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In a couple of hours I’m going to Dortmund, Germany for the weekend,  going to perform there with my barbershop choir zero8 as guest artists at the 2010 BinG convention, where the World Champion quartet OC Times (my mates) will sing too, as well as the Collegiate World Champion quartet Ringmasters (my b*tchiz). Hopefully I’ll be back next week with even more love for our stubborn Stockholm weather…
Love to you all, especially the sweetheart in my bed just about to be woken up by a breakfast in bed… Oh yes.

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Super Adventure Club Barbershop Quartet

Hey! This post happens to end up between the two Chinese Gig posts – yeah the gigs went really well and the after-parties even better, but more on that later when we’ve got photos, video clips and all that stuff…

The Super Adventure Club Barbershop Quartet on Youtube

Now I just happened to stumble over this youtube clip. There’s me and three of my close buddies competing in the 2009 SNOBS championship (the Society of Nordic Barbershop Singers), mainly in order to qualify for the International Collegiate Championship which in turn would land us a $1500 USD scholarship from the Bank of America. That wad of money would have been mighty handy since we were going to the World Championships in Anaheim, California anyway to compete with our choir zero8 (se related post here). BUT, our dear Tenor had to leave for a Government mission in Africa, and since rules are rules and we weren’t allowed to replace him, we could neither compete nor get the scholarship.  And sadly, it was the last chance for our baritone Simon Rylander (check out his multitrack site here), from the quartet Q-Tones, to compete since the age limit is 25.

And also there was a lot of controversy about the name of our quartet, seeing as the “Super Adventure Club” also was the name of a highly unetchical, fictional club in the tv-show South Park. We were even talked about on the Barbershop news-site Youbarbershop.com (uh-oh can’t find the link to the actual article right now but it was a big deal back then). So we got this really angry letter from the president of SNOBS informing us that we’d either have to change our name or not compete. We changed it to the Adventure Club (meh), but since our tenor had to leave anyway it feels kind of like a loss.

Anyhow, here’s the clip: The Super Adventure Club Barbershop Quartet on Youtube

Enjoy, hear from ya soon! Comments appreciated!

Love,

Paul

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The topic says it all. This is a visual recap of my 2010 January. Mostly shot in Stockholm, Sweden and Rome, Italy (duh).  http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=195551&id=548710399&l=79b61f2c64

In other news: I seriously need to praise La Neta, my new absolute favourite dining place in all of Stockholm. Will upload pics as soon as I get any. Authentic Mexican food, it’s insane, my mouth waters as I write this… Yum!

Tomorrow, Friday, I’ll sing at and possibly host the Konfucius Institute’s celebration of the Chinese New Year (Spring Festival) at Kulturhuset. I hope it goes well despite the condition of my cough ridden throat and lungs. After that I’ll rehearse all Saturday for the gig at the Chinese Embassy on Sunday, and then babysit my adorable nephews on Saturday, can’t wait!

Be good to each other!

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Friends!

As the temperature went up a few degrees, rendering the previously white snow-covered streets of Stockholm an everyday realist gray, so did my calendar pages shift from an otherwise clear white to a cluttered black. It’s been a hectic few days with choir rehearsals, other music stuff, social activities and most important – the first training session for us Guides at the Swedish Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo 2010.

Held at the Ministry of Finance, training and lectures were given on topics ranging from National Branding and Public Diplomacy to Sustainable Cities and inventive prowess. It was very interesting to finally get a grasp of the main ideas, concepts and visions about to be brought forth at Sweden’s participation at the expo. It was really nice meeting with representatives from Official Partners and Sponsors and the Swedish Government, but personally the real delight came from meeting more than half of my soon-to-be fellow co-workers!

I do not know exactly what it is, but there is a certain “air” about all twenty-six of us guides participating in the training which, at least to me, feels like we’re all somehow linked through our personalities and characteristics and whatnot. Being drafted out of more than 700 applicants would suggest this as well, and could be the reason why I feel so akin with the other guides. I can honestly say that leaving for choir rehearsal after two intense days of lectures, team building activities (dinners, bowling, unofficial bar attending) and socializing, I already started missing my new pals! I can’t wait to meet the bunch who is already in Shanghai!

In other news, since the Chinese New Year (the Spring Festival) is coming up soon, I’ve been asked by both the Chinese Embassy and the Konfucius Institute to perform during their respective galas. This time I’ll be singing “Tongzhuo de ni” instead of the good old “Wo de Zhongguo xin” (sorry, can’t write Chinese characters in Wordpress for some reason, but the two songs could be translated into “Your desk-mate” and “My Chinese heart”, both old hits). The Konfucius Institute one will be held at Kulturhuset in Stockholm, and it’s not all clear yet but I might also be the host for the entire thing. Yikes.

Here’s a video clip of my singing “Wo de Zhongguo xin” at the celebration of the Chinese National Day in October at Konserthuset in Stockholm, thanks again to my friend Jack Edgren for backing me up on guitar on such short notice! Read more about it here.

Well that’s all I guess! Time to rest, try and get well from this mean cold and to finish the delicious Semla which is right next to the laptop, begging for me to devour it…! Also here are some photos taken during the World Expo Training.

Love,

Paul

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Chinese Girl Running

Hellu again!

So I’m stuck at home with this mean cold, thus not really bothering with doing anything much but editing and uploading photos. Which is a good thing. The pile of unedited photos is just growing. I read somewhere that your ‘first ten thousand photographs are your worst’ (Henri Cartier-Bresson) and over the two years I’ve had together with my Nikon D40 I must have taken at least 100 000 photos so yay me…! I guess it’s time for a new camera. Oh well, I just love it together with my new Nikkor 50mm f1.4 lens, get one, now!

So here’s a couple of new albums. The first one is called Populus Romanus and has the photos of the people of Rome, photos I didn’t feel fit in at the Rome 2010 album, since that one was more about expressing my love towards the city herself, not flocked by summer tourists. The second one is actually containing photos from the summer of 2009, when I went with all the other Chinese Bridge 2009 (??? hanyuqiao) scolarship holders to Changsha (??) in Hunan province (??), China. You can read about it in this post. Anyway, this album contains more scenic and ‘artistic’ photos, I guess, compared to my Facebook social Hanyuqiao album.

In other news, I saw the Darjeeling Limited, again, to my and my fellow viewer’s great delight. I really, REALLY love it. I might see it over and over again. I simply love Wes Anderson’s work. And I know I’m a bit slow with this, but the Vampire Weekend band released a new cd, it’s called Contra and it is simply amazing (iTunes link here). Been listening to it all day. You should as well.

That is all. Love,

P

PS. Apparently Wordpress or this theme or whatever does not like Chinese characters. That sucks. Oh well. DS.

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The big shot history professor Dick Harrison at Nationalencyklopedin’s (the most comprehensive contemporary Swedish language encyclopedia according to Wiki) blog Kunskapsbloggen has created a quick personality quiz matching your traits to those of one out of 150 historical persons. It is tremendously accurate I must say. I turned out to be Edith Piaf, and after a second click – Marilyn Monroe. I am flattered. A big fan of Piaf’s, I’ve listened to her songs and performed them many times – to several French teacher’s endless glee… Again, I feel honoured. It has been scientifically proven that I basically am Edith Piaf reincarnated. Thank you prof. Dick Harrison.

PS. Don’t forget to check out my big Rome post just below this one, of which I am still fairly proud. DS.

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Rome Gallery done!

Hi again folks!

I’ve rested some since yesterday, or not really, but that’s another story. Anyways, I’m done editing artsy Rome photos: Click here for some 40 of all the 500 photos I shot during the weekend in Rome. The weekend was simply amazing, my third time going there. I don’t know what to say – just go there! Wow, it’s been long since I was this tired… Let’s just skip to a list of my personal favourites of Rome.

Here’s my list of Top Stuff to See and Do while in Rome (if anything on this list is wrong or random, I blame my mother, the self-pronounced expert on Rome and Italian living):

1. Have a real, delicious cup of coffee. Preferably a cappucino, but only during the earlier part of the day. After dinner have an espresso or latte instead. And oh – don’t ask for it in a plastic cup to go – drink it in the actual bar / caféteria. If you want take away coffee in Rome, go find a Starbucks or McDonald’s.

2. Fontana di Trevi.  Nuff said. Toss a coin into it over your left shoulder and thy shall returneth someday. Has worked flawlessly so far…!

3. Spend a couple of nights at Hotel Fontana (look for the area around Termini for cheap rates).

4. Go club hopping in the Testaccio district! Okay the wikipedia link doesn’t really tell you anything. For a short guide on Rome’s Nightlife, click here. World Travel Guide. Hm.

5. Treat yourself some serious Italian gelato. Over and over and over again.

6. Vatican City – St. Peter’s Basilica, Colosseum, Forum Romanum, Pantheon etc. – all of that tourist stuff, and if you’ve got time, don’t miss stuff near Rome, like Ostia Antica etc. Pompeii is like 2.5 hrs away.

7. Eat everything you can find at a Tavola Calda – a buffét-ish cosy restaurant where you can pick and combine your own meals- don’t miss out on porchetta, carbonara, calamari and all the other classics.

8. Lose your breath over and over again at the Vatican Museum – Also gives you access to the Sistine Chapel, you know, Michelangelo’s the Creation of Adam.

9. Have dinner (wine) on Piazza Navona, have someone draw your face, then take a stroll over the Piazza Spagna (Spanish Steps).

10. Pizza slices in the street! Try and find the places hidden around corners where mostly Italian people buy their slices – always a good sign.

11. Have a sip or twenty of some Fernet Branca, Italy’s Jägermeister.

12. Have more coffee.

13. Don’t go home.

14. Ever.

15. Do some serious shopping on Via dei Condotti:

Via Condotti is a center of fashion shopping in Rome, dating back to the atelier of Bulgari which opened in 1905. Now, in addition to Valentino, other designers such as Armani, Hermès, Cartier, Louis Vuitton, Fendi, Gucci, Prada, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana and Salvatore Ferragamo all have stores on Via Condotti. Others such as Laura Biagiotti have their offices there.

From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Via_Condotti

I hope this helps. As always, just comment here, e-mail me or add me on Facebook if you’ve got any questions, are interested in any photos or anything…! LOVE!
Paul

PS. COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK GREATLY APPRECIATED! DS.

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Hey! I’m back from the weekend in Rome, it was amazing as always. While you wait for watching my photos of Rome, here’s a photo of me watching Rome… I know, I’m so witty.

Paul watching Rome

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Celebrating the first post of the new decade, I have to promote some of my recent silliness – yes, I have launched a YouTube channel. Check it out it’s totally random. I’ve had a splendid holiday, New Year’s Eve as wild as Christmas’ was calm. Here are some random unrelated shots of what I was wearing on New Year’s (not the dog), some midnight cuisine and other things. Might as well link the www.finest.se photo gallery my dear photographer friend Alexander Gutell shot during the New Year’s eve and closing party at the club the Village.

In other news, just sleeping and trying to regain some strength from the 18-day stretch of wild socialising – the occasion being one of our dearest friends who currently works in Africa returning home for the holidays. There was a lot of clubbing, and I feel I must hype a local DJ who totally made our night at Spy Bar a couple of nights ago. Richard Testarossa (with crew), you rock!

Well. I don’t really know what more to write. Oh yeah go see Avatar 3D! TWICE!

It’s pretty freakin’ cold here, but the extremely beautiful snow scenery totally makes up for it. Kind of reminds me of my first girlfriend… Hah!

Love,

Paul

PS. Don’t Stop Believing! DS.

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winter in Stockholm

Yeah, yeah I know, no posts in a long time. I apologize to my minus one readers out there, but I’ve been… Terribly slow lately. Just reading A LOT, still Haruki Murakami mostly but also, I have to admit, Stephanie Meyer, which forms a sort of insane but healthy balance I guess. So yeah I haven’t done much at all actually, done some clubbing (here’s a pic shot by my club photographer friend Alexander Gutell of me flanked by a couple of friends, one looking like a mix between Samuel L Jackson and Jimi Hendrix, the other one being Jakob Stenberg, the tenor of the World Champ quartet the Ringmasters), a lot of socializing and sleepovers resulting in hilarious stories which will not be told here and had some singing gigs. Also simply enjoying the Snowy Stockholm Winter. Here’s a photo I took recently of that.

Speaking of winter, why don’t you go and listen to my friend Albin Nedler’s a cappella composition and multitrack recording Winter World. And hey… A belated Happy Holidays to everyone!

PS. The best christmas gift was by far the video and web cam chat with my lovely Grand Mother living in the Philippines, thanks all! DS.

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