Sunday 15 May 2011

ESC

My sister is here. And the main reason she's staying with me and not with my parents is the European Song Contest which was held yesterday. It might also have something to do with the amount of moving around to find a bed when she would stay with my parents due to my brother and his family also staying with them last night. All because of the Big Family Reunion today!

The Moldovan Entry
But I wanted to talk about the European Song Contest or ESC for short. Because yesterday, for the first time in years, it was finally about the music again and less about all the acts! Don't get me wrong, Moldova still sent garden gnomes on acid and a unicycle, Estonia was doing magic and the Ukraine had a good song, but an even better sand artist! France had sent a tenor who actually sang in (shock horror) Italian! And the Italians were back after a gap of 14 years and nearly did the biggest stunt of all by finishing in second place! Ireland sent two hyperactive twins who wore leggings (not a good move) and sang about lipstick and Sweden had a heart throb, including dimples in both cheeks, who ended up third.

The Irish entry
Of course this doesn't count all the numbers that didn't make it to the grand final and lost already in one of the two semifinals. The Netherlands of course (seven times in a row), Belgium with an awful a-capella song, Belarus sang about Belarus and the first semi final I didn't even see, so I don't know what atrocities didn't make it (Portugal was bound to have been one, judging by their dress sense).

But the winner in the end was Azerbaijan, a former Soviet Republic with a sort of forgettable ditty. They were happy to have won though and according to Graham Norton who commented for the BBC, they were one of the few who actually had the funds to organise the biggest party of the world next year due to their oil reserves!

6 comments:

  1. Ah! That's it! The oil reserves! Yesterday I was wondering how they were going to pay for the festivities, but I guess I listened to the wrong people last evening (Jan Smit and Daniël Dekker...).

    (Maybe the oil reserves got them at the first place as well. No one in his right mind would call that Azerbeijan lady a qualified singer. Blugh.)

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  2. Stopped watching the ESC in the early eighties. I only know we sent the 3J's and that they are from Volendam. Don't know the song, don't know any other song by them even. I just can't get into the spirit of the event.

    Hope you have a fun family reunion

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  3. It seems like quite an event.

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  4. Well, if that was the winner, I'm glad I didn't watch any of the others. LOL
    Wonderful to be having a family gathering, however. I'm much more interested in that than a song contest.
    Luv — K

    Kay, Alberta, Canada
    An Unfittie's Guide to Adventurous Travel

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  5. Must be fun to have your sister over. The winning song is good but hard to believe it was the best in show! Hope your reunion was awesome.

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  6. I used to watch it, when I still lived in the Netherlands.... But if that's the winner.... I don't mind not being able to see it!
    Eww!

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Any weighty (and not so weighty) comments are welcome!