Hit
Some years ago I was in France and my companion and I decided we wanted to stay in Paris for the last three days. It had always been my dream to stay in the Ritz but my friend, who had planned the trip, said we couldn't afford it and had booked another hotel. As we drove into Paris I was complaining about where we were staying when my companion turned left - as a surprise he had booked us into the Ritz. Entering the hotel, with all its tradition, was like entering another world. Our dog Gustav got a special meal, while we were ordering mini cheeseburgers.
Miss
When I was a teenager I went with my parents to Italy. As we crossed Austria from our home in the Netherlands, I started to get a terrible toothache. When we stopped at a dentist in Innsbruck, I found out they had to do a root canal. My father had to pay for it in cash, so half our holiday budget was gone. When we finally got to Alassio, our destination in Italy, it was so hot, it was impossible to move and my tooth got infected. The Italians did all their work in the night time as it was too hot during the day. The noise was astonishing. My tooth got worse and worse until I decided I had to go home. I wanted to go back alone by train, but my parents decided to take me back by car. We had to stop in Montpellier for a night on the way back and stayed in a horrible hotel which we were lucky to survive, given there were electric wires installed across the shower. My mother got a dreadful headache and, believe it or not, somebody broke into our car that night. We were glad to get home.
Marco Goecke is one of four choreographers whose work is being performed in next week's Nederlands Dans Theater season, which runs 28 June to 2 July at the Civic.
