Pipes and Drums – Not Enough to Scare this Englishman

As you might expect from a Scottish festival, there were pipes and drums aplenty!  I am sure they are designed to intimidate the enemy and, as I’m sure you know, the enemy of every Scotsman is an Englishman.  Therefore, I was walking into the lion’s den on this day even if some of the claims of Scottishness were a little tenuous!

The various bands that were competing were all taking the thing very seriously.  They were well practiced in their routines and the musical ability was high – no strangled cats on this occasion.  Moreover, they really showed their commitment to the cause by dressing up in the full outfits, despite the fact that they are designed for a Scottish climate, not a hot, humid, summer day in the Chicago suburbs!

There were bands all over the place warming up, tuning the pipes, getting some last minute practice in before their time slot came due.  There were a series of judges around the arena scoring them on different aspects of their performance.  As their time was up they streamed out of the arena and another band was already waiting to come in.  No pauses for the spectators here!

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