So, Friday arrived. Finally, a typical Scottish Day. Grey, cold, pissing with rain, and, a fairly steady wind. We lounged about the house with coffee while I packed Himself’s & my bags in prep for the flight/coach/train down to London in the morning and about half eleven, having bathed & dressed, we set off into town for the last time. We went in by a different route as we were on the search for the house where Himself lived for several years as a wee one... 1313 Inverleith Terrace. We found the terrace eventually but not 1313. When we put that into the Garmin it consistently changed the house number to 35 which was as high as they went on the road. Himself did, in the end, admit that after 49 years he might have misremembered the address but was sure that it wasn’t #13 which was just as well because it was under renovations and covered with scaffolding and screening so that we couldn’t have got a photo of him on the steps (to hang next to the one of him on the steps as a three/four year old) anyway.
We then proceeded round/through town to the car park nearest the Playhouse where we’d end our day and headed into the city center where we went to a pub called Jekyll & Hyde for a performance of ‘Rachel’s Cafe,’ a one person show based on the experiences of Rachel/Eric, a transgendered person who really runs the cafe in Bloomington, IN. The concept was very good, the venue & set close to perfect, the acting could have been just a bit better. The Actor was pretty good as Rachel but failed to fully become Eric at the end of the day. Dennis and I had hoped for something that might move us to tears but it was just sweet. Perhaps Rachel’s had it that easy. We gave it three stars.
After the show, it was raining again/still and we headed Quickly to the Royal Scottish Museum for The Queen exhibit. Four rooms done as the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s/80’s, 90’s/2000’s/2010’s and began with the photo taken of the new Queen as she stepped off the plane in London when she returned from Kenya after news of her father’s death going on to her most recent official portrait for her Diamond Jubilee next year. It was well done and we all enjoyed it.
When we came out the museum, the rain having almost stopped, we wandered over to the Royal Mile in front of the Castle and strolled down the length stopping here and there to browse. I’m afraid it’s really a lot like Duval Street these days full of tee-shirt/souvenir/cashmere and kilt shops. And pubs. OK. So there are no kilt or cashmere shops on Duval Street but you know what I mean.
We got to the bottom and turned toward the car park where we made a stop to swap our trainers for dress shoes and our windbreakers for sport coats then headed to Julliano’s a bit early for our reservation at six which was a good thing. We had a relaxed meal with desserts and just got to the playhouse in time for a drink before curtain. The performance was fabulous. A world premier and an old classic, the names of both I’ve forgotten and don’t have handy but will edit in later for the purists who must know.
The crowd was better inE’burgh than in London. No one in shorts & flip flops, a few people in jeans & tee’s but most were well dressed or dressed up. Lots of men in skirts. Formal. With the ruffles, bow ties, cutaway coats, and hats too. Ranging from about 12 years to 80. Whole families of ‘em.
Home. Nightcap. Bed.
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