Céilidh

Céilidh [ceilidh]/(pronounced Kay-lee): a traditional Gealic social gathering, which usually involves playing Gaelic folk music and dancing.

I've now officially been to one of these things they call a "céilidh." I now feel like my Scottish experience is near complete.

So I found myself on an Scottish isle (Iona), off the coast of another Scottish isle (Mull), sitting in a community center filled with locals listening to a pipe band. Yes, I said a PIPE BAND, as in a group of bag pipers all playing together in kilts. So fantastic! And then after the pipe band a few people got up and sang some lovely folk songs about having high cholesterol and loving their homeland.

And if this wasn't Scottish enough afterwards they cleared the chairs and we danced. And dance we did. It's very similar to a hoe down (except for the fact that there is no caller and I had no idea what was going on for most of the time...actually, that's no different than when I've been square dancing either.) and because kids tend to learn these Scottish dances while they are in school, it is generally assumed that one knows what they are doing. (and if you are one of those who didn't learn the steps in school and thus are really really confused you are expected just to catch on- or stumble around and entertain/get in the way of those that DO know what is going on.)

 

After we all stripped the willow, circled the room 'till you nearly get thrown to the ground, randomly clap and do a little jig for your partner and whatever other sorts of nutty square-dancingesque type dancing you can think of one of the most surreal moment in my life occurred.

Seeing as many of the pipeband members and a bunch of the people there were from Mull and the last ferry between Iona and Mull there was a midnight shuttle boat arranged to get everyone back to their homes. So as a farewell to our beloved pipeband everyone in the hall followed them in a pipeband led procession down to the docks.

I'm going to repeat this for you. I strode alongside a bunch of Scottish people in a PIPEBAND LED PROCESSION on a tiny little isle down to the docks under a beautiful starry night sky. And THEN all of us who were staying back waited on docks to wave them goodbye as they sailed away in the moonlight with their sound of their bagpipes slowly faded away. It was magical, pretty near brought tears to my eyes!