Amanda and Graham's Great Pig Adventure

Friday 24th April

Gosh, I have got a bit behind with this blog – the last few days were a bit of a whirlwind!

Fort Lauderdale was very glamorous, more than I had remembered. It is known as the Venice of America and in the morning we did a boat trip. There are lots of waterways and the commentary describes all the fabulous houses on the banks and the millionaires who own them. We didn’t recognise many names but they are the owners of companies like Wendy’s, KFC, Pizza Hut, a cardboard box company and various actors. One family owns a huge proportion of the property and was the owner of Blockbuster and all the main sports teams in Florida. It was a great trip and I couldn’t stop taking photos. We went out into “cruise alley” but only two ships were in: a Disney and a Celebrity. We turned round at the mouth of the river and got a glimpse of the beach.

After a coffee, we got an Uber to the beach where most people had gone. It was another hot day! There were palm trees all along the promenade and the sea was warm – I had a paddle! Souvenirs and stickers were bought, naturally.

We only just got back in time for soundcheck as the traffic was bad. It’s the first time we have cut it fine and we were very relieved to get backstage! We didn’t want to get it wrong at this late stage of the tour! It was a a 6.00 show at the Parker Playhouse and an enthusiastic audience. Only one more venue now and two more shows – I got a bit emotional in today’s show!

One of the things we will miss is our daily schedule – we never have to think for ourselves! Jackson also sends a video of where to find Stage Door from where the buses are parked, then which corridor we need for dressing rooms, stage, catering, green room, laundry… It gets confusing being in a different theatre every day so this is really helpful. Then at soundcheck, Jackson gives us the rundown of the shows that day and any other information such as if there is a dark stage (no access) at any time. This is the time for any queries too. Heaven knows how we will all cope without it when we get back home!

In the evening we had the final of Traitors. It has been rather squeezed out recently so we had to make an effort to finish it off tonight. All good fun.

Buses left at midnight as usual.