Och!

We decided we had one last ball in us for this season, so on the 24th of November we went to the Dhaka Caledonian Society's St. Andrew's Ball. We hadn't thought about it until the Chieftain of the DCS called Patrick at home about two weeks before the ball to ask him if he wanted tickets. It was good she'd called -- Patrick got six tickets for us and two other couples, and the Ball ended up being completely sold out. We went with Patrick's colleague Angela and our friend Jeremy, who's here working on a USAID project, and met Jennifer's colleague Wendy and her husband Ifthekar there.

We arrived just in time for the Selkirk Grace, the traditional Scottish prayer before meals. After a small appetizer, the haggis was brought in to great fanfare. We're not sure that the haggis is a standard part of every St. Andrew's Ball (it's more of a Burns Supper thing), but it was welcome, anyway. Burns's "To a Haggis" was recited superbly, and everyone who wanted some got a big plate full of the "great chieftan o' the puddin'-race." Then came the main course (for those who still had room!).

The British High Commissioner led us all in the Loyal Toast (short & sweet: "Ladies and Gentlemen, The Queen."), then gave a reasonably funny speech about the Scots. The Chieftain spoke next, and then it was time to dance! A band from Aberdeen had flown in just for the occasion, so we danced all sorts of set dances: the Eightsome Reel, Strip the Willow, the Cumberland Reel, and the Military Two-Step, just to name a few. A rousing chorus of "Auld Lang Syne" rounded out the evening.

It was a great muckle occasion and a worthy finish to the 2006 ball season in Bangladesh. Och!