a 'gig'

i witnessed a strange phenomenon in london which i was told is quite commonplace in all of england. it is called a 'gig' (both g's pronounced soft as pronounced in the word 'God'). it involves a few people, typically 3 or 4, standing on a raised platform called a 'stage', facing a large crowd of people. the numbers of persons populating the crowd varies depending on the size of the location where this phenomenon occurs which is called the 'venue'. small venues house 50 to a 100 persons and i was told a large one (such as a stadium) hold thousands upon thousands.

the people on the stage constitute what is called a 'band'. they play musical instruments which emit various sounds,

they clap their hands,

and then, strangest of all, the people in the crowd, who till then have been consuming all forms of liquor and shaking themselves gently, lie down on the ground and vigourously shake their legs in the air.

this is considered a pleasurable pasttime in england and is ingulged in by most peoples,
except the children and the very old. it is particularly practised on the days at the end of the week.