André Rieu in concert

With a delay of two years because of the pandemic, Annemarie and I are now back in Maastricht at the Vrijthof square to see André Rieu live in concert.
 
In December 2019 we saw his Christmas concert, together with my whole family, in Maastricht as well. Since then he became a sort of recurring theme. With all the things that happened to (mostly) my parents, André and his music played an import part in their lives, and in mine as well I guess. My father always was excited as soon as he heard his music. At his funeral in November 2021 André’s music was played as well.
 
Several months after that Christmas concert in Spring 2020, I decided to get tickets for the summer concert in Maastricht, hoping to go there together again. It wasn’t meant to be. The concert was cancelled in 2020, and later also in 2021. All because of COVID-19.
In November 2021 my father died and I knew we would never see a concert together anymore. The memories of 2019 became even more precious.
 
Then 2022 came. I consultation with my family we decided to exchange some of the tickets for a full-travel-package in Maastricht. The travel agency of André Rieu all made that possible. What a great service, the remaining tickets were upgraded to much better seats as well. The package included a night in a hotel in Maastricht, diner and breakfast, a transfer by bus from the hotel to the Vrijthof and also a free waffle with coffee or tea at the Vrijthof.
 
And today is that day.
Annemarie and I left home around 09.30 this morning and headed southwards to Maastricht. We stopped for lunch in Horst, a village we visited last May as well.
After that we drove the final 80 kilometers to Maastricht.
 
As soon as we entered the ring road of Maastricht, it was all about Rieu. Huge banners with him on it welcomed us to the city.
Because we were too early for the hotel check in, we went into the town center first. I parked my car at the other side of the river Maas because the center was closed for all traffic because of the event.
We walked over the bridge and as soon as we set a foot in the old center, we were submerged in a very nice, warm, and festive atmosphere with music and full terraces everywhere you looked. Everybody was in a good mood.
What a special experience.
 
We arrived at the Vrijthof square and were impressed by the size of the venue and the stage. We have been her before, but now it looked huge. You could notice that all was organized very well, down to the last detail. Chandeliers hanging from the trees, fences decorated with photos of previous concerts, and every now and then a fanfare came by. Fantastic.
 
We received our waffles and tea and strolled over the venue for a while. We saw Pierre Rieu (son of..) with a group of people. When he noticed us noticing him, he friendly waved at us as if he’d known us for years.
It’s all in the detail…. Perfect!
 
Around 16.00 we went back to the car and arrived shortly after that at the hotel. There, the Rieu-details continued. There was a small queue at the check in, and while we were waiting, André (through a TV-screen) welcomed everybody to Maastricht. He was honored that we came to see him. The lobby was decorated with instruments and Johann Strauss music stands and boxes in which the instruments are transported. Again….the details.
 
At the check in all went smooth. On behalf of André we were given some merchandise and even two pillows to sit on during the concert. Again: perfect!
We went to our room and freshened up. Around 17:00 we had diner in the hotel. You can guess what music was played.
 
Around 19:00 we stepped into the bus, for the transfer to the center. A 10 minute ride.
Once back there, we were fully submerged in the Rieu-atmosphere again. Smoothly we went through the ticket- and security check. We found our seats easily. Section A2, row 22, seat 17 and 18. Right in front of the stage. Wow, we really had great seats!
 
Around us more and more people gathered. Germans in front of us. Next to me Belgians, speaking French, behind us were people form the UK. And next to the Germans arrived couples from Ireland and South Africa. Next to Annemarie two women from Twente sat down and next to them a Danish group.
A fanfare came by again. The hour prior to the concert went by with the blink of an eye. 
 
At 21:00 sharp, it all started. The Maestro came on stage and didn’t stop until way after midnight. He was joined by several sopranos, the Platin Tenors and a huge male choir of 150 man. Fireworks, music, it was all very impressive. And at some points a bit emotional as well when the music my father liked most was played. You would have loved this dad!
 
After the concert we lingered on a bit, bought a drink and then went back to the bus transfer. Since we weren’t the only ones with that idea (at least 200 people were queueing already) we decided to walk the 2.5km back to the hotel. The weather was nice, and it felt good to stretch a bit.
 
Hanging on the door of our room, a final Rieu-detail surprised us. A card with the message that André hoped we had enjoyed his concert, and a lovely ‘Sleep well.’
 
We did André, and thank you so much.
 
 
At 1:30 we closed our eyes and fell asleep.
The end of a truly perfect day.