It isn’t just a weekend… It’s THE weekend! I’ve met so many friends, made new friends and had a fantastic time!
Friday, day 1 of the Weekend. Arrival at Center Parcs Port Zelande, The Netherlands. We had a so called “deluxe” cottage…
… Which means we had a sauna (which we used of course)!
The beds were quite good (but that doesn’t mean we had enough sleep… You never wanted to miss any minute during the weekend)!
So… What do you do on a Friday afternoon? Unpack your stuff, eat some dinner and go to the big tent because you don’t want to miss the shows! First, there was Steve Rothery with his solo band. I had a good spot just behind the special stage for the people with seats and wheelchairs. I had no people standing behind me so no one would be bothered by me while I was taking pictures!
And after mister Rothers was finished… The moment we’ve been waiting for… MARILLION!
They played the album “Anoraknophobia” in its entirety the first evening. In the meantime I met more and more friends, including Paul, who started to break down the stage because of his enthusiasm…
Wow… What an evening! It was fantastic! The band was amazing as always… But what do you do when the gig is over? We went to the Market Dome for Stephanie’s Progathon which was held in the Market Dome itself (meanwhile most fans went to the Adventure Factory for Lucy’s Rock Disco)!
Since 2011 (note: this was my fourth Marillion Weekend, my first weekend was in 2009) me and my friends have a tradition to hang around upstairs between the pizza restaurant, the wellness center and the stairs itself. We named the place “Steve’s Office” (more about THE Steve later). We’d always bring our own beer and snacks, and we never got “caught”.
The first evening was amazing! The band, the after-party, meeting my friends… I couldn’t sleep because I was still full of energy!
So… Saturday, day 2 of the Weekend… Waking up and time for some breakfast. This was our backyard by the way.
Sadly not the most beautiful weather, but we should not complain. I went for a small walk and enjoyed the environment (I really love the cottages and the sea).
The day went fast. We went to the swimming pool, did some grocery shopping, and merch shopping at the merch stand. Arjan made some nice dinner… And then it was time to go to the tent for “Marbles” night!
The band played all the tracks from their album “Marbles”. One of their best albums! Sadly, after a few minutes, the projector that supposed to show images and films on the left side of the screen suffered from technical difficulties.
In the meantime the band did their best to entertain the audience so the technical staff had time to fix the problem, and yes, it got fixed!!
It was a wonderful evening again, Arjan (left) and Steve (right) were having a great time as you can see on the picture…
After the gig we gathered again at Steve’s Office in the Market Dome. Paul, Jasper and Steve discussing some “important” stuff…
Later at night we went to our cottage (including Steve) to chill and prepare for the next day…
So… Sunday, day 3 of the Weekend… This time we had a very special breakfast… CHOCOLATE CAKE!!
After breakfast we went for a walk in the park again, this time the weather was a lot better, the sun was shining and it wasn’t so cold anymore. We met a couple of guys who were golfing… Well, it’s what you call golfing, the balls won’t come back this way!
Center Parcs Port Zelande is absolutely beautiful. The lovely little cottages, the harbour, the beach, the view… everything!
The men went grocery shopping while the ladies (Daphne and I) went to the tent to see The Marillion Quiz Final, Question & Answer and Swap The Band.
The Marillion Quiz Final was won by the fans, hoorraahh!!
We went back to our cottage afterwards, had dinner and then went back to the tent for the last (sniff) gig of Marillion. We had no idea what to expect because the band didn’t announce what they would play on the last evening…
Wow!! They played songs from the Fish era!! The band played different songs from different albums in chronological order. It was fantastic!
The last song they played was a cover from Focus called “Hocus Pocus”. The audience was having a great time!
This is a video I made during the gig, the band is playing “Hocus Pocus”.
After the gig we went to the Adventure Factory. I talked with many friends, made new friends and had a picture taken with Steve Rothery (as shown), Pete Trewavas, and Eric Blackwood from the band Edison’s Children!
We had a wonderful time that evening… Too bad we had to get up early on Monday to get our stuff packed and leave the cottage, 10 AM is way too early after a good night partying!
The worst part of the Weekend is the Monday… You know the party is over and you have to get back to real life…
I had a fantastic time, and I will always remember it as one of the best weekends of my life!
More information about the Marillion Weekend:
All photos made by me.
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