July 11, 1990: Montreux, Switzerland

I went shopping in Montreux with Dina, Susan, Dina's mother, Mr. Christopher, and Mrs. Fox.   Then, we went to the casino terrace to see our jazz band play in the Montreux Jazz Festival.  There was a pool down below with women swimming in the nude.    The boys on our trip were busy watching them, instead of the concert.   Jason and I had to go to the casino to pick up our t-shirts because they didn't have the black t-shirts that we wanted from the festival. 

In the afternoon, I went to Gruyeres to look around.  I bought Grandpa and Grandma Gonyo a souvenir.    The boys on our trip played soccer across the street from our hotel.  

The view of Montreux at night was gorgeous.   I had a nice conversation with Katie Gingras.   We also played the card game, "Bullshit".

July 10, 1990: Montreux, Switzerland

We left Rastatt, West Germany and headed to Montreux, Switzerland.    Our bus driver, Yohon, stopped us for a break at a rest stop and many of the band members played soccer.   It was quite funny.  I went shopping and got a Benetton sweater for $47.   We stayed at the Hotel Europe.   I walked by the water with Dina Wibalda and her mom, while some of the band members went to see the jazz concert at the casino.  

I missed my mom as she liked seeing places.   This was the first big trip without her.

July 9, 1990: Germany

We left our hotel for a tour of Trier.   I saw some of the sites that the Romans had built.   We went into this Catholic church that was constructed by the Romans.   The bridge by our hotel was built in 144 AD. It was still standing as it was back then.    Then, we left to Heidelberg, which was an old village.   We did alot of shopping there.  Dave Fox was trying to find the Hard Rock Cafe so he could get a t-shirt.  

We got to Rastatt, Germany and did some more shopping.  We had the greatest modern hotel room that had a hair dryer.  We did another concert here, which I think was enjoyed by the Germans.  Mrs. Adams and I talked a while. She said she is 5'11 and the shortest person in her family.   She said she met Mr. Adams in band.  She played the flute.

July 8, 1990: England to Trier, West Germany

We had breakfast on the boat.  It was pretty funny as our dishes were rattling as we were docking the boat.   At 7 a.m, we got to the Netherlands.  We drove in the rain towards Belgium, then to our destination in Trier, West Germany.   On our way to Trier, we stopped for lunch at this religious community that had a famous Virgin Mary statue.  We got to Trier and stayed at a hotel, which was not too nice.   Mrs. Adams's room was across the hall from us.  We talked to her for a while which was nice.   We were scheduled to do a concert at Brunnenhoff Trier, but thought it may be cancelled because Argentina and West Germany were playing in the World Cup. This concert was our first one on our tour.   It was nestled in a beautiful place with a waterfall.  The public would definitely be at the World Cup.  We did do the concert, but only a few people attended.   West Germany won the game.  While we were packing up our stuff, we heard cars driving by and honking all night.

July 7, 1990: London

We had 5 hours to spend in London today.   I traveled with Dina Wibalda, her parents, Susan Johnston, and the Holmens.   We went down to Oxford Street and went through the shops.    We found out how to get to Buckingham Palace, so we headed down there to see the changing of the guard ceremony.   We had lunch upstairs at the train depot.  I had delicious quiche.   We went shopping in Benettons. Dina found a sweatshirt there.   At 3 p.m., we took a bus to a tea room for hyde tea, which was about an hour away.  I sat next to Dina, Joel, and Stuart Grevel.

Our next stop was Sheerness, England, where we boarded this gigantic cruise ship for the night.  The boat took us across the water to the Netherlands.   I roomed with Jodi, Mandy, and Susan.   On the boat, I bought a Benetton watch for $42.  The deck was gorgeous.   It had a grocery store and many other shops to explore.   I got some motion sickness on the boat. The room was small for us, so it was hard for me to sleep. 

July 6, 1990: England

It's now 5 hours ahead in London.   We drove from Manchester, England to Stratford-Avon, then to Oxford.   We finally got to London around 5 p.m. and checked into the Novetel hotel.   It took forever to get checked into the rooms.   I sat next to Jodi Siegel and Mandy Johnson at dinner.  At 7 p.m., we took a sightseeing tour of London.  We went by all of the famous places such as Buckingham Palace, Harrods Department store, Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, and Big Ben.   It was strange to see people driving on the opposite sides of the road.   There were signs all over telling drivers "Slow Down Now".

July 5, 1990: Band trip to Europe - England

I left for a 3 hour bus trip to O-hare.  I sat next to Dave Fox on the flight to England.  I met an English lady who told me all about.  I had a hard time sleeping with the noise and all of the food we got on the plane.   It was a 6 hour flight to Manchester, England.