“When is the next one? Perhaps I will get up in the open mic and share a story too.”
These were the words of an enthusiastic attendee at the second ‘Lunch and Tales’ storytelling experience held on Sunday in a Thai restaurant in Manly.
It was a wonderful gathering of people interested in good conversation over food and of course interesting and entertaining stories. The theme was ‘Travelling Tales!’ Everyone had a story to share at their tables whether it was from overseas trips or journeys in our local areas or across state borders.
Our featured storytellers Sue Alvarez and Christine Carlton, and open mic tellers Kiran, Sue, Monica and Rhonda completely held our attention and took us into the wonderful world of good oral storytelling. There were no notes or scripts just entertaining stories that invited people to connect and engage in a pleasurable afternoon.
Stories included folktales, true stories of humorous, adventurous or dangerous situations, cultural customs and a tall tale that suitably pulled everyone’s legs. We travelled with a clever undetected smuggler across countries borders, journeyed from Swaffham to London in search of good news and real treasure, and experienced the naked truth about Japanese bath houses and cultural wedding practices. There were stories of young inexperienced travellers; one who in exchange for two nights of free accomodation agreed to carry goods through customs for a stranger. We then found ourselves in a seemingly sinister night time Youth Hostel escapade, and then had a story about being followed by a bear up a tree in Alaska, before going with an Intrepid adventurer to South America with ‘people of a certain age’. Next we heard of being a suspected drug mule in Hong Kong and a near miss of a cornered attack by shady characters whilst searching for a handbag. Finally we travelled to Israel where a playful joke could have led to being identified as a terrorist!
It was an afternoon of laughter, suspense, intrigue, exciting and cautionary dramatic tales and delightful interaction. We look forward to more afternoons of ‘Lunch and Tales.’