THURSDAY AND FRIDAY, AUGUST 22ND AND 23RD, 2019:
Well, this one is definitely going in my “book” one day….
The Bellamy Brothers are performing in Belgium, England, Switzerland, Germany and Norway between August 24th and September 8th. I started getting emails from Delta Airlines late Wednesday afternoon (the day before we were leaving) advising that they were allowing passengers to change their flights at no charge because our flights were going to be impacted by weather. I called the Delta Diamond Line and the agent tried to help me find new routing for all 11 people…which, of course, was impossible the day prior to departure. I did find seats on KLM (Delta partner airline) but for some reason, she was unwilling to move us to those flights. I also found it strange that Delta was the only airline offering the free re-bookings. Usually, American is first, then United and Delta is always the last.
I checked the weather app and found that the storms in NYC were not supposed to begin until 10 pm Thursday night. Very strange. I also noticed that when I checked everyone in, Delta was offering up to $500 for passengers willing to give up their seats and take a different flight.
I arrived at the airport at 8 am and some of the Bellamys were already there. Everyone was arriving separately but we had to wait for everyone to arrive so we could split up the equipment between us and avoid excess charges.
Check in was unbelievably smooth. I waited and checked in last so most of the guys had already gone through by the time I went through. I stopped and bought a bottle of water and then went into a shop to find a book. When I reached in my purse to pull out my wallet, I realized I didn’t have my passport. I thought I had laid it on a stand right after I cleared security. I was going to run back to the security area but instead, went out the Exit! Of course, I couldn’t go back through except to go through security again. Thankfully, the agent let me go through with my driver’s license and I had an extra copy of my boarding pass. As I was waiting in the now very long line, I realized I had stolen the book. When it was finally my turn, just as I was about to go through the scanner, I found my passport in my pants pocket! I did go back in the gift shop and pay for the book. (FRANK – not on word from you!!!)
We had a few minutes in the lounge and then boarded the flight. I always know to be first in line because the overhead on those little flights in so small. The two male flight attendants were from a foreign country but I couldn’t recognize their accent – nor could I understand much of what they said. I looked up when I heard one of them become very agitated and start insisting that someone go back to the gate and check his bag. The words I did understand were “back, back, back”! He was talking to David and refusing to let him board. David was explaining that he was in first class and his bag would fit but the flight attendant was having none of it. I got up and walked up front and told him that the bag was exactly the same bag as mine and that it zipped apart easily and fit in the overhead. He relented reluctantly and then proceeded to chastise the gate agents for not gate checking pretty much every bag that was brought on board.
As I said, it’s a small plane and almost a 3 hour flight. Naturally with all the water and tea I drink, I needed to use the toilet. I had noticed that our toilet in the front had shown “In Use” for the entire flight. About that time, I saw the flight attendant flip the lock switch on the outside, go in and wash his hands. I motioned for him to come to my seat and I asked him if it was broken or if I could use it. Again, I don’t know everything he said but he accompanied his whispered speech with a lot of hand motions. Evidently, he said that a “man” went in there at the very beginning of the flight and “did a big one” and “oh the smell”….”bad, bad, bad, so bad”…so he closed down the toilet for the entire flight.
We landed on time and went into the lounge. It was super crowded but we found seats and the food was excellent. I’m on the 8/16 fast diet so it was perfect timing for me to eat. The food was amazing….especially the squash soup. After eating, I moved over to the business seating but quickly realized the WiFi didn’t work in that part of the Lounge ….of all places. I confirmed it with everyone sitting in that area. I spent a lot of time on the phone with one of the festival staff members discussing the vehicles that would pick us up. With 24 large, heavy pieces of equipment and luggage and 12 passengers, it takes a little coordination.
We had a 5 hour layover and were supposed to depart at 7:50 pm and storms were supposed to roll in at 10 pm. Our gate changed at least 6 times while we were waiting. We finally went to the “latest” update and were supposed to board at 6:45 pm. When we got there, people were boarding a flight for LAX so obviously we didn’t have a plane at the gate. Susan said the flight crew walked up and said, “this is going to take a long time for them to push back and get our plane in” and they left! Then a few minutes later, they changed the gate again. It was around 9 pm when we finally boarded the flight and by the time they finished loading all the bags (around 10 pm), the storms had rolled in. We started taxiing and this horrendous sound started outside. I thought it was a tornado but it was just wind and lightning striking all around. We kept taxiing and I thought surely they wouldn’t take off in this weather! But the pilot and flight attendants never came on and told us anything and we kept moving slowly. I kept looking across the plane at David to see if he looked worried. When he’s just sitting and looking at his phone, I don’t worry. But every few minutes, he would look out the window, so I worried even more. The storm finally blew past and we got back in line and took off. I watched the movie “Poms” while we were having dinner and answering emails. Then I slept for 3 hours and woke up as they were serving breakfast. Didn’t eat any breakfast as that was during my “fasting” time.
We landed and it took forever for our bags to arrive. But, everything made it and our “escorts” – all 4 of them were waiting outside. I guess our language barrier didn’t exactly translate accurately as to what we needed but better more than less. They wanted us to split up and let them start taking us to the hotel while the cargo van was pulling around. We did that in India and when we left the airport, one car went right, one went left and one went straight. We definitely weren’t doing that again. So, we waited and waited and waited. He finally made it around and then we had to walk a long way to the elevators and outside. Got everything loaded and we had to go back in the terminal to walk to the parking garage. Only a flight had just landed and it was so crowded we could barely walk. Once we made it outside, we realized we had “lost” one of the guys. When he never came out, we realized he must have rode with one of our other guys in the equipment van. Once we left the parking garage, our driver pulled over and waited for everyone. I was sitting backwards and saw the equipment van behind us. Then when we arrived at the hotel, it was no longer there.
We went in and I started checking everyone in. No one had told the front desk clerks that they had a group coming in so none of our rooms were ready. They were able to move us out of the rooms that were originally reserved and into rooms that were ready. Still no equipment van and that was at least 30 minutes later. Susan called one of the guys and he said the driver said they were very close…just stuck in traffic. Another 20 minutes went by and still no van! They finally arrived and we got everything unloaded. First thing I did was make sure my Wi-Fi worked and it did. It was hot even with the air conditioning on, so I had the front desk bring me a fan. Got everything set up and unpacked and walked across the street to a fantastic mall. The bottom level is a great “market” and there are dozens of restaurants in there serving every kind of food imaginable. I bought some grapes, cherry tomatoes and cheese then a “bunless burger” for lunch. Jason – our friend who booked the South Africa dates a couple of years ago and also booked this date – arrived from England.
When I got back to the room, it was unbearably hot. The front desk sent up a technician with this “machine” on a long rod. He held it up to the air conditioning vents and two red dots appeared. He said, “it’s not working”. I asked if it could be fixed and the said the words I was dreading “you will have to change rooms”. ARGHHH…wish I hadn’t unpacked!! The desk clerk came up and we went into two rooms…one right next door where the air conditioning didn’t work either and one on 5th floor where it sort of felt like it was working. I insisted he call the technician again to check it out before moving everything. He did and it was working, so I had to move!
Jason and I walked down the “walking street” by the hotel which was packed with tourists. We managed to find an Indian restaurant on “google” and ate there. The best place for restaurants is supposed to be at St. Catherine’s but we didn’t want to walk that far. Food was good and it was fun catching up on the “gossip” with Jason.
We walked back and I’ve been working for hours now. Getting really tired so will try to sort through the emails and get in bed soon. Tomorrow is the concert at Yesterdayland with lots of Classic Rock Artists. Looks like it will be a GREAT event!!!
Jude
SATURDAY, AUGUST 24TH, 2016 – PERFORMANCE AT YESTERDAYLAND IN LICHTAART, BELGIUM:
Tonight’s “road report” will be much less dramatic and much shorter than yesterday. Got 4 hours sleep and had just gotten out of the shower when I got a text from David saying the hotel had slipped a note under his door. I called Jason and he went down and dealt with it — just a mistake.
Walked over to the shopping mall and attempted to order a “bowl” with veggies and tofu from a Vietnamese Restaurant. Everything was “automated” and I placed the order on the screen and inserted my Visa card because I figured they didn’t take AMEX. It took the card just fine but then at the end said that there was a technical error. We tried a different screen but had the same problem. And, the restaurant would not accept cash!
So I walked next door and ordered from a Japanese restaurant and they had no problem taking my credit card.
We all met in the lobby at 2 pm and at 2:30 pm, we were still waiting for our drive and van to take the musicians and equipment to the stage. It’s an hour and forty-five minute drive from the hotel. The “explanation” was that there was a lot of traffic trying to reach our hotel. We finally departed at 2:45 pm but only one of the vans showed up. We all crammed into the 9 seats available and thankfully all the equipment fit in the back. We contacted the driver of the other vehicle and told him to go ahead and come to the hotel and bring Howard and David out to the park at 3:15 pm. The driver that as supposed to be picking them up was also stuck in traffic. It seemed every road our driver took was closed and we had to detour several times. We finally arrived at the park and I met Hugo – our promoter and Bernadette – who has been working hard to take care of us. We were told that last year there were 7,000 people in the park and this year there are 14,000. They have 7 stages throughout the park. We drove down to the backstage area and met Leo – the stage manager. It was incredibly hot but the audience area was packed! I went back up to the gate entrance to meet Howard and David and check out the dressing room situation. Only had a few minutes there before we had to leave for the stage. I ran to the restrooms so I wouldn’t have to use the port-a-potty by the stage. But both stalls were occupied, so I had to wait…and wait….and wait! Finally a stall door opened and a man stepped out of the ladies restroom. Really?
I had hoped it would begin cooling off as we approached 5 pm but it seemed to only get hotter. Just amazed that the people stayed in that heat. Bellamys only performed a 40 minute set which is what each artist was allowed. That’s just a “warm up” for them. But, in that extreme heat, they were thankful it was a short set! It was a great show and the fans loved them!
There was a van waiting to take us back to the dressing room and then we had to take a different van back to the hotel. Oddly enough, the dressing room reserved for them had disappeared and a “Sister Sledge” sign was on the door. After asking half a dozen different people, finally found someone who said they could still use that dressing room. Sister Sledge wasn’t even scheduled to perform until 10:20 pm and they sure were not going to come to the park any earlier than necessary because of the heat.
It took over an hour to find vans to transport us and the equipment back to the hotel. We all went into the hotel restaurant for dinner and the food was good. We talk Jason stories about our practical jokes on each other “back in our younger days” and it was a fun evening.
Now we are “off” until we depart on Thursday via the Eurostar Train to London…sort of…The Bellamy’s videographer for their Reality Show is coming over on Tuesday to film some things here and in the UK.
Talked to Zac and Zoe and they won their first soccer game. So proud of them!
Going to bed very soon.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 25TH, 2019 – FIRST DAY OFF IN BRUSSELS:
Six hours of sleep and a great work out in the hotel gym is a great way to start the day. Showered and answered important emails and then met Jason for a quick lunch. We walked down to the St. Catherine’s area which is where the hotel suggested for the “best” food. Since it is Sunday, all the shops are closed and even some of the restaurants are closed as well.
We both ordered a salad with “baby shrimp”. When it came out, it looked like little worms…the one thing in life I am most afraid of. I didn’t think I would be able to eat it but actually forced myself. It tasted like shrimp, so that helped.
We sat outside and a bee started swarming us. Howard’s friend got stung by a bee in the hotel restaurant yesterday and I was swatting like crazy to get it to move. Unfortunately, it was very interested in the Mussels that the lady next to me was eating!
Before I left, I had asked the lady cleaning the rooms to please clean mine. However, she didn’t speak or understand English, so when I cam back, it had not been cleaned. I had to find her “boss” who can speak English and go sit in the lobby while she cleaned.
Worked the rest of the afternoon until I met Susan and David in the lobby. We walked over to a different Indian restaurant that the hotel recommended as better than the one Jason and I ate at. It was a pretty long walk but not as hot as it was when we walked down for lunch. The temperatures here are in the high 80’s which is very unusual for Brussels but then it’s been that hot all over Europe this summer.
Went back to work once I was in the room. It’s almost 2 am now and I’m trying to finish up and go to bed. Will combine the next few days of road reports since there won’t be much to report.
Jude
MONDAY, AUGUST 26TH, – 2ND DAY OFF IN BRUSSELS:
Got up at 8 am after going to bed at 3 am and decided it was a good day to “run” – even in the extreme HEAT! I ran around a couple of parks and then down the walking street to St. Catherine’s and back past the hotel to the train station. I was definitely the only person crazy enough to be out jogging! Got a shower and went down to find something to eat since it was after 1 pm. David sent me a text before I found anywhere so I found him and Susan and we walked over to the Mall. We ate at the Thai Restaurant and it was really great food.
I did not realize it was going to be this hot in Brussels and I brought all the wrong clothes. Derrek, the Bellamy’s Videographer, arrives tomorrow to start filming the 3rd Season of the Reality Show. I would be very happy to carry his gear around for him but David isn’t going to let me. So, I hit the walking street trying to find comfortable sandals and cooler clothing. I walked for hours and finally found a pair of sandals that are “okay” and one shirt that is thin and short sleeve.
When I got back to the hotel, Susan asked me to come to their room and see if it was hotter than mine. It was! They said Howard had made reservations at a hotel and wanted us to join him and Julia for dinner. Susan and I went downstairs and got the key to another room and checked it out to see if it was any cooler than theirs. It wasn’t but the air was also not turned on. We turned it on and decided to check it again after dinner. We took taxis to a great restaurant inside Hotel Amigo. Had a nice dinner and conversation and then decided to walk back to the hotel. It had cooled off a little and we walked through a beautiful “Square”. It was after 10 pm by the time we made it back to the hotel. We decided the room was a “little” cooler, so Susan and David moved. UGH!!
Tonight I worked until 3:30 pm and didn’t get to sleep until almost 5 pm. Had to get up at 9 pm to get Derrek checked in.
Jude
TUESDAY, AUGUST 27TH – 3RD DAY OFF IN BRUSSELS – WELL, NOT REALLY!
Got up at 9 am and went down to the front desk to take care of Derrek. He had already arrived by the time I made it down. David told him to go take a “nap” and meet us at 3 pm to start filming. I literally RAN over to the mall again to try once again to find cooler clothing to wear. Found a couple of pieces and rushed back to the hotel to shower and be ready by 3 pm to meet everyone.
I tried all morning to get our promoter to tell me the name of the transportation company that would be picking us up. Jason tried as well. He simply ignored us. This has been the case with most of our dealings with him. David told me to call the company that brought us to the hotel because I had gotten cards from them. I tried but they didn’t understand my “Southern Drawl English”. Went down to the Concierge and they helped me book it. One company only had one 8 passenger minivan so they contacted the other company as well and found another 8 passenger minivan. We have to take the 10 pieces of equipment tomorrow to the train station so it can go in advance of our departure. Then on Thursday, we depart by EuroStar with our luggage to London. I think we finally have everything sorted out but it took a lot of my time and effort…something I should not have had to do because it’s in our contract that the buyer has to provide the transportation. But, as I said, this isn’t the only thing he “flaked on”!
After meeting in the lobby, we walked over to the food court and got a “fresh juice” because I had not eaten anything since dinner last night. Also, we were waiting out the “heat” a little. It was 92 degrees when we walked outside and Susan and I were just dripping with sweat….so much for make-up! We walked down the street to the “peeing boy” statue that Brussels is famous for and shot a scene with the amazing Belgium Waffles. I even got to eat about 3 bites of one! Then we walked some more while Derrek shot “b-roll” and stopped at an outdoor café for a drink of water. We ended up on “restaurant row” for dinner and fought off “bees” the entire time. They seemed to like me the best!
Walked back to the hotel and I had a nice surprise in my room…the maid unplugged the power strip for my computer and opened the drapes. Must be about 95 degrees in here right now and it is after midnight.
Got to get in the bed earlier tonight so I can be ready to go to the train station at 10 am tomorrow!
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 28TH – VISIT TO BRUGES, BELGIUM:
And THAT was the temperature yesterday when we were walking around filming for the TV show! Susan and I were complaining most of time because all our makeup was running down our faces. It was SOOOOO hot!! And we didn’t even have a nice air conditioned room to return too. I did find out a very interesting fact. Several of the guys have rooms where the air conditioning is actually too cold for them at times! Turns out that their rooms have the old style unit under the window with vents on top. The rooms that are unbearably hot have the vents at the very top of the wall. I climbed up on a chair to see if it was blowing cold air. It is only blowing air – not cold air – and it’s like the strength of blowing on your hand!
Anyway…I got up in time to meet the van drivers, Derrek, Tim and Randy and take all the equipment to the train station. It was actually much easier than I anticipated. Derrek was standing to one side filming me asking the Information Desk Clerk questions when the clerk noticed him. He jumped up and opened the window and told him to stop! I pretended not to know Derrek and acted as though I had not idea why he would be filming me. HA!
One of the funniest stories from this trip is from Randy Hall. He was out shopping and went into a little toy store. He was in the back of the store wandering around and when he got ready to leave, he noticed he was the only one in the store…not even a salesclerk with him. He saw that the sign on the door was turned over and the door was locked. Evidently the shop owner had left and locked him in the store! He said he just sat down on a little stool near the door and waited — for about 45 minutes! The shop owner came back, opened the door, and saw him sitting there and said, “Oh Sheee-it”. We have all laughed for days over that one. Wish Derrek had been there to film that one!
After checking in the equipment, Susan, David, Howard, Julia, Derrek, Jim and Randy Hall and I walked to the train station. We had to purchase tickets and there was an agent helping everyone buy their tickets from the machine. Everything was going fine until we put the credit card in and it required a PIN #. David didn’t know the PIN. The clerk told us to go to the ticket counter. He asked David how tall he was and David said “What?”. He again asked how tall he was. David said about 6 feet and the Clerk said go to the ticket counter and you will get a discount for being old! Susan was freaking out thinking she was going to be too tall to ride the train for some reason. I figured out that he meant to ask how “old” David was. I told David he must be the only one in our group who looks like he qualifies for a Senior discount.
We made our way to the ticket counter to purchase the tickets. The lady there wasn’t very friendly and insisted it would have been cheaper to buy our tickets from the machine!
We finally got the tickets and made our way to the train. It was a short 1 hour ride and we filmed most of the way. I went to the tourist office to get info and when I came out, couldn’t find anyone! They had walked all the way down to the opposite end where the toilets are located. All the public toilets are “pay” toilets – 50 Euros so we are all always scrambling for change. There was a little “group” sitting outside the toilet singing and playing instruments. While I was in the toilet, they started singing “Hey Jude” and I thought my group had paid the to do it. But, it was just a coincidence!
Once we got to the Bruges train station, it was a very short walk to the place where the boats left from. Everyone told us that was the best way to see the city because it toured through the Medieval parts. It was a great trip – probably about 20-30 minutes. We walked back towards the entrance and stopped to have lunch – at about 3 pm! Filmed some more and me a man and his wife who said they saw them perform at the Schupfart Festival in Switzerland a few years ago. Small World!!!
We walked back to the train station and none of the signs showed trains going to Brussels North – which is where we needed to go. They all went to Brussels Central. I got in a long line to ask which track we needed to go to and by the time I found out, they group had already asked people walking by and knew where to go. When we got on the train it was packed full and we had gotten on in the first class section but our tickets were for 2nd class. I was standing in the aisle waiting for a lady to go past and she said, “That’s my seat!” in a very rude voice. I explained to her that I wasn’t sitting in her seat, just waiting for her to get out of my way! Howard, Julia, David and Susan sat down in First Class thinking their tickets wouldn’t be checked until the end of the ride. Jim, Randy, Derrek and I began walking through the cars looking for a seat in 2nd class and finally found 4 single seats – just not together. As soon as I sat down, I realized I had all the tickets. Three of the tickets were single tickets for the “seniors” in the group and then there was one “group” ticket for the other 5 passengers. Susan, David, Howard and Julia walked up to where we were and right after they arrived, the person checking the tickets came by. I explained that 3 of the 5 passengers were in a different car and she said that was fine but said that ticket wasn’t valid. I told her it was because we purchased roundtrip. She said it was round trip but wasn’t valid because it wasn’t filled in! She handed me a pen and told me to fill it in. I had to write in the date, city of departure and city of return five times…couldn’t use “ marks!!! And, she left and never came back so I did it all for nothing!
We arrived back in Brussel and walked back to the hotel where I have been sitting and working for hours. Almost 3 am again – seems to be my normal bedtime over here. We leave for the EuroStar Train Station at 11 am tomorrow for our trip to London.
Jude