The initial reason we came overseas for the second time this year was to attend the wedding here in Edinburgh for Vicky and John's daughter, Amelia. Today was the day.
The forecast for today was for a cooler day and when we woke up it was only 5C.
Suzy thought the tie I'd brought with me from home was the wrong blue and so we went back to Charles Tyrwhitt to buy a different one. We got something for lunch as Starbucks.
At about 1:15pm, we got an Uber to take us to the wedding venue, Mansfield Traquair. This is a grand impressive building. Apparently it used to be a church and is now a function centre.
Outside the entrance, there was a Scottish bagpiper. Inside there was a large open area where people were mingling and having drinks. At the other end there was a low platform with chairs set out for the wedding ceremony. In this area, there where were strings of small lights hanging down the walls. It looked fabulous.
As we entered, someone took our heavy puffer jackets that we'd worn to keep warm on the way here.
Many of the men were wearing kilts - including the groomsmen, father of the groom and father of the bride. Some men were wearing tartan trousers - including the groom. The groom looked remarkably calm as we waited for the bride to arrive.
The ceremony started soon after 2pm. Apparently in Scotland you either need to be married in a Christian ceremony or a Humanist ceremony. This was the latter.
The marriage celebrant naturally had a Scottish accent. Unfortunately he didn't use a microphone and so I had trouble hearing much of what he said.
The ceremony lasted about 30 minutes and was followed by signing of the registry in a table on the stage. A very nice ceremony.
After the ceremony, we formed a passageway outside the church and threw confetti over the happy couple as they left to get into a wedding car. I guess they were going somewhere to take photos. It was chilly outside in the cool breeze.
Back inside, the guests had the opportunity to have a drink and a chat.
At about 4:30pm, the bride and groom returned led by a man playing the bagpipes. This was followed by the speeches - father of the bride and each of the two best men.
Dinner consisted of three delicious courses. We were seated at a circular table with other cousins. There were two tables of Australians.
The band started playing at about 8pm. Initially there was Scottish dancing which is known as Ceilidh dancing.
I was amazed by the energy of the dancing by the young people. It made me feel tired just watching them dancing vigorously for hours. These people know how to party.
At about 10pm, we were all ushered downstairs to an open courtyard where we were each supplied with a sparkler as another celebration for the bride and groom.
The music and dancing continued until about 11:45pm when everyone was invited onto the dance floor to form a circle and sing Auld Lang Syne.
I've participated in many weddings for the Auld Lang Syne finale but this was very different. Normally the bride and groom go around the circle to say goodbye to everyone. Perhaps the guests form a tunnel as they leave.
Not this time. A group of blokes grabbed the groom and hoisted him up onto their shoulders with much cheering. Then they started throwing him up in the air multiple times.
That wasn't all. Other people picked up the bride and started throwing her up into the air multiple times. I was nervous that this could end badly but it was OK.
I've never seen anything like it before and I doubt if I ever will. Not just because of seeing them being thrown up in the air, but also the energy enthusiasm and cheering for the bride and groom. It was quite a spectacle.
As I said before, these people know how to party.
It was a wonderful amazing extraordinary wedding in a fabulous venue. Well worth travelling from the other side of the world to be part of the excitement.
At about midnight, we caught an Uber back to our apartment. We were in bed by about 12:30am at the end of a very memorable day.
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