Broadcasting at sea

I have boarded the cruise-ferry Isabella at the Stockholm ferry-terminal 07.30, early morning.  We are a few colleagues from the radio station, me and Jesse Wallin at the picture, Ted Johansson and our tour leader Matilda, taking a day- tour in our beautiful archipelago together with our winners of the competition held the last week, Daniel and Anette. 

When arriving at the breakfast buffet, in my zombie- state of mind, with my eyes strictly focused on coffee I couldn´t help to notice the people around me. Who are they and what brought them all together here today. I had the impulse of go straight up to them and ask how they ended up here just at this time, this day and in this constellation. How did I ?!  That is something that never will stop to amaze me, how people meet; what led them on the same course and brought them together just in this or that time. Have we actually met in a previous life and therefore are drawn to each other? A vise woman once said to me that we are all moving around in circles where once or two of them sometimes, for a limited time or for longer, do overlap each other.  And in those spaces we meet. That’s the reason for how we tend to meet someone who accidentally, or is it, do have some connection to someone else that you know.  Isn´t so that it all has its logic. that every meeting have something to tell us, bring us or make us conscious about. 

Thats about it from the morning philosopher. Back to the cruise-ferry, where all these people gather in lines to pile up bred and yogurt, fruits for me I head for the coffee and grab two croissants on my way as we are leaving Stockholm behind and goes towards the open water.

Oh yeh. It is well known that the boat architecture design are a kind of its own. Neither less this is one of the best I´ve seen. They have tied to create a Italian piazza feeling at teh buffet dining,  but I don’t know if the atmosphere with plastic big pack ham and cheese and the “waiting- or closing- music” (you know that annoying tunes that you have to listen to while waiting inline in phone or when a warehouse is about to close) combined with this, plastic piece of painted tile/brick wall do it... Well, see for your self.

 

 We found our selves alone at the breakfast buffet, I got the mission to sort out where everyone left and what they are up to ? 

... They do karaoke. 

And we couldn´t be any different, Jesse filled in form with his name and the song he were to sing. And what a performance, Jesse alias Elvis delivered 'I  can´t help fallin in love with you´ with grace, charming every lady in the club.  And I can tell you that I got the evil eye when he dedicated it to me, standing on the side recording with Ted. 

After a short visit in Mariehamn we´r now boarding Rosella cruising ship and I can assure you that this is nothing like you can imagine. A day cruise to Mariehamn, Åland, is something special. We just said that this do only happens in live broadcasting. An original, you know one of those that you hear, can’t miss and are just not like everyone else.  A woman, sunburned, in dreads enters the sun deck for a smoke. She is a bit scary at the same time as she seams harmless. Sits down next to a couple and starts a conversation. Meanwhile 2 youngsters are repainting the stairs so we can’t enter the second level on sundeck. A man chaffs in the middle of our recording so we all have to hold back a laugh, and another man loudly says that its time for shrimp- sandwich and beer. this all took place when we still were at harbor. For you not familiar with Swedish tradition I can tell you that this is a culture of its own, but neither less a wide and appreciated by many. I might add that the average age are 65 this Thursday afternoon. what makes me glad though is to watch how they have dressed up for this day and really seams to enjoy. 

At the time of writing a cover- band named Janssons Frestelse, which initially are a dish named after the famous opera singer Pelle Jansson who always had this fish dish as a night snack after performance, now it is three middle aged men in suit at a stage with a purple curtain behind them delivering Peter Lundblad ´ta mig till havet´. A few couples are dancing and me, I’m having a coffee and remembering this song from my childhood. A bit nostalgic at this picturesque bar where tax free carriers with beer and wine piled on top of each other among some candy and make up. When it comes to us we do what we can to fit in smoothly; drinking beer, whine and even some smaller moves can be seen, but most interested I think we are in the status of our cells and computers, to see if we are back on Swedish net so we can be connect again.  Do I have to say that the drinks are colourful with an umbrella and a fruit on a stick.