Rouen to St Cirq

The alarm went off at 8.15, and we had a shower and were on the road at 9am. We tried to have breakfast at McDonald's but it was closed. So we ate apples and drove on, around the outskirts of Paris, and stopped for fuel and a coffee and madeleine cakes some time later. More driving, in much sunnier conditions now.

We stopped for a very good lunch about 12.30 at a l'Arche services. More driving. Turning off the A20, we headed towards St Cirq on somewhat alarmingly narrow roads, and arrived at 4.30. We drove up the paddock and parked under the trees. We met Sandie, John, Rachael, and Wolfgang (the clipped English sheep dog) and had a beer, mowed a patch for the tent, then set it up in the stifling heat. The view over the back of the property is stunning, and typically French. I helped Christian and John set up the marquee. We gave Sandie the paint and butternut squash we'd bought for her. Sandie went to collect her goddaughter, Annalise, from the station. Dinner with Sandie's neighbours - David and Susie - of steak hache, rilletes, bread, cheese, saucisson, and other delicacies, probably wine. Sandie and I talked about publishing.

No idea when we went to bed. The tent had cooled down a reasonable amount.

Cambridge to Rouen

We left Cambridge around 3.30pm, and got to Dover at around 6.30, after stopping in Folkestone for a fast food dinner, and to buy the things we needed legally to drive in Europe (i.e. reflective vest, breath analyser, sticky things to stop headlights pointing at oncoming traffic). Luckily, we were able to get a place on the 8pm ferry, having been booked on the 10pm.

We wandered to look at the shops and use the facilities, readied the car, and I took a travel sickness tablet because the sea looked angry, and drove on to the ferry at about 8pm (late). The ferry was very shiny and big. We found a spot next to the window over the bow, and Christian got a coffee. We were both tired, and Christian lay down to get some sleep. I was just concentrating on not getting sick as the boat was moving a reasonable amount. Visibility was terrible.

We went for a wander, to see whether there was anywhere better to sit, and I forgot about the motion. We ended up back where we started, and both curled up on the floor to get some rest. Nearing Dunkerque, we got up again and got some sausage rolls. We drove off the ferry into foggy blackness. I had real difficulty seeing the road, and was finding the wrong side of the road disorienting, but Christian dealt with it like a star. I had to operate the tolls as I was on the driver's side. We stopped for a coffee, the conditions improved, and we got to Rouen around 2am local time.

And got caught up in some nasty roadworks. It took us a few tries to get through the city in the right direction. We found the hotel, after a small detour around the wrong motorway exit, and then couldn't find anyone to check us in. Someone eventually turned up, and gave us a code. We got to the very basic but functional €35 room and collapsed.

Rotterdam to Hazlemere

We got up, again in a leisurely fashion, and had some breakfast, packed up, left the key for Maria (who'd gone off to Germany), and headed in the direction of the supermarket and the tram stop.

I bought more cheese things, and tried but failed to get some comprehensive lunch. While I was in the supermarket, asking for tram tickets, the other two had found out on the internet that you can buy them on the tram. We had a bit of a wait for the tram, and when we got on, the conductor came up to us, and luckily spoke good English. But we got stuck talking to him the whole way. He claimed to have lived in England for a while, told us about how many injuries he'd caused on the football field when he played 'professionally', and how much he hates Amsterdam in a football rival sense. We were relieved to get off at Centraal, though he was harmless.

We looked for a train, and one was about to leave, so we walked fast, then ran, to the train, and the lovely female conductor waited for us and a couple of others to get on. She checked our tickets, and we stood in the vestibule talking until she told us to move. I went to sit in a seat on my own, and the other two chatted to some locals.

We managed to get off at the right stop (the second last one), and walked into the ferry terminal. We checked in, and checked our luggage, and walked up the massive gangway onto the ship. The first thing we did was get some lunch. I had a baked pasta dish that was quite nice, and we shared a wobbly chocolate and custard dessert. After that, we went out on the deck. Hugh and Christian found a table in the shade next to the basketball court, but I was keen to be in the sun, where it was warm. Then a basketball game started up (it's OK, they were fenced in). We decided to find a better spot, and went upstairs onto the other side of the ship. We sat there for a while, me in the sun, getting wet and salty off the deck. We watched the beach pass us by, and then the ship went out into the open sea. Christian found a deckchair, but then it got too cold, and the other two went in. I stayed a bit longer, but it wasn't terribly comfortable, and a little cold. As we didn't have a cabin this time, we found a table in the bow.

Christian did some photo editing, Hugh played some games, and charged his devices. I ate some grapes. Time passed. Christian followed our progress on navigation charts. I waited for my phone to find England again. Time passed. We went into the Felixstowe channel and headed to Harwich. It was a bit busy. As the ship pulled up, we went outside to watch, and saw that some past carnage appeared to have broken the docks, and the gangway. They called us to disembark, and we went down into the bowels of the ship to find the bus. It took us to the terminal. We got in the passport queue, and Christian thought it would be a good idea to follow the people moving into the short queue. Hugh stayed put. Unfortunately, this turned out to the be the non-EU queue, and so we were stuck there while everyone filed past. We rejoined the first queue before the next wave of disembarking passengers arrived, having wasted a good ten minutes.

Hugh had moved on to the station, so after collecting our luggage, we waved at him through the window. We went over the bridge, paid the parking ticket, found the car, and drove on our way. We stopped in Chelmsford (getting a little lost), and had dinner at Chiquito at about 9pm. It was nice. We got back to Hazlemere quite late.

Sightseeing and NSJ day 3

Having decided to finish our sightseeing today, I got up and went downstairs to have some breakfast, bumping into Maria, who'd just arrived from her boyfriend's to do some work. I made some tea, and she made enough coffee for Christian and Hugh. Christian finally decided to get up, and joined me downstairs. We finished breakfast, and woke Hugh up.

We headed to the metro station (I had to go back for my ticket, which I'd left in the back pocket of my jeans in a fit of tiredness the night before), and went straight to Blaak to see the cube houses. They are right next to the metro station, and are very cool. We walked up into the complex, and saw the chess museum and the hostel. There were some chess sets outside the museum (one huge one made of notable Rotterdam buildings), and Christian stuck a small version of the Euromast up his nose. I don't know why. I vowed to stay in the hostel next time because I want to see inside them.

We walked from there back into town, in search of interesting things, and lunch. We didn't find that many interesting things, though we did see an interesting library building, and an amazing circular building being built. We found lunch, in the form of a cafe called Sorbonne. Not sure why it was called that, because it wasn't particularly French. I'd wanted pancakes from the pancake boat, but none of the cruises suited our schedule, so I was happy that Sorbonne did pancakes, and the others had plenty to choose from. It was sunny, the food was good, and the service friendly (and a menu in English).

We finished up, and grabbed a frozen yoghurt from across the road, and wandered to the nearest metro station, where we got a train as near to the Euromast as we could. As we walked up to it, there were abseilers descending over the entrance. Not the safest arrangement I could think of. We bought tickets, and went up the first lift to the observation deck. The view was great, and the weather quite clear. We took photos, observed the operation of the nearby locks, and watched another set of abseilers prepare to descend. We walked up to the next level, and waited for the next lift, not really knowing how it worked. In fact, the next lift was somewhat disguised. We followed the crowd though, when a non-descript door opened, and filed inside to take a seat on a circular bench facing out. A voice-over began, and the lift started to ascend - our view was through large windows as we cleared the base building. The voice-over told us about the city of Rotterdam, but it was difficult to hear over the oohs and aahs, and I was slightly preoccupied by the rude man next to me who'd essentially sat on me, and belted me as he got comfortable.

The lift stopped with a wobbly clank. And then it began to rotate. Now that was a strange feeling. It was useful to get a look at everything, though. Christian created a 'panorama' by just holding his camera still, but we all know that that's cheating. The lift went back down, and we walked the last of the steps. Christian bought a souvenir pencil for Dorothy. I thought the ticket stubs gave us a free coffee, but I was wrong, as Hugh discovered. Christian and I left him drinking his coffee in the cafe, also leaving the camera bag with him to drop off back at the flat, and went to explore the park around the tower. There was one beautiful manicured section, but it was mostly lawn and trees and ponds. It was a lovely walk. We ended up beside the river, and then along the Vasteland bit of road we'd walked the night before. Christian got a drink in Subway, and we got the metro back to the festival for the last time.

We stopped to listen to the band on the small stage next to the station, and then made our way inside. Proceedings had started a bit earlier on the Sunday, and so without much of a plan, we wandered until we found Pedrito Martinez in Congo Square. They were Latin-based, with an absolutely brilliant female singer. We sat and watched them in the sun for a while. Then Hugh texted us to say that I would probably approve of the music the DJ was playing on the roof. So we headed up there. He was right - it was some decent big band and dance band stuff. There were swing dancers, and everyone was happy. I had a mojito. We hung out there for a while, and then made our way to see Ben Harper in the Maas stadium (near the back, so we could escape). The format had potential, and Ben Harper was obviously good, but it was just too loud, and much more rock than blues.

We left after about 45 minutes, and went to see Branford Marsalis. I'd hoped that he'd do some fairly mainstream and gentle repertoire, but he was doing a lot of experimental stuff. When we arrived and got in the queue, he was on tenor, but by the time we got inside, he'd moved onto soprano. We moved over the the right, and sat on the floor, which was quite relaxing. His last number, which may have been tongue-in-cheek, was a trad version of St James Infirmary. It was cool.

At this point, we went to have dinner (Christian and I had fish and chips), and to explore the shops and stalls (Hugh went off to see Jose James). There were lots of music shops, and hi-fi, and posh food, and outside poster and nick-nack stalls. Christian bought some high-tech ear plugs, and I played a pretty cool plastic flute in a music shop that sounded like it was wooden. We walked through Nile, and heard a bit of Bonnie Raitt, playing something that definitely wasn't jazz.

We went to check out ZAPP4, which was a string quartet. After queuing for a bit, we got in, found a spot, and discovered that they weren't very exciting. They were playing Radiohead covers. Weird. We left after a bit, and found Hugh in the queue, advising him not to bother. I think we must have wandered for a bit, maybe getting another beer, and making plans for the rest of the evening.

We decided on the Ron Carter big band, and they were very good. We got seats on the right near the front. It was nice to get a proper fill of real big band stuff. We left before the end, and sat in the big open section with a screen to see some of Sting. Again, he'd made no concession to being at a jazz festival. Very strange, all of them. We got one last drink, cashed in our munten, and headed off before the end to beat the crowds. We saw a man busking outside, who was pretty good actually.

We got the metro back to the flat without incident this time. And crashed.

Rotterdam zoo and NSJ day 2

We got up in a leisurely fashion, and Christian and I went out to the supermarket around the corner to buy some things for breakfast. Then we came back and ate some of them. We got some really tasty crispy cheese bread things, some brioches, and some strange round things that were quite solid and sweet. We woke Hugh up, and he decided to hang around the house for the day. We decided to go to the zoo.

We headed out, and got the metro to Blijdorp station, despite having been advised to walk from Centraal. This meant that we had a pleasant walk through Vroesenpark to get there, but we had to cross a major road. It was fine. We got there and bought our tickets.

Venturing into the busy zoo complex, the first things we saw were the seal enclosure and part of the aquarium. The seals were tearing from one part of the pool to another, playing games. Christian said that the enclosure was too small for them. The aquarium was particularly impressive, with lots of different habitats and groups of species. Then some birds, reptiles, penguins, and back outside for some furry things, then back inside for the main aquarium part. Sharks, jellyfish, all sorts of things. Amazing. Then some raccoons.

We stopped for a late lunch (ciabattas and sausage roll), and then continued with a polar bear, some buffalo (I think), and wolves. We spotted a sign for a bird show, and decided to wait for about 15 to see that. It was brilliant, despite being narrated in Dutch. There were some birds of prey, but also some parrots, and something that I thought was a kingfisher but is actually (we think) a kiskadee. They were flying wild, but were clearly excellently trained. Some flew immediately above our heads.

After the birds, we went into the butterfly house, which was very warm, but lovely. Butterflies flying around everywhere unconcernedly. We then moved outside again to see some tiny camels that looked like llamas/alpacas, some scarlet ibises and other random birds. Then to the African section for some camels, elephants, rhinos, wild cats, and flamingos. We couldn't afford to stay much longer, and so headed back into town, walking to Centraal this time.

We got the metro back to the flat, left Christian's camera there, and got ready for round two of the festival. We got the metro straight there, and made for the E.S.T. Symphony. They were playing arrangements of songs written for smaller band, but they worked well in that format. Christian and I then headed outside to Mississippi to catch the Nationaal Jeugd Jazz Orkest. They were quite young, and quite loud, but fairly impressive, and good to listen to. We met Hugh, and sat down for some dinner. Christian and I had meat skewers that were very tasty.

We then headed back to Congo Square to catch the TBC Brass Band. They were a bit rough around the edges, but very enthusiastic, and definitely an authentic New Orleans sound. The crowd responded well to them. We stuck around in Congo Square after their set, and caught some of Bassekou Kouyate and Ngoni BA - they were very African-style, as you might guess from the name. They had an amazing stringed instrument that looked like it had been made from a gourd. Before long, we went into Nile and got seats in the stand for the Roots. I didn't know much about them, apart from the fact that they were hip hop.

They were good musicians, didn't use electronic effects much, and kept putting in very amusing quotes from other songs (e.g. Sweet Child of Mine). They had a sousaphone player, who I could often barely hear, but who jumped around much more than a sousaphone player should. In fact, there was some good choreography from him, the guitarist, and the bass player, including rhythmic jumping. The guitarist was a good singer.

I think we must have headed off after this. We got the metro as usual, but it didn't stop at Beurs. So we kept going to Centraal, hoping to get a tram. The last tram had gone. So we attempted to get to Beurs from the north. Yet again, it didn't stop. So we got off at Leuvehaven, and walked all the way back to Maria's, via Vasteland. Fitting. I was totally exhausted, and trying not to fall asleep. It wasn't terribly pleasant, but getting into bed felt wonderful.

Somewhere in the channel to Rotterdam

We awoke to the sound of Bobby McFerrin's 'Don't worry, be happy' through the PA at 6.30 EU time, which, had I not been on holiday and disposed to positivity, would have annoyed the hell out of me.

We got ready, and went downstairs for breakfast. There was an all-you-can-eat buffet, which was quite expensive, so we opted for smaller items (which were still rather expensive). I had tea and a croissant. The boat began to dock, and Christian and I went out onto the deck to watch the world go by. And the shitehawks. It was pleasantly warm, and mostly sunny.

We went back inside, collected luggage, and left the ship. It was easy to make our way to the train station beside the dock. Hugh gave us our tickets (having booked them), and we got onto a train bound for Rotterdam. The journey was comfortable, and the scenery changed from docks, to open fields/dykes, to residential, to city. At Rotterdam Centraal, Christian bought us three-day metro tickets, and we got on the number 4 tram towards Delfshaven. And missed our stop. Maria hadn't called it the same thing as it was marked. The neighbourhood was a bit edgy and interesting. There were some interesting looking cafes.

In Delfshaven now, we walked back around the river to find Maria's flat, booked through Air BnB. It was a little way, but not difficulty to find. We rang the bell, and she came down to get us, leading us up on the impossibly steep and windy stairs. I felt sorry for poor Christian with the big bag. By now it was only 9.30.

We found our rooms (Maria had donated her own room to Hugh, and opted to sleep at her boyfriend's), which were huge, roomy, and very comfortable. In fact, the whole flat was impossibly enormous, given it was only the top half of the building. It was airy and light, and, as Maria is an architect and very conscious of design, minimal, with some really interesting features, such as hanging bulbs with loose wires, and a long, tensioned table. She made us a coffee, and we chatted about ourselves.

Despite being in a comfortable bed the night before, we were all tired from having been up early, so we opted for a little rest before we achieved anything, and so went upstairs and shut the curtains for some sleep. We got up again around 1, I think, and got ready to go exploring and festivalling for the rest of the day. We walked back into town rather than taking public transport, and saw a bit more of the world, though the road we took was fairly uninteresting. We ended up in a shopping mall, and passed a number of eating establishments that weren't quite right, and eventually settled for a noodle place next to some noisy earthmoving equipment, and a busking violinist doing his best to be heard over the racket.

We asked Hugh what he thought would be worth seeing, and he suggested walking in the direction of the main shopping district. Christian wanted to see what the 'eyebrows' on the tourist map were. We walked around the shops, with Hugh looking not totally seriously for some crocodile skin boots. We saw some dancing buskers. The 'eyebrows' turned out to be bit roof awnings around the sunken shopping streets.

We then headed in the direction of the festival, intending to walk the whole way. First, we stopped for some coffee and cake. We walked past the Maritime Museum and interesting looking tall ships until we reached the approach to the Erasmus bridge. We stopped on the bridge a few times to take photos. We walked around Rijnhaven before deciding to hope on a metro for the rest of the journey. We got off at Zuidplein, and followed the considerable crowd to the festival in a convention centre called Ahoy.

We queued for quite some time, and made our way through the well-organised gates into the festival complex. We bought some 'munten' - tokens with which you have to buy everything during the festival - and squeezed through the crowds to make our way to the Hudson room to see Terence Blanchard and his band. The room was enormous, and pretty full. We made our way to the back of the stand, which was right at the back of the room. The band was good, but Terence was using some effects to loop, and chorus, that I didn't much like. It was technically bebop, but not too inaccessible.

We wanted to see Medeski, Martin, and Wood, but the Congo tent was full, so we found a spot outside it, in the slightly chilly air, and listened to them. Hugh and Christian got a beer. We went inside Nile to catch the end of Seasick Steve. I couldn't see over the crowd, and so all the photos I took were rubbish because I was standing on tiptoe.

We got some dinner (Hugh and I got burgers, while Christian got meaty things from the carvery), and stood outside Nile to hear some of Santana. It was standard Santana repertoire, but it sounded good. While standing there, the tide of humanity pushing past me, and into, and close in front of me, upset me much more than it should have. I really hate crowds sometimes.

We decided to go onto the roof and hear the DJ and drink some Grolsch (which was cheaper per volume than the other beer). It was crowded too, and the music was loud and unpleasant. I think I had a cocktail. I wanted to see Anat Cohen, and because Christian is lovely, he decided to come with me. So we went off to find her (with difficulty).

We had to queue to get into the room, and only caught three or four songs, but she was very good as expected. I'd not heard her doing contemporary repertoire, or on the soprano, and she could switch to this from trad effortlessly. In the course of this gig, the wave of humanity managed to upset Christian almost as much as it had upset me, so I felt a little less stupid.

We met Hugh, and headed back to the flat on the metro at about 11.30. And crashed.

Bishop's Stortford to somewhere in the channel

I met Christian in Bishop's Stortford, as he'd been in a meeting in Surrey, and I was coming from Cambridge. He finished off a little work, and then we got on the road to Harwich. It was an uneventful drive, and we met Hugh at the ferry terminal. We parked the car in the long-term car park.

We checked in a couple of hours early, and made our way on to the ship, via a bus (the gangway was broken). We found our shiny cabin, and dropped luggage, before heading back downstairs to find some dinner. We found it in the posh restaurant (Metropolitan) on the ferry. It was a very nice dinner, despite me ordering one starter and getting another (asparagus).

I was exhausted (wine perhaps not the best idea for me), so Christian escorted me to bed, and went back downstairs to drink whiskey with Hugh. The shower was amazing, but the motion of the ship (I was in bed already as it started on its way) was a bit difficult to get used to. I did sleep, though.