Thursday 2nd June 2016

And another day in which the weather of Western Europe is upside down as Denmark bathes in endless sunshine and temperatures of near thirty degrees, whilst France and Belgium suffer floods after days of heavy rain. I hear its even chilly back home. But not in Denmark, oh no.

I am woken sometime before five with the sun already rising and it being light, and the duper truck emptying the bin 6 floors beneath my half open window. OK, I'm awake now.

I say before falling back to sleep, only to wake with a start at five past seven.

So, I haul myself up and take to the shower to freshen up and try to wake the wool out of my brain. Something that is only partially successful. Down in the restaurant, there are no Germans, so do't have to force myself not to do a Basil Fawlty, have some cereal and walk to car to drive into work.

And with the best will, there was always going to be something to thrown a spanner in the works, and I find I will have to drive to Ringkobing in the afternoon instead of finishing the document review I had planned to do. Anyway, there's always the evening, isn't there?

After yet more hasty meetings, I take myself and Brian in my hire car out of Esbjerg and into the sweltering Danish Savannah, where we look for wilderbeast and other animals hunting for watering holes. Well, not quite, but with the windows rolled down, and the air con on, its not a bad way to spend 90 minutes.

We do our work, then turn the car round and drive south back to Esbjerg, stopping off at a supermarket for ice cold cokes and water. Denmark is just arable countryside, woodland and bogs, scattered with farms, villages and the occasional town. Its not unpleasant, and in some ways it was a shame to reach Esbjerg, drop Brian off and go to the hotel to work some more.

But at least I have a window facing east, so that by late afternoon its in deep shade and cool enough, so I can concentrate on work and get the job done, sending off the final version just before seven, so I was then free to go to look for some dinner. I fancy beer and nachos.

So, walk up to Dronning Louise again, where everyone is sitting outside in the sunshine, thus getting hot and sweaty, so I take one of the many empty tables and make pints of Danish IPA vanish, at least I'm good at something. I eat all the nachos and peppers too, and feeling stuffed, I waddle back to the hotel in the hope of doing something other than looking at a computer screen. On TV, I find the England game on, and soon I am back at the computer as England stink Wembley out with a poor performance against 10 man Portugal, who have a player sent off, IN A FRIENDLY, and still England struggle.

I do watch until the bitter end, and it is bitter, but sweetened as Smalling scores with three minutes to go, and the player celebrate like they won the World Cup.

Time for bed.....