(no subject)

Every year Halifax hosts an International Tattoo. Those of you that have been to the original (I think) Tattoo in Edinburgh will know the drill. Bagpipes, military and civilian bands, folk dancing, acrobat acts are the order of the day. The event is at the Metro Centre downtown, which happens to be right across the street from my office window. For a week ahead of the start of the event and usually through the event, we start hearing bagpipe music wafting across the road as various participants are out on the decks of the facility practicing.

They also have free music and/or dancing performances from participants in the Parade Square park in front of City Hall, also across the street during the performance week which starts July 1. I have only seen it once many years ago and I've seen the one in Edinburgh which is very impressive, on the esplanade outside Edinburgh Castle as a backdrop. Kind of hard to beat that, really, but our Tattoo is very good and worth seeing. Unless you don't like the pipes, I guess.

I took this photo out my window and posted in on Social Media, saying it was my fave time of year because I get to hear the bagpipe rehearsals all week. One response on Twitter was "Is this guy serious?". Not sure if that was a snotty remark because of the bagpipe thing or because they thought i was pathetic enough to take the photo and post it LOL! I don't care really but i did reply to say this *woman* is serious and I love the pipes. They are an aquired taste of course, not everyone likes them. A few of my coworkers that sit near me find it as grating as fingernails on a chalkboard. The bagpipes is obviously not a dying art, either. Most of the people I can see playing them are not older men (haven't seen any or very few women participants though you do see them in pipe bands in local parades). Ohh yes, Parade, on Canada Day next Tuesday, there is a parade for all the Tattoo participants. If i can get my arse out of bed and over to Halifax early enough I might go. It starts at 10:30 a.m.! I always say that but I never can get out of the house early enough. The busses are on holiday schedule and I'd have to catch the 9 a.m. bus. urgh.