Eurovision 2016 — My Top Lists

mars 24, 2016mars 21, 2016Johan Dahlberg Lämna en kommentar

OK, so who will actually win Eurovision this year? I’ve compiled two top-five lists: one with my personal favorites, and one with who I actually think will be the top five. Last year, my predictions

Last year’s predictions:

Last year, I predicted one country in EXACTLY the correct position. Randomly, that country was Australia (5th place). Of my top five list, three were actually in top five (Sweden, Italy and Australia). The two remaining countries — Norway and Georgia — finished 8th and 11th respectively. In other words, all my predicted top 5’s did well.

Among my personal favorites, Belgium, Australia and Sweden were in top five. Slovenia and United Kingdom finished 14th and 24th respectively.

My personal Top 10, 2016:

The way I think it will end 2016 (top 5):

Eurovision 2016 — The Finals

mars 23, 2016mars 21, 2016Johan Dahlberg Lämna en kommentar

It’s time to rate the final six! Crossing my fingers for a few good surprises here 😀 Check out my verdicts on all songs from Semifinal 1 and Semifinal 2.

#1. France – J’ai cherché – Pop

Love the chorus! A lot! The rest, not so much. The whole stage thing with the background girls and their dresses is just a bit weird.

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 3,5

#2. Germany – Ghost – Slow Pop

Cool voice, as so often with Germany’s contestants. And a cool Japanese anime-style stage and dress. Quite good song, but not unique enough.

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 3

#3. Italy – No Degrees of Separation – Slow Pop

Most likely, they will change this to an English version for Eurovision, like Italy often does. I’d be good with that, even though Italian is beautiful it will increase their chances. This is a beautiful song! I hope they have a cool stage version like the semi-stage version in the video. Top song!

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 4

#4. Spain – Say Yay! – Pop

She definitely tries to get the party started, but in my opinion, she’s not succeeding.

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 3

#5. Sweden – If I were Sorry – Slow Pop, Singer/songwriter

Seriously, I’m honest when I say that this is my absolute favorite song this year! It’s probably hard to believe I’m not biased because it’s my home country, but this song fits my style of music very well! That said, I was very quick to say that it’s NOT a Eurovision winner when I watched the Swedish nationals. I voted for someone else. I stand by that, ”If I Were Sorry” is not a given winner. However, lucky for us, there haven’t been any given winners at all this year. The overall quality of the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 is higher than usual because there are no super bad or ”joke”-songs, but it’s not not extraordinary. And therefore, I actually think that Sweden will get a top place this year as well (though probably not win). Unlike a lot of the average pop songs, this one has more feeling, and the singer has a stage presence even though I believe the stage show is lacking.

Personal Score: 5
Eurovision Score: 4

#6. United Kingdom – You’re Not Alone – Pop

The UK are usually just as shitty as Finland. This year — just as Finland — they’ve stepped it up. Unfortunately, they’re doing so with… an average pop song! The competition is too hard this year, and the song slightly too boring. It’s catchy, but not enough. Sorry UK. The guy on the right though: great voice!

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 3

Summary of the Finals

The ”Big 5” + Sweden are adding some good quality pop songs to the mix, though I’m not feeling a winner. I’m disappointed to say that there is no clear winner at all this year, after having listened to all the songs. But there’s A LOT of decent pop, and NO joke songs or hilariously bad ones. Not a single one actually, quite surprising.

I’ll be writing a summary post where I’ll list my top 5’s and post it tomorrow 🙂

Eurovision 2016 — Semifinal 2

mars 22, 2016mars 21, 2016Johan Dahlberg Lämna en kommentar

After the fairly decent first semifinal, here’s my review of the 2nd one, to air on May 12, 2016. Read the first post for more information about how I score and categorize the songs.

Semifinal 2

#1. Australia – Sound of Silence – Pop

I love that Australia — still the outsider even though this is their second year — gets to be the first one out in this semifinal! The song is good and had this been a year or two ago it would probably have done quite well as a westernized pop song competing with mediocre eastern songs. Unfortunately for Australia, this year there were a lot of average western-style pop songs (by west I mean the typical music style of the UK, Scandinavia, Germany, France, etc. as opposed to for example Bulgaria, Bosnia, Greece and Armenia) in the first semifinal. This song simply isn’t unique enough to be a winner. It could be saved by a brilliant live show, but unfortunately we won’t know if the singer is just going to ”stand there” on stage or actually incorporate an artistic stage presence until the actual day of the competition.

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 3,5

#2. Belarus – Help You Fly – Pop

For some reason, before the light showed the mans face, I thought he would have long hair, a big beard and a very deep voice. Not quite. And though I am surprised to say that this still isn’t as bad as many songs from previous years, this is definitely not a Eurovision winner.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 1,5

#3. Ireland – Sunlight – Pop

On one hand: catchy Eurovision-style pop song. On the other: barf! And not catchy enough. No sorry.

Personal Score: 2,5
Eurovision Score: 2

#4. Israel – Made of Stars – Pop

Israel is often one of my favorite Eurovision countires! I really enjoyed them last year with their golden boy song! This year, not as much.

Personal Score: 2,5
Eurovision Score: 2,5

#5. Latvia – Heartbeat – Pop, Electronic

A lot of straight out pop this semifinal. This is not a bad one at all. But seriously, the guy is just standing there! Where’s the show? Where’s the entertainment?

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 2,5

#6. Lithuania – I’ve Been Waiting For This Night – Pop

Hello 90’s boy band! I’d like to compare this song to the previous one, with the difference that this guy has a better stage show.

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 3

#7. Macedonia – Dona – Ballad, Slow Pop

First slower song in this round. Not really my cup of tea, but if they bring those violinists on stage they could rock it.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 2

#8. Poland – Color Of Your Life – Power Ballad, Slow Pop

For some reason I find this song very hard to judge. In the end, I’ve chosen a lower score. I don’t think it will do very well, but if there are no other/better ballad contenders, it could get some extra votes…

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 2

#9. Serbia – Goodbye (Shelter) – Power Ballad, Slow Pop

I love this woman on stage! Drag-queen wannabe with the facial expressions to go with it. The song is just average. Her moves are half the score for me!

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 3

#10. Switzerland – The Last Of Our Kind – Slow Pop

Beautiful girl sits on the floor wearing an equally beautiful white dress. Then she stands up. Simple but pretty. Too bad she can’t sing and that she has a boring song.

Personal Score: 1,5
Eurovision Score: 2

#11. Albania – Fairytale – Slow Pop

They’ve definitely saved the slower songs for the mid section of this semifinal. Because here’s yet another one. The song is actually in English, but I can’t find a live performance of the English version, so I’ve chosen to link to this Albanian version instead, just to see her on stage rather than just hear her. I’m guessing that her Eurovision version will be the English one. The song itself? Average. Boring.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 1,5

#12. Belgium – What’s The Preassure – Pop

”Yes! Love it! Groovy!” Those were my initial thoughts. But then half way through, I’m already snoring. This could have been so great, but the song doesn’t quite make it. Too bad, because I really felt it was going somewhere. Oh well.

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 3

#13. Bulgaria – If Love Was A Crime

I honestly can’t find this song anywhere. It’s not on Youtube or Spotify, possibly because it was one of the very last songs to be selected a few days ago. Knowing Bulgaria I have doubts, but then again, they may surprise!

Personal Score: ?
Eurovision Score: ?

#14. Denmark – Soldiers Of Love – Pop

Danish English accent has always annoyed me for some silly reason. Of the Scandinavian countries, Danes speaking English are the easiest to guess where they’re actually from. These three guys have a very average pop song — not bad at all but it doesn’t stand out either — and if I was to take their Danishness into account I would give them a 2,5. But I’ll be less judgmental than that and imagine them as a British pop group.

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 3

#15. Georgia – Midnight Gold – Rock, Electronic

Style-wise, this is sort of a modern version of The Beatles. Of course far from as great as the actual Beatles. And on top of that, I’ve never really liked The Beatles, and I can’t imagine The Beatles scoring well in Eurovision. So, ehm, no Beatles.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 1,5

#16. Norway – Icebreaker – Slow Pop, Pop

I’m scoring this song in comparison to the other songs. Normally, I would say ”average”. But hey, there’s been so much ”average” in this semifinal that this one is actually quite good. Big plus for the stage show. Not quite as good as Iceland’s, but far better than most of what we’ve seen so far.

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 4

#17. Romania – Moment of Silence – Power Ballad, Slow Pop, Rock

Normally I would say no to this song, but of the bunch it stands out enough to actually stand a chance. I might be generous with my Eurovision Score of 4, but their stage presence, unique style and Eurovision-friendly song means that they’re pulling enough elements together to possibly even grab the win!

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 4,5

#18. Slovenia – Blue and Red – Pop

Another average pop song.

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 3

#19. Ukraine – 1944 – Slow Pop

I really like the theme of this song. The title is ”1944” and she’s singing about strangers coming to your house. Unique reference in a show like this. Towards the end it’s like she’s crying when breathing in, quite emotional. I really like it in a strange way!

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 3

Summary of Semifinal 2

Semifinal 1 had a great average level of quality! Semifinal 2, not so much. But still, there aren’t any super weird or super bad songs like there usually are. Overall, a good Eurovision year!

The problem is, there’s no clear winner in this semifinal either. Unless the six predetermined finalists (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK because they pay a lot of money, and Sweden because they won last year) have a hidden gem to show us, I’m still thinking Iceland will win.

Tomorrow I’ll post my reviews of the six songs already in the final.

Varför pedofili är naturligt

mars 22, 2016Johan Dahlberg Lämna en kommentar

Jag hamnade i en debatt i kommentarsfältet på en artikel på Facebook. Med vilje ville jag provocera lite, men provocering till trots tycker jag ändå att jag har rätt. Eftersom jag inte har något annat forum att skriva av mig på i längre text så får det bli ett inlägg här på bloggen 🙂

Artikeln handlade om att bannlysa realistiska barndockor marknadsförda till pedofiler. Debatten handlade om huruvida pedofili är naturligt eller inte. Jag jämförde det med homosexualitet och fick ett hav av ilskna kommentarer mot mig (precis som jag förutspått, jag älskar ju att debattera 😀 ).

Mitt argument: om homosexualitet är naturligt (vilket jag tror att alla som läser detta är rörande överens om att det är), då är pedofili också naturligt. Det är inget val.

Problemet är att folk attackerar det här ämnet med känslor och åsikter snarare än vetenskap och logik. Folk reagerar starkt på två saker:

Det är hemskt att jämföra homosexualitet – som hyllas och i dag 2016 är mer accepterat än någonsin – med pedofili som skadar barn.
Pedofiler är hemska människor som bör låsas inne för att skydda mina barn.

Många tycks blanda ihop argumentet att homosexualitet och pedofili är sexuella avvikelser med att homosexualitet och pedofili båda är okej. Självklart är det inte okej med sexuella övergrepp på barn! Men betyder det att pedofili är onaturligt? Nej!

Allvarligt, det skrämmer mig lite att folk attackerar pedofiler så pass som de gör. Jag vill faktiskt jämföra folks inställning till pedofiler i dag med inställningen till homosexualitet för 30 år sedan.

Jag såg ett nyhetsprogram för några veckor sedan där man på en ort i Australien ville publicera var alla ortens registrerade pedofiler bor, så barnfamiljer kan ha det i åtanke. Jag har hört liknande debatter i Sverige för ett antal år sedan. Men eftersom alla som intervjuades i programmet hade en sådan extrem ilska mot pedofilerna så får det mig att tro att ett sådant öppet register kan leda till brott mot pedofilerna. Om inte rent våld så åtminstone trakasserier. Borde inte dessa ex-förbrytare (de finns ju med i registret för att de tidigare dömts, även om det var för många år sedan) istället få hjälp att leva i samhället? Som det var i dag i den här orten i Australien lever de under skyddad identitet och det gjorde ortens invånare arga. Men de (pedofilerna) kan ju inte rå för sin sexuella avvikelse, och att hata dem och trakassera dem lär ju knappast göra dem mindre benägna att begå pedofil-relaterade brott igen.

Pedofilerna som intervjuades sa även att de inte vill skada barn och att de i dag får hjälp att leva med sin pedofili, till skillnad från när de begick de brott de tidigare dömts för.

Som läget ser ut i dag, med så mycket hat mot pedofiler, tycker jag absolut att de ska få ha skyddad identitet. Min dröm är dock att det ska finnas mer förståelse för dessa personer. Att barnfamiljer inte ska vara rädda, utan att de ska kunna hantera situationen på ett mer öppet och positivt sätt om de vet att de bor granne med en pedofil. Att pedofilerna ska få hjälp att leva med – och inte agera på – sina sexuella drifter. Pedofiler vill ju inte skada barn utan har en sexuell drift som behöver tillfredsställas (jämför detta med präster som lever i abstinens och sedan begår sexuella övergrepp). Kan de där dockorna som artikeln handlade om då inte vara en lösning snarare än ett problem?

Eurovision 2016 — Semifinal 1

mars 21, 2016Johan Dahlberg Lämna en kommentar

Every year I listen to and rate the Eurovision songs. This year is no different. Eurovision is the world’s largest TV show and this year it airs on May 10 (Semifinal 1), May 12 (Semifinal 2) and May 14 (Final). 43 countries are participating and as every year the ”Big 5” plus the winning country of the previous year are automatically qualified for the final.

I’ve tried to find YouTube videos of the actual live performances from the national selections. Where that hasn’t been possible (in some countries, there are no televised selections) I’ve tried not to judge based on any flashy music videos and only listened to the songs instead without watching the videos.

This year, I’m giving each song two scores:

Personal score: Is this a song I will be playing on repeat on my Spotify play list?
Eurovision score: How well do I think this song will actually do in the competition?

On top of that I’ve made it easier to identify the type of song each entry is. I always find myself writing ”another ballad”, ”typical East Pop”, or ”average pop”, so this time I’ve color-coded them. Of course, this is by Eurovision standards. for example, ”Rock” simply means that the song is more rock than pop in this competition, but if you’re a metal fan or old-school classic rock geek you’ll probably think it’s all pop anyway.

Ballad
Power Ballad
Slow Pop
Pop (westernized)
East Pop
Folk Pop
Singer/songwriter
Rock
Techno
Electronic

I’m excited for this year because since Sweden won last year the show is hosted in Stockholm, and because Eurovision is so big in Australia they’re invited back for the second year in a row!

I’ll be posting my scores in three posts – Semifinal 1, Semifinal 2 and Final. This is the first one. Let’s go!

Semifinal 1

#1. Armenia – LoveWave – Power Ballad

Ever since my all-time favorite Eurovision song Jan Jan (it’s so weird but catchy) in 2009 I’ve had high hopes for Armenia. They rarely deliver. This year, they ALMOST do. This is a great power ballad, and a great start to the competition. I wish I could see the stage performance though. It could make or break the song.

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 3,5

#2. Croatia – Lighthouse – Slow Pop

LOVE her voice! Good radio-friendly song. I really like it. Not a Eurovision winner though.

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 3

#3. Finland – Sing It Away – Pop

Wait, what? Finland usually suck! This is not bad at all. Naturally, I’m a bit biased towards Finland (when they won in 2006 we tried and failed to get tickets in our then-hometown Helsinki, and in 2011 it was my ex-classmate who represented Finland with a beautiful song) but I can honestly say that I’m positively surprised this year. It’s a groovy pop song. HOWEVER: I measure this by Finnish standard, and I doubt this song is right for Eurovision. Even though it’s groovy, it’s simply not memorable enough.

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 2,5

#4. Greece – Utopian Land – Folk Pop

I really had to try hard not to watch the video, just listen to it (the video is quite cool when I re-watched it). The chorus is in English and the verses in Greek. I really dig it. It’s a cool mix of folk and pop. I can imagine a cool stage show as well for this song, like Greece had back in 2005 when they won with Helena Paparizou’s My Number One (which also had a touch of folk to it). Unlike Helena’s song, though, Utopian Land sounds more like a gangster rap song in the verses and I don’t think that will score as well in the contest.

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 3

#5. Hungary – Pioneer – Pop

Seriously, I’m surprised that there are so many good songs in a row. Usually most are quite bad and a few stand out as good pop songs. This year, there seems to be a lot of good pop that fit my own style but not necessarily the traditional Eurovision format. Freddie, as the singer is called, has a good beat in his song, but I honestly find it a bit boring. Mixed feelings and my lowest ”personal score” this far.

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 2,5

#6. Moldova – Falling Stars – Pop

A classic very average Eurovision pop song. Poor vocals, at least at this live performance, and not a very interesting stage show. Still a nice beat.

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 2,5

#7. Netherlands – Slow Down – Singer/songwriter, Pop

The Netherlands always deliver! I always love their down-to-earth, singer/songwriter style with good English-language songs and production quality. This year is no different. However, as every other year, Eurovision is the wrong forum. Sorry. And, even though this is good stuff, it is a bit too boring. It’s like an average American country song.

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 3

#8. Russia – You Are The Only One – Pop, Techno

This could be awesome on stage! It could also be a massive mess and a fail. By Eurovision-standard it’s a bit more hardcore than the rest (music-wise), but the song is quite lame.

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 3

#9. San Marino – I Didn’t Know – Slow Pop

Holy crap that voice took me by surprise! It’s like taking over the entire song! Not sure if it’s in a good way or not. I like the background singers at the chorus and the laid-back style, but, overall, naah… Decent song, not a winner.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 2

#10. Austria – Loin d’ici – Pop

It’s probably not a good sign that my first reaction is ”haha, that’s cute!” That stage background could look amazing on a the big Eurovision stage, but that doesn’t save this song from being quite bland. Pass!

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 2

#11. Azerbaijan – Miracle – Pop

Hey, nice! That’s all.

Personal Score: 4
Eurovision Score: 3

#12. Bosnia & Herzegovina – Ljubav je – East Pop

In 2010 I traveled to Bosnia with my classmates to make a magasin themed ”15 years after the war”. During that trip I interviewed two teenage girls who had no or few memories from the war. They played Bosnian music for me, and it sounded something like this. I call it ”east pop”, but truth be told, I haven’t really heard this style outside Bosnia & Herzegovina. I give little to no chance at winning the contest.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 1

#13. Cyprus – Alter Ego – Rock

The first song of this year’s competition to have a bit of a rocky edge. Rock bands rarely do well in Eurovision. Still, I can se myself listening to this.

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 1,5

#14. Czech Republic – I Stand – Slow Pop

She says she stands. I don’t think so. It’s hard to stand while sleeping, and that’s what I’m doing listening to this.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 2

#15. Estonia – Play – Pop

Oh my, that voice! Deep and cool. For some reason, when this started playing, I immediately had high hopes. The chorus fails it. The song is not interesting enough. The singer makes it interesting, but that’s not enough to save it.

Personal Score: 3,5
Eurovision Score: 3,5

#16. Iceland – Hear Them Calling – Pop

Very influenced by both the oh-so-brilliant Euphoria performance as well as last year’s winner Heroes (both Eurovision winners, both from Sweden). But still, Iceland manages to mix the interpretive dancing with the visual effects in their own way. Well done! The song is good too, but not a given winning melody like Euphoria was. Still, so far into the competition, I’d say that this song is the one with the greatest chance of winning! I’m still hoping for some 5’s up ahead, though.

Personal Score: 3
Eurovision Score: 4,5

#17. Malta – Walk On Water – Pop

The BEST song in my personal opinion! Great modern pop tune. It is NOT a given winner, but with the right stage performance it will definitely be among the top.

Personal Score: 5
Eurovision Score: 4

#18. Montenegro – The Real Thing – Rock, Electronic

A weak ending to the first semifinal. Actually, by Eurovision standard, this isn’t too bad at all, but it’s been a very strong playing field overall. This song simply doesn’t live up to the rest of them. Like Cyprus this has a bit more rock to it, and again, rock doesn’t do well in this competition.

Personal Score: 2
Eurovision Score: 1,5

Summary of Semifinal 1

2015 was a very weak Eurovision year, as was 2014. Therefore I’m very happy that the quality of the songs in the first semifinal in 2016 is high, in comparison. Still, there’s a lot of ”average” out there. I’m hoping for a few 5’s in Semifinal 2 or at least the final, and I sure hope that the winner isn’t among these first 18 songs, iwth the exception of Malta which is a personal favorite.

That said, if I had to pick a winner from Semifinal 1, it would be Iceland’s ”Hear Them Calling” simply because they have a great stage show and a not-too-bad song to go with it.

My reviews of Semifinal 2 will be published tomorrow 🙂

Dragqueens i London & uppdatering om Sydney

mars 2, 2016mars 2, 2016Johan Dahlberg 3 kommentarer

Det är tydligen något som heter Mardi Gras i Sydney denna helg, en sorts Pride-parad. En av världens största Pridefester sägs det till och med. Jag hade aldrig hört talas om den förr. Det blir parad i centrum, en filmfestival (med gaytema såklart), dragshow på Bondi Beach, med mera. Kul vecka att ha som första jobbveckan på min nya arbetsplats, Maze Backpackers i centrala Sydney 😀

Två apropån: För det första, dragqueens. Inte min grej alls. Men i och med Mardi Gras och att det syns dragqueens lite här och var denna vecka blev jag påmind om London och insåg plötsligt hur insatt jag faktiskt var i drag-scenen. Mina två stamhak var Heaven, Londons största gayklubb (och enligt mina 65 straighta London-vänner från det kollektiv jag bodde på, Londons bäst nattklubb överhuvudtaget eftersom de gick dit en gång i veckan när det var ”straight Monday”), samt en sunkig liten gaybar vid Piccadilly Circus där min pojkvän var bartender och hälften av kunderna kom i drag. Det dröjde veckor innan jag insåg att han var en av dem (dock endast på scen när barens huvudakt inte var tillgänglig just den veckan), och flera månader innan jag såg honom uppklädd för första och enda gången. Inte. Min. Grej.

Men Mikis grej var det, som jag vet att jag nämnt här på bloggen förr. Hon drog med mig till Heaven varje torsdag när det var dragshow. Massor med drag-kändisar fick vi se, de flesta från USA. Miki blev dessutom bundis med huvudakten på tidigare nämnda sunkiga bar, en lokal dragqueen-kändis i London.

Så där hängde jag med några av världens mest kända internationella dragqueens, med en bästa kompis som var tokig i dem och en pojkvän som ibland var en del av dem. Hur blev det så fel?

Jag jobbar hela helgen så något Mardi Gras blir det inte för min del med undantag av om någon dragqueen checker in eller ut, eller glömmer peruken på rummet, eller blir för full. Spännande!

Och det leder då till apropå nummer två: mitt jobb. Efter sju månader ”semester” är det nu dags igen. Jag valde Sydney för att det finns fler jobb här än i till exempel Alice Springs (som var min dröm men som är en småstad) eller Perth (som lever på kolminor snarare än turism). Jag sökte alla receptionistjobb jag föll för i Sydney och fick tre: två på hostel, ett på 4,5-stjärnigt hotell.

Lätt val. Klickade mycket bättre med hostel-personalen än hotellets, och gillar backpackerkulturen mer än businessgästernas kultur (vad gäller mentaliteten hos gästerna – kunde jag välja fritt hade jag velat kombinera den och hostel-arbetets mer hektiska vardag med professionalismen hos finare hotell). Hotellet betalde såklart mer, det ena hostelet betalade under minimum (!), men det hostel jag valde betalar mer i timmen än de flesta mellanklassiga hotell. Det för mig tyder på att de bryr sig om personalen och ser vikten av företagets ansikten utåt. Win!

Förra veckan hade jag ett ”trial shift”. I dag hade jag mitt första riktiga arbetspass. Båda gick bra, båda var kul, båda var hektiska och båda var precis vad jag hoppats på. Får se om det håller våren (eller hösten, som det ju blir här där vi just nu är uppe i högsommar) ut.

I juli tänker jag resa igen, så nu blir det drygt fyra månader av pengasparande. Nya Zealand, resten av Australien samt Sverige står på önskelistan i juli/augusti.

Ah, en sak till! Mitt hus!

Jag insåg snabbt att Sydney inte har en riktigt lika krisartad bostadsmarknad som London (där även de finaste kontorsnissarna måste dela boende med andra), men att det fortfarande är långt ifrån bra. Nästan alla lägenheter jag såg på var sunkiga, små eller jättelångt ut från stan. Rummet jag till sist fick är perfekt! Det är stort i förhållande till övriga i stan med plats till bred säng, skrivbord, byrå, fåtölj och garderob, och ligger i ett mysigt hus med vardagsrum och kök och en liten trädgård. Aningen slitet kanske, men det gör inget. Detta delar jag med två bröder som jag klickat riktigt bra med. Var en slump att jag hittade detta ställe, och jag tror att jag hade extrem tur att få något så bra till ett så lågt pris!

Vi hade inflyttningsfest i söndags då bröderna själva köpte huset bara någon vecka innan jag kom. Träffade massor med skönt folk.

Jag åker spårvagn till och från jobbet – buss om det är sent på kvällen – och har nära till parker och shopping och kan njuta av en ”småortskänsla” (tänk ett område för småbarnsfamiljer) med nära till storstan.

Som pricken över i:et blev jag under min första dag kompis med en kille på ett fik jag hängde mycket på när jag sökte jobb och lägenhet. Han bjöd med mig till poolen hans lägenhetskomplex har. Det visade sig att han är kirurg, har världens lyxlägenhet med utsikt över operahuset, samt en stor utomhuspool som alla som bor på området delar på. Där hänger jag nu då och då, bara en kort promenad från mitt jobb!

Va, vad sa du farmor? Flytta tillbaka till Sverige? Jag ska tänka på saken 😉

Johan Dahlberg – Portalen

Månad: mars 2016