Magdalene May Ball

At the Magdalene May Ball

The big day was finally here!  After obsessively checking the weather forecast for weeks, the day had blessedly dawned sunny and dare I say it, hot?  The one thing I'd so dearly hoped for had come to pass...

I slept in a little bit, but still tried to start on doing my hair early on.  Despite this, I left my flat an hour later than I'd originally intended, once again proving that girls really do take forever to get ready...

I was worried that I might miss my train, but I made it to the station perfectly in time, with 10 minutes to spare.  I got a seat on the train, and then when I looked at the couple sitting across from me, realised that the girl looked incredibly familiar.  I asked her, "Did I meet you at {German-American Guy}'s birthday party a few weeks ago?"  Indeed, it was the same girl!

She invited me to come sit with them for the journey, and they shared their champagne with me for the course of the journey.  Definitely a good way to get the ball off to an excellent start!

We decided to split a cab into town once we got to Cambridge (given that we'd spend that much collectively on bus far), and then I went to pick up the tickets at College.  I managed to get them without too much incident, and then I made my way to the pub to check-in and change.  Despite my fears that the pub would have lost my reservation, everything went smoothly, I got to the room, and was able to change and dump my things, as well as perfectly zip myself into my dress without incident.  (I'd weighed in lighter than I ever had before that morning, things were really going my way this day!)

I got myself completely ready, and then found myself sitting around waiting for the boys for an hour, as they were running late.  (Not like I was in the least bit surprised!)  Still, it was annoying to just be sitting in a hotel room by myself for an hour, unable to leave or run errands as I had to be there when they got there.  

At last there was a knock on the door, and I opened it to find to my delight that there was Canadian Balliol Guy!  I hadn't seen him since Christmas, and it was truly wonderful to see him again.  He'd started shaving again since he had moved back to Canada, which I had known, but it was still a bit of a shock to see him without his familiar beard.  I also noted with sadness when he pulled out a pack of cigarettes, "Oh no, you're doing that again??"  I'd been so happy when he quit last year...  He hemmed and hawed about how this was a temporary thing, and he promised to quit again when he got home, but it still made me so disappointed.

I then left him to change and went down to the pub courtyard to await the other two.  They finally arrived, and I led them upstairs to change, and the room turned into a hive of activity as all of the boys got themselves in order.  Canadian Balliol Guy turned out to be having quite a bit of trouble with his white bow-tie and asked me for help, leaving me to fumble with it for quite a bit until I figured out that I needed to lengthen it to make it work.  Although, it's strangely intimate to tie a man's bow-tie, so it's hard to say if all of my fumbling was because I was nervous being so close to Canadian Balliol Guy, or just an inability to figure out the bow-tie!  I got it in the end however, after enough jokes about how we might have to return it for being defective.  

The Boys at the Pitt Club

We were thoroughly late to meet the Millionaire and his girlfriend for drinks at the Pitt Club, which I was slightly annoyed about, but I had to admit I'd expected this.  (You might remember the Millionaire from his previous mention at this party).  Once all three were properly attired in white-tie, and I'd cut off all the loose threads from their recently internet-ordered suits, we walked across Jesus Green to the Pitt Club.  

We had some champagne and then took a tour of the club, which was a small but elegant little place.  It was funny as I toured through with the Millionaire, we were both obviously thinking but not mentioning that this is where we had met, and I had not been back since that fateful night.  Of course, with his girlfriend right there, we certainly didn't want to mention that the last time I'd been at this club, we'd gotten very drunk and gone back to his hotel room together!  

In the queue outside College

Since we had been so late, it was quickly time to leave, so we left Canadian Balliol Guy and Kellogg Boy at the club to drink whiskey and talk, and the four of us walked down to join the queue and head into dinner.  We were given the evening's programme of events, an elegant black book with a wax seal, which we perused whilst standing in the queue for our wristbands.  I saw one of the porters that I recognised, and so was happy to give him a hug and a kiss and introduce him to my friends.  One of the things I love about Magdalene, it's the college with the friendliest porters in Cambridge!  We had a little time for a glass of champagne before a man wandering the grounds with a bell indicated that it was time for us to go in for dinner.  

The programme of events

We turned out not to be on the same table despite our seating arrangement request, and I only knew one guy on our table.  The dinner was nice enough, although the staff were obviously suffering from the challenge of attempting to serve approximately 500 people at the same time.  I did at least get to hear a bit more about the Young Dutchman's recent trip to Paris, where he'd apparently gone with an old guy from the Carlton Club who likes to eat good food, and so took him along for the company.  Overall he seemed a bit off his game however, although not like I was doing much better in the scintillating conversation department.  

With my dinner date at dinner

The dinner menu however was pretty amazing:

Amuse Bouche

Pea mousse scented with truffles and Parmesan crunch

Starter

Kiln smoked salmon, beetroot panna cotta and caviar dressing

Refresher

Lemon and cardamon chilled shot

Main course

Roast duck breast, confit duck faggots, celeriac cream, sweet duchess potato and a rich duck jus

Dessert

Trio of:  apple jelly crumble, chocolate mousse cup, rhubarb and custard macaroon

Cheese

A selection of stilton, cheddar and brie served with celery, grapes and an assortment of biscuits

Coffee and Chocolate

Luxury chocolates by Elizabeth Shaw (est. 1881) & Costa Rican coffee

The best however, was the note at the bottom of the menu about the dessert wine (Bacalhoa Moscatel de Setubal), which said, "Dessert wine donated by a Trinidadian Old Boy in remembrance of snoggings past".  How brilliant is that?

My place at dinner

For some reason, this then inspired the Young Dutchman to harp on for ages about how he thinks I should sleep with Canadian Balliol Guy.  Of course, he acts like all I have to do is snap my fingers and this will happen, although to be honest I'm not quite sure of Canadian Balliol Guy's feeling for me beyond that we seem to get thrown together a lot.  As well, given the group dynamic, it's not like we could ever have anything casual, so just "sleeping together" would be impossible, we'd have to date.  And he lives in Canada.  

The thing that surprised me most however, was when the Young Dutchman kept insisting, "And he's rich!"  I'd always just thought Canadian Balliol Guy was unemployed, but apparently the real story is that he sold his internet company a while back, and given what he knew about what the company went for, he figures Canadian Balliol Guy cleared at least a cool million from the deal.  Which explains how he's able to just generally bum around, fly back and forth to the UK, and not have any real need to work.  He actually doesn't.  And it suddenly makes a lot more sense as to why he never seems to know what to do with himself.  As what do you do when you've sold your company and don't need to work anymore?  Anyway, I'm just not quite sure what to do with this information, so I try to move off the topic.  

At last, Kellog Boy and Canadian Balliol guy arrive, although for some reason they get stuck on a table talking to some old people for ages.  I still don't quite understand that one.  

We escaped the dining marquee, and then went to the tent where there were shisha pipes set up everywhere, and smoked quite a bit of shisha.  I know shisha is rather bad for you, but I have to admit I do enjoy it on the odd occasion.  

We then ran into the Millionaire and his girlfriend, we went to the shooting gallery (where we didn't have much luck) and stopped in at the riverboat casino where I kept winning at blackjack every time I went "all in" in the hopes of losing my money and getting out of there, except then of course accidentally doubling my money.  

As we walked through the enchanting gardens, we ran into the Master, the former Archbishop of Canterbury.  As the others, gasped at realising who it was, I simply smiled and said, "Would you like me to introduce you?"

With the former Archbishop of Canterbury, the Hon. Rowan Williams

So I went up and greeted the former Archbishop of Canterbury, and introduced him to the assembled group.  We chatted for a bit, and then somebody asked if we could take a picture with him, so we all gathered around and posed for a photo.  The Millionaire always has a habit of saying, "lesbians" when smiling for photos, and really just about had everyone in stitches when all he had to do was ask, "What is it that we say when smiling for photos?"  Oh God, he wouldn't dare, not right in front of the former Archbishop of Canterbury, would he?  Although he would dare a lot, for as we stood there posing for the photo, I realised he was stroking my back as we stood next to each other posing.  With the former Archbishop of Canterbury standing right there!  And his girlfriend right nearby too!  To say it was surreal is putting it mildly...

The Fellows Garden

It seemed to make a bit more sense however, when as we wandered through First Court, the Millionaire suddenly said to me, "Oh I'm so sorry, I've offered some to everybody else, and I haven't given any to you!"  And then held out a little blue pill to me.  

Now, what I did next is definitely not the sort of thing I usually condone.  If somebody told me they'd taken drugs at a party simply because somebody offered them some, particularly without knowing what the hell they were taking, I'd have said they were crazy and stupid.  But truly what went through my mind was, "Well everybody else has been on these for at least the past half-hour and they still seem okay..."  And I have to admit, I was just curious.  

I'm still not entirely sure what I took, but I basically have concluded that it was some form of Ecstasy.  It didn't have much of an effect at first (which I've heard is true of E, and problems arise when people don't think it's working and take another and then end up overdosing), although I have to admit it did eventually make me somewhat lightheaded and woozy, much the same as when I'm high on pot.  All in all, not unpleasant, although much like pot, not necessarily something I would go out of my way for.  

At least I drew the line at the next substance, when the Millionaire got out some cocaine.  Holy crap, that's some serious stuff!  I politely thanked him, and left the others to indulge, and found when I stepped outside that the Millionaire's Friend and his date had also made a hasty exit.  The Millionaire's Friend was quite upset actually, saying, "Careers have ended over things like that!"  I have to admit, it seemed like an awfully big risk for a very little bit of fun, but I guess it's true what Robin Williams said, that "Drugs are the Gods way of telling you that you have too much money."  

Looking stylish in white-tie

I later came back to see how the crowds were doing, where the Young Dutchman had a very intense conversation with me about what I should expect when I'm on drugs, which is a pretty hilarious lecture to get from somebody who is obviously on drugs himself.  (Apparently the key is that I needed to remember to drink water regularly).  The particular thing about cocaine is that it apparently makes people feel like they're on top of the world, and really inflates their egos so all they want to do is talk about themselves.  Giving that drug to perhaps the most egotistical, self-centred guy I know, one who is without any sort of self-doubt, then led to the amusing situation where it was like watching his ego on overdrive.  

I then did get to have a fun "conversation" with him at least, which was mostly him talking and me just nodding.  It was quite long-winded, but could generally be summed up as him saying, "Unlike most girls, I actually give a shit about you."  It was a very hard conversation for me to process though, as it's both acknowledging how important to each other we are, but also how there are other key figures in our lives.  It reminded me of first grade, when you had 1st, 2nd, and 3rd best friends, and as a grown-up you have to acknowledge that you may have many close friends, but with each your relationship is unique.  Although overall it's hard for me to really talk about my relationship with the Young Dutchman anyway, as it's so intense yet so familial, it's always very difficult for me to try to put it under a microscope too much.  

We then went exploring in hall where we got to watch some amazing drag queens, and then climbed the stairs to the SCR to get some port, marking the first time I've ever actually been in the SCR.  It's actually quite elegant, I shall have to hope to visit the inner sanctum again sometime.  Plus, the vintage 1997 Taylor's wasn't too bad either!

Me and my boys

We took some photos at the sign announcing the entrance to the disco, climbed "pizza mountain" (as we dubbed it, given that it was a steep hill with pizza at the top), and then made our way back to Pepys Court for more champagne and some dancing.  

Feeling the need to sit down and chill for a bit, I led everyone into the Master's Garden to the comedy tent for a comedy show, and we happened to hit a really funny comedian who made me laugh quite a bit.  I snuggled up with the Young Dutchman for a bit, which was nice, although perhaps that was the effect of the drugs we were all on.  Ecstasy is supposed to make you want to hug people, right?  

The Millionaire's Friends then decided to leave us, so we made our good-byes, and then the Young Dutchman got involved with talking to the Millionaire's girlfriend.  The Millionaire himself had disappeared to who knows where.  Both of them were still high on cocaine, so I left them, and wandered through the magical lit gardens with Kellogg Boy.  Would have been nice to do with Canadian Balliol Guy, but I'd completely lost him ages ago and had no idea where he was.  

The lit gardens were truly magical however, spectacular to wander through.  We checked out an art installation with bubbles, and then made our way out to the Riverside Bar to get drinks.  As we walked back however, it as like someone had turned on a light switch in the sky, it was so suddenly light out.  I felt like you do when somebody turns on the house lights in a nightclub at the end of a party.  

We gambled at the riverboat casino for a bit more, I kept on my annoying winning streak, and soon it was time for breakfast.  Since I was hungry, I just left my chips and went off in search of food.  

The queue took ages, but eventually I got a salmon bagel, an egg sandwich and some muffins.  The Young Dutchman appeared from somewhere and joined us for breakfast, and then we went over to the shisha tent to chill out for a bit while having some hot chocolate.  

We then decided to go check out the ceilidh dancing, where we found Canadian Balliol Guy dancing with some girl.  I insisted that my two boys at least pose for a photo with me in front of the Pepys library, proving that we were still going strong at 5:30 AM.  

Survivors Photo selfie!

The announcement then came that it was time for the Survivor's Photo, so we made our way out to the riverbank, where we sat waiting for them to get it all set up, and took a few photos of our group.  I was glad when Canadian Balliol Guy came and joined us, so we had our whole group together at the very end.  I sat there with the boys, leaning back on Canadian Balliol Guy for a bit because I was tired, although it was strangely non-intimate and not particularly encouraged, as always.  I sometimes wonder why the boys think the two of us would work out...

Finally, they took the photo (at last!) the ball committee showered champagne on everyone, and we all walked back to the hotel in the morning daylight.  

We survived!

The Young Dutchman and Kellogg Boy grabbed their stuff and headed straight for the train, while Canadian Balliol Guy and I stayed and just talked for about an hour, perhaps the first time I can remember the two of us really being alone and talking.  We talked a bit about his life in Canada, his thoughts for the future, how he'd gotten his heart broken while he was at Oxford, and just his general sense of trying to figure out what to do next.  It was interesting to really actually get to talk to him for once, a conversation I'm not sure we ever would have had if he hadn't been so drunk and tired.

Finally however he gave me a hug and left to make his way to Oxford, and I lay down for a few moments of rest before realising sleep in this noisy pub would be hopeless, and so I needed to go as well.  Wild and crazy night, but now it was time to go home to London and get some sleep.