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April 16th 2004
Today is a travel day… a long travel day but
it should be fun as it involves cars, boats and trains. Richard
handled the equipment transfer while we found our way around the
ferry boat which was more like a small city on water! Or a large
hotel at least! Friday's a busy day on these ferries because a lot
of locals use them to party through the weekend. And man do they
party!! The boat left Helsinki on time at 5pm and a lot of them
were legless two hours later…! We were all pretty tired so
it was a matter of finding something to eat and heading for our
cabins to get some sleep.
After sleeping for almost 10 hours (EXTREMELY rare for me) Monica
and I went to find some breakfast and people were still gambling,
shopping and drinking… determined to make the most of it…
As we cruised into Stockholm harbour I was reminded of how beautiful
this part of the world is, especially in Spring time. Little islands
everywhere, some with nice-looking houses and boats and stuff, swans
and people sailing… it has a happy and peaceful vibe to it.
By now things on the boat were fairly orderly (or at least as far
as we could see) and everyone lined up to get off the boat. One
van met us to transfer Richard and the gear to Gothenburg and another
was there to take the rest of us to the train station where we had
time to grab some food and coffee before setting off on the X2000,
Sweden's high-speed train. For us at least the journey was quiet
and uneventful and the scenery was spectacular…… for Richard
not quite!! The van lost a wheel and they were really lucky not
to be hurt. They were also lucky that it happened at low speed and
in a place that was very close to Lars (the driver) parents…
whose neighbour happened to have a vehicle and trailer… and
who was prepared to finish the journey. God is good! He (Richard,
not God, He was already here) eventually arrived in Gothenburg and
we enjoyed a short walk around the centre of town and a relaxed
meal before heading back to the hotel.
Interesting to note that the non-smoking movement is spreading so
fast here. At least they are being civilised about it though, unlike
some countries who think it's enough to just force their life-styles
and preferences on others! They can produce all the statistics they
like but until tobaco is made illegal I won't take any of their
"arguments" seriously at all. Yes, I still smoke but I
don't where I can't and I don't where it would obviously irritate
other people… even in places where it is permitted. That's
my choice. The restaurants have separate sections at the moment
although the locals are sure that will go away soon too. I will
quit sooner or later and that, again, will be personal choice but,
while governments continue to be happy to collect billions in taxes
from tobacco companies, I can't take the hypocrisy of banning something
legal seriously at all…
Tomorrow is a day off, the last one before 7 shows in a row, so
we'll make the most of it!!
Good night!
Next day...
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