Sonya's Post - Day 67 - ACDC

Sonya’s Blog - Day 67 - August 28th - ACDC

Well, Blake managed to get some tickets for the ACDC concert and the show is tonight. The weather promises to be warm and sunny with no rain in the forecast, so that is promising. Blake bought tickets for 3 of us because Natasha had no desire to go and really did not want to stand in huge crowds for hours watching a band she has no interest in seeing. So it will just be Blake, myself and Isaac. The show starts at 7 with the opening band, Vintage Trouble. No idea when ACDC will take the stage, but probably around 9. We didn’t want to have too crazy a day, as we wanted to make sure we had some resting time in the afternoon if we were going to be up late.

It was decided that we would take Kizmet and go for a walk in the nearby park which has waterfalls. It is called Parc des Chutes-de-la-Chaudiere and it is only about a 5 minute drive from our campsite. It was really easy to find and we started our hike. What a spectacular area and we were able to go right down onto the banks of the river, which was all shale, and wander around as long as we kept Kizmet on leash. We had lots of fun exploring around down there and got some great pictures. Blake gave the kids a geography lesson on shale and explained why it is one of the reasons that oil prices are in the toilet right now and that oil reserves in the States are at an 80 year high. Kizmet had a ball down there, running in and out of the water and trying to chase the ducks. She just about pulled me in a couple of times because I was balancing on the granite and she decided to jump or try and make a break for it. Luckily, she is not very big or strong so I was able to keep my footing and my hold on her leash. We got some great pictures from down on the banks of the river.

We then headed back up to the trail and across the suspension bridge, not Kizmet’s and Isaac’s favourite thing as it was quite bouncy. We made it across safely and then hiked through the woods for a bit. We came out by the Hydro facilities, which had some detailed explanations about how hydro works and some diagrams to show the workings. It was all in french, so that was good for the kids to read about. They had see through walls on the buildings as well, so you could see the inner workings.

We hiked back to the bridge by a different trail and then headed back to the truck so we could go back to camp and have lunch.

We had a lazy afternoon of not doing a whole lot and made Isaac have a nap and both Blake and I tried to have a nap too. Blake was successful, mine not so much. We then had supper and got Natasha all set up for the night. She was pretty excited about getting some quiet time and the RV to herself, well her and Kizmet. The rest of us headed off to the concert.

We found some street parking, but it was a bit of a hike away. Blake didn’t think we could get anything closer because we saw a whole bunch of people walking towards the venue. I though we could, and I was right, there was parking! Oh well, it was a good walk and if we really high tail it out of there at the end we will not get stuck behind a whole bunch of people.

We got in just after Vintage Trouble had started. Blake bought the tickets that were a little more expensive, near the front, because they were selling limited numbers of those. The general admission was farther back and had far more tickets sold (15, 000 versus 45, 000 or something like that). We thought that most people would be crammed up as close to the stage as possible so we could get a good spot without being crowded out, but still get a decent view of the stage without being all the way back at the Citadel. We ended up finding a good spot, right against the rails where they had the sound guys and lights, which was good because we had a clear view of the stage and nobody could stand in front of us because of the railings. We figured we were far enough back that it wouldn’t get too crowded and pushy/shovey. Vintage Trouble was lots of fun, a real James Brown sound and the lead singer had clearly watched him a lot. They were very enjoyable. Blake and Isaac went to find t-shirts while I held our spot. Both boys came back all decked out with brand new t-shirts. Isaac then had to go to the bathroom, groan, as it was all outhouses. I took him and fought my way through the crowd. The line-up wasn’t too bad and he only waited a few minutes. I told the guy behind me I wasn’t waiting and he asked me where I was from as he was french and I clearly and not. He was so excited when I said Calgary, “Oh, Calgareee” he says back. It was pretty funny. The guy next to him was excited because I spoke English, as he was from Newfoundland. So I had a nice conversation with these two, while Isaac did his business. We headed back to our spot. It still was not too crowded around us, so I figured we would be okay as most people were probably there by now. Isaac asked me when ACDC would come on and I said, not before 9, then had to eat my words because they came on 5 minutes later at 8:30!

They had a really good opening, with a video and lots of effects. The music was super loud, which took some getting used to. They put on a good show, with the spotlight divided between the lead singer, whose name escapes me, and Angus on electric guitar. I only know the really popular ACDC songs and I find a lot of their songs sound similar, but it was a rockin show. Angus did a 10 minute guitar solo at the end of their set, and I gotta say, I thought it went on a bit long. They then came out for an (planned) encore and did Highway to Hell and For Those about to Rock (We Salute You) with Cannons that fired (which was funny because they were firing towards the Citadel). They then ended with fireworks. The stage had a huge metal front, in a semi-circle with devil horns on the top. They were also selling light up devil horns to the crowd, and I bet 2/3rds of the crowd had a pair. Isaac had a great time and he and Blake rocked it out in true Reid fashion. A lady on her boyfriends shoulders also showed off her boobies for the crowd when she was on the jumbo tron, so that was a little bonus for Isaac. He was a little embarrassed by it. The other funny thing that happened is that this big bald french guy was dancing near us, and he had some good moves! He then danced over to Blake at one point and started jabbering away to him in the fastest, drunkest french ever. Then he danced away to join his crowd. I leaned in and asked Blake what he said, and Blake really had no idea:)

We hightailed it out of there as best as we could when it was over and fast walked it back to our truck. We made really good time and traffic was not so bad getting out. We were back at the RV by 11:15, which I thought was great. I really did not expect to be back before midnight. We got Isaac settled down and to bed and then called it a night. Tash was fine and already in bed and Kizmet had been very good for her.

Sonya