Tagged: melbourne
Firewind in the land down under
The Firewind tour here “down under” in Australia, finished two days ago in Melbourne, and I have to say that the guys, without a doubt, left a lasting impression on the Aussies. The shows in Sydney and Melbourne had the largest venues and crowds, but even the smaller gigs in Brisbane and Adelaide were memorable because the crowds were very enthusiastic. Great audiences everywhere – a very good rating considering that this is Firewind’s first visit here.
There are so many things to write about and I still haven’t quite landed in normailty – there’s been stuff going on 24-7 ever since I got here, would get anyone’s head spinning, not to mention a jetlagged Swede..!
It wasn’t that bad though – I just went on my Blue Mountains/koala tour straight away when I arrived in Sydney, and kept myself busy ever since. The real jetlag hit me after about 3 days when I just felt sick and not even my caffeine chewing gum helped much. It was the same with the guys in the band – they were all hit by that jetlag at different times.
There’s photos, videos, memories, stuff to tell enough to last for a WEEK, but I’ll just have to get back with all that and just share a few of my favorite pics this time. I’ll have like 16 hours on my way from Melbourne to Dubai to write more about this Australian trip, so – it’s all coming!
Swedish Metal Convention and Australia up next
Last day at work today – and now the fun begins! :)
I’ve started to pack a little for my Australia tour. People drop their jaws when I say that I will be travelling to the other side of the globe with only a carry-on that weighs a maximum of 7 kilos… ;) I hate carrying bulky stuff around. The less shit I have to drag around, the better. And I know how to make it work by now.
Might have to rethink my present to my Melbourne-host possibly, weighs too much, lol. But other than that, I’ve got all the essentials: Energy gum (survival kit #1!) , travel-adapter, camera, extra batteries, memory cards, sunglasses, sunscreen, makeup, clothes and an inflatable pillow. I’m good to go!
The reason for this light packing is that I will be flying from place to place once I get there and I have no patience standing there at the luggage carousel watching people’s suitcases go round and round and round forEVER….! Drives me nuts. I just want to grab my stuff and go. Hence the carry-on solution. :)
My first plan in Sydney was going to be a wildlife-tour to the Blue Mountains, about 45 minutes outside of Sydney. A day-trip out to see wild animals (been dreaming about KOALAS for weeks!) but… the wild fires there might stop THAT plan. Maybe it’s just as well, I might be dead tired, who knows.
Then the first Firewind show in Australia, out of 4. Here are the venues!
MANNING BAR – SYDNEY:
SECOND SHOW – IN BRISBANE, AT THE HI-FI:
THIRD SHOW – FOWLERS LIVE – ADELAIDE:
AND FOURTH – AND LAST AUSTRALIAN FIREWIND SHOW – THE CORNER HOTEL IN MELBOURNE:
I will be blogging as much as I can of course – providing I’m not so jetlagged that I just want to crawl into the nearest bed and pass out, but shame on me if I do!!
THESE will be the places I’m about to see, and I’m very very excited about it!
ADELAIDE:
BRISBANE:
MELBOURNE:
AND of course…SYDNEY:
Hopefully at least one of these too!
The trip starts on Monday… but there’s a bit of cool stuff happening here BEFORE that too.
The Swedish Metal Convention – with a bunch of great artists and metal-related exhibitions!
GUS G – JORN LANDE – ANDERS JOHANSSON (YNGWIE, HAMMERFALL) – CRASH DIET – CRUCIFIED BARBARA – PAUL DIANNO (EX-IRON MAIDEN)
I remember the first convention, it was ambitious but rather small. Still, not bad at all to get SEBASTIAN BACH to visit, among others.
My interview with Baz from that convention:
The second year, I was shocked to see how much the convention had grown – as were many others. People who are now in as participants and sponsors, biggest online-record store in Sweden GINZA and of course, SWEDEN ROCK. Last year had people like DORO, UDO, MIKE TRAMP and Jesper from D.A.D visiting – plus the largest IRON MAIDEN collection in the world. It was interesting for sure.
And this year – let’s see how it goes, they say that third time is always a “win or lose”-situation so I’m hoping that it will be a major success!
If you’re in Malmö this weekend, here is the schedule for the convention!
*** PROGRAM 2013****
Saturday conference room
15.30 – 16.30 Guitar Clinic Gus
16.30 – 17.00 Q&A Gus
17.00 – 17.30 Q&A Crashdiet
17.30 – 18.00 Q&A Jorn Lande
Saturday photo-sessions
12.30 – 12.50 Crashdiet
12.50 – 13.20 Paul Dianno
13.20 – 13.40 Jorn Lande
13.40– 14.00 London Based Hellfire
14.00 – 14.30 Gus G
14.40 – 15.00 Crucified Barbara
——————————————–
Sunday conference room
12.30 – 13.00 Q&A Nicki & Ida
13.00 – 13.30 Q&A Paul Dianno
14.00 – 15.00 Fashion show
Sunday photo-sessions
12.00 – 12.20 Paul Dianno
12.20 – 12.40 Ida & Nicki
12.40 – 13.00 Jorn Lande
13.00 – 13.20 Crashdiet
13.20 – 13.40 London Based Hellfire
CRASH DIET
Rockin’ it down under!
This year has been pretty slow so far, travel-wise – by my standards. And the reason is that I wanted to do something DIFFERENT this time. Instead of travelling all over Europe and occasionally to the US, I figured that I want to go to AUSTRALIA. But as I’m not the “touristy” type, I was looking for a good excuse to go – and I got it! :-)
The band that gets me out there on the road most of the time (it’s a great band to follow if you’re into the whole travelling-thing, cause they’re out there most of the year, all over the place) – FIREWIND, is going on a short tour to Australia in October/November. And I’ve just bought my ticket to go see those gigs. Woo-hoo!
And this time, I’m really making it a trip to remember. I chose to travel with Emirates – voted Airline of The Year 2013. And I’m booked in business-class.
If I’m EVER going to spend money on travelling in business-class, it’s for a trip like this where you’ll be spending about 30 hours in a plane! You want to be comfortable for that.
So I booked that, and started reading about all the benefits, and it starts even BEFORE I board! I’ve been so excited all day about my forthcoming Aussie-trip!
Complimentary chauffeur that picks me up to drive me TO and FROM the airport! How nice to arrive somewhere and have someone waiting for you with your name on a sign! No standing in line fighting for taxis…..! HEAVEN!
You get access to the business-lounge at Copenhagen airport, Dubai airport….
You can breeze right through security in your own fast-track (same goes at check-in).
The seats can be turned into real, flat beds (and has built-in massage and all!). Your own large work-table, entertainment-system, Wi-Fi on board, complimentary champagne, drinks – a menu to choose from anytime you want…
I mean, the list goes on. If there is EVER a good reason to pay up for this kind of luxury, it’s when you’re travelling for more than 24 hours. :)
Take a look at this presentation of their lounge and business-class seats!!
I got my “local” Australia- flights sorted out as well – this is my route:
Sydney – Brisbane
Brisbane – Adelaide
Adelaide – Melbourne
4 gigs in 4 days, I have NO idea how I’m going to cope, cause I suspect that the jetlag is going to knock me out… I’ve never gone east before, so I will most likely be beat…. However, it’s just another adventure, but an Adventure DeLuxe!
I love all the planning, the hotels, the detective work to find addresses, the best ways to get from the airport to the hotel, from the hotel to the venue, from the venue to wherever… I mean, all that stuff is so much fun, I get such a kick doing the preparations!
I should be working with this full time, but it just never happened that way.
If there are any up and coming bands out there looking for someone to plan their tour – gimme a shout!
I know how to find the best options at the best prices, I’ve been doing it for myself for years already, this is definitely my turf. :)
Also looking forward to meeting my long-time online-friend Clint from Melbourne, this trip will absolutely, totally rock! :))
IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR 