Another day off

Since my last posting, I have played shows in Bern, Zurich, Vevey, Leipzig, Berlin, and Copenhagen. Today I have nothing to do, and it is wonderful. We are currently staying at the home of our booking agent Dennis in Berlin, who always seems to come through with places to stay for our off days, certainly a worry before the tour started.

At any rate, while it would be hard and take forever to give a detailed account of the past week, I can certainly give a few highlights.

Switzerland was a good time, for sure. On our final day in Bern we took a short trip to the nearby city of Fribourg. Although only about 20Km away from the solidly German-speaking Bern, Fribourg is primarily French-speaking, with all of the signs printed in French (although frequently with German printed below). Fribourg is a ridiculously picturesque town, located on a hill surrounded by a river on 3 sides, with tall bluffs overlooking it. The centerpiece of the town is a huge gothic cathedral, the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas, in the heart of the old part of the city. Basically, we spent our time there checking out the cathedral (open to the public) and then walking down into the river valley. If you ever come within 100 miles of Fribourg I strongly suggest you take the time to visit it. I can promise you won't regret it.

After Fribourg, we went back to Bern to play a show in the restaurant below the venue. Not too many folks listened much, but we got a free meal out of it and managed to sell a few CDs. Not bad for an hour's work, especially since the food was top-notch.

The next day we headed to Zurich. The venue was excellent, there was a good crowd, and afterwards we went out dancing at a hot (judging from the line to get in) Zurich night club. Fortunately we were accompanied by someone who knew the Zurich club scene and were able to bypass the line and get in for free. Definitely a good time.

After Zurich we drove to the town of Vevey, located on the North shore of Lake Geneva. Unfortunately it was a hazy day, so we never got a very good look at the mountains on the drive in, despite the fact that we were basically driving through them. At Vevey we played at a large venue, again with excellent sound. The band that opened for us was absolutely fantastic, and seemed to bring the majority of the crowd. Fortunately they stuck around, so we had some listeners, although unfortunately the crowd was somewhat dwarfed by the size of the venue. That said, we were treated very well, and it's always good to hear awesome bands over here. Plus, the next morning the haze had lifted and we came out of the hostel where we were staying to a full panoramic view of the snow-covered alps. Quite a sight to wake up to.

The next stop on our tour was Leipzig, about a 9-hour drive from Vevey. We were all beat by the time we got to the show, and none of us had slept more than 5 hours the past 2 nights. Plus, at first it seemed like no one was going to show, and the promoter had told us that it could be a thin crowd, as it was a Sunday night. That said, we ended up having a great time. A bunch of people came in right as we were getting set up and the place ended up being reasonably full. They were also quite an enthusiastic crowd, some even singing along with our songs. After the show we stuck around at the venue, dancing and drinking until about 4 in the morning.

After Leipzig we headed to Berlin, fortunately only about 2 hours away. Our booking agent was there, of course, and also two singer-songwriters we had played with during the course of the tour. The sound guy was drunk and incompetent, and it was frustrating, and definitely the worst sound of the tour, but c'est la vie. The sound overall has been excellent this tour, with only two shows with lousy sound, so I can't really complain.

Lastly, we went to Copenhagen. It was about 6 hours away via a ferry from north Germany, or about 7 hours driving all the way around, up through the peninsula and across the islands of Fyn and Sjaelland. Not having much of an idea what the ferry would cost, nor the schedule, and on the advice of our booking agent, we drove the long way. And for the record, Denmark smells of pig. Every 10 minutes or so the smell of pig manure would be almost overwhelming. Admittedly, it is the time of year where such things are spread on fields, but wow. At any rate, after a long and tiring day (in which Emanuel shattered one of the side mirrors on our van by driving too close to a construction barrier, although fortunately just the glass part) we reached Copenhagen.

The venue was a bitch to find. It was located in the middle of the neighborhood Christiania (recommended reading, the history of this place is fascinating). Basically, it's a largely illegal area of Copenhagen where people go to find marijuana and just hang out, but also a big tourist attraction, which largely explains why it still exists despite opposition from the current government (apparently the previous administration was not as opposed to the area). At any rate, the venue was a cool place with great sound. The crowd was relatively small but again enthusiastic, and the neighborhood was great fun to check out.

The following day we returned to Berlin via the ferry after finding out we spent nearly as much in gas an tolls as it cost to take it. Our driver has a cousin in Rostock (the town where the ferry arrived) who knows a lot about foreign cars and knew exactly where to send us to get our mirror fixed. And now I'm in Berlin.

Tomorrow is Hamburg, the day after Dresden, and finally Amsterdam. We're all keeping a close eye on the volcano situation, and hoping we have a flight home on the 26th.