Day 146: From Azerbaijan to Dusseldorf

We arrived at our hotel in the late afternoon of Saturday, May 14th, to witness all the Eurovision fuss going around the lobby, the elevators, the reception desk. Then we saw her. She was not tall at all, she had long blond hair, all curly at the edges, and she already had her professional make-up on. She was surrounded by a group of people who were taking turns of making photos of her and a tall boy. She was also holding by the hands two little baby girls, with long curly black hair and pink dresses. They called her "mommy", and were standing around her like little duckies in a pond.

My father made a joke she could be the winner of Eurovision that night. We all laughed thinking "oh yeah, right"... At that time we had no idea who they were...we were guessing they were part of the show...but which part? I admit it, in Bulgaria we do not grant Eurovison with the same respect those other people in Dusseldorf did. Probably it's because we lost hope we were going to the finals years ago with all the scandals going on. Probably it's because we stopped thinking of our nation as united a long time ago. Or probably it's because chalga music is taking too much credit nowadays, that we forget there could be something else out there worth listening to.

As we sat in a bar watching the countdown to the end of voting, we recognized her when the Azerbaijan song came up. And we laughed again, thinking it was a pity we did not take a photo before. As the votes were announced gradually we became more and more excited as we saw the Azerbaijan team going up the ladder. We were cheering with the rest of the people around, and honestly happy when they won the contest! We hurried back to the hotel excited, and at the same time a bit sad, because we missed the opportunity of taking this photo earlier. Before I went to bed I stared at Dusseldorf throughout the window. The city was lit up and it felt like something amazing is going on out there. A fairytale of a grand scale.
Fortunately, the morning gave us yet another chance. As we went out the elevators there she was. I grab the keys to the room and run up to get my camera. Misho is keeping an eye on her so we don't miss our chance. I came back 3mins later and everything's according to plan. We make a few steps, we congratulate and ask for a photo. She's happy to pose. And yay! We got it! And it absolutely made our day! :))))))))
I am not much of a celebrity stalker, but the whole story just asked for a happy photo ending. And my blog couldn't be happier on that lucky coincidence even though it's experiencing some technical problems lately.

I just want to wrap it up with a thought: If you wish something from the bottom of your heart, sooner or later it happens just as easy as that!

Ask me. Ask Nikki from Azerbaijan.

Nikon D60, 18-55mm.

Day 145: Eurovision 2011@ Dusseldorf

I accidentally happened to be in Dusseldorf the night of the Eurovision 2011 Finale. It was so exciting walking around with all those happy people from all around Europe. I never imagined I would have so much fun. We had dinner in a nice restaurant I've been to before, and then the crowd led us to a street full of bars and cafe's where the heart of Dusseldorf was beating at a fast rate. We just entered one of the overcrowded bars when a couple of girls were leaving, so we got lucky with those upfront seats with perfect view of the TV where everyone was watching the show live. It was almost time for the final scores by then so excitement was at its peak point. Did I mention how good that cocktail was...and how far more excited it made me :D

It's probably the first time I go abroad for work, and I have so much fun on the side! I wish I have more of these in the future :))))))))

Nikon D60, 18-55mm.