Friday

Friday morning arrives along with the rain. If you're prepared to take a short walk the (in)famous all you can eat for a fiver breakfast at The Unicorn is well worth the effort.
I'm there early so getting a table is no problem. A Unicorn breakfast can set you up for the whole day. Having taken on fuel, it's time to get back to the site to catch the first workshop of the festival.
The Hub is a new venue at Cambridge. It's a Bedouin tent situated behind the Cyber café. It's aimed as being a venue for the younger element in the crowd.
It's a great setting, really relaxed and informal. Anna from Uiscerdw is kicking off a fiddle workshop at the unfeasibly early time of 09:30. The hour and the rain seem to have put some people off, but before long there's a core of young fiddlers sat at Anna's feet eager to learn. Behind them are sat a row of Mum's lending their support.
The rain can be heard bouncing off the tent. It's not strong enough to detract from the workshop, but it is heavy enough to mean that the dance workshop that was to be held outside the Hub is now being held in the Club Tent causing a damp walk for the potential dancers, but at least they'll be in the dry when they get there.
Following Anna at The Hub are Bella, Emma and Talei from The Pack. Their first workshop of the festival is based on song. If percussion is more your thing then Satnam Singh and Keith Angel kick off their workshop at the Radio 2 stage at 11:00
The short walk back to the main festival campsite takes me past a couple struggling to get their tent up in the rain. Some of the main drags through the campsite are starting to mud up, maybe later we'll see a return of mud diving. It also vindicates the decision to lay down the plastic paths. The weather forecast is for things to improve later, people have got their fingers crossed.
On route I stop off at the cyber café. I manage to resist the temptation to check my e-mail and settle for the coffee that I came in for.
Caffined up, it's time to check in with Neil and Christina at media liaison and see if there's any news or changes I need to update myself with. Well that was the idea.
In fact I hear the call of the drum and find myself drawn into the percussion workshop. There's a good crowd already there. It's too early for people to be there purely to get out of the rain and the enthusiastic response confirms that. I'm too late to get an instrument and as a lot of them seem to be defended by small children, I'm not going to risk life and limb to get one.
It's another success and a great way of getting nearer to the start of the music proper without noticing the time past.