Saying Goodbye to Europe

This final week has been very educational and enjoyable.
We started the week off on Monday by flying from Brussels,
Belgium to Frankfurt, Germany. We didn't have time to do
any sightseeing in Frankfurt because once we landed I was
scheduled to do interviews. From what we saw, Frankfurt
is a very modern city with around 1,000,000 residents. I
was totally amazed at the amount of songs that are
immediately recognized when the band does the intro to a
song in Frankfurt as well as all of Europe. There seems
to be a big hunger for country music in Europe. The show
in Frankfurt went great!

On Tuesday morning we flew from Frankfurt to Berlin,
Germany, for a show that night. Once we arrived, I was
scheduled to do interviews for radio, TV and print press
in the Berlin area. I was very excited to be in Berlin
because I had heard about so many stories that were about
Berlin that were associated with World War II and also the
Wall that was built in 1969 that separated East and West
Germany. I never dreamed I would someday stand on a stage
and sing my songs in this city. The audience was great.
We had the day off on Wednesday and got to visit all the
historical sites of Berlin. We saw pictures of what certain
areas looked like before the war and then the devastation
that all the bombs that were dropped during the war caused
and how the same area looks today. It's unbelievable how
much history took place in Berlin. If you every get a
chance to see this part of the world, you won't be
disappointed.

On Thursday morning we had a flight to Zurich, Switzerland
for a show that evening. We spent so much time in Berlin
we didn't get to do any sightseeing in Zurich. Our hotel
sat high on a mountain overlooking the city and had a river
running through it. It was snowing and the sight was
beautiful. There is no way to describe the beauty of
Switzerland. I have vacationed here and think it's the
most beautiful place I've ever been. We only had one show
in Switzerland and fortunately we had another full house.
I wish we had a few more dates to play in Switzerland but
we will have to wait till next time.

We had Friday and Saturday off and are so close to so many
sights we've heard about all our lives, so we got the map
out and tried to decide what we would do on our two days
off. We decided to fly from Zurich to Vienna, Austria for
a day of sightseeing. What a city!! We had a guide that
took us all over the city and through the Schonbrunn Palace,
from the 14th century. It's funny how much more exhausting
a day off can be compared to a show day. We got up at
5:00 AM to catch our flight and started sightseeing as soon
as we landed. After a great dinner we went to bed to get
some rest.

On Saturday, we got up at 5:00 AM for a flight to Prague,
in the Czech Republic. As soon as we landed we started a
sightseeing tour of the Palace that was built in 900 AD.
This is a very old city with so much history and one of
the cities in Europe that didn't get hit with bombs during
the war so the old architecture has been undamaged. In both
Vienna and Prague, we stood in buildings that Mozart had
played concerts as a child during the 1600's. I was totally
surprised to learn that the largest radio station in Prague
is a country station. There are 4 or 5 country clubs and a
national TV show about country music. I hated that we didn't
get to play in Prague because I think the show would have
been a lot of fun. On my next trip to Europe, I definitely
want to play Prague. After these two days of sightseeing we
needed to get back to work so we wouldn't be so exhausted.

Today's flight was at a reasonable time to Munich, Germany.
Tonight was our final show on this European tour. The band
and crew has gotten very homesick since we have all been
gone from home for a month. When everyone on stage knows
that they're going home after a show, they seem to have a
little more fun. That happened tonight. After the show we
all gathered together and toasted the success of our first
official European tour. We shared stories of all the things
that we all got to see and talked about how surprised we
were at how the audiences had responded to our shows. This
tour has been a lot of fun and an educational experience.
I look forward to returning as soon as possible.

I am also very excited about getting to go home and see
Shelby. Since he was in school, we were unable to bring
him with us for this tour and I miss him very much. It
will be nice to sleep in my own bed and be in my house for
a while. I love to travel but there is nothing like going
home. It's about 1:00 AM and it's time for me to go to bed
and get ready for the long flight tomorrow. I'll talk to
you soon.

Love,
REBA