A most excellent weekend up in Glasgow. Picked up Matt and Dav from Runshaw on Friday afternoon, arrived Glasgow around 9pm. Met up with the rest of the 7 explorers we’d arranged to be on the colour party, checked they were ok & give brief outline of weekend. Then over to check into a VERY posh hotel, and meet the rest of the wedding party in a nearby resteraunt. Hugh on good form, caught up with Roger, Dom and Rob.
Up next morning to ensure the explorers were up, briefed them on what needed to happen. Then back to out flat to meet Hugh & the rest of the guys, get ready and then start with our wonderfully detailed itinerary of being in the right place at the right time. Collected the guests and chivvied them into opentop buses for a tour of Glasgow, arriving at the University Chapel. A stunning place, one of the most impressive chapels I’ve ever been in.
Got everyone inside, caught Jo arriving & escorted her mum down the isle. Then back to the seat for the service – after the wedding ceremory snuck out with the explorers to get the colour party set up. The Explorers were excellent – big respect to Carrington, Matt, Steph, Bex, Dav, Kingy and Nancy – Hugh and Jo were well impressed as they came out of the Chapel.
Several thousand photographs, got the congregation back onto the buses (inadvertantly telling them to arrive back at 4.30 – not 3.50! — that one involved some frantic phonecalls!), then some more pics in the Cloisters. Grabbed a cab back from the Chapel with the Parents & Dom plus flags and flowers, to the Trades Hall, venue for the evening doo.
Lots of mingling, meeting & catching up with people, nearly getting set up by Carl, and a bit of tense action until the final bus arrived ( with many shivering people), then into the venue proper. Awesome place. Big on the History, and character. And it had been decked out really well.
Excellent food, speeches very good & impressive, was ensconsed by Hugh’s Sweedish Scouting mates & so good conversation. Food cleared away and Ceildh started – had one dance then ended up chatting with Nige and the Explorers, trying to get Matt to make all the right moves with a girl he was working on. How worringly pious of me.
Good evening, cleared the hall, took flowers back to ours. Everyone else seemed to evaporate, so went for a couple of beers with Nige to the bar round the corner.
Sunday, morning after brekky, courtesy of the parents. Good to catch up with everyone in their normal wear! Collected Explorers, started heading home. Felt a bit rough in the morning – halft way down the A74 realised I was coming down with something. Very hard 5 hour journey back – shattered, aching, hot/cold things, killing headache etc. Bugger.
Dropped Explorers off in a variety of places – after saying our goodbyes to Carrington and the other car at Rheged. Home for about 4, straight to bed. Up at about 10.30pm til 12, then bed again, really rough night, took a days illness on the Monday. Bleargh.
