Zagreb to Prague…

Woke around 5:30am had to be up at 6 to get the 7:25 train to Prague. We were packed and headed out of the hotel for 6:45 and took the to the central railway station.

My only sight in Zagreb                 Zagreb railway station

      

The train leaves Zagreb and within 10 minutes of leaving the station the Croatian border patrol come on to check and stamp your passport, you then get the Croatian ticket people that come round and check your train ticket. Ten minutes later the Slovenian guards come on and again check your passport and stamp it, you then get the customs guards and then again the ticket guys but this time Slovenian! The train engine also has to be changed from a Croatian one to a Slovenian one!

Kevin and i have first class travel in Europe on the trains, the comfort level is far better than the UK and they eve have business class for another 25 Euros! The difference is there's only 4 seats to a compartment as opposed to 6 and the seats are a touch wider, i was more than happy with the 6 seats, especially as we had the compartment to ourselves for the 6 1/2 hour journey we were on the train. The seats fold perfectly flat too so i folded the seats opposite each flat and made a flat bed for a couple of hours sleep.

First class                                  Business class

 

As I'm typing this now we've been on the train a couple of hours and some of the scenery is amazing, the train lines follow a river and the road at the other side of the river all through the mountains and green fields. There's castles on hills, churches up mountains and waterfalls all over the place, its beautiful

So we arrived in Vienna (Ahhhh Vienna i hear some of you say:) around 2pm and had 30 minutes to change trains. Kevin went off to the store and i watched the bags at a small cafe in the station. 35 minutes later and I'm now sat on the train to Prague typing this up. We’ve just booked a cheap hotel for one night tonight as from tomorrow I'm sharing with the mad Danes! (Jens and Lars!) Harry is doing a small show tonight in a jazz bar so depending on what time we get checked in the hotel we may have time to go check out his gig but were not due to arrive into Prague and 7:35 so we’ll see how time goes.

So before we set off from Zagreb we both bought a sandwich and something to drink for the journey, i wanted some orange juice but couldn't find it anywhere, the lady at the small shop in the station help up some orange container and without thinking about it i just said yeh that's fine. So when i come to open said container i see the top of it is rather large, i thought nothing of it and twisted it as normal, as i took the top off i looked inside and it looked like there had been something in there and a hole had opened up below into the bottle. This was exactly what had happened, upon looking at the instructions on the bottle it appears the drink in the bottle is clear and flavorless, in the cap of the bottle is a sherbet/powder type substance that when you twist the top it releases this powder into the liquid and your meant to shake it up and then drink it! All very odd and certainly not what i had in mind when i bought it.

Its now 7pm and we've just had dinner in the restaurant dining car, i felt like something off the orient express! The tables had table clothes, the waiter was in full dress and the food was excellent, certainly something I'm not used to when traveling on British Rail!

Some random pics below of the scenery whilst on the train journey.

Travelling to Croatia and the show…

So after theree nights in my own bed (which was fantastic!), it was time to leave the UK again. I missed the three shows in Holland purposely--mainly due to the size of the venue. When I saw the Dark Side shows at the same venue a few years before, it was the worst experience ever--HUGE venue, drunk fans, and overall just not a good show.

I flew out of Heathrow at 12 noon and arrived in Zagreb around 3:15 P.M. Kevin messaged me as I was flying over--he arrived earlier in the day and checked in to “The Movie” hotel. He told me how to get there once I arrived at the central train station. Kevin said to get the number 4 tram and it should take me straight by the hotel. He also said I could take the number 14 bus. I found the bus station ticket office, but soon realised not many of the people working there spoke much English.

Zagreb, Croatia for the first time         The sun was out for half an hour        Half-built road, middle of nowhere

        

The hotel was only two miles away--I could see the route on my Blackberry maps app. I showed the lady at the ticket office where I wanted to go and asked for a ticket. “Next bus is 7:30 in the morning," she said. I questioned this, trying to explain it was only two miles away. Again, “next bus is 7:30 in the morning.” I gave up, walked outside, and took a cab! 20 minutes later I was there and 10 Euros lighter. What I forgot is that Croatia and Prague and Poland--all the countries I was visiting--do NOT use the Euro! Well, at least it's not their default currency, but they do accept it, and fortunately the cab driver did, too. I'm sure I was ripped off in the conversion, but that's my fault, I guess.

I arrived at the hotel, and Kevin was outside waiting. The hotel was an odd place. I believe it started off as a themed bar called The Movie Star dedicated to Hollywood movie stars. They converted a lot of the upstairs rooms into bedrooms, and each bedroom has a number and a movie star's name. We were in the Al Pacino room!

Croatian Kuna!!                           You talking to me?

 

Its very rare that I eat airline food, and I only had breakfast in the airport lounge at 10 A.M. We headed down to the “movie bar” and had a snack before heading out to the venue. The tram stopped right outside the hotel. Tickets are sold at most convenience/tobacco stores for a couple of Euros, and the tram drops off right next to the venue. Kevin left his bag in a bar he normally frequents, obviously because of the picture of Roger Sretaw  in it!                  

       

Kevin chatted with a few friends he only sees when he comes out to Croatia, and at around 7 P.M. I headed inside the venue. It was all standing room on the floor--just a typical arena like most in other cities. The last three shows I missed were in the venue I hated, but according to Kevin and other online sources, it had been great--because the venue was so big, the wall extended in length by 25%, and the projections looked amazing! Tonight it was back to 12 bricks high, 48 bricks wide--the normal dimensions.

As I walked onto the floor, I bumped into my friend Werner, whom I saw in Milan, and my friend Peter, whom I last saw on the Dark Side tour! We chatted for a good 20 minutes, but it was Peter's first show of The Wall, so we had to keep any chat about the show quiet. Werner was going to Prague, so we’d meet up there. Peter was coming to London in May, so we’d have more time to chat, too. By the time I made my way to the front left side of the stage, Kevin already secured a place for us both one row back from the rail. He was talking to a lot of the fans around him, and after I arrived, I passed a few cards out promoting my blog. I took a couple of pictures with them to post here as promised--see below:

Peter and I                          Kevin and a fan--Luka, I think   A fan and I--Lucy, I think   The venue

 

You could tell before the show that the Croatian audience would be good. Roger's never played Croatia before--something he made reference to in his speech at the end of Outside The Wall. The show was a little late starting, and the fireworks went up around 8:10 P.M. At a couple of the last shows, one of the guards places the long leather trench coat on Roger, and I've noticed his face just light up--he looks so happy--as though he’s missed wearing the coat, and it feels good to get back into it! It's kind of hard to explain, but if you're near the front at the shows, definitely watch the expression on his face as he puts the coat on.

     

We were right about the crowd--they were fantastic! While they weren't as loud as the Milan crowds, they were very enthusiastic, shouting and and cheering. The show was without glitches, which seems to be the norm now. To be honest, though, whenever they seem faultless, I speak to Dave K. afterwards, and sometimes it's amazing how many technical problems he’ll say they experienced!

Once again, “no fucking way” was written on the left side of the wall in the local language. Whoever came up with this idea is a genius! This always gets a great reaction from the crowd. However, there are other times when it’s strange how much of what Roger says in English is totally lost on the foreign crowd--the English just doesn't come across. For instance, when Roger says "At the risk of seeming a bit narcissistic," at the beginning of Mother there is always a good chuckle from the audience in English-speaking countries. In non-English-speaking cities, it doesn't get much or any reaction. I've noticed a couple of other times where this happens which I may share later.

When I was chatting to Jon Joyce in Milan, he told me that the band and crew, including Roger, always refer to him as "the sergeant." Roger ordered Jon some special sergeant stripes for his shirt, and I saw them the first time this show. They were sewn on the shoulder of his right arm, complete with customised crossed hammers on them! The boys all did a great job tonight, as did the rest of the band. Dave seemed to really enjoy Run Like Hell--the hair flicks were off the chart!

The wall came down in spectacular fashion! Kevin and I felt a great gust of wall wind, and the crowd erupted with cheers as it come crashing down. The first few notes that Roger plays on the trumpet are always a touch rusty. If you're at the front, make sure to watch Dave and Snowy react to Roger's trumpet playing. It always makes me smile. Tonight was a little different, though--Roger started blowing his trumpet before the band came out onstage. I'm not sure if he thought the radio mic was off when he did this, or if he knew and was just having a laugh. It sounded just like someone who couldn't play picked  it up and started blowing it. It was only for a few seconds, though. Snowy and Dave came out in hysterics and laughed as Roger started playing yet again.

It was a fantastic show, and Roger commented he couldn't believe it had taken him 40 years to play Croatia!  I was surprised at how young the audience were. Normally, it's a good mix of young and old people, male and female. However, I'd guess at least 70% were under 30 with at least 40% young girls! Kevin also noticed and commented on it when we were outside the venue.

We got the tram back to the hotel, and I hit the hay around midnight. Have to be up at 6:30 in the morning for the 12-hour train ride to Prague!

The venue--after the show with the moon above

Pompeii

Woke at 5:30 A.M. to make sure I got in the shower first again, then I was down for breakfast at 6:30. This was a day I'd been looking forward to for a long time. We were going to Pompeii!

Two taxis took us to the central station, and we all tried to stick together and established a meeting point. The train was leaving at 7:35 A.M, and it was now 7:10. We all wandered off to get drinks, food, and cash. We agreed to meet up at our point before boarding the train. Five minutes later everyone was there except Beth. We waited five more minutes, but Beth was still not there! 7:25 came and went--as did 7:30. By that time we were all pretty worried, and plan b sprung into action!

Joe and Kim ran to get on the train to see if Beth was already onboard while Kami, Zach, and I stood at the end of the platform to make sure she didn't walk past us. Meanwhile, Mark remained at the meeting point in case she came back. Mark gave us all our tickets and told us to get on the train no matter what, and he would catch up with us later on. It got to 7:33--Kami, Kim, Zach, and Joe were all in their seats, and I was hanging out of the train door till the whistle blew, then I had to go to my seat. As the train started to pull out we all realised Mark had now missed the train. Within 20 seconds of the train pulling away from the station who should we see walking down the aisle towards us? Beth!!

After a few explanations we were all just glad that Beth was safe and hadn't been abducted, got lost, or met a romantic Italian man that had swept her off her feet--there were all  sorts of other things in our heads!

I immediately called Mark, whose words on the other end of the phone are not printable here! Nah--only joking--he was fine and just glad Beth was safe. He immediately went to the ticket office and purchased a ticket for the next train which was an hour later, and he would meet up with us in Pompeii.

We had just over an hour's train ride to Naples where we would change trains, and then we had another 30 minute ride to Pompeii. At home I'd put the audio from the Pompeii DVD on my Blackberry so I could listen to it when we were in the amphitheatre. Every so often during the train ride, I would play the first “ping” from Echoes, and everyone would look up with smiles on their faces, then I'd say, “No, no--not quite yet.”

We arrived in Pompeii around 10:15, and Mark messaged me to say he would arrive around 11:30. We all really wanted to go see Vesuvius, but it was a two hour round-trip bus ride, and the way the buses and trains worked out, it would only give us an hour at most to look around Pompeii, so we all decided to save that for next time. Believe me--there WILL be a next time!

Kim, Joe, and Zach headed off into the ruins first. I walked with Kami to get a lemonade at one of the several stalls outside the station. Pompeii is pretty much the archaeological site--there's little else to see there, so the tourist traps are right outside the station--guys pestering you to take taxis here and there, women wanting you to look at their “souvenir” stalls, and, of course, the lemonade stalls! Once you've exited the station, that's their only chance to catch you!! That said, the lemonade was spectacular, as were the huge, Kami's-head-sized lemons!

 

We’re here! (without Mark)                           The lemonade was amazing                        Lemons as big as heads!

    

Beth hung back at the station to meet Mark while Kami and I ventured into the ruins of Pompeii. Kevin  told me in Milan how good Pompeii was--that you could spend at least a couple of days wandering around. I had no idea just how impressive the ruins were, though. The whole city was there--it was huge! There were so many significant sites and areas to walk around and take in--it was amazing how much survived the volcanic eruption and preceding earthquake.

 

Vesuvius the volcano                          Pompeii ruins                                     Vesuvius and ruins                    

  

 

We realised soon after we entered that there would be a lot to see. Mark texted when he arrived--we agreed to all meet up at the amphitheatre at 1 P.M. Kami navigated the map she had haggled for at the station, and we wandered around looking everywhere at everything. It was hot--the sun was out--it was the perfect day for being outside and doing what we were doing. There were signs everywhere warning about the stray dogs that roam the site, and it wasn't long before we saw a few crashed out in the cool corners of the ruins. It was obviously too hot a day for them! As we were walking down one of the ancient stone streets, we heard one of the tour guides pointing out a sign on the road to the local brothel. It made us laugh when we saw it!

 

One of the signs                                One of the dogs                               The sign pointing to the brothel!

    

 

We bumped into everyone else just as we were walking to the smaller amphitheatre about noon.

 

  

 

We all made our way down towards the larger amphitheatre, but separated on the way. Kami and I took our time and still got there first. (Chalk it up to good navigating.) This was the one site I longed to see for years. As we walked in, the hairs on my neck just stood on end. I couldn't believe I was here! I had a couple of pictures of the Floyd as they were here on my phone--I wanted to make sure I saw it exactly as they did,  and I also wanted to know which side they were facing. There were a few school groups in when we arrived who were pretty noisy, and my idea of sitting in silence and listening to Pompeii live on my phone didn't seem like it was going to happen. However, Kami and I turned delinquent, hopped a fence, and made our way to the top of the grass banking looking over the amphitheatre. It was a lot quieter up there! We just sat in silence for a few minutes while I put Set The Controls on. Minutes later we saw Mark, Beth, Kim, Joe, and Zach step in through the entrance across from us.

 

Walking into the Amphitheatre                     Me fulfilling a dream                     The others arriving

   

 

Kim, Zach, and Joe made their way up the banking to join Kami and I. Mark and Beth were non-delinquent and stayed on the ground. It was then I saw mark pretending to bash the gong and play the drums like Nick in the middle of the floor! I have a video clip of this, but not on my laptop, so I will add it later.

The five of us sat there, and NOW it was time for the “ping” of Echoes! We listened to it for a few minutes before heading back down to the floor to see Mark and Beth, but not before Zach played Gilmours's riffs on air guitar--another video clip I'll add later on.

 

 

 

As we got onto the floor all school groups started leaving, and as they did we all stood in the middle of the amphitheatre, where I got someone to take our picture. There must have been no more than a dozen people in there once all the kids left!

 

Group shot                                                            Kim and Joe                I was happy!

   

 

By the time we finished in the amphitheatre and a quick (turned long) swing by the  garden of plaster cast bodies, it was already 2:30 P.M, and we were catching the 4 P.M. train back to Naples, so we started to make our way back to the exit. None of us had eaten since we arrived (well Kim had--she had what looked like the most amazing chocolate donut I've ever seen outside the station when we arrived!) so Kim, Joe, Zach, and I headed out of the ruins to find some food and drink. Kami, Mark, and Beth stayed to see the brothel, the baths, the gambling house, the baker's, and the house of the large fountain (the origin of the stone face from the Pompeii video) before they left. With Master Navigator Kami in charge, it was no problem. By the way, Beth, my comment that once you've seen one brothel you've seen them all really was a joke!

 

Map of the ruins                                   Joes birthday present   This is where I would stay

   

 

Zach and I had a huge tub of Gelato (no surprise there, I know) while Kim and Joe bought a huge Penis! (I kid you not!) Then we made our way back to the station where we met up with Kami, Mark, and Beth in time to catch the 4:20 train back to Naples.

 

Pompeii train station                                  Kami at the station          Kim and Joe tired out like everyone else

   

 

We got back to Naples with about 25 minutes before our connecting train back to Rome left. We made sure Beth stayed with us at all times--she was under strict instructions not to wander off! (Only joking again, Beth!) We all fell asleep on the train back to Rome, and the second I woke up I guessed that Kami and Beth took pictures of me allegedly snoring--they did.

We were all totally shattered when we got back to the hotel and decided to go straight out for dinner, Joe, Zach, and Kim went out on their own while Kami, Beth, Mark, and I headed to the restaurant which was closed for the private party the previous night. We took a table outside, had some fabulous food and wine, then headed back to the hotel for an early night. Had to be ready for our last day of sightseeing in Rome in the morning!

 

All the Pompeii pictures below

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