So, one advantage of living in Edinburgh is the huge offer of activities, especially cultural activities like the Festivals. Having looked at the Festival Fringe program, I decided to go to some children’s shows with the little one. As he is still just about one year, I tried to find something appropriate for his age range, and came up with “Stickman”, especially after looking through the book in the library. Which I have to add at this occasion a complaint about the totally smelly and blocked toilets, the little one started crying because of the bad stink, last Friday in the MUIRHOUSE library! The flushes did not seem to work hardly or at all, the toilet paper was out, the soap dispenser broken, all three toilets blocked with poos and there were no hand drying facilities either. It was just horrible.
Stickman was sold out and when I tried to get into “Bagpuss”, the lady asked me if I would be here for the Scotsman offer. I asked what it was about and she said there was a voucher inside for free tickets for the festival, including “Bagpuss”. So after I got the newspaper, I realised I got 4×2 tickets from different shows to choose from. But after going to the “Pasta Maccaroni Show”, where DS started crying when the Mozzarella entered the stage with a loud MOOO and as he was afraid of the T-T-T-T in TOMATO I left early. I also had difficulties getting the little one interested in “Bagpuss” at all, it seems I would have to wait for another year or more before it actually works out taking the child into shows. The “Pasta Maccaroini Show” was a little bit too loud in volume, but he loved the movement and lights of the show and the music was most of the time wonderful, too. But very few visitors. Few visitors in “Bagpuss” as well, despite the free tickets offer and school holidays ending. Good ideas by the company to bring the pasta shapes to life – I particularly loved the flying-like-a-bird al-dente Lasagne sheets. But the show was too long with a duration of 1 hour. Half an hour is enough for our little one. With “Bagpuss” he was whingeing a lot, with his nappy full and he wanted to have a snack and a sleep and he did not see the stage properly, but he liked the songs and the disco light. It’s quite weird that a lot of children’s shows take place in absolutely inaccessible places, with stairs up and down and no baby changing facilities. At least “Bagpuss” had two exits, right and left of the stage, because there is nothing worse than scrambling through a row or more of toddlers in the dark whilst trying to keep hold of a baby and the nappy changing rucksack, a handbag and all the other items such like snacks, hat, jackets and other necessities you need during a show to keep your kid additionally happy (dummy, favourite comforting toy…) .
Strollers have to stay outside the buildings, so if anybody is interested in nicking a pram, there are some really expensive buggies and prams for grabs during shows! I was promised somebody would look after our 15 pounds stroller, but of course, when I went out of “Bagpuss”, nobody was there. I still remember when my buggy was nicked when I was a child in the 70ies. Had to walk home all the way!
Now, most prams usually cost several hundred pounds, so having almost no provisions for prams outside the venue buildings is quite careless. Luckily, as you can imagine, ours was still there after the show and hadn’t been exchanged for a better one.