June 30, 2010

London O2 Arena Round # Two!

London, England June 8th 2010

"Night Number 2 at the O2!!" little British humor from Jon!
After a great ice-breaking show here we go to the second and in my opinion most amazing O2 night! Jon was ON FIRE and the whole band was awesome!...

But allow me to re-cap this day if I may, we woke up to walk around the city and everything was going smoothly until we decided to go to the front of the hotel to watch the band go out and get in the van to go to their sound check (and maybe snag a picture? ) so there we were along with other fans and some EBay people (the ones that are never nervous and always get the autographs).

As I stated before I wanted a picture with Jon so there I was standing for a long 30 minutes waiting and waiting and my stomach swirling of anticipation! I was so not born to stand in front of hotels, anyway… so the band comes out and Jon stands on the other side, when I look Richie is literally walking to my direction (I don’t know about you but that doesn’t happen to me everyday) so I hug him and say “Hey Richie, can I have a picture? “ As nice as Richie always is, he goes “Sure, a quick one tough” and hugs me back…

Of course I was happy to not only have a hug but a picture taken with the best guitar player out there but it was just in time to miss Jon getting in the van, as a Jon girl, you know what it means? Meltdown in the streets of London…poor Mel and Cassia were trying to console me and afraid of saying anything at the same time to my “Why? Why didn’t I wait for Jon? I mean he was coming to my direction!” repeat mode!

Well after that it was downhill, sequences of little facts that make us laugh now but that was hilarious slash tragical when happened. We finally got to the arena with a very center good seat and managed to squeeze together ;) ( Can I just say here, I mean if people want to go to a Bon Jovi show and just “hang out” that’s totally fine by me but don’t stare at the jumping, singing happy people aka us by their side!)

So back to what matters, the show… was amazing, the energy was high and Jon was so happy and going, even much more than usual! That was the night I started to get my legs sore from jumping so much and my voice started to go bye bye… but oh MAN was it ever worth!..

The opening with Last Man Standing brought me back to the HAND Tour, with two encores and one the most amazing Bed of Roses I’ve ever seen with Jon touching hands and laying down on the floor, plus Always electric and Dry County! And may I just say I looooove Keep the Faith with Sympathy! Definitely the best night for me!

Click On: Amazing Bed of Roses

Click On: Dry County

Setlist: Last Man Standing / We Weren't Born to Follow / You Give Love a Bad Name /Just Older / Born to Be My Baby / Lost Highway / Superman Tonight / Captain Crash and the Beauty Queen from Mars / We Got It Going On / Bad Medicine / Hot Legs [Rod Stewart cover] / It's My Life / Lay Your Hands on Me [Richie Sambora on lead vocals] / (You Want To) Make a Memory / Bed of Roses / Diamond Ring / Something for the Pain [acoustic] / Someday I'll Be Saturday Night [acoustic] / I'll Sleep When I'm Dead / Runaway / Work for the Working Man / Who Says You Can't Go Home / Keep the Faith / Sympathy for the Devil [Rolling Stones cover]

Encore #1: Dry County/ Wanted Dead or Alive

Encore #2: Always / Livin' on a Prayer

June 27, 2010

London O2 Arena Round # One!

London, England June 7th 2010
Welcome to The Circle Tour! Some were able to be at all the 12 O2 Arena nights with great atmosphere and knock-out set lists, me?! Well… I had my share of them! I don’t know how many times I have said this here but London Bon Jovi Shows ROCK! So I do, yes, I rather fly far and get better setlists than go to my neighbors downstairs and get the same old thing. So off to England we go!

Having your flight arriving at the day of the show, is probably not a good idea, but neither is to have a ticket with an airline that goes on strike around the time you are flying and a very awake volcano! But despite of it all, we made it! Even if it means you have to roll out the plane, not check your bags and dodge the immigration to be on time. Or even take your luggage to the arena ;) that was a new one!

It is so exciting, after you had a long dry spell, to see the band live again! The opening with Blood on Blood was something I had never experienced before and although this entire backstage- seat-mess-up situation was a bummer, my seats were pretty good.

Love’s the Only Rule was one of the best performances I’ve ever seen and I wish I had royal money and could afford in the circle seats (let me leave a note here, as a diehard fan that for the first time ever had lots of not-so-fans in front of me. Come on with these prices already!) with Jon walking around the circle singing, high fiving and kissing everyone…THUD! My day will come eventually… Believe me!

Richie pulled of an awesome Lay Your Hands on Me, also a first timer for me and I could just fall to the floor on Something for the Pain! For whoever is seating floor, the highlight got to be the three or four acoustic songs where they get way closer to you, I know I loved it! And it doesn’t matter how many time I have I’ll be There for You it always knocks me!...


It was a good opening night! I really needed all that energy, jumping and singing along… no need to say that Livin on a Prayer might be just the perfect ending song that leaves you begging for more! Hit Me!

Setlist: Blood on Blood / We Weren't Born to Follow / You Give Love a Bad Name / Whole Lot of Leavin' / Born to Be My Baby / Lost Highway / When We Were Beautiful / Captain Crash and the Beauty Queen from Mars / We Got It Goin' On / Bad Medicine / Roadhouse Blues [The Doors cover] /It's My Life / Love's the Only Rule / Lay Your Hands on Me [Richie Sambora on lead vocals] / Hallelujah [Leonard Cohen cover] / I'll Be There For You / Something for the Pain [acoustic] / Someday I'll Be Saturday Night [acoustic] / I'll Sleep When I'm Dead / Work for the Working Man / Who Says You Can't Go Home / Keep the Faith

Encore: In These Arms / Wanted Dead or Alive / Livin' on a Prayer

The Three Musketeers!

June 23, 2010

Say Cheese!

London, June 9th 2010!
Now before I write about my London O2 shows, I need to make a statement: I, now, have a picture with Jon Bon Jovi, the one, the only, the amazing singer, songwriter, best lead singer in the world and the owner of the gorgeous smile you can see in the picture ;) ! Aaaaahhhh!!!! Still doing a happy dance for one of the highest moments in MY LIFE!
So here’s how it all went, I had spent the day in Oxford and by the time I went back to London I was so beat up that I went straight to my hotel to crash in bed… BUT a little German bird knocked on my door with only one sentence “I Know where they are!” so off we went, holding our cameras and breaths at that London tube, it never felt so LONG to get from one point to the other in my life.
In one of those surreal moments in life when the friend that came back to you, the bus you miss, the train that leaves two seconds after you step in it, the shower you didn’t turn on by one second, the tube train that took just long enough, the right exit you take…to be exactly where you’re supposed to be to walk (literally) into the whole band of Bon Jovi crossing the road to your direction.
I, completely by impulse, crossed the road without even checking the light just to grab Jon’s arm and kinda push him to the left a little ( he couldn’t get away from me even if he wanted to lol ) and ask “Joooon, can I take a pictuuuure? “ now, I don’t know if it was either my desperate, almost crying tone of voice or whatever but he did repeat after me “Can yooouu take a pictuuure?” How priceless is it to be mocked by Jon? I loooooove it!...
After the “Sure, alright” from him I believe Mel had already taken the shot and I was still squeezing his arm so strong ( I didn’t even realize ) and I cannot recall where my other hand was haha! I thanked him and he smiled at me with “You’re welcome” and walked on leaving me speechless and yet with SO MUCH I wanted to say! Mel got her picture as well, he stopped and leaned to her (sigh) with a “Come on! Oh I am waiting for the lights, alright” short before looking at me and saying “Hurry up”! If he only knew how bad I was already shaking ,to tell me to hurry up, seriously Jon?
It was all very fast and a blur, but it happened! He walked on to leave us flipping out on the corner (Narnia as I call it) holding the camera, screaming, holding each other, crying... (repeat)!
Well, if anything was every worth in this trip, was this priceless picture, for me, the best picture in the world! Still out of breath and so forever thankful!
Ps.AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

June 22, 2010

The Last One! Twick Night 2, London, England!

London, England June 28th 2008
And off we went to our last show of the tour. It’s bitter sweet to get to this day, after almost 45 days backpacking across Europe, meeting people from all over the world, sightseeing and having the time of our lives with the Bon Jovi shows.

It was, no doubt about it, one of the best summers of my life! And here we were on the last one, always the hardest, after that we would all go our separate ways, back home. So you can tell by my tone, that everyone was a bit emotional, thankful, happy but emotional.

The show was AMAZING, one of the best setlists ever! I was second row, right close to my German friends Sandy and Stefi and despite a very annoying woman trying to steal my spot – we got her back to her place once we started to jump on her lol – it was all awesome!

A show that starts with Rockin’all over the World can only take you higher… I Believe was the best freaking song live I could ever ask for, when the first notes started I thought I’d faint! It’s not as touching for me as These Days but it’s my tattoo, it’s my word, it’s from one of Bon Jovi best albums and the tour I had never been! Twist and Shout was so awesome to close the show… perfect ending to a perfect tour! I can still remember standing so close to the band and thinking when I’d have the same opportunity again, if anyone can ever be in one show I double recommend London, the best setlists and one of Jon’s bet moods guaranteed!


For everyone that was on the road with me, everyone I met along the way, there’s no need to name you but you’ll be forever part of my memories!

A even greater THANK YOU to JON (for your lyrics, songs and smile), Richie, David and Tico! The legend, the last band standing!
Click On: I Believe!!!
Setlist: Rockin' All Over This World / Lost Highway / Born to be My Baby / You Give Love a Bad Name / Summertime / Captain Crash and the Beauty Queen from Mars / I'll Sleep When I'm Dead / Mercy / Jumpin Jack Flash / Blood Money / Blaze of Glory / Any Other Day / In These Arms / We Got it Going On / It's My Life / Keep the Faith / I'll Be There for You (Richie Vox) / Have a Nice Day / I Believe / Who Says You Can't Go Home / Bad Medicine / Shout / Livin' on a Prayer

Encore: Always / Wanted Dead or Alive / Someday I'll Be Saturday Night / I Love This Town / Twist and Shout

June 6, 2010

Twick Night 1, London, England!

London, England June 27th 2008

London Town! One more time, one of the best shows ever! The band played two sold out nights at the Twickenham Stadium in London, this time for a change, it was actually in the city and a walking distance from the tube so no major problems going in and out or arriving early to get the fan club number on your hand! Those were the days…! lol
It’s funny how while you’re waiting hours to get in you meet people from all over the world that have one thing in common with you Bon Jovi! And you end up talking, laughing and making new friends, I like that!

So the line up started to move and we went to another line up to get our tickets until finally the gates opened and there’s the rush of seeing that empty floor with that massive stage and you can just go and get your spot so close to the band! I miss golden circle times!


Our seat was pretty AWESOME, we were very lucky this past tour, most of the shows we didn’t have anyone blocking our view, jumping on us or trying to easy their way in, except one, but that’s a story still to come!

Never thought in my life I'd get the CLASSIC Bon Jovi Show setlist start... Livin'on a Prayer followed by Bad Name, that alone already gets you to the ground! The best song live in the world as the opening song is a Killer! Extremely happy I was there for it...

The show, the atmosphere and everything else was just awesome, I love London! And for those who don’t know my “These Days” freak out, when the first note of Diamond Ring started to play with Richie and Jon singing together on the mic, that was love right there! Followed by Always and In These Arms...*THUD*
There’s somenthing in the air that makes you jump, scream, sing and cry twice as hard when it’s almost your last show of the tour, you’re not really sure when you’ll see your friends and the band live again so you just want to scream an extra notch to be on the safe side…

It was a great, very hot, British summer day and worth every second of it!

Click Here:
Diamond Ring

Setlist: Livin' on a Prayer / Bad Name / Lost Highway / Born to be my Baby / Captain Crash / I'll Sleep when I'm Dead / Twist and Shout / Blaze of Glory / Whole lot of Leavin'/ Diamond Ring / Always / In These Arms / We've got it goin'on / It's my Life / I'll be There for You / Dry County / Have a Nice Day / Keep the Faith / Who Says you can't go Home / Bad Medicine / Shout

Encore: Hallelujah / Wanted Dead or Alive

June 3, 2010

Kiss Me I'm Irish, Dublin, Ireland!

Dublin, Ireland June 7th 2008

Kiss Me I’m Irish… whoever was on the show on that June Saturday Night gets the joke ;)
The show was a good one, it’s good to see the band playing really huge spaces and it was such a beautiful day! They were really excited and Jon was mentioning how he loved Ireland and that Irish girls were crazy and he should know because he married one of them! Saturday Night was one of the highlights of the night for me and of course, Bed of Roses was the most beautiful one I've ever seen, Always was AMAZING and what can I say about These Days to end the night? (big sigh)

Poor Jon had hayfever, was blowing his nose all the time, sneezing, drinking tea and still on his feet for the twenty-five songs they played. One of the reasons that he's THE best frontman out there and can put on a show anywhere in the world with the same passion and get crowds on their feet in a little bar or a freakin' desert (in our case racetrack)! Gotta LOOOOVE this man!

I would like to be able to say that the Dublin show was everything I expected it to be. But I cannot, intense, haha! For starters the show wasn’t in Dublin, but some racehorse place outside of the city called Punchestown. Of course, when you hear an interview with Jon saying one of his favorite places to play is indeed Dublin you run and get yourself tickets for a massive sold out concert …

But I believe it had a lot to do with the circumstances, no one likes a drunken audience puking all over your shoes on a beer stinking air, or a crazy person crashing the stage and – no mean to offend, but I know no other way to describe it – dry humping Jon and to top it off flipping everyone on her way out. Classy.
It was good to be there with my girls tough, camping out since 7am to get a good spot, and that we did! First row and Brazilian Flag well centered! Too bad I missed Eli, my good Irish friend, but her and I were only couple rows away from each other and didn’t know.

The set list was pretty long and the show ended at almost 10pm, the buses were very well organized on the way back to the city besides the bumpy ride... Maybe we need more of Irish luck next time!
 
Setlist: Lost Highway / Born To Be My Baby / Bad Name / Raise Your Hands / Captain Crash / Just Older / Sleep when I'm Dead / Mercy / Start me Up / Whole Lot Of Leavin' / Blaze of Glory / In These Arms / Bed of Roses / We've Got It Goin' On / It's My Life / Keep the Faith / I'll Be There For You - Richie Sambora Vocals / Have a Nice Day / Saturday Night / Who Says you can't Go Home / Livin'on a Prayer
 Encore: Hallelujah / Wanted Dead or Alive / Bad Medicine with Shout / Rocking All Over The World / These Days

Click On:
I will love you babe, Always!

This show deserves some camping shots!
Shout Out for all of you with me at the Show! See most of you REAL soon!


Cassinha, Mel and I!