One Night in Barca!

Roger Waters of Pink Floyd fame was touring around the world and stopping off in Barcelona as part of his “Us and Them” tour. Katie's brother James and his girlfriend Emily were coming to Valencia for a little weekend away and these two events coincided, resulting in something magical.

We planned to go to Barcelona for the night and watch the gig before heading back the next day. It would be a flying visit to this city, which Katie and I have yet to explore together, but we were determined to make the most of it.

The journey up the coast is a long one, especially if you don’t want to pay for the toll roads (roughly €40), and it took around five hours in total. This included a stop off at the recently blogged about Peñíscola to show James and Emily one of our new favourite places.

After spending sometime enjoying this beautiful town, we carried on up the coast to the Catalonian capital. We didn’t have long in the city and the lads were spending the evening at the gig, while the girls were drinking wine and eating tapas.

Em and I went with the boys to an area near the gig venue, called Poble Sec. I’d read that this was a good part of the city to spend an evening, with lots of small bars offering up cheap wine and even cheaper little bites to eat called pintxos (pronounced pin-chos). I’ll talk more about pintxos when I write about our recent trip up north to Bilbao and Asturias, but in short, pintxos are small bites of food served on a slice of baguette, secured with a toothpick. They can cost anywhere from €1.50 to €2.50 each and make a great accompaniment to a nice glass of wine or vermut.

Anyway, Em and I got dressed up and had a great night, slowly working our way through the various bars in the area, before the boys came to join us for a bottle of prosecco and a rather posh cocktail after their gig. I had a wonderful evening with Emily and I hope we can replicate it in Valencia when they come back in November.

After a pretty decent burger for dinner, James and I made our way to the gig. It was at the Palau Sant Jordi, built for the 1992 Olympics, in what is now quite a serene and pretty area. It was the perfect venue for the gig and we had great seats; back row on the highest tier, close to the stage. This isn't sarcasm, they really were great seats. But I imagine every seat was that night, as the gig was a spectacle like no other.

Roger Waters knows how to put on a show with lights, balloons, and mechanical contraptions, making it an incredible visual display. And then there's the music. The classic Pink Floyd tunes were unbelievable live. It was the second time I have seen him and it was no less enchanting this time. It's very difficult to put into words the sensations I felt during and after the gig. I was truly buzzing with excitement and glee, as was James. We both knew we had seen something extraordinary. Writing this now brings back a shadow of the sensation and even that is enough to put a wide smile on my face. I have to rate his show as one of the best events I have ever been to. The guy is a legend and his gigs are legendary for a reason.

James and I left the arena and we were like two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl…words fail me. Go see him if you can. I really wish other artists could put on a show like that…I really wish I could see him perform every week.

The next 12 hours were like a dream and involved driving back down the coast to Valencia. We stopped in a town called Cambrils for lunch, which was decent. It was a whirlwind visit to Barcelona and my mind felt like a delightful tornado had passed through it.

Until next time, adios!

Cambrils is quite a busy seaside town and was a good place to rest a bit before driving the final leg home.

Rocking In Rio

Our final few weeks in Brazil ended with a bang... followed by many more bangs, all in time with each other in a way that could be described as musical. A huge music festival called Rock in Rio hosted an amazing send off for us, during out last few weeks in this amazing country. The festival isn't like an English festival where people camp outside in the rain and get muddy and don't shower and do a lot of drugs to make up for a lack of sleep. No not at all. Tickets for Rock in Rio are sold as single day tickets and we managed to get our hands on some for two different days. The headliners on the very first day of the festival were Queen, fronted by Adam Lambert, and they were fantastic. Adam Lambert had a lot of charisma on stage and it was an impressive performance from the rest of the band as well. It was just amazing being at an event where tens of thousands of people were singing along to Queen songs.

Our mate Brian

We also saw One Republic who were pretty decent, although neither of us are big fans. One of the more interesting parts of the night was a tribute to the fact that it was the 30^th year of the festival - the main stage showcased some music that had been played throughout the years, some of which was played by bands who had actually performed at the first festival. It was mostly Brazilian music but we recognised a couple of the songs and it was great to hear. We then saw a few Brazilian artists who were very good actually – one was a tribute to a young artist who had climbed to fame and then died of a drug overdose in classic rock and roll style.

The Sunset Stage hosted a lot of Brazilian performers

Our second day at the festival was headlined by System of a Down. We have both wanted to see them live since we were teenagers, listening to them solidly for months on end. It was an unbelievable show and my voice was a little hoarse the next day at work after so much singing and only a couple of hours of sleep... A truly great performance from one my favourite bands. Chop Suey just isn't long enough as a song though... It seemed to fly by in a haze of screaming and rocking out!

The Main Stage

Supporting System were Queens of a Stone Age, who were excellent, and also Hollywood Vampires - a super group including Alice Cooper and Johnny Depp! We heard lot of music in a short space of time, as is the way with all festivals.

You can just about see Mr Depp's eyelinered face on the left there, and I think that's Alice Cooper on the right

The crowd were friendly and there didn't seem to be much of the aggression or drunkenness which one expects from a festival (in Britain anyway!)

The whole week-long event took place a ten minute walk from work, which was incredible. Being able to walk to a festival is a genuinely lovely thing to do. Rock in Rio also has its own theme song... I think more festivals should have their own song as it was a great little hook.

Oh and fireworks. Every night began and ended with a firework display and the ones we saw were awesome.

I was genuinely surprised after living in Brazil for 9 months that it was actually very well organised and was up there with the European festivals I have been to. There was also an amazing zip line that flew past the stage and was running all night. It sold out at the beginning of each day though so we didn’t get to try it... So many people were rocking out on the zip line while they shot past the bands that were playing.

We left Brazil a couple of weeks after seeing Queen and were shocked to see Brian May on the plane with us. I shook his hand and thanked him for an unbelievable show. He was polite and humble and went about his way. I bet System wouldn’t have been so polite.

"It could be epic"...well actually, it was!

This was the dance stage - we would have gone to see the performers after the headliners but weirdly, everything ended at the same time! We thought people would be raving until the wee hours but apparently not.

So much metal!

Everything was branded, even the wheelie bins!

Jingle Blog, Jingle Blog...

It occurred to me the other day that we have never actually explained the name of our blog; The Blog of the Morning Calm. It's quite simple really. One of the Korean names for itself loosely translates as "Land of the Morning Calm", which I think is a lovely name for a country. For me it conjures up an image of the sun, rising over a beautiful, green park, with people doing their daily T'ai Chi routine and greeting the new day with a moment of peaceful contemplation.


Upon arriving in Korea, this image was quickly destroyed.


I think a more accurate name would be "Land of the Perpetual Jingle". Walking around the city, relaxing in the country side or simply sitting at my desk at school, I am constantly bombarded by jingles. Ditties. Tunes. Melodies. NOISE!

You probably think I'm just bitching for the sake of it now, but over the months I have collated a list of the various events that this weird and wonderful country feels need punctuating with music and I think as you read on, you will begin to understand how this might start to grate on a somewhat cynical, definitely tone deaf, sarcasm-loving British girl like myself.

Running through an average day in the life of me, I will highlight to you all of the times that I am likely to be aurally attacked.

1. Getting the Subway to School. An innocent, understandable situation in which to replace a simple buzzer with a more intricate musical arrangement. When the carriage doors close, a cheerful chime is played. When the train is approaching a station at which one can change subway lines, we are reminded with the aid of a delightful ditty. Between two particularly distant stops, we are distracted from the extended trip by the lovely sound of traditional Korean music. How charming.
   Why, then, is the sound played on the platform to alert you of the approaching train a horrible ear violation?! It's like some kind of prison bell. Typical Korea...just when you think you have it figured out, it throws you off balance with a shocker.
   
   
2. School Bells. This is a definite improvement on the traditional school bell I am used to. Ok so it can get a bit annoying but all in all, hearing a few seconds of music at the beginning/end of a lesson lifts my spirits more than a bell would. I think it creates a slightly more cheerful atmosphere in the classroom too. Having said that, I am not a fan of the K-POP that I can hear blaring out of the PA system every lunch time. 
   I find it terribly amusing when the teacher who controls the PA system forgets she is listening to some 80s dance hit on her computer and instead of the usual classical masterpiece, we are treated to this trashy number instead.
   
   
3. Visiting Dave. By now you are probably wondering why I think any of this is worth writing about. Of course door bells are musical! But it's not just visitors who make a noise at the door. Dave's front door has a very cool electronic locking system and when you input the correct code it jingles. Then when you close the door, it jingles. And when you open the door from the inside...it jingles. It can get a bit annoying. Especially if he then turns his aircon on...
   
   
4. Cooling down. This is where the really unnecessary noise starts. Turning on the machine - melody. Changing the temperature - melody. Turning off the machine - melody again! In the summer it got to the point where we would bit sitting in front of the machine, sweating away and singing along as we enjoyed the icy breeze. That might sound like a lovely afternoon to you but trust me, this way madness lies!
   
   
5. Doing laundry. My washing machine is pretty old and so only beeps, but Dave's is new and boy, does it like to sing! Every button press creates a little ditty and when it's finished it plays us a lovely, 2 minute interlude. Such an attention seeking machine.
   
   
6. Walking. Walking anywhere in Korea, you are bound to come across a van or two. While this might be the highlight of Dave's day, it has become another source of annoyance for me. When large vehicles reverse in the UK, pedestrians and other drivers are alerted by a simple beeping noise. Here in Korea, it is another chance to further your musical education. In my experience the reversing of a van is always accompanied by a few, repeated bars of the (previously) much loved ballad, Greensleeves.
   
   
7. Going out for dinner. This is something we do often here because it is just so cheap and one of the great things about Korean restaurants is that it's really easy to get the waiter's attention. There is a button at each table that you press to notify the staff that you need something. Most of the time they just beep but occasionally, if you're lucky, you'll get one that plays a tune. God help you if it's busy because this can soon drive you round the bend! And the poor staff must all be insane.
   
   
8. Walking up the stairs from the subway. Ok so I've been to school, seen Dave, done laundry, adjusted my core body temperature, had dinner and now I am heading home. Walking up the stairs from the subway to the street at night is lovely and quiet. Unless there is someone in a wheelchair around. If they decide to use the stair-lift to ascend then it's goodbye quiet time, hello Greensleeves! All of the way up the stairs which, depending on the station, can take several minutes. Does that tune even have words? If it didn't before, then it does now. I have found the only way to stay...well not sane, but less crazy, is to sing along.

And then it's home to bed. I don't own a television, or a radio. I don't often listen to music at home and my alarm clock is set as a simple bell. I relish my time at home, away from the noise. I gave Dave a key so he doesn't have to ring my doorbell and so I know that when I step foot in my flat, I am safe from all ditties, chimes, jingles, jangles, tunes and Greensleeves. In the Land of the Perpetual Jingle, it is important to have silence at times.




Oh crap, my phone is ringing!