The arrival of a new ABBA record back in the 70s and 80s was always a hit and miss affair in Lismore, the country town where I grew up. Though we always knew the date of a new release, there were sometimes delays in it arriving in town. “Has it arrived yet?” I would often … Continue reading ABBA – Voyage
Tag: Sverige
For most of my life, I’ve been fascinated by Sweden. It started with ABBA, of course. Then I discovered their approach to how society should operate matches with my mine. Then I visited and discovered the beauty of the place, and the awesome people. Music, literature, film.
If I had to choose one song or performance from the first heat of this year's Swedish path to Eurovision (Melodifestivalen) to go straight through, it would be that of Lena Philipsson. She has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest six times: four times as a performer (1986, 1987, 1988 and 2004) and twice as … Continue reading Melodifestivalen 2021 Deltävling #1
My electricity bill tells me I probably used my heater far too much this year. Though we enjoy fairly mild winters in Sydney, there's usually two or three weeks where it gets quite chilly, and there's fairly regular rain. I'm trying to do my bit for the environment by reducing my carbon imprint by wearing … Continue reading View from the First Floor
With news today of furtther job losses in the airline industry in Australia, and a prediction there will not be many international flights for at least another year, I've begun to think about (and save money for) where I might visit next. There are lots of places I would like to go. Vietnam, Korea. But … Continue reading Stockholm Scenes
As we head towards this year's Eurovision Song Contest, I've been keeping up to date with all of the different national finals. Last weekend, Australia chose "Don't Break Me" by Montaigne. "Fair enough", I thought to myself, though I much preferred Casey Donovan's song, which I thought was more anthemic, and had a stronger performance. … Continue reading Sweden’s Second Best
My mind was taken back this weekend, to my last visit to Stockholm in 2017. In particular, to Gröna Lund, the amusement park on Djurgården, located on one of the central islands of the city. Gröna Lund Swoon Although you would normally associate the idea of an amusement park with a story that is light … Continue reading Movie Weekend