We didn’t sleep too well again. With sun up - well, daylight anyway, at about 4:30am and no blackout curtains, it is no surprise that getting back to sleep isn’t easy. 
We loaded the car, said farewell to our host, and set off – initially to Costa – but they weren’t open until 9am. So we headed straight for the M1 motorway (south) and stopped at Trowell south services, before turning off and following the dual carriageway west, towards Stoke-on-Trent, then north to Blackpool. Apart from a few miles of 50mph speed limits, an easy enough run.
Originally, we were booked into the Alumhurst Hotel, but the dance group were all moved into the Boomerang Hotel on Adelaide Street, run by the same proprietors, Paul and Mandi. Boomerang? Adelaide? Makes sense, though the Proprietors Paul and Mandi certainly aren’t Aussies!
For anyone who has never visited an old British seaside town, you have to remember that they sprung up at a time when the average person didn’t have access to a car, so the holidaymakers arrived by coach or by train. Posher ones by taxi. What that meant was that side by side hotels and boarding houses, were built with the front entrance either right on the pavement edge – or very close to it. So, zero car parking and with narrow streets, either no parking in the street at all, or pay and display for certain hours of the day only, is normal.
The Alumhurst did have about six spaces out the front, but the Boomerang had none at all. Fortunately, Paul had moved us all out as the Alumhurst was hosting a film crew, who were probably going to be a bit noisy, but he was happy enough for us to leave the rental car at the Alumhurst, with a business card in the window.
We humped the case up two flights of stairs (a bit tough on my aged knees…). The room wasn’t large, but was at least fresh and warm.
We met some of the others in the foyer and arranged to catch up later in the bar/meeting room. We went for a walk along the sea front and for a bite to eat and ended up at Harry Ramsden’s, a chain of fish and chip establishments and had a large platter for two.
Afterwards, we headed for the iconic Blackpool Tower ballroom, up on the first floor, for the daily tea dance. We had to pay to enter, but it is a very popular venue, with live music. Initially, the music was an electric organ, then when he packed up, the next player was on the Mighty Wurlitzer organ, made so famous by Reginald Dixon. The signature tune was always “I do Like to Be Beside the Seaside”. Needless to say, that was played…
We had to take to the floor and managed two or three dances.
Meanwhile, Tina had been busy communicating with various people to co-ordinate a replacement for Artur and was in constant touch with two professionals and also busy with Sue, trying to arrange a practice venue for tomorrow afternoon for a couple of hours.
Our original plans before we left NZ were to eat at a Wetherspoon’s establishment tomorrow night, but we opted to eat tonight. Nice.
That worked out well enough. There were loads of messages going around and Tina managed to email copies of some of the routines that had been filmed, to Simon, a professional based in Bournemouth. The other professional they were in touch with, an-expat Kiwi went nowhere, but Simon agreed to come up to Blackpool tomorrow and give the 7 girls a run through late afternoon. That is one tall order. Multiple dances and 7 girls in 2 – 3 hours? However, no American Smooth possibilities. Remarkably, the girls were in surprisingly good spirits when we all retired for the night. 
We couldn’t get a Wi-Fi signal in the room (we weren’t the only ones) so we had to do any connecting down in the bar, which was a little inconvenient.
So we have traded up from a cold, cramped room, with a less than satisfactory bathroom, with a large TV and good internet access, to another smallish warm and fresh room, a modern bathroom but with a smaller TV and no internet.
A ‘rest day’ tomorrow, for me, but a dance practice for Paula – hopefully, as long as Simon is able to make it. Breakfast is from 9am to 10am – a bit later than most places.
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