Uppies re-unite again!!!

Q:  What do you get when you combine traveling + dancing + great people + culture + zero sleep??

A:  Up With People of course!  

This time the occasion for our mini-reunion (Sheena, Kris, Andrew, Bernie, and Me) was Sheena's wedding in Nova Scotia.  After an a 12 hour traveling day (overnight with 2 layovers), I arrived on Friday AM.  I met Andrew at the airport and we were picked up by the groom's best man and his wife.  After a quick shower to freshen up, we took a walking tour of Antigonish (a university town) and then met the bridal party/family for dinner.  Andrew and I were then off to the airport again (2 hour drive one-way) to pick up Bernie from Germany and David from Africa/London (one of Sheena's friends from the International House she lived in) for their midnight arrival.  

This is Eelyn, Kris's newest addition to her family (after twin boys)

Just when we thought we could sleep in on Saturday AM, we were jolted from deep sleep by at least 100 bagpipers outside our windows!!  All we could do to keep from screaming, was laugh. We spent a couple hours at the Highland Games (Scottish festival) watching some dancing and tug of war (did you know there's actually strategy and synchronized movements in competitive tug of war?)  Then it was time to head to the wedding, which was amazing.  The ceremony was held outdoors on a bluff overlooking the ocean.  The reception was a ton of fun for us veteran dancers as Sheena's family/friends taught us the traditional Scottish social step dance (an amazing workout and tons of fun!)  That evening a group of us talked into the wee hours of the night back in our hotel (sheena's brother and his girlfriend/sheena's ex-roommate from the Czech, and Sheena's friend Jessidee from Cuba/Florida).

Here is a video of about 1/10th of the dance

 

Sunday we had brunch at Sheena's parents house, then played at the beach for a bit, and ended the evening back at the Highland Games to show off our new dancing skills and to listen to Sheena's bridesmaid, Kim Fraser--a professional fiddler.  www.kimberleyfraser.com

Monday Sheena, Phil, Phil's daughter, and Sheena's highschool friend, and us Uppies piled into a van and drove to the airport and had one last meal together before we parted ways again, already longing for our next reunion...

For those who were there...I finally got my Timbits at my layover in Toronto!  :)