neffa

i'm writing this from my extremely swanky hotel room (paid for by someone else, because goodness knows i can't afford that kind of thing).

this morning is the last morning of the 70th annual neffa festival.

some things i saw:

morris dancers
an intro to tribal belly dancing class
a talk on weird unfretted zithers of the 19th and 20th centuries
a great number of men wearing dresses
people in traditional constumes
people is supremely bizarre costumes
a lecture recital on women of the civil war

things i did:

english country dancing for beginners
international dancing for beginners
contra dancing for beginners
role free contra dancing
a participatory round sing

things i ate:

an excellent plate of pad thai
a big plate of lithuanian food: stuffed cabbage, dumplings, and potato pancake
an indian inspired sandwich with vegetables and grilled chicken in a maple glaze served on naan
a completely fabulous macaroon

it is a lovely heartening thing to see so many people of different kinds all come together for gentle civilized pursuits like singing and dancing. there's such a general unblinking acceptance of however you come or whatever you're wearing and no "let's go over there and beat those guys".

it's nice.