July has carried on from where June left off...
Lots of travelling over to Europe on scheduled planes ( & Alan's 6 seater), a good run of successful gigs and the usual 'ups and downs' with the weather we've grown used to.
On a personal note, I found the environment in Leksand, Sweden very healthy and inspirational (John is obviously enjoying it too). Our hotel was in a beautiful location and the air was exceptionally clean. It was lovely just sitting outside looking out over a lake and breathing everything in.
Last weekend we arrived at Hanover airport in Germany. Our hotel was literally right by the airport. The gig was an hour drive to the old East German border, a town called Hötensleben. At least it should have been an hour. Unfortunately our driver got a bit lost and the trip ended up taking over 2 hours !
It was all a bit of a rush to get ready to go onstage, not helped by a torrential downpour of rain. However, over 4000 people enjoyed the show. Pretty good for a band that has been going 35 years now. The boys were delighted with the response we received.
On Sunday we were back on Alan's plane heading towards Lille, France. From there we were driven straight over the Belgian border to a town called Peruwelz. It would have been nice to spend a bit of time at the hotel first, but I enjoyed the day. Lovely sunshine and a warm welcome from the local people.
It's difficult to describe how it feels to be applauded wherever you go. Alan, John & Mick must be used to it by now. For me it's a relatively new experience. A very nice experience though.
By the time I got home on Monday I felt a bit jet-lagged and went straight to bed. I guess that's really the only downside to all this. Every now and again you find yourself waking up at 9 o'clock... in the evening.
I can live with that.
Stay tuned,
Mark
