue for a few years now, but as the group is constantly cycling as people graduate out of university, it's always good to revisit them from year to year.

There are no real suprises in the show, no innovative staging or tricks, just excellent voices and a great selection of songs, some songs only appearing as they're weaved subtly into other songs.

Nothing much else to say really, except that these boys certainly do justice to the already renowned name of their group. Voice highlights include Calum, Will and Joe. I had the pleasure to sit next to Calum's mum, she was a hoot, I can see where Calum gets it from.. [chuckles]

Out of the Blue plays at "C" Venue until August 27th.

Fringe Review: Corpus Christi

Ah, Corpus Christi. I first saw this play in Melbourne, probably in 1999. At the time it was causing a lot of controversy - I had to avoid the picketing mob who I assume were Christians, cursing me for going to a play they'd probably never seen or read.

But first, this performance. What a great job - the acting was superb, the ensemble work very tight, and a pleasure to watch. A lot of the simple staging is inherent in the script, but this adaptation seemed to flow so smoothly and subtly behind the ongoing dialog and action. For such a large cast, there were no weak points, it was a pleasure watching all speak and perform their assigned parts.

Corpus Christi flits between a high school in modern-day Texas, and 2007 years ago in Galilee. It makes the obvious (yet controversial) analogy between the treatment of homosexuality in Texas, and the oppression that Jesus would (may?) have received in his time. I believe this is the nature of the Christian's upset at the play - is the playwright Terrance McNally suggesting that Jesus was gay? I don't believe he was, I'm happy to believe in the analogy alone. The audience are even told that it's supposed to be a willing suspension of disbelief. And again, at the end of the play they ask again not to be offended; what we have just seen is simply a version, their version of an ancient and often-told story.

The play takes us through the meeting of the disciples, his miracles, the relationship between himself and Judas, right through to the crucifiction.

I love this play. I'm gay, anti-religious, so this play would seemingly have been written just for people like me. I also love theatre, and I also love scripts that ask the audience to suspend their disbelief. Theatre can be so much more powerful than simply an accurate representation of an event - whilst the audience is suspending disbelief that a piece of furniture which started as bleachers at an American football match, can be turned sideways and become the truck of a cab, whilst the audience is working with the cast members, why not ask for a little more? I love scripts like that.

I love this play, because to me, it's pro-faith. Sure, it challenges the notion of organised religion, much in the same way the Kevin Smith film Dogma does, but (I believe) like Dogma, this script has a very pro-faith message. It creates sympathy and understanding for Jesus and his disciples. It looks again at the nature of the relationship between Jesus and Judas, why was his fate sealed with a kiss? Did Jesus want Judas to betray him? Did Judas know what he was doing? Was he a willing patsy for the cult of Jesus? Corpus Christi doesn't seek to answer any of these questions explicitly, it merely presents the story in a different fashion, giving audience members the chance to consider the questions themselves.

This cast does a stirling job with this. You immediately feel part of the ensemble cast as they are mingling in the foyer before the show starts (I didn't realise that until I saw them onstage later), and start the show in such a casual way that your theatrical defenses are down right from the start. The dialogue flows so effortlessly and is a joy to watch. This show will push all your buttons - if you're a die hard homosexual who hates religion, you'll find yourself strangely sympathetic with Jesus' plight. If you're a Christian it'll challenge you to rethink what you thought you knew about the gospells. If this play doesn't affect you in one way or another, you must be dead.

It's my pick for the Fringe, go see it.

Corpus Christi plays at Bedlam Theatre until August 25th.

Fringe Review: Songs for a New World

This was my first time seeing this show presented on stage, and to be honest I hadn't really given the soundrack much of a go before, having been given it about a year ago but only played it once or twice.

Songs for a New World is collection of roughly grouped songs, ostensibly about life in America. Probably why I never bothered listening to it much. What actually got me interested in listening to it again was the composer's new work. Jason Robert Brown's show The Last Five Years is absolutely brilliant, so going back to Songs for a New World I can now recognise his style.

In true Fringe style the staging is simple, yet works perfectly for the style of show. Originally written for two men and two women, director Russell Hope has stretched the songs out to a cast of seven. The ensemble work of this company is great, it's a pleasure to watch the cast work together as you can really feel the warmth between them.

There were two standout performances however, unfortunately I don't know their names, but the song was I'd Give It All For You. I'd noticed I enjoyed watching these two people more than the others, so when they had a song together I was quite expectant, and was not let down. They delivered a number far better and more emotional than the CD ever managed to achieve, I was incredibly touched by the chemistry between them; that moment lingered for me long after the show was over.

Other great numbers include a very funny Just One Step and the similar Surabaya-Santa. The girl singing Stars & The Moon has a great voice, she just needs to belt a bit more to bring out her voice. This version certainly does justice to the music, definitely worth seeing.

Songs for a New World plays at Augustine's (lovely church on George IV), Aug 17-27 (except the 20th).

Fringe Review: Company

Director Michael Strassen has trimmed the original show down into a tightly packed show, fit for a Fringe audience. I was disappointed to see some numbers passed over (such as Sorry, Grateful, one of my favourites), but you have to expect that otherwise the show is too long for most Fringe audiences.

The show started damn tight - excellent voices, great harmonies and a good balance of voices. The simple staging suited the transitions between couples nicely, and Antonio Mcardle plays the most laidback and comfortable Robert I've seen in years - a great contrast to the couples around him.

Marisa Leigh Boynton brings new laughter to Getting Married Today that is sure to have you in fits, and Maryanne McCormack does a brilliant emotional rendition of The Ladies Who Lunch.

I found myself wanting more guts to Mcardle's Being Alive as he delivers the song from 'underneath' I'd say, much like his characterisation throughout the rest of the show. I love the song so really wanted a lot more to it. It's probably fair enough that it was delivered emotionally rather than as in a concert, but I still wanted more from it.

Overall it's a great show, with no weak links at all, such a great cast!

Company is playing at the C venue in Chambers St, Aug 17 - 27.

Half-time at the Fringe

Well, it's halfway through the Edinburgh Fringe, and I'm exhausted. Amusingly enough I'm not even halfway through the list of shows I'm seeing this year, but nonetheless it's been so busy.

In addition to Fringe-like activities, I have some new friends in Glasgow that I'm very pleased to have met, it feels like I'm now living the lifestyle I came here to have. I've been to and from Glasgow quite a bit over the last few weeks, and I must say I'm quite attached to the city now. It has wonderful architecture, a fabulous necropolis, good shopping, and well, fun people! My first main trip over there was for the Glasgow River festival, which was a lot of fun. The same weekend I met a ton of new friends, and it's been great since then.

Through one of these new friends, I'm now taking cello lessons. I'd always thought I'd self-teach myself the cello when I was 40+, but as circumstance would have it, the opportunity came up and I'm glad I've taken it. New cello sometime in the next week, and I'm set. Lessons have been great, David (the teacher) is a great guy, and yes of course it helps that he's very cute too. I'm looking forward to buying my cello and spending the hours practicing, I've missed having a musical instrument in my life.

The Fringe has been great so far - I've seen Simon Amstell's show (better than last year), and Songs for a New World (great to finally see it on stage). Last night I saw "The Best of Irish Comedy" which had me in absolute fits. Amusingly, the compere was funnier at times compared to a couple of the acts. He performed a short ditty about his "very minor super powers", which had us asking everyone all night to come up with their own minor super powers. Yet to see is a whole variety of stuff - Corpus Christi, a film, some authors in the Book Festival, another musical, and few more comedians, I feel very proud that I've crammed so much in this time around.

Watching Songs for a New World on Tuesday has made me obsess about the soundtrack again, god it's such good music. It's a nice change to change albums (if not composers), since I've been playing The Last Five Years to absolute death since Annie gave it to me back in June. I'm seeing TLFY next Wednesday so I'd best not play the soundtrack too much between now and then, I don't want to go in expecting the CD and get something different.

Even though I'm loving the Fringe, I am, as mentioned, exhausted. I think I'm doing something just about every night of the week. Tonight I have gym, two Fringe events Friday, more friends visiting for the weekend, shows on Saturday night, playing host Sunday, back to work on Monday, closely followed by yet more shows.

I think part of it is having a full house. Greg has been with me for a few months now, and will be here off and on for a while yet I imagine. Another friend Lindsey has been around since around mid-July. I'll have more guests this weekend, and even more guests the following weekend. It's very hard for me to relax when I have a house full of people. I didn't set out to fill my house with people; it's just happened that way. To top it off, I'm starting to spend some lovely moments with a very sweet guy, it'd be nice to have a bit more personal space around me, and to be a little less exhausted, so I can see where that leads. It's very nice, each time I see him is certainly a highlight.

We went to Roslin together for lunch on the weekend, had a lovely pub meal, and then strolled through the Roslin Chapel, which was better than I thought it was going to be. Dan Brown and thousands of American tourists aside, it's actually a very beautiful chapel in it's own right. It was a lovely relaxed afternoon, followed by dinner and DVDs. Bliss. Relaxing, sweet, and yes, certainly a highlight. I've no idea where it's going, kinda wish I did, but heck, it's lovely for now.

Well, enough for now, I'll attempt to report on some of the stuff I see during the Fringe later on in the month.

Kitten hunting in Manchester...

Jumped on the train from Edinburgh to Manchester. Nice trip, quiet, mostly reading and listening to the iPod. Didn't pay much attention to the scenery on the way down, although it was light out for most of it. Plan to stare out of the window much more on the way back.

At about Preston, just before Manchester, a guy sat next to me, of Chinese/Tibetan/Mongolian descent, clutching a scrap of paper which turned out to be directions to Peterborough. He spoke no English except "Peterborough", "change", and "Manchester", which is basically what his directions were telling him. He seemed to want to know if he was on the right train, and I assured him he was. I settled back into my book and was soon at Manchester. I told him we were now in Manchester, and he got off the train just behind me. I turned to make sure he was alright, and he pointed at the opposite side of the platform, asking "Peterborough?". Manchester station has about 25 platforms, probably more. It probably wasn't going to be the right platform. I took him down to the nearest departures board, but I couldn't see anything obviously bound for Peterborough. So I motioned for him to follow and went down to customer service. This was now about 9.20pm. Customer service informed me that he wasn't getting to Peterborough that night, and showed me a timetable for a 7.30am train the next day. How to explain that with no English? So I took the timetable, highlighted possible trains, and noted on a different piece of paper which times they were leaving.

I'm not sure if he was disappointed or even really understood that he wasn't getting to Peterborough that night. I wished him luck, and we went our separate ways.

I found myself considering his predicament as the night wore on, just who was he? Who gave him the instructions for Peterborough? What was he doing in the UK? Why didn't he have any English? Sure, he was "foreign" and of some Asian descent, but he didn't look particularly refugee-like. He had the air (and the hair) of a Tibetan monk, but what placed him on a train arriving at Manchester? And beyond the past, what of his future? Where did he sleep? Should I have offered him to share my hotel room? Or find him accommodation? I have no idea how much money he had - I didn't even see a train ticket. Do we as humans owe a lot more compassion for each other? Should have I taken another 30 minutes to get him sorted? Who else was going to help him along his way?

Where is he now? Did he sleep on a bench at the train station? Was he cold? He had no baggage to speak of. I think I'll be wondering these things for a while.

I cabbed all of a few minutes to the hotel and settled in. I don't like to complain, but gosh, what a shitty room. The mattress was so collapsed it was bowed, the sheets weren't fitted properly (no "hospital corners") and well, it was just unkempt. Even lying on the bed to watch TV was uncomfortable.

Still, it was just a place to sleep, and after watching some trash TV, that's what I did.

I slept well, and checked out around 8am. Breakfast was a latte and a pain au chocolat down at a Starbucks where I spent a pleasant hour or so people watching from the window. Gosh these people dress funny. I saw jackets I wouldn't even wear trout fishing.

I love people watching - it reminds me of the diversity of humanity. The UK is incredibly multi-cultured now, I felt I could still spot the real "locals", but there is such an ethnicity diversity here now. Probably more so in Manchester than there is in Edinburgh. It's incredible to watch them all walking past the window.

I wandered down to the train station and sorted my tickets to Smithy Bridge, the whole reason I was down here in the first place.

One of my favourite things about taking the train is that again you see an incredible diversity. In cities the tracks often past some of the dodgier areas. Not deliberately I'm sure; the areas become dodgy by virtue of being close to constant noisy trains.

Manchester is no exception, but soon the train was in the countryside, complete with horses, cows, canals and yes, even people trout fishing. Smithy Bridge came up soon and I left the train.

A wonderful hour or so was spent with the kittens. I was in love with the little girl as I thought I might be - beautiful colouring and a wild nature. Very cute. I'd been a little hesitant about only having one kitten at home alone whilst I was working, and had been entertaining the idea of getting two.

I certainly found another kitten to fall in love with, there were other colours and patterns that were nice, but the cheeky personality of one of the boys caught my eye. In the end I'd settled on the brother/sister pair. But during my time there, I also got to spend time with the adult cats, and honestly, they're huge.

They're huge, and practically human. Children. Two kittens is fine, but two adult cats with everything that goes along with it? Can I divide my love and attention between the two of them? Can I imagine two adult cats on my bed, or running down the hall wanting to be fed?

I think now, after some consideration, that I'm a one-cat-person. Just me and her, against the world. My companion that waits for me to get home, who gives her love to me as I do her. Maine Coons are people probably more so than any other breed - I'd probably get jealous if I had two. And so would they.

A quick return train brings me back to Manchester, where I'm now sitting on Canal St enjoying a beer. Well, two beers as apparently it's two-for-one day. I don't normally drink during the day, and now two pints?

Soon I'll be heading back to the train station, and back to Edinburgh. It's been a good trip. I think I'm happiest when I'm travelling. My brain is more active, I write. I think about things. I ponder the world, and I people watch much more.

I love the people watching - finding characters for stories. Reinforcing the diversity. Realising there are similar stories and lives even in disparate people. Realising I can find the same stories, but I don't have to write about the same people. The key themes I always come back to - loss, identity - these are common themes. Are my "normal" characters even real? Aren't they just plastic cobbled-together façades of the life I always thought I wanted? Should I write my stories for plastic fake people that I've aspired to be, but have known all along don't really exist?

Or should I write about real people? Should I embed my stories in real people? Will my audiences still see the stories that I have to see? I think they will, and I think I can only benefit from learning to let go from the false ideals I've always clung to.

Speaking of which - I emailed Craig last night. He accused me of not replying to his emails. I just don't know what to say - to be angry, or sad. To love, or to hate. Better to shut up and move on, really.

A long relationship with Craig is just as much a fallacy as those empty shells of people I always thought I wanted to be. Move on, Marc. Find what's real.

Time to get my train.

Manchester Picadilly now for a short while. Starbucks in one hand, pen in the other. Ubiquitous iPod. Two pints down, is this happiness natural? It is actually a great day, somewhere behind the low thin cloud cover is a sun that's doing a pretty admirable effort to keep the light bright and the day warm. I had a couple of travelers ask me for directions - probably realising their folly the moment I opened my mouth. Still, they walked away with my googled map of Manchester which I no longer need.

Two people were comfortable enough to sit next to me on my table at the bar as I wrote and drank my two pints. Or "cheeky" enough as they put it. Was pleasant to hear their weekend catchup banter.

I love these moments with strangers, getting over our seemingly innate embarrassments to ask for something - directions, to share a seat, the way to Peterborough.

If I had my way I'd wander around foreign cities waiting for these little interactions, this fresh material.

Is my life all about what's new? The new friend, the new relationship, new city, country, job, life? There's a wide gap in my life, between the old and the new. The fixed routines and habits, and the craving of new experiences. As I get older the gap gets wider. My friends I've either known for 10 years, or six months. What is it about the middle ground that upsets me so? Why do I seek routine in the small things so much? The same coffee at the same time every day. "Fish Fridays" at work, which closely follow my regular Thursday lunch habits. I cling to these small things, yet I run from the wider experiences. One semester was enough for uni, after that I'd "done" it. As a contractor I love that I'm always changing jobs, bosses, buildings, commuting. I've lived in two continents, four countries, fix cities, and god knows how many houses. Does ordering the same coffee every morning give me the routine I quite clearly lack in the rest of my life?

Time to go find my platform.