The 2022 Edinburgh Fringe Festival wasn’t on our Senior Nomad’s list of events to attend until our good friend and playwright, Duane Kelly, told us one of his plays would be performed at this year's festival. Attending the festival and supporting Duane seemed like the perfect launching point for our return to Europe after nearly eight weeks in Seattle.
We arrived in Seattle near the end of June for the birth of our newest grandchild, Weston Henry Campbell - first prodigy of our youngest son Christopher and his wife Jamie. But Weston had other ideas and made his debut on June 4th. He was a few weeks early, but he is now a very happy and healthy baby. A new grandchild was reason enough to come “home," but spending most of the summer in Seattle for the first time in nine years was also a treat.
Our first peek at little Weston. He was just 4.7 oz when he was born, but he’s a whopping 11 pounds and much happier now.
Another reason for the extended stay was the French contingent, daughter Mary, husband Gregoire, and our three grandchildren, Colette, 12, Marcel, 10, and Jacques, 8 were in Seattle to house and farm-sit for family friends for two weeks. Their nearly 12-acre property on Bainbridge Island includes a beautiful home, extensive gardens, a busy Airbnb cottage to manage, a baseball diamond, three frisky goats, and a couple of sheep to look after. It was the perfect holiday - although they earned their keep!
The kids enjoyed several 35 minute Ferry boat crossings from Seattle to Bainbridge Island.
Our oldest daughter Kelly also lives in Seattle, so we enjoyed time with her. And at the end of the month, our son Alistair, his wife Jenny, and our teenage grandchildren Spencer and Lucy came up from Hermosa Beach, California, for a long weekend to participate in a family “Favorite Children’s Book” baby shower for Weston. There were many memorable moments as we presented our books, and Michael found one from his childhood called The Little Sail Boat by Lois Lenski, and that was a highlight.
Almost 100% of the family was gathered for a fun children’s book themed baby shower for Weston.
After a whirlwind of sports events, family gatherings, catching up with friends, and an radio interview with Rick Steves*, it was time to move on. On August 4th, the French folk returned to France, and the Senior Nomads began a new round of travel, starting with Edinburgh.
We decided in April we'd go to Edinburgh, so we booked our Airbnb early, knowing inventory would be limited and prices would increase the later we left it. There were a decent number of Airbnbs to choose from in the city, but we also looked further out since we weren’t sure we wanted to be right in the thick of things.
The pictures of this cottage were irresistible, even though we knew we’d be a few miles from Edinburgh.
A listing caught our eye that was about 5 miles east of Edinburgh near the town of Musselburgh. It was so charming that we booked it, knowing we’d have to find our way into the city to attend shows. I am happy we did because it turned out to be one of our most memorable Airbnb stays, ever!
That brings us to the 2022 Fringe Festival. If you think deciding what to watch on Netflix is a challenge, imagine walking in a city where posters are plastered on every surface, and slightly manic volunteers (including actors) are thrusting flyers at you for every single show. As a graphic designer, I could appreciate the posters and flyers that stood out. You only have a few seconds to catch the attention of passersby, so every word counts, and the visual is key.
Passing out flyers seemed mandatory. You never knew who’d you’d meet on the street promoting their show…fat rabbits, singers, comedians and various degrees of enthusiastic volunteers. So much paper!
This was the first in-person festival since 2019 and the festival’s 75th Anniversary - so it was bigger and better than ever. There were 3,187 shows featuring 49,827 performers in more than 250 venues. It seemed like every nook and cranny of the city was turned into a performant space. There were musicians in stairwells, acrobats on rooftops, and stand-up comedians in pubs. The University of Edinburgh’s campus is spread throughout the city and provided many of the concert and theatre venues.
As for what to see…It was hard to know where to start. The free printed catalog was half an inch thick and listed every event, including theatre, dance, circus, physical theatre, comedy, music, musicals, opera, cabaret, variety, children’s shows, spoken word, and exhibitions - but it was cumbersome.
Luckily there are plenty of resources online to help, including a fantastic App called Plan My Fringe. that sorted shows by time and how far they were from your exact location. The main website, edfringe.com is where you buy tickets and read reviews. Tickets were digital, and your QR code was scanned at the door. Despite some expected chaos, the event runs very smoothly - the biggest challenge is crisscrossing town to get from one venue to the next with a bathroom stop or a snack in between!
Waiting in the lobby for Notflix - and refueling at one of the many outdoor food courts.
Over the ten days in Edinburgh, we bought tickets to seven shows. Ticket prices were reasonable; with the exception of BURN at $50, we spent on average $15. There were some two-for-one offers, and many pay what you think the performance was worth (awkward). And dozens of street performers along The Royal Mile worked hard for your tips.
Duane’s play is called Visiting Cezanne, and it was very good. The plot involved time travel conveyed with lighting effects, and the actors moved the props between acts. It gave us insight into the blood, sweat, and tears it takes to stage a play in a quirky space with limited resources. And do it for 25 days straight - all while hustling to sell tickets. We are very proud of Duane and his team.
One of Duanes banners and a scene from the play.
Ultimately, we chose what we wanted to see from the posters. I’d snap a picture, then we’d do a little research and give it thumbs up or down. We enjoyed six stellar performances - and one dud.
First, there was a musical called Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World. It was a West End quality performance and our favorite of them all. If you ever have the chance to take a young person to see this show don’t miss the opportunity! Then we enjoyed an A’ Cappella performance by a dozen male students from Oxford called Out of the Blue. We caught a talented all-female improv group called Notflix, who created an instant musical based on a movie suggestion from the audience. During our show, it was Toy Story 4, and they had a lot of fun with it. We also enjoyed an intimate concert by a couple telling stories and singing hits from the sixties called California Dreaming.
We took in a sketch comedy show called NewsReview - it helped if you were up to speed on British politics, but most of it was still very funny. Then there was a performance that was part of the original Edinburgh International Festival that got a lot of attention called BURN. A one-man show by Alex Cummings, a famous British actor, about the darker side of Scotland’s beloved poet Robert Burns. We didn’t care for it - too dark, and convoluted for us. And finally, a very different one-man show that was great! This final show was an example of me being sold by eye-catching promotional materials. That and the fact it was performed in a Spiegeltent (remember Teatro Zinzanni?) It was called Half Man, Half Piano by Will Pickvance. The actor spun some fun personal stories between rifts on the piano and could literally play Chopin blindfolded. It was the perfect end to our Fringe binge.
Will Pickering as Edward Piano Hands! And our cozy living room with windows that opened to the garden.
We didn’t go into the city every day, allowing us to enjoy relaxing at home in our beautiful cottage and garden. When we did go in, it was a 15-minute walk to the bus stop and a 50-minute double-decker ride with 40 stops to get to the city! If it wasn’t too late, we’d take the night bus home or spring for an Uber. But, hey … what have we got but time?
I think we got the mix just right. We enjoyed being in the city with all the excitement, but we loved our tranquil Airbnb, too. Not only was our country dwelling a delight, but we also had private access to Sheperd House Garden - recognized as one of Scotland’s finest. Our living quarters used to be the stables for the main house with portions built in 1690. The estate is part of the Village of Inveresk - an enclave of historic homes and a church dating back to the 17th and 18th centuries.
The village of Inveresk sits along the River Esk and isn’t actually a village since there are no shops - not even a pub. At its core is St. Marks Church with a cemetery full of gravestones of hearty folk that lived into their 70s and 80s back in the 18th century. Perhaps it was the haggis! Or the whiskey.
We met the spry ninety-four-year-old owners, and they shared the story behind the creation of our cottage and their impressive garden. Both Sir Charles Fraser (just call me Charlie) and Lady Ann were very hospitable. Charlie took us on a tour and loved sharing the history of the house, the village, and family history. Ann is a renowned artist specializing in the detailed painting of plants and flowers, and some of her paintings hang in royal residences. Charlie had an impressive career as an elite lawyer and is a member of The Royal Society of Edinburgh - and of course, has been knighted. We could see them puttering in the garden from our windows, but they never interfered with our privacy. In fact, I would head to the garden whenever I saw them just to hear more stories.
My knight in shining armor, Sir Charles. And the talented Lady Ann - two delightful 90+-year-old denizens of Inveresk, Scotland and the most interesting hosts we’ve ever met.
Tucked in the back of the garden is a small structure called The Shell House. The interior walls are covered with seashells - many of which are mussel shells from Musselburgh, of course. There are handpainted murals on the ceiling representing family history as well. It is a magical space. Here is the story behind it.
While in Seattle, a woman reached out to Michael through LinkedIn. She was looking for a Michael Campbell that used to work at ProServ and put on a professional lawn tennis tournament in Edinburgh back in the 80s. She worked for him then and was curious about where he was now. Bingo. She found the right man! It was serendipity at its best. Her name is Hazel Peplinski, and she currently manages a famous horse racing track in Perth. We had a nice dinner together while the two of them reminisced
I almost forgot to mention we attended a football match. It was a “Darby." That means a match between cross-town rivals. Hazel's son helped us get rare tickets, and we were seated with the home team, The Hibernian F.C. “Hibbs” for short, vs The Hearts F.C. These rival matches can get pretty crazy, so great care was taken to keep the fans apart both before and after the match, and of course, during the match, Hearts had their own isolated section.
It was a good match - Hearts scored in the 20th minute, then there were no more goals until the last 10 seconds of stoppage time when Hibbs scored the equalizer! The way the crowd erupted, you’d have thought they’d won The World Cup - not just tied the match. Everyone went home happy, and there we no “troubles."
With one Fringe under our belts, I can see coming back again with a better understanding of how it works. But you can’t go wrong because there is so much to see and do! This is worth putting on your travel wish list along with the famous Military Tattoo that takes place on the Castle grounds on the same dates. Especially if you are fond of bagpipes!
Thanks for following along,
Debbie and Michael Campbell
* Our interview on the Rick Steve’s radio show is scheduled to run on the weekend of September 17th.
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