All right, so I'll split the writing/photography into separate posts so it's a bit more organised (and also so I don't lose as much in the event that Blogger quits on me again).
In Week 38, I showed up to all the language cafés I could, to practise Swedish (which went better than I'd expected), German (in which I managed to embarrass myself through lack of knowledge), and English (where I volunteered as a native speaker). Overall, I really like the idea of being able to practise languages with both native speakers and other learners, and (sometimes) free food is an added bonus!
On Saturday, I went with a group to Lidingö for a walk. It's an island off the coast of Stockholm, accessible by bus from the Ropsten subway station. I met a lot of really awesome people there, from all over but currently living in the Stockholm area.
We ended the walk with a stop at a burger joint in Norrmalm at MOOD Stockholm.
Saturday was the last day of "nice" weather, supposedly- although it later turned out that the following weekend was also nice- and so Sunday it rained all day. While it was still tolerable weather, just as it began to drizzle, I went to Gamla Stan to see a live flamenco performance by Mar Flamenca, a local group here in Stockholm. Their performance is an audio-visual one with a background track, live instruments and vocals, and flamenco dancing (called Tronco Flamenco). I got to talk to the performers after the show, and I think it was really cool. If they hold more shows while I'm here, I'll definitely consider going again!
They interacted a lot with the audience, actually. Mainly with the children who sat on the floor (like me :P), but they had people stand and clap the rhythm or join in the singing sometimes. Definitely a unique experience.
I showed up to the outdoor market at Hötorget just as the vendors were packing up due to the rain, and then it began to pour in torrents. I ran for cover under one of the vendors' booths, where the overhead covering was flooding with water, and so those of us there took turns to poke it with a stick until the water drained off. But when the rain let up just enough for me to risk going out again (I had my laptop with me, and had forgotten an umbrella on my way out of the dorm), I darted off to a nearby café and ordered food there.
I went with a friend to the Sungha Jung concert at Dieselverkstaden in Nacka (also an island in the Stockholm area) in the evening. It was still raining heavily, and our shoes and pants (really, the entirety of us) got soaked completely as we tried to find the venue. We both had umbrellas this time, but it didn't do much for the deep puddles we found ourselves wading through.
For food, we stopped at a Taco Bar before going in to wait in line for the concert. And I can say, the concert was entirely worth going to! The MC and second performer of the show was Casper Esmann from Denmark, and I'll say he deserves more publicity than he currently has. I really enjoyed his performance and bought a disc from him. The opening act was Gabriella Quevedo, a young Swede with an incredible amount of talent. She will also be performing in the Uppsala International Guitar Festival this coming month, along with Sungha Jung himself.
As you can see, my penguin really enjoyed coming to the concert, too! He was happy I brought him along to listen.
Above: Gabriella Quevedo, a young Swedish guitarist with a natural talent for what she's doing. If she'd had a CD out, I would definitely have bought it.
Above: Casper Esmann, a young Danish guitarist who really shows enthusiasm for both composing and performing. Look for his CD on his website, among other places. It's called "The Nocturnal Chase".
Above: A picture with all three of the guitarists, including Sungha Jung. It was an excellent evening, and I have no regrets about all the water I sloshed through in my attempt to arrive there!
Sungha Jung performed after intermission, in the second half of the concert. He played a number of his most popular songs, as well as some of the new ones, and then he did a few numbers with Casper and then Gabriella. I bought his CD, too, and my friend and I stayed for the signing and photoshoot after (which my penguin got to participate in, and of course he was thrilled :P).
So here, I'll end the post for Week 38 and continue to do some catch-up posting after this. :)
One last thing: Here's a short clip of Casper Esmann's performance of "Moving Back", an original composition of his. I couldn't upload the entire video because of the file size (and I have no idea if that's legal or not, anyway, although he didn't seem to have a problem with filming, but I don't want to have any trouble for it). The full song can be heard on YouTube HERE on his channel.
Vi hörs,
/The Swedish Fish
In Week 38, I showed up to all the language cafés I could, to practise Swedish (which went better than I'd expected), German (in which I managed to embarrass myself through lack of knowledge), and English (where I volunteered as a native speaker). Overall, I really like the idea of being able to practise languages with both native speakers and other learners, and (sometimes) free food is an added bonus!
On Saturday, I went with a group to Lidingö for a walk. It's an island off the coast of Stockholm, accessible by bus from the Ropsten subway station. I met a lot of really awesome people there, from all over but currently living in the Stockholm area.
We ended the walk with a stop at a burger joint in Norrmalm at MOOD Stockholm.
Saturday was the last day of "nice" weather, supposedly- although it later turned out that the following weekend was also nice- and so Sunday it rained all day. While it was still tolerable weather, just as it began to drizzle, I went to Gamla Stan to see a live flamenco performance by Mar Flamenca, a local group here in Stockholm. Their performance is an audio-visual one with a background track, live instruments and vocals, and flamenco dancing (called Tronco Flamenco). I got to talk to the performers after the show, and I think it was really cool. If they hold more shows while I'm here, I'll definitely consider going again!
They interacted a lot with the audience, actually. Mainly with the children who sat on the floor (like me :P), but they had people stand and clap the rhythm or join in the singing sometimes. Definitely a unique experience.
I showed up to the outdoor market at Hötorget just as the vendors were packing up due to the rain, and then it began to pour in torrents. I ran for cover under one of the vendors' booths, where the overhead covering was flooding with water, and so those of us there took turns to poke it with a stick until the water drained off. But when the rain let up just enough for me to risk going out again (I had my laptop with me, and had forgotten an umbrella on my way out of the dorm), I darted off to a nearby café and ordered food there.
I went with a friend to the Sungha Jung concert at Dieselverkstaden in Nacka (also an island in the Stockholm area) in the evening. It was still raining heavily, and our shoes and pants (really, the entirety of us) got soaked completely as we tried to find the venue. We both had umbrellas this time, but it didn't do much for the deep puddles we found ourselves wading through.
For food, we stopped at a Taco Bar before going in to wait in line for the concert. And I can say, the concert was entirely worth going to! The MC and second performer of the show was Casper Esmann from Denmark, and I'll say he deserves more publicity than he currently has. I really enjoyed his performance and bought a disc from him. The opening act was Gabriella Quevedo, a young Swede with an incredible amount of talent. She will also be performing in the Uppsala International Guitar Festival this coming month, along with Sungha Jung himself.
As you can see, my penguin really enjoyed coming to the concert, too! He was happy I brought him along to listen.
Above: Gabriella Quevedo, a young Swedish guitarist with a natural talent for what she's doing. If she'd had a CD out, I would definitely have bought it.
Sungha Jung performed after intermission, in the second half of the concert. He played a number of his most popular songs, as well as some of the new ones, and then he did a few numbers with Casper and then Gabriella. I bought his CD, too, and my friend and I stayed for the signing and photoshoot after (which my penguin got to participate in, and of course he was thrilled :P).
So here, I'll end the post for Week 38 and continue to do some catch-up posting after this. :)
One last thing: Here's a short clip of Casper Esmann's performance of "Moving Back", an original composition of his. I couldn't upload the entire video because of the file size (and I have no idea if that's legal or not, anyway, although he didn't seem to have a problem with filming, but I don't want to have any trouble for it). The full song can be heard on YouTube HERE on his channel.
(Can't upload more than 100 MB of video, hence the short clip.)
Vi hörs,
/The Swedish Fish
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