Just a stop down the line...

"Don't get on the wrong train." That was the first line of the first song I heard at the most recent concert I went to in London, and it's sound advice for tomorrow, when I undertake my laborious journey from the Biomedical Sciences Teaching Labs to The O2 Arena. Yesterday I found a new route that will shave approximately one minute off of my journey time to the bus stop, and I've looked up the station platforms between which I'll have to traverse, so I'm feeling well prepared! Today I carved a pumpkin with the current U2 tour logo and painted my nails; the thumbs with the same design, and the other nails crimson, to be my crimson nails of success! Right now I'm listening to a live stream of tonight's concert, and almost crying with excitement about tomorrow, when I'm actually gonna be there...

Just 2 stops down the line…

Two years ago today I experienced my second 25-hour day in a row when, the day after the clocks went back, I travelled back from Germany, gaining an hour in the process. Although tomorrow will be 24 hours long, I anticipate it feeling far shorter, as I complete final preparations for my lab session and the journey to London…

4 stops down the line…

Six years ago today I had my first experience of seeing U2 live, when their 360 Tour concert at the Rosebowl in Pasadena was streamed  live on YouTube. After an enjoyable day celebrating my grandad's 65th birthday, I set my alarm for 3:15 am and settled down for a few hours rest. A short time after I had drifted off, it was time to get up and go, all the way downstairs to watch U2ube. I was extremely proud of myself for not drifting off during the twenty minute intro, and when the show began I really perked up! The stand out moment for me was hearing the beautiful Ultraviolet (Light My Way) during the encore; I believe it almost brought me to tears. I'm led to believe that particular highlight won't be repeated in four days time, when I attend my first proper U2 concert, but I'm looking on the bright side: I will be attending my first U2 concert in four days time!!!!

Just 5 stops down the line...

My first U2 show is less than a week away, and I'm getting more excited by the hour. On 18 September I was pretty annoyed to discover I have a practical session in the afternoon, which gives me a mere three and a half hours to get to London before the concert starts. Over the following few weeks, I became pretty confident that I'm gonna make it on time: a quick search on Google maps gave me hope that a train at 17:30, followed by a tube journey, can get me there in time; recces to the train station have taken no longer than 25 minutes; and my dad suggested a fast and hopefully less crowded route to the venue on the tube. Additionally, last week I bought some leather effect trousers to complete my "Female Fly" look for the concert!

Dreaming out loud

It's been a nice rounded 2 years, 3 months and 4 days since I last posted about a concert, and in that time I've seen many more artists, including Gary Barlow, Scouting For Girls, half a dozen Eurovision winners, NKOTB (once), Lawson (twice) 5ive (three times) and most recently, Take That (including Howard for the first time)! However, my all-time favourite band continues to elude me. It's kind of my own fault for becoming a fan a few months after the tickets for their tour had been sold, but how was I to know they wouldn't come back to my country on the next European leg?! Anyway, they will not elude me for much longer...

Last September, U2 surprised the world with the release of their new album, Songs of Innocence, when it turned up on the Apple devices of millions of people worldwide. I was in the minority who were delighted by this, and eager to learn whether seeing them live would be a possibility in the coming year or so. It seemed likely, so I decided to convert my u2.com free membership to a paid subscription in order to get access to presale tickets. Sure enough, on 3 December the tour was announced, including four nights in London, which I could easily get to. But things weren't all positive: the shows were on weeknights in late October, so I'm extremely likely to be in uni on those days (I won't know for sure until 18 September this year); the presale code only allowed me to buy two tickets, but my sister and mother both wanted to come; and signing up after the album release meant I was in the Innocence presale group, so wouldn't have access until a day after long-term subscribers, by which time the general admission tickets I wanted to go for could well have sold out. Setting aside my GA dreams, I decided to try for two presale tickets anyway, and managed to get a pair of seated tickets for my sister and I! The following Monday my mother entered the general sale and succeeded getting herself a ticket only a few blocks away from us!

But that's not all! A week ago, six Irish dates were added to the tour itinerary: two in Belfast and four in Dublin, including one Saturday. Getting to Ireland for this date seemed feasible, as I could fly over after university on Friday evening, so I decided to try to get tickets. Having already used my presale code, I had to enter the general sale on 14 September. While setting up a Ticketmaster account, I noticed some student tickets would be available. I decided to go for them, as my sister and I are both eligible, and the demand for them would be lower than for general admission tickets. I was entered into the ticket queue at 9:00 am and after about 15 minutes, was able to select two student general admission tickets! At 9:23 am I received email confirmation of my purchase and the fact that I'll be going to Dublin to see U2!

So I now have two opportunities to see my favourite band and hear my favourite songs live, the first in just over six weeks! I'll try to keep this blog updated as the time approaches...

First year was a great time, second year...

...will hopefully be a blast!

After a very relaxed summer, I'm now only a couple of weeks away from the start of my second year at university. First year was wonderful, and I'm really excited to get back to the grind of daily bus journeys, 3 hour practicals and 6:00 am starts (ideally not too many of them). This year I only have two proper units during the first term, neuropharmacology and neurophysiology, which should ease me into level 5 study. However this time round I'll be juggling my studies with writing and sending applications for the placement year I'm hoping to do in 2016/17. I'm working on my first one at the moment, the deadline for which is mid October, as well as trying to formulate a general cover letter and CV to get a head start on subsequent applications. I know very few placements will be available, but if I'm unsuccessful I can still look into alternative ways to get experience, such as a summer internship.

Eurovision 2015: Countries I'm considering supporting

This time last year I hadn't heard any of the Eurovision 2014 songs, but after months of closely following the 2015 national final season, I'm now firmly in the Eurovision mindset, and already well on my way to deciding who I'll be rooting for this year. Due to uni commitments, Chris may not be able to host a Eurovision party this year or even continue his tradition of getting us to choose a country to support, but I want to get ahead in case it does happen! My last few years of predicting have gone like this:

2012: Estonia 6th place
2013: Austria failed to qualify, Belgium 12th place
2014: Malta 23rd place

I'd love to get another top 10 this year, but as with last year, I want to really get behind my choice rather than blindly choosing one of the favourites or a country that usually does well, especially after how Daisy fared with Azerbaijan last year...

Without further ado, here are my current opinions on the songs of the Eurovision Song Contest 2015!

Not really considering:

Automatic qualifiers: Australia, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom
I haven't really warmed to these songs yet, plus I like the challenge of choosing a song that's not guaranteed to be in the final. The UK's entry still makes me cringe.

First semifinal:
Albania: Elhaida Dani - I'm Alive
I quite like I'm Alive, but not enough to support it.
Armenia: Genealogy - Face The Shadow
I really don't like the rhythm changes in the Armenian entry's chorus, and I don't feel that the voices mesh very nicely.
Belgium: Loïc Nottet - Rhythm Inside
It's very different and has grown on me since I first heard it, but I don't think I'll support it.
Denmark: The Way You Are - Anti Social Media
It was easily my favourite from Melodi Grand Prix, and I still like it, but I don't want to risk supporting it.
Finland: Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät - Aina Mun Pitää
Not as bad as I first thought, but it's never going to be my favourite.
Greece: Maria-Elena Kyriakou - One Last Breath
I didn't support this in the national final, but after the lacklustre vocals and/or songs of the other participants, One Last Breath was the clear winner, however I'm still not completely convinced by it.
Hungary: Boggie - Wars For Nothing
I really like the national final performance and the vocals, and I feel that it will qualify, but I'd like to support something more cheerful.
Moldova: Eduard Romanyuta - I Want Your Love
The song is okay, but I won't be supporting it.
Russia: Polina Gagarina - A Million Voices
It's not bad, but rather like their last two entries, it's not something I want to support.
Serbia: Bojana Stamenov - Beauty Never Lies
I find the first half okay, but I'm not a fan of the ending.
Netherlands: Trijntje Oosterhuis - Walk Along
Aside from the repetitive chorus it's quite pleasant.

Second semifinal:
Azerbaijan: Elnur Hüseynov - Hour of the Wolf
It doesn't really stand out to me and I can't really remember it after hearing it.
Cyprus: John Karagiannis - One Thing I Should Have Done
I do rather like this song, but I'd prefer it if it had more of a climax.
Czech Republic: Marta Jandová & Václav Noid Bárta - Hope Never Dies
It's my favourite Czech entry by far, but not enough so for me to support it.
Ireland: Molly Sterling - Playing with Numbers
I was kind of considering this song, until it got stuck in my head on Thursday. I still think it's pretty decent, and I'd like it to get to the final.
Israel: Nadav Guedj - Golden Boy
It's catchy and fun, there's not really anything I dislike about it.
Malta: Amber - Warrior
I don't find this Warrior particularly special, but I do prefer the new version of it.
Montenegro: Knez - Adio
For me Adio doesn't have the impact of Željko Joksimović's other Eurovision compositions, but it's still nice to listen to.
Norway: Mørland & Debrah Scarlett - A Monster Like Me
I'm not that fond this song, although I think their voices sound nice together.
Poland: Monika Kuszyńska - In The Name Of Love
For me it's one of the least interesting ballads, I find the chorus quite monotonous.
Portugal: Leonor Andrade - Há um Mar que nos Separa
The song starts off pretty powerful, but doesn't really go anywhere.
San Marino: Anita Simoncini & Michele Perniola - Chain of Lights
It starts off quite interesting, but gets cheesy very quickly. I had hoped San Marino would continue to improve, but I highly doubt this will qualify.
Switzerland: Mélanie René - Time to Shine
I had other favourites in Die Grosse Entschiedungsshow, but this song isn't bad, and I really like Mélanie's voice.

Kind of considering:

First semifinal:
Estonia: Elina Born and Stig Rästa - Goodbye to Yesterday

If second place Burning Lights had won Eesti Laul 2015, I'd definitely be supporting Estonia, but this song is pretty worthy of the ticket to Vienna, and it's certainly popular. I may end up switching back to my original country!

Macedonia: Autumn Leaves - Daniel Kajmakoski

I preferred the tempo of the original Macedonian version, but I really like the lyrics and instrumentation of this one. Although I'm not sure it will, I'll be very happy if it qualifies.

Georgia: Nina Sublatti - Warrior
Another of my favourites from from the national final season, I love the power of this Warrior! At the moment my sister wants to support it, and I suppose I would let her.
Romania: Voltaj - De la capăt (All Over Again)
Normally the country my sister ends up with, I really love the melody of this song and the fact that it's mostly in Romanian. This is the one that might make me cry, like Finland did last year.

Second semifinal:
Iceland: María Ólafs - Unbroken
After only hearing the Icelandic version this was an easy choice in Eurovision Prediction, and the English version certainly didn't disappoint! I think it could do very well.
Sweden: Måns Zelmerlöw - Heroes
Another easy prediction, the song is very memorable and is likely to do well, especially with the innovative staging.

Strongly considering:

First semifinal:
Belarus: Uzari and Maimuna - Time
Despite choosing Milki for Eurovision Prediction Belarus, I thought Time was the best song from the Eurofest 2015, and the new version is even more captivating! It's probably my favourite entry from the country so far, and I especially love the prominence of the violin.

Second semifinal:
Latvia: Aminata - Love Injected
I really hope Love Injected gets Latvia back to the final, it's wonderfully unique and Aminata's vocals are amazing!
Lithuania: Monika Linkytė & Vaidas Baumila - This Time
There's no doubt that this is my favourite Lithuanian entry ever, it's so cheerful, but I don't find it too cheesy. As Attention almost made it to the final last year, I'm pretty confident This Time will qualify!
Slovenia: Maraaya - Here For You
I love the pace, lyrics and instrumentation of Slovenia's song this year, and I think the performance will look great on the Eurovision stage!

Resolutions

So, it's a week till March and I still haven't done my nails of 2014 post! I'll get round to it at some point, but first I thought it would be good to make some not-associated-with-a-time-of-year resolutions in order to get the most out of my life at the moment. Here they are, in no particular order:

• Get an earlier bus occasionally if I'm ready early
• Buy/make small gifts for people
• Appreciate the time I get to spend with people
• Work on assignments little and often

Developments since last time include receiving my January exam results (my feelings about which ranged from satisfied to ecstatic) and buying tickets for Eurovision's Greatest Hits in London, which is going to be amazing!

Hello again!

Long time no post! So much has happened since freshers week, including many more nights out at Spoons (until the vouchers ran out), a couple of fun house parties, and even some dates! *Shocked emoticon* 

The holidays were a much-needed chance to relax before revision for January exams took over, but they're almost over now, so it's the perfect time for me to come back here. Stay tuned for a nail art post to celebrate the end of 2014 ( better late than never!) and perhaps something new for 2015…