On this page, I list some experiences I have been through, such as travels, restaurants and hotels, but also films, series, whatever I would like to remember I have seen. In some cases, I might even make an effort and pinpoint some highlights if some of you are interested in those specific "experiences"... Classifying films and series I've seen as "experiences" is a little of a stretch case, but well, how to remember them then?! And adding an extra page... mh... not sure yet.
Travels and such...
Dubai
Winter 2011 - 30/10-2011 - 6/11-2011
Trip with Janne, Mom and Daddy
Wonderful place: a mixture of culture, Vegas, sun and shopping. Everything is there!
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| Burj Khalifa alias Burj Dubai |
Clean and safe. Unexpected. I could go back any time!
Had the best time, really!
Had the best time, really!
Best period to visit is around November as I understood it: then you do not go there when it is too hot.
Whenever planning, pay attention, you do not plan to go there during Ramadan.
Some slide shows from there:
Dubai - Part 2
Hotels in Dubai we tried out:
Arjaan Rotana Media City - Clean and neat to a rather acceptable price. It was the cheapest of the three hotels we visited, but it still kept a good standard. We probably were very lucky though: we got an apartment with two double rooms, with a living room, an equipped kitchen, two bathrooms, two balconies.
From one room, we had a view over "The Palm" and, of course, Atlantis. From the balconies, we had a view over "The Palm", the Media City skyline, and if you leaned towards the side of the balcony also of the Burj Al Arab. What more to desire?! Extremely nice view really. Not sure how regular rooms are, but the one we got was really cool.
Atlantis The Palm - (2/11-2011 - 3/11-2011) This was by far the most expensive hotel I have ever stayed at (and very likely will ever have stayed at). We got a package deal where rooms, The Chambers (impressive aquarium), Aquaventure, extensive dinner coupon (nearly impossible to eat up everything you could by with it), and some kid activities we would not bother visiting. This place was kitch itself, but very impressive. It was really worth trying it once. For the price of one night, we were there two full days (which is fully acceptable and nearly expected. You feel welcome even though you are out of your room). We had a view over the sea, but not over the palm, which rather pissed me off (hehe...)... Probably, if you like waterparks and aquariums, as well as nice dinners, it will not be much more expensive to stay there one night than doing everything that is included and paying for another hotel. Staying there one night gives the best deal I guess.
Mauritius
It was definitively a dream island. Ideal for a honeymoon. Idyllic place with very respectful people that do not push to get tips (not even allowed in hotels to avoid bothering the guests) but are very helpful anyway.
Not the cheapest place on earth, but honeymoon is honeymoon....
The sea is wonderful and it is an island in the middle of the see. Nothing else around but sea, far far away.
We stayed a total of two weeks split in two different hotels. And when I am saying we were staying at two different hotels, we do mean we were staying there nearly most of the time, apart from some excursion downtime and some excursion around the sightseeing places in Mauritius. One of the places was the one with coloured sand.
Some kind of vulcano, as the island seems to be a vulcanic one if I remember it correctly...
Not much action there though as you can see... :O)
A sugar plantation was a typical stop, remembering so much of the special muscovado sugar comes from exactly Mauritius. A "chicken" farm with different kinds of chickins of which this one was rather cute but definitively the least coloured of all there.
Legends
Legends was a newly built hotel with Feng Shui style and theme. It was very beautiful, clean and well thought through. It was the hotel we loved. Everything was very "zen" over there. Our room had "water" theme. And a bath tub with a view over the sea.
The whole place was lovely and our room had a view over the sea.
Fresh flowers every day.
Of course, the honeymoon dinner on the beach was included.
Beau Rivage
This was back then a few years older than Legends and had no theme. It was still a five star hotel though so they were taking very good care of us. The guys went around on the beach and cleaned our sun glasses... Hehe... so no "salami slice" feeling on them against the odds and the sunscreen...
Having been around longer, the place had a rather lush garden to be in Africa and the view from the room was very green.
And the never missing pool...
So yes. We loved this idyllic island! And we loved it even more as it was our honeymoon! It comes very highly recommended from us! :O)
Metallica Ullevi Gothenburg 3/7-2011
Definitively worth seeing. They even made an effort on special effects, such as black balloons flying around, fire in large amounts, fireworks and whatever more you would not have a clue was coming. But the most amazing things were of course the songs and the music. Not to forget about my best friend, James Hetfield, a magnet personified. I actually think this was the band that made the whole trip to Gothenburg worth while.
Slayer Ullevi Gothenburg 3/7-2011
Average band. Neat sound, but no special songs. Wouldn't go out of my way....
Megadeth Ullevi Gothenburg 3/7-2011
Well, nothing wrong with the songs, but the singing was not as exciting.Thank God, they had a relatively enthusiastic guitar player (Chris Broderick) that looked rather cute on the top of it. But I personally think listening to a CD of theirs would have given more enjoyment (especially if it came delivered by Chris ;) )
Anthrax Ullevi Gothenburg 3/7-2011
Average band. Neat sound, but no special songs. Wouldn't go out of my way....
Ozzy Osbourne Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Definitely far above expectations. Was pretty sure the guy had burnt off every single brain cell left in his body around 10 years ago, but well, I do not know about the brain cells, but the guy has still a hell of a lot of rock'n'roll in his veins. It was indeed the crowning of a three day concert with very good bands. The whole place was going on fire (which suited well with the fire estinguisher he actually sprayed everybody in the front of the scene with). And for everybody Ozzy has reached the end of his career a couple of decennials ago, I dare you go watch the concert. And no issues with taking up a few goodies either (no "I need to play through of new stuff nobody knows what that might be from my newest album nobody likes" as other bands sometimes insist on doing...)
Thin Lizzy Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
All this fuzz about singers and dead such and band going down because of it. Well, the "new guy" was in my opinion worth the band's name. And apart from the top notch singer, great songs!
Black Label Society Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
This is indeed a strange band. Never heard them before but got the feeling I had to now. The singer/guitar player/the only member of the band I can even remember is Zakk Wilde, Ozzy's old Guitar guy. The sound was great. Only little issue was the overflow of guitar solos (good ones, but still there need to be a proportion with the rest of the possible instruments/vocals). The sound was great I was saying. Though, they ought to play more than one song in a performance going on over 1 hour... Good song though... :O) This Zakk guy was a magnet himself. Wouldn't try to wrestle him if I had to clear up stuff with him though... He must have been 2 meters long and well over 100kg in weight and looked like a Viking with icy eyes. After some research, he turned out to have acted as some kind of barbarian in some movie... Hehe... No surprises here. :O)
And their whole image was confusing me. They looked a lot like a MC band. But researching (the guy kind of obsessed me for some weird reason) gave no hint on the fact that it would really be an MC band nor that they were acting like one. This whole thing kind of aunts me... :O)
Nicke Borg Unplugged Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
The hard rock guy turned into the small girl's idol. Just really wonder how he feels about that. That is probably what you are supposed to expect if you participate in the Schlagerfestival I guess?! Some 3-year-old girls basically interrupted the concert for taking a picture of the guy. That was funny.... Quiet songs, but indeed good. Something was though wrong with his voice, which was a pity. He pinpointed it himself though "I sound as if I had been partying all night with Dave Coverdale", which turned out was not a case, but rather a reference to him not really being a fan of the guy... :O). Anyways, good songs. Would have not heart to pick another singing day with more voice.
(Rhapsody of fire) Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Did not really see the whole concert as it was at the same time as Nicke Borg and I had not a clue who the guys were to begin with. So they kind of were out of my schedule. They turned out to be an Italian band and also to be one of the world's biggest power metal bands. I even didn't know there was such a thing called power metal... Italians. Who would have thought?! Anyways, it was rather bombastic songs, the singer sang a little like an opera singer. Nothing wrong with the guys. Definitively funny... :O) Next time, they should pick a better time slot though. And in case you wondered, yes, they looked Italian alright...
(Molly Hatchet) Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Can't remember the guys. Wonder whether I really saw them. Just knew them by name so I can't even use my old memories to freshen up... Well, who cares...
The Hooters Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Not sure why they participated in a Rock festival, but I am glad they did. For those of you that do not know who the guys are, assume it is not a rock band, not even to speak of a hard rock band. BUT: they have done great hits over the years. They have a special sound and use unusual instruments. And, yes, believe it or not, it can be music even though it is not hard rock. And good one at that. I had actually not a clue that all those great hits were all theirs... :O) And, hey, the lead singer could speak Swedish (he is doing a Swedish girl, it turns out)
Goda Grannar Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Imagine a cover band. Imagine a bunch of guys looking like anybody else, but a little out of shape. Imagine getting the most uncool instruments and putting them into their hands. Imagine the best hits you can get. And put it all together to achieve the most amazing sound. Just, please, somebody explain how those guys do it, really. The singer, that looks basically like nothing, has the most amazing voice. And the songs sound pretty much like the original. So, here again, let me understand. How do these guys do this? Best cover band I have ever heard. But still they looked like they came from the farm nearby. And, of course, just for coherence to the image, they do not have an official band page
Raubtier Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Funny guys. From Haparanda or somewhere as near to the polar circle. Good humor and good music. Sound a lot like Rammstein, but more Finnish... :O) Funny speeches in between also...
Whitesnake Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
They have the worlds best drummer. They have the worlds best guitar player. They have great songs. But what the heck: what is wrong with the singer being on stage and singing from time to time?! Probably, he is getting out of shape, David Coverdale. Might he have partied all night with Nicke Borg?! :O)
The funny thing was the surprise when some of their old band members (guitar players, all of them) got on the scene, one after the other. Do not know how it comes they all happened to be in Sölvesborg (read: "in the middle of nowhere"), but it was pretty impressing with all those guitar players. They were also over average when it came to their musical talents. Can't remember the name of the guys. Some Dutch guy was one of them. The other was their first lead guitar alias founder of Whitesnake. Mr Something and Mr Somethingelse. These funny Brits speaking of themselves as Mr something. Little difficult to connect the word "Hard rocker" with the word "Mr"...
(Helloween) Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
What the heck is it actually with all these German bands and Hard rock? Not bad, not bad though. I have never heard these guys before, so I cannot say I recognised some hits to be honest, but they sounded ok. Nobody I will remember in my old days, but well, good thing I have a blog to remind me... :O)
Chips & Kent unplugged Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
I do not know. Don't like the "he... me only here, me play little as I would do in my living room" style. Guys, you are at a rock festival. Just make a little of an effort and skip the old whiny songs you found somewhere on some old album at home. Some of their songs were neat. But I actually went watching Helloween instead.
Rob Zombie Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
And let me tell you, this guy was a real surprise. Did not know the guy and the whole Zombie thing seemed phony to me to start with. But, let us keep an open mind. The guy was great. The band was good. The music kept right through very high quality. And apart from those cute "sculps"with big funny staring eyes and the "zombie-like dress" for the whole band, Rob Zombie was dancing around like a cherokee... Funny really. Worth the trip I would state.
Mustasch Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
Swedish band. I liked the songs and I liked their style. I think music is more music if it has "songs", which this band had! If you are around in Sweden, you might get the chance to look at them, who knows...
Judas Priest Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
Seriously now! How can a band such as Judas Priest have trouble finding a reasonably good sound technician?! How can it even be allowed to destroy such a show? Just through the guy out directly after sound check, please! There ought to be someone that can do the job! Basically, it was impossible to hear the vocals. Yes, you hear me right. Rob Halford was hardly hearable. The songs, hits or not, were hardly distinguishable. Ok, maybe it is an exaggeration, but come on. My only time I get the chance to see the guys live and I can't even hear the vocals? It sucks! That technician should be banned from any kind of concert activity.
Saxon Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
The greatest bass player ever, Timothy 'Nibbs' Carter. I am soooo impressed. I didn't even know you could play the base guitar that way. So amazing. Wild wild bass guitar solos. Weeee.... Crazy. Definitively worth watching the guys. Especially the bass guitar player. British band by the way (was about to write German... hehe... you know, German band overflow in the heavy metal business, getting used to it). Very enjoyable concert with good songs, good singer and, as I have already made very clear before, the best bass player ever.
(The cult) Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
Can't remember the band. So I either did not really see them or they did not do any noticeable impression.
Accept Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
German band. Yes, this time for real. Good band with rather high standards. Won't win "Best band of the festival" award as far as I am concerned but there is no risk it will do the "Worst band of the festival" award either.
Hotels in Dubai we tried out:
Arjaan Rotana Media City - Clean and neat to a rather acceptable price. It was the cheapest of the three hotels we visited, but it still kept a good standard. We probably were very lucky though: we got an apartment with two double rooms, with a living room, an equipped kitchen, two bathrooms, two balconies.
From one room, we had a view over "The Palm" and, of course, Atlantis. From the balconies, we had a view over "The Palm", the Media City skyline, and if you leaned towards the side of the balcony also of the Burj Al Arab. What more to desire?! Extremely nice view really. Not sure how regular rooms are, but the one we got was really cool.
Atlantis The Palm - (2/11-2011 - 3/11-2011) This was by far the most expensive hotel I have ever stayed at (and very likely will ever have stayed at). We got a package deal where rooms, The Chambers (impressive aquarium), Aquaventure, extensive dinner coupon (nearly impossible to eat up everything you could by with it), and some kid activities we would not bother visiting. This place was kitch itself, but very impressive. It was really worth trying it once. For the price of one night, we were there two full days (which is fully acceptable and nearly expected. You feel welcome even though you are out of your room). We had a view over the sea, but not over the palm, which rather pissed me off (hehe...)... Probably, if you like waterparks and aquariums, as well as nice dinners, it will not be much more expensive to stay there one night than doing everything that is included and paying for another hotel. Staying there one night gives the best deal I guess.
Mauritius
Winter 2005 - Approximately 8th November - 23rd November based on the dates of the pictures taken
Honeymoon with my JanneIt was definitively a dream island. Ideal for a honeymoon. Idyllic place with very respectful people that do not push to get tips (not even allowed in hotels to avoid bothering the guests) but are very helpful anyway.
Not the cheapest place on earth, but honeymoon is honeymoon....
The sea is wonderful and it is an island in the middle of the see. Nothing else around but sea, far far away.
Some kind of vulcano, as the island seems to be a vulcanic one if I remember it correctly...
A sugar plantation was a typical stop, remembering so much of the special muscovado sugar comes from exactly Mauritius. A "chicken" farm with different kinds of chickins of which this one was rather cute but definitively the least coloured of all there.
Legends
Legends was a newly built hotel with Feng Shui style and theme. It was very beautiful, clean and well thought through. It was the hotel we loved. Everything was very "zen" over there. Our room had "water" theme. And a bath tub with a view over the sea.
The whole place was lovely and our room had a view over the sea.
Fresh flowers every day.
Of course, the honeymoon dinner on the beach was included.
Beau Rivage
This was back then a few years older than Legends and had no theme. It was still a five star hotel though so they were taking very good care of us. The guys went around on the beach and cleaned our sun glasses... Hehe... so no "salami slice" feeling on them against the odds and the sunscreen...
Having been around longer, the place had a rather lush garden to be in Africa and the view from the room was very green.
So yes. We loved this idyllic island! And we loved it even more as it was our honeymoon! It comes very highly recommended from us! :O)
Concerts and such...
Definitively worth seeing. They even made an effort on special effects, such as black balloons flying around, fire in large amounts, fireworks and whatever more you would not have a clue was coming. But the most amazing things were of course the songs and the music. Not to forget about my best friend, James Hetfield, a magnet personified. I actually think this was the band that made the whole trip to Gothenburg worth while.
Slayer Ullevi Gothenburg 3/7-2011
Average band. Neat sound, but no special songs. Wouldn't go out of my way....
Megadeth Ullevi Gothenburg 3/7-2011
Well, nothing wrong with the songs, but the singing was not as exciting.Thank God, they had a relatively enthusiastic guitar player (Chris Broderick) that looked rather cute on the top of it. But I personally think listening to a CD of theirs would have given more enjoyment (especially if it came delivered by Chris ;) )
Anthrax Ullevi Gothenburg 3/7-2011
Average band. Neat sound, but no special songs. Wouldn't go out of my way....
Ozzy Osbourne Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Definitely far above expectations. Was pretty sure the guy had burnt off every single brain cell left in his body around 10 years ago, but well, I do not know about the brain cells, but the guy has still a hell of a lot of rock'n'roll in his veins. It was indeed the crowning of a three day concert with very good bands. The whole place was going on fire (which suited well with the fire estinguisher he actually sprayed everybody in the front of the scene with). And for everybody Ozzy has reached the end of his career a couple of decennials ago, I dare you go watch the concert. And no issues with taking up a few goodies either (no "I need to play through of new stuff nobody knows what that might be from my newest album nobody likes" as other bands sometimes insist on doing...)
Thin Lizzy Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
All this fuzz about singers and dead such and band going down because of it. Well, the "new guy" was in my opinion worth the band's name. And apart from the top notch singer, great songs!
Black Label Society Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
This is indeed a strange band. Never heard them before but got the feeling I had to now. The singer/guitar player/the only member of the band I can even remember is Zakk Wilde, Ozzy's old Guitar guy. The sound was great. Only little issue was the overflow of guitar solos (good ones, but still there need to be a proportion with the rest of the possible instruments/vocals). The sound was great I was saying. Though, they ought to play more than one song in a performance going on over 1 hour... Good song though... :O) This Zakk guy was a magnet himself. Wouldn't try to wrestle him if I had to clear up stuff with him though... He must have been 2 meters long and well over 100kg in weight and looked like a Viking with icy eyes. After some research, he turned out to have acted as some kind of barbarian in some movie... Hehe... No surprises here. :O)
And their whole image was confusing me. They looked a lot like a MC band. But researching (the guy kind of obsessed me for some weird reason) gave no hint on the fact that it would really be an MC band nor that they were acting like one. This whole thing kind of aunts me... :O)
Nicke Borg Unplugged Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
The hard rock guy turned into the small girl's idol. Just really wonder how he feels about that. That is probably what you are supposed to expect if you participate in the Schlagerfestival I guess?! Some 3-year-old girls basically interrupted the concert for taking a picture of the guy. That was funny.... Quiet songs, but indeed good. Something was though wrong with his voice, which was a pity. He pinpointed it himself though "I sound as if I had been partying all night with Dave Coverdale", which turned out was not a case, but rather a reference to him not really being a fan of the guy... :O). Anyways, good songs. Would have not heart to pick another singing day with more voice.
(Rhapsody of fire) Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Did not really see the whole concert as it was at the same time as Nicke Borg and I had not a clue who the guys were to begin with. So they kind of were out of my schedule. They turned out to be an Italian band and also to be one of the world's biggest power metal bands. I even didn't know there was such a thing called power metal... Italians. Who would have thought?! Anyways, it was rather bombastic songs, the singer sang a little like an opera singer. Nothing wrong with the guys. Definitively funny... :O) Next time, they should pick a better time slot though. And in case you wondered, yes, they looked Italian alright...
(Molly Hatchet) Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Can't remember the guys. Wonder whether I really saw them. Just knew them by name so I can't even use my old memories to freshen up... Well, who cares...
The Hooters Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Not sure why they participated in a Rock festival, but I am glad they did. For those of you that do not know who the guys are, assume it is not a rock band, not even to speak of a hard rock band. BUT: they have done great hits over the years. They have a special sound and use unusual instruments. And, yes, believe it or not, it can be music even though it is not hard rock. And good one at that. I had actually not a clue that all those great hits were all theirs... :O) And, hey, the lead singer could speak Swedish (he is doing a Swedish girl, it turns out)
Goda Grannar Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Imagine a cover band. Imagine a bunch of guys looking like anybody else, but a little out of shape. Imagine getting the most uncool instruments and putting them into their hands. Imagine the best hits you can get. And put it all together to achieve the most amazing sound. Just, please, somebody explain how those guys do it, really. The singer, that looks basically like nothing, has the most amazing voice. And the songs sound pretty much like the original. So, here again, let me understand. How do these guys do this? Best cover band I have ever heard. But still they looked like they came from the farm nearby. And, of course, just for coherence to the image, they do not have an official band page
Raubtier Sweden Rock 11/6-2011
Funny guys. From Haparanda or somewhere as near to the polar circle. Good humor and good music. Sound a lot like Rammstein, but more Finnish... :O) Funny speeches in between also...
Whitesnake Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
They have the worlds best drummer. They have the worlds best guitar player. They have great songs. But what the heck: what is wrong with the singer being on stage and singing from time to time?! Probably, he is getting out of shape, David Coverdale. Might he have partied all night with Nicke Borg?! :O)
The funny thing was the surprise when some of their old band members (guitar players, all of them) got on the scene, one after the other. Do not know how it comes they all happened to be in Sölvesborg (read: "in the middle of nowhere"), but it was pretty impressing with all those guitar players. They were also over average when it came to their musical talents. Can't remember the name of the guys. Some Dutch guy was one of them. The other was their first lead guitar alias founder of Whitesnake. Mr Something and Mr Somethingelse. These funny Brits speaking of themselves as Mr something. Little difficult to connect the word "Hard rocker" with the word "Mr"...
(Helloween) Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
What the heck is it actually with all these German bands and Hard rock? Not bad, not bad though. I have never heard these guys before, so I cannot say I recognised some hits to be honest, but they sounded ok. Nobody I will remember in my old days, but well, good thing I have a blog to remind me... :O)
Chips & Kent unplugged Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
I do not know. Don't like the "he... me only here, me play little as I would do in my living room" style. Guys, you are at a rock festival. Just make a little of an effort and skip the old whiny songs you found somewhere on some old album at home. Some of their songs were neat. But I actually went watching Helloween instead.
Rob Zombie Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
And let me tell you, this guy was a real surprise. Did not know the guy and the whole Zombie thing seemed phony to me to start with. But, let us keep an open mind. The guy was great. The band was good. The music kept right through very high quality. And apart from those cute "sculps"with big funny staring eyes and the "zombie-like dress" for the whole band, Rob Zombie was dancing around like a cherokee... Funny really. Worth the trip I would state.
Mustasch Sweden Rock 10/6-2011
Swedish band. I liked the songs and I liked their style. I think music is more music if it has "songs", which this band had! If you are around in Sweden, you might get the chance to look at them, who knows...
Judas Priest Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
Seriously now! How can a band such as Judas Priest have trouble finding a reasonably good sound technician?! How can it even be allowed to destroy such a show? Just through the guy out directly after sound check, please! There ought to be someone that can do the job! Basically, it was impossible to hear the vocals. Yes, you hear me right. Rob Halford was hardly hearable. The songs, hits or not, were hardly distinguishable. Ok, maybe it is an exaggeration, but come on. My only time I get the chance to see the guys live and I can't even hear the vocals? It sucks! That technician should be banned from any kind of concert activity.
Saxon Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
The greatest bass player ever, Timothy 'Nibbs' Carter. I am soooo impressed. I didn't even know you could play the base guitar that way. So amazing. Wild wild bass guitar solos. Weeee.... Crazy. Definitively worth watching the guys. Especially the bass guitar player. British band by the way (was about to write German... hehe... you know, German band overflow in the heavy metal business, getting used to it). Very enjoyable concert with good songs, good singer and, as I have already made very clear before, the best bass player ever.
(The cult) Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
Can't remember the band. So I either did not really see them or they did not do any noticeable impression.
Accept Sweden Rock 9/6-2011
German band. Yes, this time for real. Good band with rather high standards. Won't win "Best band of the festival" award as far as I am concerned but there is no risk it will do the "Worst band of the festival" award either.
