[Eurovsion] The party
So Saturday was the big Eurovision final, and of course since the final didn't coincide with Bear Pride, I got to throw a party here in Peoria. It was certainly cheaper than going to Düsseldorf! ^_-
Friday was "clean up the pit you call an apartment day." My God there was so much to do -- hang flags, rearrange furniture, clean our unfortunate carpets, wash the dog (egad, all the dog hair!) ... I got more sleep than I did for 2008 Moscow, and was able to execute three desserts while Carl set up a taco bar. Of course I had to do baklava, found a recipe for "drunken coffee Jello squares" (they were m'eh), and did chili paste-brushed battered fried bananas (which were the big hit of the evening).
As for the show? It wasn't a bad production, but the song quality in the final was admittedly underwhelming. No song was really "wow", and in face some were dull, or even poorly performed -- the "lyric opera pop" entry from France, for example, was out of tune half the time, and close-ups revealed a petrified Vassili. Lithuania, Switzerland, and Finland were disliked almost all through the room because they were "snoozers". No wonder Moldova, Georgia, and Ireland were so popular in the room -- there was at least some energy there, followed by Ukraine (the song no one can remember, but that sand art was FANTASTIC). Azerbaijan somehow won, and won with the fewest amount of points in a long long time (I believe jawnbc cited a mere 5.3 points out of a possible 12 per country). As soon as the winner was announced, Carl glared at me and said, "No. We're NOT going to Azerbaijan so don't ask." :: laugh :: Italy came second, yet the man from Italy at the party didn't even know what Eurovsion was. The results and points were literally all over the place, and none of the "hot faves" really did anywhere near as well as anyone thought.
It'll be interesting to see what Azerbaijan can do with the contest, or if they can even pull it off. Having seen some larger productions in Azerbaijan, I'm truly underwhelmed. It doesn't help that there's no place to really HOST the thing, meaning they'll have to build a stadium before this time next time.
The party was fun, and I can't believe I had twenty people in my apartment at once, and one even came down from Chicago and back the same night ... I'm glad he felt it "worthwhile" for such a trip. It's by far the biggest turnout I've had -- not that the night was perfect. So many people meant it got very hot in my apartment, and the cooking didn't help the temperature any. We still had people on the floor due to lack of seating. These are just things I need to think of before I attempt this again!
Friday was "clean up the pit you call an apartment day." My God there was so much to do -- hang flags, rearrange furniture, clean our unfortunate carpets, wash the dog (egad, all the dog hair!) ... I got more sleep than I did for 2008 Moscow, and was able to execute three desserts while Carl set up a taco bar. Of course I had to do baklava, found a recipe for "drunken coffee Jello squares" (they were m'eh), and did chili paste-brushed battered fried bananas (which were the big hit of the evening).
As for the show? It wasn't a bad production, but the song quality in the final was admittedly underwhelming. No song was really "wow", and in face some were dull, or even poorly performed -- the "lyric opera pop" entry from France, for example, was out of tune half the time, and close-ups revealed a petrified Vassili. Lithuania, Switzerland, and Finland were disliked almost all through the room because they were "snoozers". No wonder Moldova, Georgia, and Ireland were so popular in the room -- there was at least some energy there, followed by Ukraine (the song no one can remember, but that sand art was FANTASTIC). Azerbaijan somehow won, and won with the fewest amount of points in a long long time (I believe jawnbc cited a mere 5.3 points out of a possible 12 per country). As soon as the winner was announced, Carl glared at me and said, "No. We're NOT going to Azerbaijan so don't ask." :: laugh :: Italy came second, yet the man from Italy at the party didn't even know what Eurovsion was. The results and points were literally all over the place, and none of the "hot faves" really did anywhere near as well as anyone thought.
It'll be interesting to see what Azerbaijan can do with the contest, or if they can even pull it off. Having seen some larger productions in Azerbaijan, I'm truly underwhelmed. It doesn't help that there's no place to really HOST the thing, meaning they'll have to build a stadium before this time next time.
The party was fun, and I can't believe I had twenty people in my apartment at once, and one even came down from Chicago and back the same night ... I'm glad he felt it "worthwhile" for such a trip. It's by far the biggest turnout I've had -- not that the night was perfect. So many people meant it got very hot in my apartment, and the cooking didn't help the temperature any. We still had people on the floor due to lack of seating. These are just things I need to think of before I attempt this again!