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SATURDAY,
AUGUST 5TH:
Okay, here is the BEST part of my trip so far and I don’t think anything will
top this. Yesterday, Noah Bellamy and I were walking through the park looking
for something sinful to eat (fresh baked waffles, to be exact!). My cell phone
rang and “Grinch” popped up on the caller ID. I immediately answered it because
“Grinch” is the nickname of a Marine that I met in Iraq in 2003 when he was the
special assistant to General Franks at Centcom. He and I became best friends
and I can’t tell you how many times he has come to my rescue when I push the
envelope a little too far when trying to get entertainment over to the troops.
(a polite way of saying, “he constantly saves my butt” and yes, Burner, I do
give you a rest sometimes and get other people to bail me out!
J
) Anyway, I’ve been worried about him because my emails to him were bouncing
back. I finally emailed his personal address instead of the Centcom address and
asked him if he was back in the “sandbox” but didn’t hear anything from him.
So, I was relieved to get his phone call. He said that he was at Dulles airport
heading back over to Iraq for year’s tour of duty. It was great to get to talk
to him before he left.
Got up at 4 am this morning and drove to the Gothenberg airport. No problem
checking in but we had a 3 hour layover in Frankfurt before flying to
Manchester. We were all walking towards our next gate when this voice said to
me, “I thought you were in Sweden. What are you doing in the Frankfurt
airport”. I know you won’t believe this, but for once I was speechless. It
was Grinch on his way to Iraq. What are the chances of running in to him in the
Frankfurt airport? The Frankfurt airport is huge with two terminals and since
today is Saturday, it was packed. So, I got to talk to him in person and give
him a big hug before he left for his year in Iraq. Told him I’d see him either
at Thanksgiving with Aaron Tippin if we don’t go to Afghanistan or for sure in
December with Karri Turner and Jim McMahon.
Flight to Manchester was delayed because they had a handicapped person who
needed to board and they didn’t have anyone who could assist. Our bus was
waiting for us when we landed and it was an hour and a half drive from the
airport to Llanddudno where the show is tonight. When we arrived, I was amazed
at the area. Can’t believe I’ve never been to Wales but sure hope to come
back. It is a beautiful little resort town right on the Irish Sea. All the
hotels and homes are “Victorian” and the little town is so quaint. There are
shops and pubs lined up and the theatre where we performed was really great. It
was like a Performing Arts Center. We all had “fish and chips” and I have to
say, it’s probably the best I’ve had in the U.K. The food here just isn’t great
– unless you can find Indian food – but this was good except for being extremely
greasy.
Howard and his wife took a nap this afternoon and Howard woke up in a panic at
6:30 pm thinking they were going to be late for the show. He woke Jenny up and
she was totally confused about the day. She grabbed the “day sheet” that I had
given them with all the room numbers and itinerary information on it and said,
“Look. We have a day off today. We don’t leave until 10:30!” She thought it
was already the next day. Traveling like we have been topped with them still
having jetlag can certainly be confusing.
All the people at the theatre extremely nice and so excited to have the Bellamy
Brothers performing. Jesse and Noah got a great response to their music and the
audience loved the Bellamys. I would love to be able to bring an artist back
here next year. The theatre has a series of entertainment throughout the Summer
months and they have one country music artist come in each year.
After the show, all the restaurants were closed. It is a Saturday night and
nothing was open at 11 pm! We ended up at Kentucky Fried Chicken eating
chicken strips! Certainly not what I wanted but since we did not have any
dinner, it was the only option.
I don’t have wireless in my room but do have a great room. Guess it makes up
for last night’s room when I could only open one bag at a time because there was
no space at all. This room is large with a huge bathroom and big windows that
look out on the shopping street. Of course, we have less than 24 hours in this
beautiful little resort.
When I tried to open my suitcase today, evidently it had been searched at the
airport. Both zippers had a pink ribbon caught on the INSIDE of the suitcase.
I could not get the zippers pulled apart more than about 3 inches. I finally
had to sacrifice the ribbon in order to get it open.
A little after midnight and I’m going to bed soon. Can’t wait to get up and jog
by the Irish sea tomorrow. Hope the weather cooperates.
Jude
SUNDAY, AUGUST 6TH:
Okay, I am in love with Llandudno, North Wales! How did I travel
the world and never know about this place?
I feel like a “new person”. I got 6 hours of sleep and got up to run along the
seaside. Oh my God, what a fabulous run. Howard and Jenny were already sitting
on a bench by the water. They had been out walking early morning. My plan was
to run up to a long pier and go out on the pier. But when I got there, the pier
was fenced and the gate was locked. So, I continued up behind the pier, up a
huge bluff overlooking the sea. The view was fantastic. I entered a wildlife
reserve and nature park and kept climbing. But, it started to get real isolated
and my brain started working overtime on what kind of “wildlife” might be living
there. So, I turned around and ran back down the other direction, past our
hotel and the venue where we performed and into another little village. Perfect
5 mile jog.
Went into breakfast and they had HEALTHY food! Special K cereal and that great
thick natural yogurt. I want to stay here for the next few days instead of
going to London. I’ve seen London many times, but not this amazing little
seaside village. I will make it a point to come back here.
My room was located in the newly remodeled part of the hotel and it was really
nice. Really high ceilings and lots of windows that wrapped around the room and
went all the way up to the ceiling. The bathtub had one of the new big shower
heads but the strange thing was, there was a mirror built into the wall running
the length of the tub. I was so fascinated with the mirror and the fact that
they would spend so much money on something that immediately fogged over when
the water was turned on, that I didn’t notice the problem with the window across
the room. The bottom half of the glass was frosted so that no one could see
in. But the top half was clear and there was a “drop down” shade over it. Only
the shade was pulled up and everyone in the hotels across the street had their
windows open, looking right in at me in the shower. Sure I gave all of them
quite an early morning fright!
Hey and get this! While I’ve been over here, I’ve negotiated two performances
for the Bellamy Brothers in SRI LANKA in December. I think they will be the
first country artist to perform there! I’ll go with them, come home for a
couple of days, and then go to Iraq over the holidays.
We packed up and departed to the airport for our flight to London. The trolleys
at the UK airports are so difficult to control! None of us were able to get
them to roll straight ahead. We finally figured out if you rolled them
SIDEWAYS, then they would go where you wanted them to go. We were a pretty
funny sight – 14 people with huge suitcases and large guitar cases rolling their
carts sideways across the terminal. Of course, every once in a while, one would
still break lose and crash into someone. We were supposed to be on a Lufthansa
flight but it turned out to be a British Midland codeshare flight. They didn’t
want to honor our “international weight restrictions” and were only going to
allow 20 kilos per person total (about 44 pounds!). It would have cost us a
fortune in excess fees but we were finally able to find someone who agreed to
honor the international weight limits (2 bags weighing 50 pounds each). I got
stressed and left my computer case sitting in the middle of the terminal by the
check-in counter. Fortunately, the drummer saw it and grabbed it for me.
Otherwise, they would have evacuated the terminal and blown up my bag. Not
good!!
Then Howard Bellamy called me over and handed me the drummer’s airline tickets
for the remainder of the tour. He had left them at the check-in counter. We
had a little fun with him but let him off the hook pretty quickly.
We were pretty concerned that something would go wrong once we arrived in
London. Our show for tomorrow night cancelled but the buyer agreed to honor all
the terms of the contract. He was sending a bus to pick us up and take us to
the hotel where he had pre-paid the rooms for 3 nights. I called the bus driver
only to find that he had been sent to Terminal 2 and we arrived at Terminal 1.
We had to wait about a half hour for him to drive around. The little “traffic
cop” in charge of letting the buses come in told Howard he looked like Colonel
Sanders! The bus finally arrived and was driver by an elderly gentleman who
refused to let us load our own suitcases. He insisted on picking each one up
himself!
It was supposed to be a 30 minute ride to the Holiday Inn in Camden. But, an
hour later, we were still driving. We entered the Camden area and it looked
like Soho. Lots of sidewalk shops and restaurants, tattoo parlors, people
picketing outside the subway entrance, etc. The bus driver couldn’t figure out
how to get to the hotel. We circled so many times, the people on the sidewalk
were beginning to wave! Then, he started backing down a tiny street to some
dumpy little hotel. I asked him if he was taking us to the Camden Holiday Inn
and he said, no that his instructions were we were staying at the Camden Lock
hotel! I had a printout from the Holiday Inn confirming our pre-paid rooms, so
he agreed to take us there. He circled and circled again and had no idea where
he was going. He finally called his office and got directions.
The Holiday Inn is “new” and is great. We have wireless internet in our rooms,
air conditioning, and Wash Cloths!!!! I went to an Indian restaurant for dinner
with David and his family. It was really, really good food.
I’m not sure how to act with THREE nights in the same hotel room! What a
special treat.
J
Guess we will take Jesse and Noah sightseeing tomorrow since they have never
been to London.
Jude
MONDAY, AUGUST 7TH:
Two nights in a row of 6 hours of sleep. Unbelievable and
wonderful!
Got up to go jogging in Regent’s Park only to find that it was raining. Went to
the “gym” downstairs at the hotel. They have 3 good cardio machines but no
weights. Did 20 minutes each on stationary bike, elliptical trainer, and
treadmill. Then walked down to Marks and Spencer and picked up some fabulous
Greek Yogurt and stopped at Starbucks for a Fat Free Latte. Showered and met
the Bellamys in the Lobby. We took the “Tube” over to Harrod’s to have lunch
with their record distributor. It was a fabulous buffet with everything
imaginable to eat. Afterwards, we browsed through Harrod’s. It is insanely
expensive. Just a little magnet for the refrigerator cost $10! For once, I
didn’t buy anything. David purchased some Pate and cheese. He also got some
Cuban cigars and got a better deal on those than anything else in the store!
We took the tube over to see Big Ben and then walked past Westminister Abby to
Buckingham Palace. I’ve seen all this before but it was the first time David’s
sons have ever been to London. Of course what they want to see MOST is Abby
Road and the Beatles old recording studio. Think that is on the agenda for
tomorrow.
Took the tube back to the hotel and then had Thai food for dinner. It was
really, really good. I am amazed that I have found such wonderful food this
visit to London. Either the food has gotten better or I’ve learned where to eat
here.
Camden is an interesting area. By day, it has great shopping and restaurants.
By night, there are dozens of drug dealers up and down the street and it’s
frightening to be walking around!
I was amazed that I was able to figure out the tube and get everyone around
today. It’s is really frightening when I’m the one “leading the pack”. But we
didn’t get lost one time.
It’s 2 am now so I won’t get my 6 hours of sleep tonight! L
Jude
TUESDAY, AUGUST 8TH:
Paid 10 pounds (about $20 U.S.) to use the gym close to the hotel
this morning. It’s a great gym…but $20????
Susan Bellamy and I went to see the Tower Bridge and London Bridge this morning
while David, Jesse, and Noah toured the studio at Abby Road where the Beatles
recorded. Then we all met at a great Italian restaurant by Harrod’s for lunch.
I still can’t get over the fact that:
A. The food in the UK has been GREAT this time
B. It hasn’t rained every day
Hard to believe I am in the UK!!!
Susan and I bought tickets on the Big Red Bus and went sightseeing all afternoon
plus we took the river cruise up the Thames. I think I have seen all of these
sights a couple of times, but it was fun to see them again with her. We only
got lost on the “tube” 3 times today and it wasn’t my fault.
Met David and the boys for dinner at a STRANGE restaurant in Camden. They
served Asian food but the décor was Egyptian. But, again, the food was great.
Camden streets were really crowded today and you wouldn’t believe some of the
things the people were wearing. Also, lots of drug dealers out offering drugs
to people passing by. Funky part of town but great hotel we are staying in.
Very odd.
Trying to get all my emails answered before my time runs out on my internet
service. Have to leave EARLY tomorrow for Austria. “Free time” in London is
over. The venue in Austria is only accessible via a gondola. Should be
interesting.
Jude
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