First Installment:

Prelude – Bristol – Nottingham – Edinburgh

(Landscape photographs to be added soon)

 

Prelude – The Planning

The story of this trip began days before.  I didn’t really sit down to seriously start planning the trip (getting the hotel reservations and land travel arrangements) until the Friday before leaving thanks to the boss taking his sweet time and inserting maddening bureaucratic hurdles before finally approving the leave, for which I had bargained as a condition of employment back last NOVEMBER.  I figured that if I worked hard over the weekend, I would get it all done, but no.  This time, for some reason, everything took much longer.  There were far more websites and websites of links to websites, so you would think it would have been easier.  So many lodgings were either fully booked or in the wrong location.  And now, the new feature of being able to read what other people have to say about an accommodation made me think negatively about going with a place (derogatory comments about dirtiness, poor food, heat, staff, you name it) where I never would have hesitated before.  It was interesting to see that the comments about the one and two star lodgings were truly scary (i.e., the extraordinary level of dirt, potential disease and fires, and bad food), and the ones about the four and five stars were more whiney (e.g., they forgot to refresh the free bags of coffee, or one of the lifts was out of service).  Thing is, back until a few years ago, you just went and put up with whatever.  There’s only been one occasion where I picked up and left and that was from the cross between Animal House and Animal Farm of a youth hostel in Interlaken, Switzerland, after the Monaco concert in August, 2004, and a day into a 3-day planned stay there.  So, paradoxically, the extra websites and information made planning go right up to and past the wire.  As I finished writing this (actually rewriting since Microsoft insisted upon updating Windows before I had an internet connection to send it, so wiped out the first version), I still am missing some hotel reservations.  I also didn’t have a chance to fully explore all the possible train routes, something for which I’m paying for dearly in time.  Word to the wise, you’d think that it might not matter so much, but it’s best to be your own expert on the trains, since the personnel at the stations are not always up on the latest construction works in other areas of the country.

 Edinburgh was again very tough to plan.  Last time (May 2002, after my five-day bike trip through Fife which followed the Moodies tour), the hotel gave my reservation away.. more on that later.  I didn’t want to leave without having the trip thoroughly planned.  There’s nothing worse than spending your vacation making reservations or wondering if you’re going to sleep on the street.  Even on the day I left for the UK, I changed my car rental plans as my colleague, Anne, said I was being too ambitious to drive from Bristol to Northampton, then drive with her to this fen in Cambridgeshire and back, and then drive north to Nottingham for the show.  Then there was the weather prediction --  it was supposed to pour.  I’m really glad I made the change now... 

 

Sept. 28

Sleep deprived, nervous and a wreck, managed to pack for a month of traveling into a 22" rolling duffle, my knapsack and new laptop purchased for New Orleans train trips and get my office work done in record time,.   The first of the "whew, dodged a bullet" moments ensured as I got out of the cab at 41st St.  I'd paid the driver, put on my knapsack, adjusted the laptop bag and set off brightly for the Newark airport bus.  The instant that I got to the line and asked the person if it were that bus, I remembered my duffel and took off sprinting down the street back to Lexington Ave.  Thankfully, the bag was still on the sidewalk.  After this inauspicious beginning, a song kept going through head with lyrics: … my hands won't stop shaking, my mind won't stop quaking … I want to go home, please let me go home, about a young man going to war.  This Zombies song that reminds me so much of the Moodies' song about the same subject was on Caught Live plus 5 (can anybody place the name of that song and quote some lyrics for comparison?).

Even though the flight wasn't remarkable, I couldn't sleep with those lyrics cycling through my head, and I managed to have gotten the seat next to the removable door, so my seat wouldn't recline.  Continental fed two nice meals, but again, if you want to sleep, forget it.  The dawn was amazing.  First, looking east, the nitrogen oxides layer was very dark brown, clearly visible over Europe…  They gotta do something (as do we).  But then as it got closer to dawn and sunrise, the clouds and water got very orangy red. Quite fascinating to watch.  As we touched down at Manchester, mercifully, that dreadful song that had me in its grip dissolved as they put on '˜Eight days a week' full blast in the plane.  My seat mate and sang (her Paul, me John) and had a good old time. 

Last time I'd come to Manchester, four years ago, the concert was that night in Manchester.  I had gone into the very well equipped tourist info shop in the airport and having found that I probably wouldn't enjoy Manchester, decided to take a train to the Peak district and hike around.  That had been wonderful.  This time, I made the mistake of not seeking out that office (I didn't see it either… maybe it's gone?) and headed straight down the endless elevated windowed corridors to the train station.  There, they not only didn't have any suggestions about a pretty way to get to Bristol, they didn't even have one railway map of Britain to consult.  I had to pull mine out.   I'd hoped to take the route through Brecon Beacons, the high hills north of Cardiff, but I missed the only train before 6pm.  Still thinking to have a more scenic route, thought I'd take one to Newport and Cardiff, but missed one as they fumbled...   But on my train I met these lovely people from the west Midlands.  They were trying not to stare as I sorted my 8x10s of the band into photo albums for the trip.  They started asking questions (the usual) and we got into a nice conversation.  They were effusive and unrelenting in their praise of the photos (almost embarrassing), gave me their addresses and phones and asked me to look them up if I were in the area.  By the time I arrived in Cardiff it was raining and dreary, and I didn't have the heart (stomach?) to start dragging my stuff around town in the rain,  So I bought a BBQ pastie at the pastie stand (very good ­ nontraditional, but with steak, pepper, onion, and of course, barbecue sausce), then back to Bristol.

Sleep deprivation from the previous days was catching up..  Though it was a pain that there were no trash cans in station, it prompted me to ask a nice flower lady to ask for one (not only got the reason ­ fear of terrorism going back 20 years, but also directions to the right bus to get to my hotel way across town).  Got to #8A bus across town past Bristol's version of the Big Dig, occupying several blocks in the center of town, then up long hill of shops to St. Paul's St.   This was a nice happening area of town with lots of students and a Borders book shop open late.  It was raining again and in my haste I slipped on metal plate on the sidewalk.  Knapsack flew over head pushing me to the ground; laptop went flying forward.  The hotel was very accommodating ­ the guy took my bags up two flights because of my injury and brought ice.  So I dodged a bullet there again.  Banged the knee good, broke the skin and punctured through the pants, but after some ice, was good to go (not to kneel, however..)

Walked down the hill, bought a road atlas for my Scotland car rental, stationery supply for my trip bible, thence up to Observatory Hill for pix of the city.  As the clouds parted, a dog frolicked in a small pond and a Bristol sightseeing balloon flew by above.  Walking towards downtown I was tempted by the spa open till midnight, but took bus from the central plaza, featuring a quite large with metal sculpture with small sails attached … probably an abstract tall ship, up to hotel to get ready for the show, walked back down to the venue ­ picking up some yogurt for dinner on the run.  Got there about 7:45.. not too bad.  Bought a program for 8 pounds.  Not a bad price, just like the face value of the tix there. 

Taking my seat on Norda's side, she smiled at me as soon as she saw me.  Justin was looking very tropical in his crinkle white linen trousers with off white woven textile shoes.  Looked very comfy, and definitely appropriate for the theater, which seemed like a sauna that night.  Graeme's shoes looked almost like bedroom slippers with thick cushiony soles and his shirt was another of those brilliant, wild-colored jobs ­ raspberry a predominant color.  John was in his frilly white shirt, snake jeans and cowboy boots.  Boy it was hot in there.  We were all suffering.  I was surprised they didn't come out in T-shirts.  John was melting.  Reminded me of the article I'd read on the train down from Manchester, that a British study says Britain will have temps of 46, like the Sahara it said, by end of the century (38 C is body temperature, folks!).  But this, I imagined, was due to lack of ventilation.  They didn't seem to have any.

I found that Julie's voice added nicely to the mix.  She's learning the routines just like Bernie's.  Graeme's toss was 1 for 3.  John's high, rapid bass part at the end of TOSOL (series of up and down scales) was the loudest and clearest ever.  If I had a tape of it, we (the Moodyfest band) would finally be able to put that part in.  Justin talked about his new guitar ­ spruce top, mahogany or rosewood sides (like most).  I guess this is his new pride and joy.  I took a closeup and the make is Collings ­ obviously British, but I'd never heard of it.  (anyone??).  It sounded nice and bright with a tough biting sound.  He seems to go for that.  The black Guild is like that.  The lighting was bad on Justin; it was better on the others, but not great.  This night there was no overdubbing on OMTTL, but wish Justin would sing more.  There was one or two lines where they had 3 or 4 part harmony which was really nice.  For I have riches more than these.  Seems like John's so loud in the mix that the other 3 are singing the response lines to John's.  

Security came over at the interval asking to look at my camera.  They thought I was shooting video.  I'm guessing that is because I hold the camera so steady and for so long waiting for the right shot.  Then before the 2nd half started, one came over again and said that the management asked that I take fewer shots in the second than in the first.  It's the first time that's ever happened.  It was a bit freaky.  I did as told and waited for those few times when good shots are usually had and they seemed to be happy with that.  I asked afterwards who had asked that this be done, and they said it was the promoters.  They seem to be the new factor in the camera policy.  So it's not just the Moodies lawyers with their contracts and the way the venues decide to enforce.  The promoters can be in there asking they enforce the camera policy as well.  These are the folks that stymied us with mailing tickets out at the last minute at Bristol, Ipswich, Birmingham at least..  

Outside after the concert a dozen or two waited an hour, fewer as time went on, of course, and they came out got in the bus and signed programs, etc from there as they've done in the past..  Met some friends from UK and Europe that I only see while here..  John stopped to have pix taken with one or two fans,  There were no hard feelings with security.  They were nice there at the end having us line up for the band, not pushing us around unnecessarily as some of the Gestapo-like security in certain venues in the US have been.  The fellow who asked that I take fewer shots, gave me advice on where to find a taxi stand for the cab up the hill to the hotel.

Next morning, what a Lovely breakfast.  Bangers, potato fried, tomato, mushroom, bacon, beans, and egg.  Toast, flakes, juice, yogurt.  Flowers on the table.

On advice from the hotel, walked around Clifton this time.. was supposed to be flat.. lots of uphill dragging everything so that I wouldn't waste time going back to the hotel.  Some rain on and off.  Found out that plans for accommodation in Nottingham ( that night) fell thru had to make more, last minute.  Walked into the first travel agent I saw, paid thru nose in time and money.  While waiting, noticed a sign for the current exchange rate.  It was up to $2.10!!!  That's like a quarter in just a couple of weeks.  Reminded me of the week I was in Kiev in 1993 where a dollar bought at first 16,000 coupons, and by week's end, only 9,000.  But got something nice close to the station, which turned out to be brilliant. 

Went to Bristol Suspension bridge.  I didn't realize they had a rock gorge, flowers coming out the sides.  Nice old rock.  Walked up to another overlook for some shots from above.. dragging the bags.  Great pix.  Chert outcroppings ­ reminded me that some buildings are made of this stuff here.  It is a relative of quartz ­ extremely tough.  After a few missteps, got bus to centre city and then to Jessops photo shop and on to the train. Traffic delayed, but then the train was delayed as well.  This turned into another adventure as I took a later one (earlier than my delayed planned one) to Gloucester and had to hop a bus to Birmingham thanks to track repairs and onto another train to Nottingham.  Got to Nottingham just in time to drop the bags at the hotel.  Upon check in ­ there were hen parties and stag parties galore with one group of women dressed up in robin hood costumes.  Quite a riot.   

 

Nottingham

I was going to send this last night, but somehow, the wifi point I was using must have decided the pull the plug!

The following was reconstructed from teh original as my laptop had lost everything that I wrote since I got to England (the first few days' worth)…  This time, our dear friend Microsoft decided that it wanted to update and  restart automatically, and I was composing the email for LC in a webmail program that couldn't save the draft without being online.  Maybe from now on I'll remember to compose these in Word.  Argh…

I got into Nottingham with a little more than an hour before the concert.  On the way out of the train station I looked over at the end of the tram line and noticed the schedule that trams come about every 10 minutes costing a steep pound twenty, but then trips often have hidden costs.  I'd been told that I could take it right to the venue ­ just 3 stops - so that would save a lot of running around.  Talk about convenient!  And it's quite a hill to climb otherwise as I remember the last time I came to Nottingham (dragging everything up the hill (quaintly named Maid Marian Way) in the rain).  Thankfully this time my hotel was just a long block away from the train (Jury's, a British chain that has a lot of typical American amenities), and it's by far the nicest I've ever stayed in in England.  Jurys also espouses green practices, asking not only that you put towels back on the rack, but water and energy conservation, requiring you to use your card (room) key to operate the electricity, meaning that when you leave, you don't leave all the lights on.    Of course, in my case, I wanted to be recharging various electronics.  But it's a novel idea just the same.  This hotel was brand new, which is unusual, but there's a lot of construction around this area at this time. 

 

The Concert

So, skidding into the venue at 7:45 again I took my seat quite far to the left in the 6th row.  It was one of those gotten just as the tickets went onsale.  The rest of those that I got then were 9th and 10th rows.  Of course, since then, better ones have surfaced.  Don't ya love it?  (Not!)  Diane from Daytona was nearby ready to rock.   I noticed a lot of things tonight… always hard to remember them afterwards..  Tonight one of the first thoughts I had was about how well Justin's rhythm guitar blends in with the mix.  It doesn't stick out, it's just so seamless providing fullness without distraction.  This is one thing about playing electric guitar that I have nowhere near mastered…  turning all the knobs on the guitar, the amp and pedals just so to get just the type of sound you want.  You can play all the notes, but you can get an infinite type of sounds depending on the equipment you use and how you work the settings.  Justin's sound is always brilliant as they say over here, and I've never been that happy with mine.  It's one of those questions I'd love to ask them if I ever had the chance as interviewer.  I suppose it comes from experimentation and never having a limited budget for equipment (or limited time for that matter).  Maybe it also comes from discussions amongst guitarists in the biz…  (Offline, I'd like to talk with those who are more conversant with this…)

At another point in the evening I was clearly aware of Justin's new guitar.  He'd made mention of it in Bristol as his new guitar, and it has a crisp tough feel to it.  Tonight, hearing the number of string buzzes that happened during one of the fingerpicking songs made me think he needs to get the action lowered a little bit, though actually, I think these buzzes were not on frets but imperfections in fingering (which struck me as odd).  Also during OMTTL Justin must have been trying out some new variations on D for the song because for the first verse it sounded as if he were daydreaming or that he'd even forgotten the chords for the song, staying on D when the chord progression usually had been D to Gbm to D7  to G to Gm to D to D7 to Bm to Gm (I'm doing this from memory so don't be surprised if I got something wrong).  But in this case he was hanging on D or very slight variations on it.  Trying for a new subtle sound I expect, but I was surprised that he would do it in front of a live audience.  You realize that this is what keeps the songs fresh for them, always experimenting.  I wonder when we will hear a new end solo for Singer, since this one has been in use since after - Red Rocks.  There have been three main end solos for that through the years.  I heard some new guitar variations on Nights at Bristol as well. 

One very nice touch to the evening was that immediately after the band went offstage the first time, there was rhythmic clapping by everybody in the venue.  I have Never ever heard anything like that.  Not even the last time I was in Nottingham.  Most of the time if it starts at all, it takes a while to get going, it's not only clapping, it's chair beating and the like, and it's never in unison by everybody.  This was great.  Afterwards, some of the people leaving were saying they hadn't been to see them for 30 years and it brought them back.  Nice to hear. 

But tonight, the big story for me was that for the second night in a row I was approached by security.  This one was right nearby and as I was so close to the side, I figured he'd shut me down and did after about 1/3 of the show had gone by.   He said it was a professional camera ­ well, technically, it's a prosumer; lens not interchangeable, but better than a point and shoot..).  But I'd noticed a couple of empty seats in the balcony on the side near John, so after the interval I went up and grabbed one.  What a wonderful view from there!  I was tickled to have done it and was getting some wonderful shots the likes of which I've never gotten before.  You could move the seats around and there was a very comfy broad and deep cushion to lean forward onto (rather than a rail).  You know how you can never get shots of Gordon and Paul, well tonight I was able to see Paul's hands and got some of him playing keyboards and guitar.  Got Gordon as well, not hidden as much as usual.  Got whole stage shots, even some with a couple of rows of the audience included.  No "mic in the mouth" problems from this angle.  Nice shots of Graeme and his dance and drum solo.  Towards the end Justin and John each looked up at us… there were a couple of fans from the Midlands next to me who were also demonstrably into it, so they acknowledged them. 

The unfortunate thing was, the same security guy who shut me down earlier was able to see me up there.  So at the end of the show he was waiting at the bottom of the stairs for me.  He said that the management thought someone was shooting video up there (i.e. me), so he hauled me off to talk to them.  Eventually, Mark, the tour manager, came to the edge of the stage.  Thankfully, he remembered me and in looking through some of the shots I took, said that this was the camera I've used before, and no worries.  He didn't know it was me that was supposedly shooting video, and clearly didn't care that I was taking digital shots with my so-called professional camera.  I'm not sure what lesson to take from this one, though I guess I did get a bit carried away up there, taking more shots than the night before because the angle was so different from anything I'd ever done before.

After the show, more people than in Bristol waited for them to appear at the bus side, but since they came out a bit earlier than the night before, they decided not to sign anything.  They would have been there a long time, and I guess they either were leaving town or wanted an earlier night.  The bus pulled up right beside the tram tracks, and it was nice to see that the tram was running so late.  Nottingham this night was really hopping.  I don't think I've ever seen a British town so very alive so late.  It wasn't just in that square either, but down the streets, and even as I eventually took the tram back to the train station, there were other squares just as alive.  Since I hadn't had dinner, I asked some of the many cops on the street looking very natty in their neon green and black jackets what was going on.  Turns out it was pay weekend…  And the pubs stay open until 2.  I guess that explains a lot.  I remember being in Manchester in 2002 after the tour looking for an open pub to see the Queen's Jubilee concert, and remembering how they tossed us out around 11pm.  As a result of the fact that Nottingham was alive late, I could actually get a good cheap and quick meal at that hour ­ a huge serving of chicken kabob in pita with salad for 3.50 pounds.  Speaking of that, I saw this day that the pound costs $2.10 now.  Man alive!  This is getting to be like that week I spent in Kiev in 1993 where inside of a week a dollar bought 9,000 going up to 16,000 ‘coupons' ­ the local currency.  The dollar has devalued something like a quarter just in the last week or two.  Ah, well, you only live once, and I'd hate to be old and regret not having done some of these trips. 

These are such interesting places to visit.  The English countryside, though not dramatic for the most part, is very pleasing to the soul.  The people, for the most part, are very civilized (there was that one chap in a Bristol cab with a group of guys, who, after I asked where the cab stand was, seeing them roll by close by, rolled down his window and yelled out something demeaning about New York and my accent ­ how did he know!).  The streets, for the most part, are free of litter.  The buildings are mainly free of graffiti (though I've heard of graffiti commissioned as art and as art medium taught in schools here).  The architecture, for the most part, is also pleasing to the eye.  From the air, the near-in suburbs of Manchester are bricks and green, not the hideous mixture that has become New York.  Well, tomorrow I'm off to Edinburgh!  It's one of my favorite European cities, right up there with London, Amsterdam and Copenhagen

 

Nottingham again

Ah, just found that once again my laptop has lost everything that I wrote since I got to England…  This tiime, our dear friend Microsoft decided that it wanted to update and  restart automatically, and I was composing the email in a webmail program that couldn't save the draft without being online.  Maybe from now on I'll remember to compose these in Word.  Argh…

I  got into Nottingham with a little more than an hour before the concert.  On the way out of the train station I looked over at the end of the tram line and noticed the schedule that trams come about every 10 minutes costing a steep pound twenty, but then trips often have hidden costs.  I'd been told that I could take it right to the venue ­ just 3 stops - so that would savve a lot of running around.  Talk about convenient!  And it's quite a hill to climb otherwise as I remember the last time I came to Nottingham (dragging everything up the hill (quaintly named Maid Marian Way) in the rain).  Thankfully this time my hotel was just a long block away from the train (Jury's, a British chain that has a lot of typical American amenities), and it's by far the nicest I've ever stayed in in England.  Jurys also espouses green practices, asking not only that you put towels back on the rack, but water and energy conservation, requiring you to use your card (room) key to operate the electricity, meaning that when you leave, you don't leave all the lights on.    Of course, in my case, I wanted to be recharging various electronics.  But it's a novel idea just the same.  This hotel was brand new, which is unusual, but there's a lot of construction around this area at this time. 

 

The Concert

So, skidding into the venue at 7:45 again I took my seat quite far to the left in the 6th row.  It was one of those gotten just as the tickets went onsale.  The rest of those that I got then were 9th and 10th rows.  Of course, since then, better ones have surfaced.  Don't ya love it?  (Not!)  Diane from Daytona was nearby ready to rock.   I noticed a lot of things tonight… always hard to remember them aafterwards..  Tonight one of the first thoughts I had was about how well Justin's rhythm guitar blends in with the mix.  It doesn't stick out, it's just so seamless providing fullness without distraction.  This is one thing about playing electric guitar that I have nowhere near mastered…  turning all the knobs on thhe guitar, the amp and pedals just so to get just the type of sound you want.  You can play all the notes, but you can get an infinite type of sounds depending on the equipment you use and how you work the settings.  Justin's sound is always brilliant as they say over here, and I've never been that happy with mine.  It's one of those questions I'd love to ask them if I ever had the chance as interviewer.  I suppose it comes from experimentation and never having a limited budget for equipment (or limited time for that matter).  Maybe it also comes from discussions amongst guitarists in the biz…  (Offline, I'd like to talk with thoose who are more conversant with this…)

 At anotheer point in the evening I was clearly aware of Justin's new guitar.  He'd made mention of it in Bristol as his new guitar, and it has a crisp tough feel to it.  Tonight, hearing the number of string buzzes that happened during one of the fingerpicking songs made me think he needs to get the action lowered a little bit, though actually, I think these buzzes were not on frets but imperfections in fingering (which struck me as odd).  Also during OMTTL Justin must have been trying out some new variations on D for the song because for the first verse it sounded as if he were daydreaming or that he'd even forgotten the chords for the song, staying on D when the chord progression usually had been D to Gbm to D7  to G to Gm to D to D7 to Bm to Gm (I'm doing this from memory so don't be surprised if I got something wrong).  But in this case he was hanging on D or very slight variations on it.  Trying for a new subtle sound I expect, but I was surprised that he would do it in front of a live audience.  You realize that this is what keeps the songs fresh for them, always experimenting.  I wonder when we will hear a new end solo for Singer, since this one has been in use since after - Red Rocks.  There have been three main end solos for that through the years.  I heard some new guitar variations on Nights at Bristol as well. 

 One very nice touch to the evening was that immediately after the band went offstage the first time, there was rhythmic clapping by everybody in the venue.  I have Never ever heard anything like that.  Not even the last time I was in Nottingham.  Most of the time if it starts at all, it takes a while to get going, it's not only clapping, it's chair beating and the like, and it's never in unison by everybody.  This was great.  Afterwards, some of the people leaving were saying they hadn't been to see them for 30 years and it brought them back.  Nice to hear. 

 But tonight, the big story for me was that for the second night in a row I was approached by security.  This one was right nearby and as I was so close to the side, I figured he'd shut me down and did after about 1/3 of the show had gone by.   He said it was a professional camera ­ wwell, technically, it's a prosumer; lens not interchangeable, but better than a point and shoot..).  But I'd noticed a couple of empty seats in the balcony on the side near John, so after the interval I went up and grabbed one.  What a wonderful view from there!  I was tickled to have done it and was getting some wonderful shots the likes of which I've never gotten before.  You could move the seats around and there was a very comfy broad and deep cushion to lean forward onto (rather than a rail).  You know how you can never get shots of Gordon and Paul, well tonight I was able to see Paul's hands and got some of him playing keyboards and guitar.  Got Gordon as well, not hidden as much as usual.  Got whole stage shots, even some with a couple of rows of the audience included.  No "mic in the mouth" problems from this angle.  Nice shots of Graeme and his dance and drum solo.  Towards the end Justin and John each looked up at us… there were a couplle of fans from the Midlands next to me who were also demonstrably into it, so they acknowledged them. 

 

The unfortunate thing was, the same security guy who shut me down earlier was able to see me up there.  So at the end of the show he was waiting at the bottom of the stairs for me.  He said that the management thought someone was shooting video up there (i.e. me), so he hauled me off to talk to them.  Eventually, Mark, the tour manager, came to the edge of the stage.  Thankfully, he remembered me and in looking through some of the shots I took, said that this was the camera I've used before, and no worries.  He didn't know it was me that was supposedly shooting video, and clearly didn't care that I was taking digital shots with my so-called professional camera.  I'm not sure what lesson to take from this one, though I guess I did get a bit carried away up there, taking more shots than the night before because the angle was so different from anything I'd ever done before.

After the show, more people than in Bristol waited for them to appear at the bus side, but since they came out a bit earlier than the night before, they decided not to sign anything.  They would have been there a long time, and I guess they either were leaving town or wanted an earlier night.  The bus pulled up right beside the tram tracks, and it was nice to see that the tram was running so late.  Nottingham this night was really hopping.  I don't think I've ever seen a British town so very alive so late.  It wasn't just in that square either, but down the streets, and even as I eventually took the tram back to the train station, there were other squares just as alive.  Since I hadn't had dinner, I asked some of the many cops on the street looking very natty in their neon green and black jackets what was going on.  Turns out it was pay weekend…  And the pubs stayy open until 2.  I guess that explains a lot.  I remember being in Manchester in 2002 after the tour looking for an open pub to see the Queen's Jubilee concert, and remembering how they tossed us out around 11pm.  As a result of the fact that Nottingham was alive late, I could actually get a good cheap and quick meal at that hour ­ a huge serving of chicken kabob in pita wwith salad for 3.50 pounds.  Speaking of that, I saw this day that the pound costs $2.10 now.  Man alive!  This is getting to be like that week I spent in Kiev in 1993 where inside of a week a dollar bought 9,000 going up to 16,000 ‘coupons' ­ the local currency.   The dollar has devalued something like a quarter just in the last week or two.  Ah, well, you only live once, and I'd hate to be old and regret not having done some of these trips. 

These are such interesting places to visit.  The English countryside, though not dramatic for the most part, is very pleasing to the soul.  The people, for the most part, are very civilized (there was that one chap in a Bristol cab with a group of guys, who, after I asked where the cab stand was, seeing them roll by close by, rolled down his window and yelled out something demeaning about New York and my accent ­ how did he know!).  The streets, for the  most part, are free of litter.  The buildings are mainly free of graffiti (though I've heard of graffiti commissioned as art and as art medium taught in schools here).  The architecture, for the most part, is also pleasing to the eye.  From the air, the near-in suburbs of Manchester are bricks and green, not the hideous mixture that has become New York.  Well, tomorrow I'm off to Edinburgh!  It's one of my favorite European cities, right up there with London, Amsterdam and Copenhagen.

 

Nottingham to Edinburgh

Early on, as tickets were going onsale in the usual confusion, I was having trouble getting any sort of even halfway reasonable ticket for Manchester, and really didn't have a desire to go to Newcastle, so thought, hmmm maybe some time in Scotland would be really nice.  I'd been there twice before..  once in that 1969 extravaganza and again in 2002 after the Moodies tour then.  In 2002 I'd taken the first train up to Perth after the Ipswich show to join an in-progress bicycle tour of the Kingdom of Fife.  That gave me a swift introduction to Scottish weather and road directions, both very ‘finicky', a word that our Scottish tour leader had used.  One particular day she said "today is a finicky day" (pronounced dee), meaning  a particularly difficult day (directions-wise) where it took me 10 hours to go about 35 miles by bike thanks to the crazy imprecise directions and unmarked roads and dirt bikepaths (it usually takes me a third that time).

After that tour I'd made a point to stop off in Edinburgh before coming back to England to fly back.  Even then, getting (and actually keeping) a place to stay in Edinburgh was a major challenge.  I'd made a point to check in from Perth train station by phone, and once in town, dropped my bags at the hotel on the northern outskirts of Edinburgh (too early to check in).  I remember having ridden the bus to town, walking my feet off, which you do in Edinburgh, with lots of up and down as the old town is up near the wonderful castle and the new town is down closer to the river, Princes street, and the Holyrood.  I decided to walk past the latter and up towards the nearby promontory.  Whew, that was a climb, and met some nice people on the way and went out to eat later.  I wish the Moodies would perform in Edinburgh rather than Glasgow every time… 

This story of Edinburgh accommodation in 2002 ended rather badly..  After I'd had a lovely time in town into the night, I got back out to the hotel and they'd given my room away.  And they didn't have any more since there was a wedding party carrying on all over the hotel (picture young loud, drunken men in kilts and loud women as well).  After waiting a good long while they offered me one of the staff's rooms.  But because they were smokers they sprayed the room with perfumed aerosols… thinking that would cleanse the room?  Once in there, I couldn't stand it for more than 5 minutes so had to wait another hour or so for another room to be gotten (from someone in the wedding party checking in really late, to whom they would give the toxic room).  But I digress…

This time it took the longest to get the Edinburgh reservations but I managed to luck out getting a single at the Thistle near the train at a great rate for the night (Oct 1), and a B&B for Oct 6 between the train and the car hire place for the end of my car tour of Scotland.  Something must be going on in town the latter weekend, as most things were booked up.

I'm learning that train service almost shuts down on Sundays and it's not much better on Saturdays.  After waking with a headache and most of the bedclothes on the floor in Nottingham, I checked out and went straightaway to the train, thinking I'd better get as early a start as I could.  Good thing.  The train worker I met on the bus the day before had said, just catch a short train to Grantham and then the line directly to Edinburgh.  Sounded easy enough.  But in the station, it took talking to a few train personnel, but we pieced together a 4 part trip up the east coast to Edinburgh.  I wanted the east coast route as it skirts the coast and was supposed to be quite beautiful.  To do the east route this Sunday, the Nottingham platform crew started me with a local train that was sitting on the platform (changing at Darby, and at Doncaster, and finally at Newcastle).  I ended up running for it.  If I'd missed that I might have been there for hours as it looked as if most trains were going either to Liverpool or London.  Some trainspotters were on the Doncaster train.  These spend their retirement years riding trains as a hobby.  They were thinking I might stay on the second train till Newcastle rather than switching to another at Doncaster to get to Newcastle.  But no, turns out the one I was on jogged west through Leeds so took longer.  It was neat looking out the window to small towns in brick with a ruined castle on a small hill right overlooking it.  Every so often there would be a coal-fired power plant with anywhere from 5 to 9 HUGE cooling towers ­ towering over the countryside.  In Doncaster I got on a train and sat next to a little old lady from Newcastle, coming back from a wedding.  Her accent was a bit difficult, but she had a lot to say, finishing my sentences as well, and clued me into getting set to take a photo of Durham with the castle (cathedral?) so picturesquely dominating the town.  I'd loved Durham when I last saw it in 1969.   She was also going on about it.  So many wonderful opportunities, so little time.  Good to know some things haven't changed.  She was talking about all the American chains that have so Americanized the place (e.g. TJ Maxx, not to mention KFC, Burger King, and McDonalds.  Then came the on-train announcements…  The train would terminate at Newcastle, where it normally would have gone up the east coast to Edinburgh.  Due again to construction works on the lines, that scenic portion along the coast is not available on weekends at all.  ARgh!  Neither the crew at Nottingham nor the trainspotters knew this.  There was a choice of bus service terminating at Berwick (and I suppose trying to find local service the rest of the way), or a GNER train "on a diversionary route" through Carlisle in the west back east to Edinburgh.  (Part of the confusion of train service in the UK beyond the track works is that there are so many privately owned lines that intersect, so it's hard to keep them all straight and most train personnel I've met have to consult a computer to answer a question.)  So I'm headed west towards Carlisle as I write this, for the second time, zigzagging up the island, on the diversionary route, despite my hopes and plans.  Just saw a sign for Hadrian's wall (the boundary between England and Scotland ­ I remember walking a short piece in '69).  Turns out that in Nottingham I should have just taken one of those Liverpool trains to Manchester, then a train via Carlisle to Edinburgh and have been done with it.  I would have ended up in Edinburgh hours sooner with 2 fewer changes.  As I write this on the last leg, I hear an American accent, a woman from Long Island who sounds like she had her problems trying to take a train from London to Edinburgh.  The good thing about this particular train is that it's got wifi and a power plug at every seat.  This is not something I've ever seen on an American train though I've suggested it to Amtrak.  You have to pay for it, of course, but I haven't had a wifi connection for a couple of days now. 

 

1. Prelude – Bristol – Nottingham – Edinburgh

2. Edinburgh – Glasgow – The Trossachs and Loch Lomond – Skye – Inverness

3. Brighton – Beachy Head – London

4. Liverpool – Birmingham – Oxford

5. New Forest – Bournemouth – The Jurassic Coast – Hampshire

6. Amsterdam and the Netherlands