Wake up call came at about 8am. we went down to breakfast with Torben and Rusty (we, being me and Chapple). Afterwards, washed up and packed for the flight to Bergen. wished Torben and Aake off and we left the hotel about 10:30 am and by noon we were ready to board but the plane was delayed and we actually didn’t take off till 1pm..on – get this- a propellered airplane! no jet engines! there were about 60 people on the plane and rusty and i had the last 2 seats in the back. We landed in Bergen about 45 minutes later and, i must say, it was beautiful. the festival organizers took us to our hotel (all hotels in Scandanavia are wonderful and we have been staying in 5 star hotels so we feel quite spoiled compared to our Premiere Lodgings in the days of yore), which was across from the venue. we sound checked and then we had dinner. then i took the most amazing bubble bath, ok? then i napped from 7pm to 9pm. got dressed and went over to the venue. we hit the stage about 10:30 and well, we rocked…it was very fun. afterwards, we hung out with HOT CLUB OF COWTOWN, whom we’d met on Jools Holland last November. they played the same time we did just downstairs. at 2am, i went round the corner with a few of the organizers for Turkish Kebabs, which were like regular ones except it was made with Ox and Corn. it was pretty good too. Nodded out about 3am…

Turkish kebabs

Ingredients 800 g lean beef or lamb mince 1 bunch spring onions, finely chopped 15 ml ground cumin 10 ml salt 5 ml freshly ground black pepper 5 ml allspice 4 cloves garlic, crushed 15 ml olive oil Method: Place all ingredients except the oil in a bowl. Mix well and allow to stand for 10 minutes. Divide the meat into eight portions. Roll each portion into a 12 cm-long sausage and push it onto a kebab stick. Drizzle the kebabs with oil and place on a baking tray. Cook under a preheated grill for about five minutes on each side until browned and cooked through. Serve with crusty bread and grilled vegetables.

Variation: This is also great for the braai. Use chicken or pork mince instead and add freshly chopped chillies and coriander for an Asian flavour. Serve smaller kebabs on a cocktail platter when entertaining.

Mike Randle