Strangely racist Beer Festival crowd

OK, not actually racist. Very good beer festival though, two beery thumbs up.

Canterbury Beer Festival was ace, went on Friday night, lots to see and do and drink, great. No-one told me it was fancy dress though, next year we will make the effort. 120 beers I think, mostly from Kentish breweries, but then a big section from outside Kent, the "Pink Girly Bar" with lighter fruitier beers to appeal the ladies, then food and music and merchandise and things. I probably had seven or eight different beers, aend did not spend as much as I thought we might. I made some money back getting the money back on some abandoned beer festival glasses, and remembering to cash in all my unused tokens (and a few I found on the floor). It might have been a nice souvenir to keep my festival glass, but with a house move in the offing we don't really need more wacky souvenirs like this right now.

I say "racist", it was the fancy dress, there were lots of groups in the same outfit, but there were one group dressed as hacidic jews, and another as comedy chinamen, what's that all about? Not being a chinese jew I have no business in being offended here, but it did seem to be on a line of good taste. Lots of people dressed as farmers, they could have all been real farmers though. There was no bad feeling among the crowd, it's great to see 1000+ people drinking heavily in a confined space with no trouble at all. What I'm calling "racism" is just gentle fun, no more offensive than dressing up as vikings or something on a stag do.

Clare tried a real ale, and several ciders, and we both had a lovely time. The entertainment was good, a Blondie tribute and a U2 tribute. At one point "Bono" fell off the stage though - I knew he should not have stood so close to The Edge. This did not happen. Nice to be bussed home to Folkestone, courtesy of Chambers.

I did not go on the stag do where they all dressed up as vikings, I'm a bit rubbish generally at fancy dress, I always think I can get away with wearing some of my own clothes, and then look like I have not actually dressed up at all...

All hail CAMRA and the Kent Beer Festival organisers, this was a roaring success, and we will be back next year. Blacked up.

Right, I'm off to the tip to recycle a telly.

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