How to misread your Karaoke audience
Waking up the next morning without any particular hangover was a surprise. Although I suppose I drank over quite a long period of time. As I pack my bag, I receive a shock when my sunglasses case contains...nothing! Gary has witnessed me losing my favorite Serengetis before, and he knows I don't react well. This time I find my calm happy center, and decide that I am going to pack my bag and then figure it out. I know I wasn't out with it with the guys last night, and I look at a photo I had another tourist take of me after I left Tivoli, and I'm holding what looks like my glasses in one hand!
Encouraged by this, I decide I must have set them down when I did a quick internet session the night before. Sure enough, when I check out, I ask, and there are my glasses!
A good start to the day, as I run into the brits from last night, and we set off for the train station to stow our gear. The day ends up being a lazy shopping day in Sergel Torg, a busy shopping plaza near the train station, which is fine with me, after a quick breakfast at Sushi Coffee (The Sushi Bar is downstairs, the coffee bar upstairs, I wonder how many potential customers are turned off by that combination?). I hang with Ian M., who's an accountant like me and has a similar sense of planned fun, and Ian B. and Andy go off to browse the record shops. I end up the tour guide a lot of the time, it's pretty clear that of the four of us I have the best sense of Stockholm's overall layout. They leave a bit earlier than I do for faraway Skavsta airport, and I hop my bus for the Silja boat that will bring me overnight to Helsinki. On boarding the ferry, I feel a trickle on the back of my leg, it's some other backpacker unknowingly spilling his drink on me. Enter Mitchell, the York Student from Nova Scotia backpacking through Europe. We chat a bit on the gangway, have our photo taken together (By accident), and he tells me about the ship (He's been on it before). We say we'll see each other later, but I never see him again. Exit Mitchell.
My room is good enough, below the car deck with no window, but I don't pretend to be royalty or anything. I pretty much spend my time doing the walking tour. I watch the boat pull out and head for the free-for-all 32 Euro Smorgasbord buffet offered by Silja, with Smoked Salmon, Roast Beef, Taco Salads, Breads, Cake, Ice Cream, caviar, Wine, Beer. It's a massive spread. I am seated at a table with An older guy who looks like the Finnish Gary Busey, and a couple in their late 30s with a 7 or 8 year old son. After a bit of awkwardness, we start chatting, The Busey guy is Hese (His real name I forget/can't pronounce) and the man and wife are Jari and Mina, the son (His not hers) is Samu. We get to talking about hockey (A mutual Canadian/Finn enthusiasm), especially because his name is like Jari Kurri, of course other Hockey playing Finns like Saaku Koivu, Mika Hakkinen and Teemu Selanne come into the conversation. Asking them questions about culture, like what Finns drink, they tell me about something called Kosku Korven (Or Kosken Korvu). I see it on the drink list, and when I identify it, Hese buys us all shots. Then we are up on the deck and they are still supplying me with drinks. While admiring the view, I notice a familiar red ship about 2 miles ahead on the water, it's the Viking ship bound for Helsinki, which I know Brenna is on, so I e-mail her to tell her that I'm in pursuit (Also to see if she has a date for World Cup Finals in Helsinki the next night). I meet up with the family later on in the Atlantis nightclub, where Samu is captivated by the Kids' show, which features musical numbers for MADAGASCAR, BOB THE BUILDER, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, ICE AGE 2, HARRY POTTER, and probably a few I don't remember. Samu shows how observant he is by pointing out that the Harry Potter wands are being levitated with strings. Meanwhile, I find myself strangely attracted to Harry Potter, who is clearly not concealing a wand under the robes.
From there I head to the Karaoke club where Hese is preparing a Finnish number. The club is quite crowded and after combing through the book, I decide that I'm going to try HEY YA! by Outkast. The room answers with deathly silence during the song, and at the end there is some mild applause. I think at this point I should say: "Maybe you guys aren't ready for this yet...but your kids will love it". Yeah, that kind of awkward. Mina tells me it was "very different". That wasn't obvious enough...Having had another drink and being exhausted/tired/full (I think I ate my weight in Smorgasbord). I stagger up to my room and off to bed. I hope I wake up in time to see the Helsinki approach.
Encouraged by this, I decide I must have set them down when I did a quick internet session the night before. Sure enough, when I check out, I ask, and there are my glasses!
A good start to the day, as I run into the brits from last night, and we set off for the train station to stow our gear. The day ends up being a lazy shopping day in Sergel Torg, a busy shopping plaza near the train station, which is fine with me, after a quick breakfast at Sushi Coffee (The Sushi Bar is downstairs, the coffee bar upstairs, I wonder how many potential customers are turned off by that combination?). I hang with Ian M., who's an accountant like me and has a similar sense of planned fun, and Ian B. and Andy go off to browse the record shops. I end up the tour guide a lot of the time, it's pretty clear that of the four of us I have the best sense of Stockholm's overall layout. They leave a bit earlier than I do for faraway Skavsta airport, and I hop my bus for the Silja boat that will bring me overnight to Helsinki. On boarding the ferry, I feel a trickle on the back of my leg, it's some other backpacker unknowingly spilling his drink on me. Enter Mitchell, the York Student from Nova Scotia backpacking through Europe. We chat a bit on the gangway, have our photo taken together (By accident), and he tells me about the ship (He's been on it before). We say we'll see each other later, but I never see him again. Exit Mitchell.
My room is good enough, below the car deck with no window, but I don't pretend to be royalty or anything. I pretty much spend my time doing the walking tour. I watch the boat pull out and head for the free-for-all 32 Euro Smorgasbord buffet offered by Silja, with Smoked Salmon, Roast Beef, Taco Salads, Breads, Cake, Ice Cream, caviar, Wine, Beer. It's a massive spread. I am seated at a table with An older guy who looks like the Finnish Gary Busey, and a couple in their late 30s with a 7 or 8 year old son. After a bit of awkwardness, we start chatting, The Busey guy is Hese (His real name I forget/can't pronounce) and the man and wife are Jari and Mina, the son (His not hers) is Samu. We get to talking about hockey (A mutual Canadian/Finn enthusiasm), especially because his name is like Jari Kurri, of course other Hockey playing Finns like Saaku Koivu, Mika Hakkinen and Teemu Selanne come into the conversation. Asking them questions about culture, like what Finns drink, they tell me about something called Kosku Korven (Or Kosken Korvu). I see it on the drink list, and when I identify it, Hese buys us all shots. Then we are up on the deck and they are still supplying me with drinks. While admiring the view, I notice a familiar red ship about 2 miles ahead on the water, it's the Viking ship bound for Helsinki, which I know Brenna is on, so I e-mail her to tell her that I'm in pursuit (Also to see if she has a date for World Cup Finals in Helsinki the next night). I meet up with the family later on in the Atlantis nightclub, where Samu is captivated by the Kids' show, which features musical numbers for MADAGASCAR, BOB THE BUILDER, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, ICE AGE 2, HARRY POTTER, and probably a few I don't remember. Samu shows how observant he is by pointing out that the Harry Potter wands are being levitated with strings. Meanwhile, I find myself strangely attracted to Harry Potter, who is clearly not concealing a wand under the robes.
From there I head to the Karaoke club where Hese is preparing a Finnish number. The club is quite crowded and after combing through the book, I decide that I'm going to try HEY YA! by Outkast. The room answers with deathly silence during the song, and at the end there is some mild applause. I think at this point I should say: "Maybe you guys aren't ready for this yet...but your kids will love it". Yeah, that kind of awkward. Mina tells me it was "very different". That wasn't obvious enough...Having had another drink and being exhausted/tired/full (I think I ate my weight in Smorgasbord). I stagger up to my room and off to bed. I hope I wake up in time to see the Helsinki approach.
posted by Steven at 1:57 PM
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