Packes Syrra

The best thing about being on the mail-team and not on the phone is that I can listen to music when I'm working. Since before my vacation I've been sitting alone with no people around to talk to so I've been listening to music almost all the time. 

Yesterday I found "Metal Talks" on Spotify and it's kinda like a podcast/radio show where bands/band members talking about their music and the band and so on. 

Today I'm listening to Metal talks - Metallica. They had Master of Puppets on the playlist and even though I've listened to it a thousand+ times it still gets to me. This time I had to hold back the tears when the solo came, it just says a lot about how fucking good it is. It is definitely one of the best solos in the history of music, according to me. 

I don't think I can express how much I love this band and their music! Maybe I should just not hold back and let the tears speak for themselves?

XXX

Well, almost.. More like: Rock, eat, -- repeat. 2 ½ hours of sleep is what I got after coming home from the Guns N Roses concert on Thursday.

I thank god for caffein right now (funny since I don't even believe in god... That's how thankful I am). 

On Wednesday I went to Bråvalla Festival, Norrköping and saw System Of A Down. FINALLY! I listened to them a lot when I was a teenager and they were one of the first rock bands I really liked. (Now that I think of it, it's a weird first rock band to like that much)

Their show was so fucking weird sometimes, but also - SO FUCKING GOOD! They had a set of ~30 songs but it never got boring. Out of all my favourites, they played all of them but maybe 5 songs, and I have a lot o favourites... 

During a few of them, things got so weird on stage, I was thinking "did someone slip something in my water earlier or is this really happening?".

Thursday was Guns N Roses-night at Friends Arena. This was amazing too.. And Long.... 3 hours and 9 minutes. My feet almost died and I felt like the oldest lady in that arena. I almost felt bad complaining since I saw at least 5 pregnant ladies where I was standing, one of them looked like she could give birth any second. 

"Not in this lifetime tour" is what they call it and the story behind it is so funny. (The band splitting up, Axl and Slash having this huge fight about whatever and saying that a reunion will never happen, "not in this lifetime" and then it happened anyway). 

The show was really good, but I'm not very happy with the sound where we were standing. Apparently the sound was really good at the very front and I remember it was when we saw AC/DC at Friends arena, but where we were standing it was not as good this time. This arena is known for its bad sound, so it was not really a surprise. A few of the songs got pretty boring to me, since I haven't really listened to The Chinese Democracy-album, like at all... Johan has waited for this for over 15 years so he was really happy (like a child on Christmas x10000). He even said "Slash must be like no.1 on your freebee-list* after this huh? Like, I'm not attracted to dudes, but I worship this guy". He was right. 

*Freebee-list is a list of 5 celebrities that you get to XXX without it beaing cheating or the other person getting mad. 

There is something about Slash and his guitar. Like, I don't see it as "a guy and his guitar". He somehow becomes one with that beautiful instrument and expresses himself through it in a way that I feel like I can understand, even though there are no words. 

There's no doubt the guitar is the love of his life and I am grateful that it is, because I get to enjoy his relationship with it too. 

The show ended with pyro and confetti and Paradise City. The company running the trains in Stockholm (SL) decided that it would be a good idea starting their new project on this day at 22:00. Two hours before 55.000 people were supposed to leave the area. The trains would leave every 30 minutes and wouldn't operate south from Stockholm Central and we parked our car in Tullinge like always, going to Stockholm(30 minutes with trains from Stockholm C). Getting a taxi was impossible and there were barely any busses either. We were running around the area, really confused and tired, trying to get the fuck out of there and 01:30 we managed to catch the train to Stockholm C. From there we had to find a taxi (just like 30.000 other people). We finally found one that wasn't too expensive. The driver listened to GNR so that was a good sign. When we finally got home we went straight to bed - 03:30. 2 ½ hours later my alarm went off since I had to go to work. Zombie-mode. 

On friday I had a little birthday party for some friends and family. We watched Trosa Stadslopp, an 8,9km long run that happens every year around my birthday, and had food/cake/icecream. I am so grateful for all the love and presents I got during this night. It is amazing I could stay awake for so long, especially since I tucked Theo in when he went to bed. I stayed in there with him until he fell asleep and I was about to do the same. 

On saturday we went to Erik, Tess and Gustav for their moving in/"naming ceremony". The weather was really nice so we could stay outside, playing games having cake and food. It was a really nice party and I wish we could've stayed longer but I was really tired so we decided to go home instead of staying over like we first had planned. 

Sunday was all about recovering. I stayed in bed until noon and then I just chilled aaaaall day. This week is the first week without any plans during the week since april, so hopefully I will have more time to just take it easy. This friday we will go back to Gdansk, Poland with Karlsson and Alle this time. I am really looking forward to it, especially having the best beer in the world at Hotel Gdansk*****. Can't wait! 

XXX

We didn’t want to repeat our mistake from Saturday (not eating anything until like 4 pm) so we started Sunday morning with breakfast at the hotel, then we got ready to go back to the festival. I was a bit stressed because we were a bit late and when we finally went to the lobby to wait for the shuttle bus we found out the bus was stuck in traffic. Apparently there was an accident and/or loads of traffic because everyone wanted to go to Download.

We spent some time waiting in the restaurant/bar area and I watched some football. We started talking to a group of people who was also waiting to go. After about 2 ½ hours of sitting around we finally got to go!
We ended up missing two of the bands that we really wanted to see: Halestorm and Tremonti. I fixed it the best way I could – On the bus on our way to DL I booked my tickets to the Tremonti show in Stockholm.

When we got to the drop off point we were really lucky to be able to see the Ed Force One – Iron Maiden’s own Boeing. It was “parked” at the airport next to the festival. I’m amazed that someone can become a pilot and a rock star at the same time. For those of you who don’t know – Bruce Dickinson, the singer in Iron Maiden, is the one flying their plane around the world! AWESOME!

When we got to Download Disturbed was just about to go on stage. Malin really wanted to see them, but I went to try and fix what we missed even more. Tremonti was actually in the signing tent, so that’s where I went. I saw Disturbed from the queue and things got even more fixed when the band invited Lizzy Hale (the singer from Halestorm) to the stage, so in a way I kinda got to see Halestorm too.

I finally got in the signing tent and that’s when I got nervous. Eric Friedman commented on my t-shirt: “Fuck you you fucking fuck….? Okay!”, then he signed the card. I even forgot to take a guitar pick! When I finally got to Mark Tremonti I got really nervous and excited at the same time. I asked him if I could hug him and I could! I decided to be a rebel and asked for a selfie with him, even though it wasn’t allowed. I even took two!! I was so excited afterwards, that I almost skipped getting an autograph from the bassist in the band. I turned around, and said “Oh, sorry..!” and gave him the thing to sign on. I couldn’t stop smiling! I GOT TO MEET MARK FUCKING TREMONTI!!!!!!

We had some Thai food and watched Nightwish/guys jumping around in the mud and then we went for the “after care” of the tattoos, where they cleaned it, put tattoo cream on and re-wrapped it.

We met the guys for a few drinks and when we were on our way to the main stage see Iron Maiden we decided to go on the Ferris Wheel, all four of us. Just as we got on it Iron Maiden got on stage. We got to see them from the top of the Ferris wheel and it was really awesome to see both the band and the crowd from up there. We said that maybe we should rent that for the whole weekend next year.

Iron Maiden was really awesome as usual. They seem really humble even though they’re kind of the biggest rock legends in history. Seeing them in England was really something special! <3

When we got back to the hotel we started packing. Malin was done like 2 hours before me so she went to bed. When I was done I went down to the reception to book a taxi to the airport. Since Hilton is a bit fancy they helped me book a really expensive taxi - £80 to Birmingham airport. When I got back to the room I googled other companies and I could find a taxi for £55, but since it was like 3AM and I was lazy we decided to keep the expensive taxi booking.

When the driver picked us up I understood why. He was driving a Mercedes Benz that was so comfortable and nice! He was a good driver so it was worth it!

We checked in our luggage and the check-in-lady asked me: “You’re in Business Class?”. I knew we had premium economy tickets so I said “yes we are”. I can understand why she sounded so skeptical because of how I looked – pink/violet hair, Harem pants, hoodie, leather jacket and Wellies (rubber boots). It seemed like we had actually been upgraded to Business Class (not that it would be any different to premium economy). I asked the check-in-lady where the business lounge was… I wonder what she was thinking.

When we got to the Business lounge the lady there had the same look like the lady who checked us in earlier. “Can I help you?” she asked. “Uhm, do you want to see our boarding passes?” “Yes please”, she said sounding like she actually wanted to say “I certainly do” or “You’re in the wrong place, darling”. She looked surprised when she saw them. “Oh, business class? You ladies must have been very good…” she said. (If only she knew…)

The business lounge was really nice and they offered food and drinks for free, so we had an amazing breakfast. Next time we will definitely go back to the lounge and hopefully we’ll have more time to spend there. Way better than hanging around at the gate.

On our first flight to Copenhagen they served food and it was really good. When we arrived we went to the business lounge straight away. The one in Copenhagen was not as nice, since it was a bit crowded and way bigger. Maybe there were more people in there because of the on-going SAS pilot strike. I was too full to eat more food so I just had some snacks and coke. On our last flight to Stockholm I even turned down the food that was served. I managed to get some sleep instead. We were never affected by the strike. (Thank god)

It is a weird feeling coming home from a journey like this, because it makes me feel so filled up with energy and happiness and feeling empty at the same time. Like, you’ve waited for something for so long (8 months) and all of a sudden it is all over… BUT! On our first day at Download we decided to go back again next year. Only ~11 months to go…

I want to say thanks to everyone who made this trip to one of the best in my life! (you know who you are) Especially to my SisterInsane/PartnerInCrime/B2/Dawg Malin! Thank you, I love you all! <3
XXX

Avatar (from Sweden) were playing the main stage on the second day (Saturday), but they were on at 11:00 or 12:00, so we decided to skip seeing them and have a sleep in instead. There were no other bands we wanted to see until Rival Sons and their set weren’t until 15:40, so we went to the wellness center to relax. We got in the hot tub and it was the best way possible to start our day. Because of all the headbanging the day before, I had severe neck pain (okay, maybe it wasn’t that bad but I was really sore) so Malin gave me a neck massage! LOVELY! We tried the steam room but it was way too hot and steamy so we cooled down in the pool…

When we got to the festival Rival Sons got on stage just as we arrived. Malin went to get cash and food and I went to see Rival Sons play. They so much better than I expected (and I have to add my expectations were very high). The sound was just perfect and his voice… If I could, I’d marry it! I’m in love!!!! I got to hear all the songs that I wanted and they played a few ones from their new album that was released the day before. I had goose bumps from start to finish (and I even have some as I’m tying this…).

When the show was over I went to find Malin. She was still in the queue for the cash machine after 40 minutes and she was not happy about it. She introduced me to the man who was standing behind her. Patrik from Sundsvall, Sweden. Apparently they started talking and at first they were speaking English. For like 20 minutes. Then they realized they were both from Sweden.

When it was almost our turn at the ATM, a man who worked with the machines came up to us and said that the other queue was moving faster. “It is really good that you are telling us this just now” I said and laughed. He then turned to Malin and said that he had told her that earlier, but apparently he hadn’t. After some more trouble with the ATM we finally had the cash we needed and went to get some food. Hangry af. Finally we were getting fooooooood!!!! :D I had a hot dog with LOTS of mustard. A guy who saw me put all that mustard on came up to me. “You’ve got the right idea, love” he said and laughed.

We talked to Karlsson and Jonathan for a few minutes, before me and Malin decided to look for the tattoo tent. We ended up at the area where there was a really small stage and a bar. Malin got something to drink and I watched the band. They were really good and I found out later that it was Tesseract, who played the Encore Stage earlier that day.

Finally we found the Tattoo tent. We went in and started looking at the suggested tattoos on the table and found the “Download Dog”. We both liked it and we looked at each other. “Are we doing it?” “Yeah!!” “Are we really doing it?” “Hell yeah!!”. We started counting our money, to make sure we had enough. They only accepted cash and it would be £60 each. We had £60 + £58. SO CLOSE! We ended up asking someone if they wanted to buy half a bottle of wine (what was left in Malin’s bottle that she bought earlier). They didn’t want the wine but gave us the missing £2.

We finally got our “Bromance tattoo” that we’ve been talking about for so long. When we walked back to the main area we looked at each other, shaking our heads like “I can’t believe we just did this”. Finally!!! :D <3 Suddenly Malin said something we say a lot: “Whaddup Dawg!!!”… It’s unbelievable that we didn’t realize this before, but we both got it at the same time. I was so happy I screamed and jumped around. “AAAAAH OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!”. This tattoo now have got even more meaning than before.

Last year we said we’d get married (for fun, not for real) at Download since they had an inflatable church. But since we didn’t stay at campsite we didn’t have access to it. We decided that this tattoo was like “getting married” so we had to go on our honeymoon – the Ferris wheel. The view was just amazing! <3 Best honeymoon ever!

The last band on Saturday was Black Sabbath. I think it’s so funny when they play N.I.B and the lyrics go:

“Look into my eyes, you will see who I am
my name is Lucifer, please take my hand”

When they finish it, Ozzy shouts “GOD BLESS YOU ALL!”.

Another perfect day/night at Download2016, that I will carry with me, on my ankle, for the rest of my life.

To be continued…

No sleep and a lot to drink the night before. Waiting for the train, looking at each other, shaking our heads, giggling over the situation. Actually proper laughs. Several times. The only ones there who knew why were me and Malin. I wonder what the other people at the station were thinking…

Our train from East Croydon to London got delayed so we missed our train up to East Midlands. Fortunately we got some help so we could get on the next train, leaving an hour later.

When we finally got on the next train we both fell asleep. We woke up after ~40 minutes when the train stopped in the middle of nowhere. We were standing there for ages and every 10 minutes the train-manager-lady told us through the speakers that “unfortunately we have no further information”. Apparently there had been a power failure, causing problems with the signals. After 2 hours at that same spot the train started moving again. People were actually cheering. The train-manager said: “So, we are now moving, but unfortunately we have no further information”. *Everyone in the train started laughing* and so did I. I love sarcasm!

When we got off the train it was raining. It was absolutely pouring down. Even our taxi driver didn’t want to get out of the car to help us with our luggage. “It’s open in the back”, he said. A true gentleman.

We checked in at the hotel, got ready and left for Download. The hotel had this shuttle-service for the hotel guests going to the festival area. £5/trip in a minibus. AWESOME!

Since our train had been delayed we thought we’d miss BabyMetal (Malin really wanted to see them) but we actually made it before they finished their set. It didn’t sound as bad as last year when they played with Dragonforce. (That was absolutely horrible).

Next band that I really wanted to see was Fort Hope. They are from England and they are really good. They were really good on stage and they played a few new songs that I cannot wait to hear when the studio version is out! I have to admit that I have a bit of a crush on Jon Gaskin, the singer. His voice makes me feel like I’m 16 again.

Before going to the festival we were talking about going back to the hotel between bands. The next band I wanted to see after Fort Hope was Rammstein and they weren’t going on stage until 4 hours later. However we decided it is not worth it to go back, so we stayed and now I am so glad we did because we saw Korn – and OH. MY. GOD!! They were so good! Both Malin and I went crazy during their set; they were just that fucking good! At some point I even thought it was playback because the sound was almost too good, but all of it was for real! And his voice! We decided that when (if) they come to Sweden, we will be SOOOO there! I actually think they were the best band I saw on Download 2016.

We met up with Karlsson and Jonathan, Malin’s brother and cousin and we all went to see Rammstein together. They were really good as well. I love how provocative and raw they are. At one point Till Lindemann (The singer) had put on something that looked like a bomb-vest. At the end of whatever song they were playing it blew up with pyro. At the end of a song called “Mein Herz Brennt” (My heart burns) he had pyro on his chest, making red fire/firework-looking-sparks. (Yes, I fucking LOVE fireworks/pyro). They were so fucking heavy and I was just standing there enjoying the show. Don’t worry, we were all headbanging and jumping around too…

More to come… That’s just day one!

XXX

Oh man! Where do I even begin?

It has been so crazy, but maybe that’s what to expect when the “Daughters of Darkness” are on the roll?

We started off at Clarion Hotel Arlanda on Monday night since our flight would leave early on Tuesday morning. We had some McD and I finally got my hair fixed. Went to bed way too late as usual…

Alarm went off at 04 am, breakfast, check-out, check-in, security-check, Facebook Check-in, take off and then all of a sudden we’re in England…

Stopped for second breakfast at the airport, then we continued to our first destination:  Sanderstead, where Rick and Jen lives and where we were staying for three days.

The ladies (me, Malin and Jen) hung out for a while before me and Malin went to East Croydon to do what we always do: PRIMARK!

Downstairs – 2 hours… I had been upstairs for 5 minutes when I heard someone say my name. I turned around and saw Josh! He didn’t know we’d be there and we randomly ran in to each other (!!!). The funniest thing about this story is that on our way to Primark I said to Malin “imagine if we ran in to someone we know” and we did.

After hours of shopping we went back to Rick and Jen’s place where we had dinner (that was soooooo amazing! Thanks again J!).

The following day we went back to Primark to spend some more time (money). After that we went to KFC for a late lunch. When we got back ‘home’ we took a nap and I watched GoT. Then we got ready for football! :D The guys play football on Wednesday nights and since I really miss football me and Malin went to watch the guys play. We watched for a bit then we borrowed one of the footballs and had some fun on the other side of the pitch.

The following day I spent some time trying to figure out why I was sore. But then it hit me - Apparently walking around kicking a football is real workout xD The ladies and I went back to East Croydon again, but this time we stayed away from Primark. Instead we bought some food and went to a park. The weather was really nice so spending some time in the park was awesome! I had forgotten my Oyster Card so we had to walk for a bit. *Sorry guys*

On our way back we stopped to get more food, only this time it was for our Swedish Meatball Night. After dropping everything off we went to a shop to get drinks as well. I couldn’t decide if I wanted Prosecco or Pinot Chardonnay-bubbles so I got both!

128 Meatballs, lots of mash and gravy was more than enough for everyone! I had such an amazing night, seeing everyone again! So much fun!!! Good music, great people – I fucking love it! <3

Night turned in to morning and before leaving we had to pack our last things (not the easiest thing to do, having had a little more than one bottle of bubbles the night before. I went with the Prosecco…). I tried to clean up the kitchen a little before we had to leave. We said goodbye to everyone and left for the train, looking better than ever. Not…

(To be continued...)