WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19TH, DAY OFF IN ZURICH:
Didn’t make it to bed until 4 am, so I slept until 9 am. Had breakfast before they closed at 10 am and then worked out in the FANTASTIC gym at this hotel. It costs 10 CHF but definitely worth it. There is a wonderful Spa attached to the gym. I have to look back at my old road reports and see if I liked the massage I got there last time – if I even had time to get one.
My room has a walk in shower and enough floor space that I could open 4 suitcases if I had them. Large desk to work on. Iron and ironing board in the closet. Coffee maker with tea and coffee. Sink, toilet, and shower each have their own separate room. We stayed here with the Bellamys several years ago and loved it. I do have a very, very tiny window because once again I am on the 1st floor. But I can walk quickly up and down the stairs instead of waiting on elevators.
Showered and worked for a while. Then walked over to the shopping city that is ATTACHED to the hotel. Great restaurants and shops. Grabbed a quick very late lunch and then it was time to go to the airport to meet Iris. I took the tram to the train station and then hopped on the train to the airport. And, everyone, please make a note of this – I did not get lost even once. It was a miracle. Checked out where the Bellamys will arrive tomorrow morning at 6:45 am and then went to the Radisson to clear up the mess from last night. They had rebooked my reservation for arrival today for one night! Also, they were refusing to refund Iris’s pre-payment on her room. The only reason she was staying there was to see me. I had already talked with the Carlson Club where all my hundreds of thousands of points are earned from my stays at the Radisson so didn’t take me long at the Radisson to get everything settled the way I wanted it. J
Met Iris at the train station downtown. I was confused and thought I was meeting her at the airport train station. Doesn’t count as “getting lost” though! We ate at a fantastic Japanese restaurant. I had a chicken skewer that was delicious. No sushi because I can’t have rice. We talked and talked. So good to catch up with her. Wish we had longer to chat but she took the train back to Interlaken and I came back to work.
Guess you can tell I’m very happy with the food here, too!
I have to get up at 4:30 and leave for the airport by 5:30 am tomorrow to meet the Bellamys. Going to be a short night!
Jude
THURSDAY, MARCH 20
Trust me, 4:30 am came way too soon! Had showered last night so all I had to do was dress and get to the tram and trains. Coffee facilitated those movements. 🙂
I arrived just as the bags were coming off the belt so didn’t have to wait long for the Bellamys. All their luggage and equipment was on the plane which is a very good thing. Somehow Randy, Norwood and Jim got past us without us seeing them. We were waiting and waiting and I finally walked out to the van to check with the others to see what could have happened. All 3 guys were in the van. Susan had told Wally to go tell me but instead he told Albi….who never told me.
There was a lot of construction and rush hour traffic getting to the hotel. I already had the keys to Howard’s and David’s rooms, so they could go right up. All the guys rooms were available as well but it took a while to get them checked in. Gregg had ridden to the hotel with Albi and they still had not arrived after I got everyone checked in. All the guys had gone into the restaurant for breakfast but still no Gregg and Albi. I called him a couple of times and finally told him that next time he should follow the van driver! He said he “likes to go his way”. And my response was “and how is that working out for you”? 🙂 They finally arrived and I got the “buy out” money for dinner and disbursed to everyone.
Then I went upstairs to take a 3 hour nap. I had put an old hotel room key in the slot that turns on the power but the maid had taken it. I got it back and tried to tell her “do not touch” because it turns off the power to my computer. But she didn’t understand a word I said. Never fear – Duct Tape to the rescue again. Tape over the key is a good reminder not to touch. I called the front desk and told them that the maid forgot to leave me any coffee and cream so I was sitting the container outside my door and asked her to have them fill it up. Then I wrote a note and set it outside. I was sound asleep when the phone in my room started ringing. It was the front desk and the lady said, “The maid wants to fill up your coffee container but you have the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on your door. Can she come in?”. Hello….why are you calling my room if you KNOW I have the DND sign on the door. If the maid saw the DND sign, she was obviously standing in front of my door – possibly standing on the coffee container! I told her just to fill it up and leave it outside the door.
Then Albi emailed me and said the front desk called him because I didn’t pay my bill for the 2 nights. I had asked them this morning if they had switched the bill over and did I need to pay. They told me to pay for the 2 nights and my “extras” when I checked out. Now, why didn’t they just call my room and talk to me instead of calling the promoter. So, still a great hotel, just a few not so brilliant workers.
I went for a run on a path beside the river and it was terrific. Went on forever…but I didn’t. I ran 4 miles instead of 3 and didn’t even get lost once. Weather is beautiful. Didn’t even need a jacket today.
Came back and showered, answered email, and went to the mall to get some “groceries” for the room – mostly cheese which is on the Atkins diet. By then it was 6 pm and I was HUNGRY. Went next door to “Hong Kong” and got the butter chicken with no rice and no bread…boring. But it was excellent.
Have been working nonstop since dinner and it’s now 2:30 am. Going to bed so I can get up and have breakfast before they close, work out and go to the venue!
FRIDAY, MARCH 21ST – FIRST SHOW IN ZURICH:
Had breakfast with some of the boys and then worked out in the great gym. They had cleaned my room while I was working out. This time the maid took the duct tape off the key, pulled it out of the slot (which caused all the power in the room to go out and my computer close down). She had the nerve to stick the key to the wall with the duct tape instead of returning it to the slot! This means WAR! I looked up how to say “DO NOT TOUCH” in German and made a sign to tape over the key slot. If she tears all that down and removes the key, I am going to use the Duct Tape on her next time!
Showered and then it was time to go to the venue for sound check. Stage was set up and ready and no problems. I stayed about an hour and got to chat with George for a few minutes about artists for 2015. Then walked back down the hill to the hotel. Worked non-stop until time to grab some dinner (skipped lunch!). Walked over to a restaurant at the mall and ordered the “skinny burger” as take-away. Really disappointing. It was a hamburger patty – no cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, etc. I asked for mayonnaise but they gave me ketchup.
Grabbed a taxi for David, Howard, Susan and I to go to the venue. The driver was extremely RUDE and obviously didn’t understand a word we said. I am convinced he is married to the maid at the hotel. I was trying to direct him to the “back” of the venue and not having much luck. Albi finally stood in the middle of the street and directed him. Then he parked the car on the Tram Tracks. As we got out, there was a tram coming!
All 3 nights of the Bellamys shows are sold out – as usual. We had Albert from SUISA and his friend, Lukas with Gola, Sandro the great photographer with his girlfriend, Xeno and another guy that had gone to the recording session in Florida all as our guests tonight. As soon as we arrived, the Bellamys did a radio interview. I took photos of everyone tonight to download into this amazing website that turns them into passport photos!
Bellamys had great shows and did multiple encores. They stayed and talked to all their guests for more than an hour after the concert!
I had TWO migraines this afternoon – one at 1 pm and one at 3 pm. Never had that happed before! It’s 2 am and I’m going to bed. Having lunch with Lukas tomorrow and then it’s shopping time. J
Jude
SATURDAY, MARCH 22ND – 2ND SHOW IN ZURICH:
Had read the weather report last night and knew I had to get up early before it started raining and turning cold! Got in a wonderful jog in chilly weather and it started sprinkling just as I got back to the hotel. By the time I had breakfast and showered, it was pouring down. And, of course, I forgot to bring an umbrella. At least I have a jacket with a “hood”.
Took the tram down to ContraPunta – my favorite Zurich restaurant. And for the first time, I can’t have the pasta with truffle sauce. L Met Lukas there at 1 pm and we were discussing the menu when I looked at the plates of the couple sitting next to us. In Europe, it’s common practice to seat strangers at the same table! They had a white fish in lemon sauce on fresh spinach. I asked them what it was and was told it was Sea Bass and they said it was excellent! I started talking with them and learned that they are from Germany. They asked where we were from and I explained to them about Lukas managing Gola and the Bellamy Brothers. I was surprised that they didn’t know who the Bellamys are, but then Lukas said, “Let Your Love Flow” and they immediately knew who they are. J
Had great food and a wonderful conversation with Lukas about the Gola/Bellamys duet CD and upcoming tour in early 2015. Hopefully this project will be as successful as the one we did in 2014 which sold double platinum and stayed at #1 for 6 weeks in the charts!
Lukas insisted that I take his umbrella and I’m glad he did. I was going to do some shopping but it was just raining too hard. Instead I purchased chocolate at Sprungli for people back home. Was back at the hotel early and spent my time working, as usual. I did walk back over to the Hong Kong restaurant where I had the great Indian food. I should have had it again but opted for the Chinese and it was too hot and spicy to eat.
We left for the show at 9:00 pm and again, the place was packed. Tonight everyone who purchased a ticket had a buffet dinner at the venue. Susan and I walked out front once the Bellamys went on stage and walked past the buffet table that was filled with desserts. I can just imagine the reaction of the audience if I had just started grabbing things and stuffing in my mouth. Which is exactly what I wanted to do since I haven’t had dessert in sooooo long. L
Winny – Albi’s wife was there and as beautiful as ever. She’s so sweet, too. I went into the restaurant with Susan so she could eat dinner since she was starving. The Bellamys did another flawless, awesome show with multiple encores. They didn’t hang around very long after the show because we have to leave for the venue at 8:45 am tomorrow morning. Another “short” night.
I’ve booked a massage for 5:30 pm tomorrow afternoon and really looking forward to that. My neck and shoulders are so tight, I can’t turn my head very far to the left or right – all caused by stress and tension – which is just a normal part of life for me. It is supposed to snow tomorrow and Monday. At least I had beautiful weather in London and here until today. Wondering if I’m going home to freezing weather in Nashville.
Off to bed, now, maybe….
Jude
Monday, March 24, 2014 – FLYING HOME!
Met everyone in the lobby at 5:45 am and there was no traffic at all driving to the airport. Since I had already printed boarding passes for everyone, we were able to use the “Drop bags” line and were checked in very quickly. After checking in and clearing security, we met at “Marche” for breakfast. If you aren’t familiar with “Marche”, it’s a great chain restaurant we discovered in Germany and Switzerland several years ago. Now they have one in the Zurich airport. Everything is freshly prepared and the food is amazing. I had one of the best omelets ever.
Made a quick stop to purchase candy at Sprungli for the twins. They like the little colored candy that looks like miniature “hamburgers”. I couldn’t buy it the other day because it is best “fresh”.
Our flight departed on time and business class was full. The flight attendants were nice but not overly friendly. I watched “Osage County”, slept for 2 hours and watched another movie with Ben Stiller in it which wasn’t so great….can’t even remember the name of it. There was NO turbulence the entire flight which was really unusual and much welcomed.
Landed Atlanta early and breezed through Immigration with our “Global Entry” passes. Re-checked our baggage and I rushed to the Delta Lounge to answer as many emails as I could in one hour. Had an email from our promoter saying no one found my camera. Very happy I had downloaded all but a couple of the photos! Flight to Nashville departed on time and again arrived early. Best part of the trip – Zac and Zoe were waiting for me when I arrived. J
Very successful tour – Bellamys were great, Promoter was great, Hotel was great, audiences were great! Wish every tour could be like this one.
Have to go to DC for a couple of days next week and then the next “important” trip is with Zac, Zoe, and Lindsey to Disney World and for our second Disney Cruise over Easter weekend.
Jude