enigma

The waving hearts look amazing with so many people participating! We could put a Scottish slant on the idea for Edinburgh. Haggis waving - I'm sure that's not been done before.

Great photos, Lena! I think the pics from the Moscow and Helsinki gigs have to be the sweatiest I've ever seen!

Neither. I didn't know half of them. It was just a particularly friendly chilled M+G. Jeez!

.... so from Klaipeda on to Riga... Nice organised queue till security decided to ignore it and let everyone in at once. Thanks to Mellody's fast fingers, John's fast response, and a detour through the backstage area, order was restored. Biggish, impersonal arena, took a while for the people in the seats at the sides and back to get into it. The girl standing next to me caused a bit of a shock as she suddenly went white as a sheet and collapsed at my feet seconds before the band took to the stage, but she seemed to make a remarkable recovery once the show began! Loved the person who decided to do a proper audience divide for BIOTG! And gotta have a bit of sympathy for the very very tall guy, who Mika picked out in the middle of the crowd, saying he was SO tall he kept noticing him. If the poor guy didn't have a height complex before, he probably does now! The setlist was pretty much as at Helsinki and Klaipeda, although there was a seemingly rather odd version of WAG - not sure what that was all about? Sat on grass verge after show with lots of nice MFCers and a few others. Mika was ages coming out and mosquitos bit us to death (I'm now covered in attractive bites) but, well, the hotel was only across the street and was equally full of mosquitos. Loved that he signed Yuls' bottle of handwash with the words "hope you get sick"!! Haha! PS. Sorry to anyone else who was in the same hotel if they heard screams and pandemonium in the night. A wasp the size of a small helicopter got into my room - I chased it round with the shower-mat, and in the process the table lamp and chair went flying... oops.

So, as the coach went through mile after mile and hour after hour of countryside with fields and fir trees and very few houses, I did begin to wonder if anyone would actually be in Klaipeda for this gig, but arrived to find the what seemed to be the entire population of Lithuania was there! Met up with Yuls and several unfeasibly tall (and unfeasibly young!) Lithuania fans in the morning. Not sure of all their names but everyone was really friendly and nice. Then the dressing room arrived (it was a rather beautiful clipper-type boat which moored behind the stage!). I've tried to attach a photo of it, but it's my first attempt at putting a pic in a thread and it seems to be only a thumbnail, dunno why?! The venue was basically the quayside, and was full of people queuing to go on boat trips, people eating at temporary food and drink stalls, just people everywhere. Clearing the "venue" for soundcheck looked like it would be an impossible task! Yuls was doing the numbers list, so got my number and went to check in at hotel. Came back to find the area had indeed been cleared, but nobody stopped me walking in, and I found I was the only person in there, apart from police, security, crew and band! Eventually I located the rest of them, and Yuls organised the queue with military precision. They let the first 20 of us in, and apparently they let us in too early as the support bands were still soundchecking (in fact they seemed to be soundchecking most of the afternoon and evening!). I think the queue system fell apart a bit after that as security abandoned it. Anyway, this was such a fun gig. Really enjoyed it, especially the place, and the atmosphere in the front was just great. Three entertaining groups first, and everyone sang along, well - not me and Yuls as it was in Lithuanian, but we did a few la la las Mika looked just (a little too) fabulous in his sailor hat, and from the crowd's reaction I guess his Lithuanian chat was pretty spot-on. I don't know how he does it in all the different languages (is it streamed through the earpiece or does he learn the phrases phonetically?) but it's a really nice thoughtful touch which very few artists bother to do! KA came pretty late in the set, and for a while, we thought maybe he wouldn't do it, but when he did, on the very first chord, there was a "whoa yeah" shout in perfect unison from me and Yuls, which made everyone else (including Mika) laugh! And the "****ing beetle!" moment was a classic! It may have been a long way to go, and it may have been simpler to just go Helsinki-Riga, but for me, Klaipeda was the most enjoyable of the three shows, so I'm really glad I did it

Didn't queue - small club so front row only held about 20-30 people and I was coming from Russia so got there quite late... Hot, sweaty club-gig, like the old days. Commandeered bar stool at side. Balanced on it the entire show making me about 8ft tall and giving me a perfect view. Made jumping a bit difficult, but never mind! Good fun gig, with SD which I hadn't heard in ages. Mika and all the band were just SO hot and sweaty (as you'll have seen from everyone's pics) and my clothes were also soaked by the end. Perhaps it's because I was on my stool and heat rises Nice civilised, relaxed M+G with all the nicest MFCers . Discovered most people who were also doing Riga were travelling there in a sensible leisurely fashion. Ahh. That'll just be lunatic me, then, going to Klaipeda in between as well

Hey, I'm putting this is the Moscow concert thread as there isn't on for SPB Just want to thank Lena, mikatuned, and the other Russian MFCers for all their help when I was planning my visit to Russia, and especially Vathorniel who got me the SPB ticket, and then the refund when the gig was cancelled... and who took me, Kath and Abby to a fab ice-cream place when we were all expiring with the heat... SPB is a fabulous city and well worth a visit, Mika or no Mika. It was excruciatingly hot my first day, and I did see people chucking themselves off the bridge into the river, but not sure whether it was because of the heat or because Mika cancelled! Oh, and I did sort of see Mika in SPB. On a poster for the gig-that-never-was. And the radio was playing Kick Ass in the cab to the airport!

Back from France, and on here via two VERY long days at work (next stop: bed!). Nimes and Carcassonne were an absolute blast! Two wonderfully inspiring settings for two wonderfully inspiring shows. Isn't it brilliant how Mika's gigs make everyone come out so happy?! Crap day at work? Go see Mika - come out smiling! It was just fabulous to be in an audience who were so 110% into it from the start. AND who knew when to rock and when to be quiet (you could hear a pin drop during OMS and La Solitude - really nice!). Nimes was baking! In the middle of the day I wandered round inside the arena while the crew were working on the stage - being a totally round enclosed amphitheatre it was basically like a cauldron. Heaven only knows what the temperature was in there, but I never drank so much water in my life! It was just a bit cooler by evening when Newton Faulkner came on. Just him and his guitar. He seemed like a really sweet guy - unassuming, and chatted to the crowd quite a bit. Florence & THe Machine I thought were a bit disappointing. It's not really my sort of thing anyway, but I didn't think she had much rapport with the audience and everything sounded a bit the same (but that's just my personal opinion). Mika starting alone with Grace Kelly in French was a bit of a surprise, but it worked really well. Rain was, as usual, the song that sent the place mental, and Love Today and Relax. Lots of encores - the noise that came from people stomping on the wooden boarding round the amphitheatre sides was deafening! I think the crowd would have happily stayed all night if they'd played every song Mika's ever written or covered... but then of course they had to get to the next gig in Carcassonne! I already did a brief report on Carcassonne in that thread, and I'm not sure I can add to it, except to say it was another great show with a great audience, lots of encores (My Interpretation as well), and it's too bad the seats didn't have seat cushions to chuck in the air! Although actually the stage was so full of people there wouldn't have been room for cushions as well... After the two Mika gigs, I went back to Nimes for a very different type of gig. The arena was all seated this time, the artist was in his sixties, and the audience mostly 50+. TBH I was quite pleased to sit down after the huge amount of walking I'd done in the previous two days, and the tiny amount of sleep I'd had! But while I was sitting in my not-so-comfy seat, it got me musing - I wonder if Mika will be playing gigs when he's in his sixties? I'd like to think he will, as his songwriting ability will surely give him a long career, and by them he'll have a HUGE back catalogue of songs to entertain us with! (Although being an oldling already, I'll be in my dotage by then and will need a Stannah stairlift to get to my seat unless it's on the flat bit...)!

Just got back to hotel, unseen by my stalker (heaves massive sigh of relief!). It's raining but there is definitely a god, because it held off for the whole gig, and just started in the encores and it was quite refreshing! Poor crew though, a nice wet load-out for them! No long report as I'll do it when I get home along with Nimes, but it was another fabulous gig. It was packed - all seated but unreserved. I was Row G but as soon as Mika came on everyone got up and I ended up at the front. I have simply no idea how that happened!!! I can be damn fast when I want to be! Anyway, yes, long set like yesterday, Mika fell over in Dr John but don't think he hurt himself. He was in excellent mood and excellent voice again, talked loads to the crowd but of course I haven't a clue what about as my French is rubbish. It was a very low stage with no "pit" and at the end (during the second "Relax", Mika started pulling people up onstage and then it just went mad and LOADS of people got uo - including some really young kids. There was hardly any space left for Mika in front of them. Brilliant! I'm sure there will be reports and photos soon from people., but if they're staying in the main town it's quite a long trek back. I'm quite close to the castle.. So, off to bed now. I'm back in Nimes Arena tomorrow night, but sadly Mika isn't...

I have no idea what's changed or how it's changed, I have no idea why anyone gets pissed off or angry about anyone else, in fact I have no idea who anyone is most of the time!!! Ignorance is sometimes bliss. But we all come on here for the same reason really, so all is very happy and well in enigmaland!

What fantastic pics!

My camera's a Canon too. It's clearly less about the camera and more the fault of its operator in my case!

Your pics are excellent!!

Well I don't know who they met, but I thought precisely the opposite. Everyone I met in Lebanon was just so polite and friendly. On one of the (many!) occasions I got lost in Beirut, some chap walked with me to the street I was looking for (about 20 minutes walk). I thought he must have been going there anyway, but it turned out it was completely out of his way and he just did it to be helpful. So maybe it WAS just some strange Japanese humour!

Wow, 28 pages of reviews and pix! Not sure I can add anything that hasn't already been said... ...except that it was lovely to see everyone, put faces to some forum names I knew, and put forum names to some faces I knew! Oh, and it was a great gig , the weather was perfect , the stage set was beautiful , and the Eden Project is amazing! You will all be thrilled to hear that my photos are almost in the same league as my Baalbeck ones, and I will not make you suffer the torment of deciphering what on earth they are actually of!

It looks like they are still excavating and finding more Roman stuff, and yes, there's a bustling little town there right behind it. I bought some food there. I have no idea what it was (slight language problem!), but it was yummy!

Damn. Now why don't MY pics look like that?

Um. Help. I just looked at my photos from Baalbeck and they are indeed cr*p! Having never put photos up on here before, I uploaded them (I think), to an album called Beirut/Baalbeck (I think). I have absolutely no idea where it is, or where the photos are, or whether I did it right, or whether anyone will be able to see them, and I don't know how to get them into the right thread... (and actually they are not really worth seeing anyway, but I did try!). If anyone finds them, you will see some reasonable pictures of inanimate objects (the ruins, and piles of seat cushions) and blurry pictures of moving objects some of which might even be Mika (although it's kind of hard to tell!). I give up. Me and cameras are clearly not a match made in heaven, and now I'm obviously either delirious with tiredness, or just delirious about the fact that I'm going to Eden. I should go to bed. I have to do three hours at work tomorrow before I drive to Cornwall. Grr.

OMG that was just the most fun gig ever! Haven't been back to see other posts so this may be repeating stuff, but anyway here goes with brief report. The setting was the most exquisite setting for a gig that you could imagine. Quite breathtaking with the ruins all lit up, and the stage was just a mass of sunflowers - beautiful. It was all seated, but the second Mika came on everyone stood up, and a few people ran to the stage, swiftly followed by hoardes of us - so my seat got used for about 10 seconds before I was out of it and to the front. Yay, front row - if a bit to the side. Security did try to send us all back but it was a hopeless task as none of us were budging, and then John came along and told them to leave us where we were! Set list - started with Relax, then BG, SITM, Dr John, BB., forget what came next, then KA + Rain, then got distracted by another swarm of security guys trying to move us as a couple of people had managed to get onstage and they were panicking (but we still wouldn't budge!!! And then someone from Mika's organisation told them all to go away and leave us alone, so they slunk off again! Victory!).. Further on there was OMS, HE, Love Today, WAG, GK, Lollipop. Oh and yes there were BG/LGs for the death march and at the end. The funniest bit was of course the seat-cushions being hurled all over the place (well there weren't any balloons!) And the stage ended up just awash with the things, despite Mika's attempts to gather them up by the arnful and hurl them back out! He said (referring to the cushion mayhem) that he was so proud to be half Lebanese! By the end of the show there had been a full-scale stage invasion with dozens of people getting up there, and the secirity guys had just given up completely! I think quite a few of Mika's family were there - I saw his sister who was looking as cold as I was as we seemed to be the only people there not wearing tons of warm clothes! Mika and all the guys looked like they were really really enjoying themselves, and the crowd was great - everyone up and dancing even at the back. I did manage to take a couple of pix, as I took my bag, camera and mobile in. Never even saw a bag deposit place, and no-one stopped people taking pix so don't know what all that stuff that came with the ticket was about!!?! Oh, my pix look fairly rubbish becsuse I am simply too exciteable to control a camera! I'll see what they look like when I get home, although It may not be till after Eden! Anyway it's 2.30am now and I have a long flight back tomorrow so guess I should go to bed! I wouldn't have missed this trip for the world, and I just thank Mika for being the perfect excuse for visiting Lebanon, which is GREAT by the way. I'm not sure any gig will top this one! But then I've never been to the Eden Project before so you never know!

Reading what time most people are intending to start queuing, and knowing that I don't even arrive in Amsterdam till about 3pm, I am taking the step of putting my MFC number on my hand already. It's seven. As in seven-hundred (give or take a few). Or very possibly seven-thousand if there's any hitch in my travel arrangements.

Ruth, your reports did made me smile! I thought it was just me who attracted chaos and disaster at every available opportunity! So... it was 7 km to the airport was it? Oops. Someone's not going to be a happy bunny. I seem to recall mentioning the words "five minutes walk" to a certain someone :roftl:

...is now so thrilled with God, is considering becoming a nun