Concert: U2, Palau Sant Jordi (#4)

#4 of 4. This was U2's last night in Spain.. and I was there! Got up nice and late - it was quite breezy today, so I took an overshirt with me: coat still not required, of course. I headed into Placa de Catalunya, figuring I'd take it from there. Google Maps was kind enough to inform me that my handiest route there was to take either the L94 or L95 bus, which headed to just off the square. And I put my ticket in the right way around, for once. :-)

I was somewhat concerned that the LCD display showing the stop names was practically illegible - both on the outward and return journeys, the text was in a watery yellow that blended nicely into the black background. But as we passed a stop on the way in, I noticed the departure board, which said that the destination of my bus was, in fact, Placa de Catalunya. Lovely - the terminus.

I got off and wondered where to go for brunch - my first priority. A quick look around didn't reveal much, and I didn't want to spend too long looking - I was too hungry. I finally decided that the huge department store, El Corté Inglés, might be my best bet - they surely had a café, and it would surely be both reasonably priced and have fairly standard dishes, so no translation problems.

It turned out I had to go all the way to the ninth floor.. where they have a restaurant, which I considered, but the people in front of me exchanged some words with a waiter and left, and it looked very much as though they needed to have reserved. Instead, I queued for the more casual café - still with table service, but no tablecloths, no glasses or cutlery left on the tables, and paper placemats and boxes of napkins.

I didn't really have to queue for long, despite how busy the place was. I was shown to a table that hadn't been cleared yet, and there was some confusion as the waiter who came to clear it thought I wouldn't have been sat at a table that wasn't ready, and I must have skipped the queue and taken the table of my own accord! Luckily, the maitre d' who had seated me came along after a moment to reassure her..

Despite the busyness, service was decently quick. I dithered between the chicken, which sounded tastier, and the beef escalope with spaghetti and chips, which sounded more filling, and which my hunger chose. Same brunch as Tuesday, in fact! And a glass of wine. And it was very nice. The chips were actually terrific - you know how good chips can taste, but rarely do? These were such chips. Now, the elderly ladies beside me sent back their paella for some reason, to be exchanged for steak - but there are definitely things this place does rather well. For dessert - by which time things had calmed down a bit - I, of course, had the "death by chocolate" (I can rarely resist that), which in this case was a chocolate sponge slice with chocolate filling and dark chocolate beads on top. And it was sooo good.. I'd definitely go back there for that alone!

On the way out, I had a browse around. They have the most terrific Hallowe'en selection, and I just couldn't resist..

Once I finally found the exit, I was in the mood for capturing some of the sights: some photos here. By this time, it was too hot to be bothered exploring any more, and I waited in the shade, in a cool breeze, for the bus back to the hotel. Still, it was a relief when it came, and again when the aircon started. I recognised my stop from the buildings we passed - the indicator board was useless again.

After a relaxing afternoon, which featured another nap, I headed out. I must be getting fit - the walk didn't knock as much out of me this evening! Bought a t-shirt that had caught my eye yesterday..

..and took my seat. Which involved another awkward climb down rows and rows of steps with no handrail, and me muttering to myself to distract myself from being terrified. Just like Tuesday, in fact, as I was in the same row - yesterday, I was in a higher one, nearer the entrance.

So, I was in the front row of my section. This time, however, it was towards the back - more so than last night. Again, I needn't have worried - this is why I come to places like Barcelona for concerts - the crowds are amazing. Even the people with the worst angle in the house - directly facing the side of the vidi-wall, so they can't see a thing on it - were whoopin' and hollerin'. Don't feel too bad for them though - they do get a smaller, dedicated screen, at right angles to the vidi-wall, showing footage of both stages and the vidi-wall. From where I was sitting, I had a good view of both screens. And I noticed that Bono spent much of his time on the "e" stage singing directly to the people at the back.

This crowd trumps even the crowds of the last two nights, by virtue of being the FIRST crowd I've seen so far on this tour to get a Mexican Wave going all the way around the stands, more than once. Three times, in fact, before the powers-that-be turned down the lights and distracted an excitable crowd by tricking them into thinking something was imminent. In fact, it's becoming something of a hobby of mine to watch the crowd's reaction to something they weren't expecting to happen. It seems that the word has gone around that when the band say goodbye, they don't mean it, there's more to come - but it was nice to see that several things in the concert still surprised them. And they STILL don't know that the band don't come on until People Have the Power starts to play.. and even then, not immediately..

Tonight's setlist:

SET 1

The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)
Gloria
Vertigo
I Will Follow
Iris (Hold Me Close)
Cedarwood Road
Song for Someone
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Raised By Wolves
Until The End Of The World

SET 2

Invisible
Even Better Than The Real Thing
Mysterious Ways
Desire
Spanish Eyes
Every Breaking Wave
October
Bullet The Blue Sky
Zooropa
Where The Streets Have No Name
Pride (In The Name Of Love)
With Or Without You

ENCORE

City Of Blinding Lights
Beautiful Day
Bad
40

Once they'd started, I noticed something I hadn't noticed before on this tour - as usual, the further away you are, the more of the spectacle you get to see. Being too close has its disadvantages. People with seats at the back, take heart. Now, a funny thing happened to me tonight - I'm finding that, the more of these concerts I go to, the more into them I'm getting. In fact, for the first four songs, I lost it completely tonight.. For their second song, they cycle among three - Gloria, The Electric Co., and Out of Control. (You can safely watch these videos on YouTube, they don't give away too much. And man, have I enjoyed watching them!) For my money, Gloria holds the crown, among these three, of Best Live Song. I always loved seeing it live, and I'm stoked that it's such a regular on this tour - doesn't usually happen! Again, Mrs. Bono was in the house, as mentioned by Bono at the start of Song For Someone, written for her.

Now, the pattern thus far has been that, for Mysterious Ways, Bono brings a girl onstage to dance with him, then she films the band doing a number, which is streamed live on Meerkat. Sometimes, they bring a guy up from the audience to play guitar on that number. Well, Bono was in a mischievous mood tonight, and ever the champion of equal opportunities, he brought up a girl to play guitar, and a guy to dance with. The guy wore one of those glittery cowboy hats and a feather boa, and threw some real shapes. Until his irate wife appeared onstage, ordering him to get down! He complied, after making sure she got a shot of him with each member of the band. Bono got her to do the Meerkat stream - half of which came out upside-down! Then he had a chat with her. "Are you local? Are you from Barcelona?" "I'm from Spain." "What's your name?" "Penélope"..

"So, that would be.. his Bardem-ness?" teased Bono. Yes, these were Penélope Cruz (in a wig) and her husband, Javier Bardem, who - I guess - stayed for the after-show party. Turns out they're enthusiastic supporters of the Red campaign. We may not have had the tv crews there tonight like last night, but what a show they missed! And then Bono sang Spanish Eyes, for Penélope of course. About time - I was wondering whether he'd ever get around to it in this, the only Spanish city on their tour!

Tonight, it was October that moved me to tears. And it seems that rounding off the show with Bad and 40 is a staple for the last night in any city. What a night! What a week! What a city! Truly memorable. Oh, but I can't wait for the tour to hit London, on the 25th (you know I'll be there..)

Back to London tomorrow. I have a long wait, what with check-out at 12 and the flight not until 6.20, but it's in T1, which should be more endurable. And it comes into Heathrow, which makes it much easier to get home. On Monday, I'm back with the Crick Crack Storytelling Club, in the Soho Theatre again, for an interesting-sounding evening called The Heart of a Hero, apparently with an Egyptian storyteller. And on Tuesday, I'm back with the World Music Meetup, for Varlden's Band, in Rich Mix. Long time no see this group!

Concert: U2, Palau Sant Jordi (#3)

Woo-hoo, back in Barcelona! I flew with BA today, which meant a slightly later flight and a later time to be there by - but the times were close enough that I just followed my previous schedule. Except this time, I knew exactly what I was doing, so it was that bit less stressful. I checked in online yesterday, and got a lovely window seat, near the front:

 

And had a gorgeous, cloudless view most of the way. And, being BA, free wine..

 

Landing was also easier, in T1, which looks far better stocked than T2. (Great, I'm flying out of there, too!) And this is where the bus terminus is, so I got a seat.. and I think I have been putting my travel card in the machine the wrong way, oops.. well, I won't be using the full value of it anyway, I daresay. Anyhoo, better informed now, I alighted at the stop after Placa Europa, and made my way to the hotel - same as before. I see they don't extend their breakfast times at weekends - well, it doesn't affect me, and anyway, they already allow till 11.

 

I wanted to do nothing more than crash for the afternoon - I did log on though, noting that the same login did me from my stay a couple of days ago; it lasts a week. I was peckish, so had a reasonably priced bar of chocolate from the minibar - they evidently don't check the expiry dates, it was clearly out of date. I don't mind that, but there are those that would - they should be more careful.

 

After a short nap, I headed down to the bar for a quick dinner, sharing the lift with fellow U2-goers; the hotel seems packed with them, this time. I ordered my usual croquettes - didn't feel like anything major, although it's not as oppressively hot as last time, and there's a nice cool breeze. And I ordered a glass of wine. Well, I thought they'd never come - they didn't bring the wine till after the food arrived, and I was still waiting for a knife and fork - I think they'd misplaced the napkins. Still, it came in time, and I ate it in time. They were quick enough to bring the bill, at least..

 

I'd toyed with the idea of ordering a taxi, but seeing the crowd of people outside, and the steady stream of people leaving for the concert, I figured, if I ordered one, someone would steal it! So, I just started out a bit earlier, determined to pace myself. I also had several Glacier Fruits on the climb, which did help - I knew exactly where I was going, and how long it would take to get there, so was more relaxed.

 

As I approached the entrance queue, I spotted a merchandising stand I hadn't seen before - and which included those elusive programmes, which I hadn't been able to see on Tuesday! Excellent, and I bought one. And spied a new Cedarwood Road t-shirt, which I must investigate tomorrow - I figured I was carrying enough. [SPOILER ALERT - Don't click the Cedarwood Road link if you are going to a U2 concert but haven't seen one yet this year; if you watch this video, you'll spoil some of the surprise.]

 

I was seated at the other side tonight, and towards the "back" - relative to the "i" stage. But I was to find that there's no such thing as being at the back, at these concerts - the room is too small for that, you don't miss anything, and the crowd was the most enthusiastic yet! Funnily enough, I felt more at home - I'm so used to seeing the band as dots at the other end of the venue, whereas I've been seated so close, so often on this tour. I'm spoiled, actually..

 

Setlist:

 

Set 1

The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)
The Electric Co.
Vertigo
I Will Follow
Iris (Hold Me Close)
Cedarwood Road
Song for Someone
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Raised By Wolves
Until The End Of The World

Set 2

Invisible
Even Better Than The Real Thing
Mysterious Ways
Elevation
Volcano
Every Breaking Wave
October
Bullet The Blue Sky
Zooropa
Where The Streets Have No Name
Pride (In The Name Of Love)
With Or Without You

Encore

City Of Blinding Lights
Beautiful Day
One

 

..with, of course, The Fly at the "intermission" between sets. [SPOILER ALERT - Again, don't watch the video if you are headed to a U2 show this year but haven't seen this set-up yet..]

 

Apparently, Mrs. Bono was in the house, as he pointed out before singing Song For Someone, written for her. The girl he pulled out of the crowd to film them during Elevation couldn't stop bouncing to the music, to the annoyance of certain online watchers on Meerkat.. Again, you could tell he was moved by the crowd's reaction tonight - he didn't give away any clothing; instead, he, em, crowsurfed during Volcano! (Always with a bouncer holding onto at least one foot, mind..)

 

Every Breaking Wave was dedicated to "Penelope and Javier".. Cruz & Bardem? It moved me to tears, and I wasn't the only one touched - the couple beside me weren't familiar with it, and asked me the name, and the woman in front of me, wrapped in a Mexican flag (there were a couple of those in the house) gave a little bow of homage at the end of it.

 

A terrific night. And I wasn't even completely exhausted when I got back! I only drank one of the bottles of water in the minibar - let's see whether it gets replaced.

 

I might head towards town tomorrow, if the weather stays cool. What's nice about the flight back, on Sunday - apart from it being BA, and from T1, is that it's to Heathrow! which makes it much easier to get home.

 

On Monday, I'm back with the Crick Crack Storytelling Club, in the Soho Theatre again, for an interesting-sounding evening called The Heart of a Hero, apparently with an Egyptian storyteller. And on Tuesday, I'm back with the World Music Meetup, for Varlden's Band, in Rich Mix. Long time no see this group!



Concert: U2, Palau Sant Jordi (#2)

#2 for U2, #1 for me, in Barcelona. This is the only venue I'm going to where I didn't manage a ticket for every show. But honestly, 19 in one year is enough, 3 in Barcelona is enough for this year. And I was exhausted yesterday, and slept really well last night.

Not having to get up for breakfast - since they charge for it, and it's as much of a rip-off as any other hotel - I rose late and started the day with a bath. What a luxury - I haven't had one for years, I can't afford them in London with the price of water. And then I strolled off for brunch. I knew there was a shopping centre right across the road, and figured that would be as good a place as any. And once I stepped outside the door into the heat, I knew I didn't want to venture any further.

I had to walk right around to find the entrance, and it turns out to be a very new (many units not yet open), and very swanky centre:

After some more exploration, I did find the eateries, and chose Canas y Tapas for the simple reason that (a) it had an English-language menu and (b) it had tables available. Sadly, when she brought me the menu, it was not in English. But luckily, there were a couple of understandable options on the special, €12 menu, and I had those - espagueti Carbonara is pretty easy, and escalope de ternera.. I know that much (ternera is beef). It's not like I know no Spanish.. but in Barcelona, most things aren't in Spanish, they're in Catalan, which is that bit different. Actually, I'd have liked croquettes, but couldn't figure out the different fillings..

I also ordered wine (my second day with wine for breakfast!), which came in a dinky glass bottle, carafe-size. The spaghetti was lovely - lighter than you might expect, and didn't fill me up. And the beef escalope wasn't half as dry as that one I had in Malbun last year - how they managed to dessicate anything that much, I cannot say! No, this was all very pleasant - the only problem being the sun beating on my back. They do have sun coverings overhead, but you can never escape it completely - and they had no space inside. When I'd finished, it did take her forever to bring the bill, but then they were very busy. And was I ever pleased to discover that the wine was included in the €12! You'd never see that back home..

I wanted to get out of the sun, so declined a dessert there and investigated the ice cream parlour across the path. Where I was intrigued by the sorbet range, and chose the lemon and mint one, which she made on the spot - lemon and lime ice cream, a slice of lemon, a sprig of mint, and ice cubes all going in a blender. And it was delicious.. until I got about halfway down and it turned to sludge, which I could no longer suck through the straw. I soldiered on until I'd had about 2/3 of it, then gave up and made my way slowly back to the hotel, in the heat. Went online in the bar, to discover the hotel had replied to a review I'd made of them, saying they were sorry, but there must have been a misunderstanding at check-in.. WiFi is free throughout the hotel! Hmm.. not so much at check-in, but it says on the website, and in the in-room directory, that WiFi is charged for in the rooms. Wish they'd get their story straight.

I had a nap, had some more croquettes in the bar (found them very salty) and headed out, map in hand, to climb the mountain to the concert. For the Palau Sant Jordi is at the top of Montjuic. I chose the closest hotel I could find, and Google Maps said it was a half-hour walk. There was certainly no confusion about my route until I was on Carrer del Foc, where all the turn-offs turned out to be car parks, and you do indeed keep climbing straight ahead. Speaking of climbing.. yes, it's a steady climb (although not steep) all the way up Carrer del Foc. For about 15 minutes, it took me - added to the time it took to get to that road, that makes 40 minutes total. I am not fit, lemme tell you! Walking on the flat - fine. Climbing for 15 minutes.. I saw my life flash before my eyes. A French woman that passed remarked to her companion that this was her cardio for the week.. (you're close to the French border here, and there were plenty of French at the concert).

Actually, it seemed as though most people had never been there before, and as they passed me (I was moving slowest), I was asked for directions a number of times, in a number of languages. Fat chance they had, I hadn't a clue. "Straight on and it's on the left" was as much as I knew. We did eventually make it, and were then clueless as to where the entrance to this large building was situated. Walking around the perimeter, we came across crowds of people coming from the other direction, hence from town, and we eventually came to the entrance lanes - mostly devoid of people at this late stage, about 20 minutes before (official) start time. I picked the nearest lane, and hoped I was right. The two girls in front of me asked the steward whether they were in the right line for the floor (standing) and when he said they were, they squealed in delight and scurried forward. To the amusement of the people behind me - they hadn't looked like teeny-boppers, dressed as they were in smart clothes and high heels..

The steward at the next division was just anxious to know whether people had seats or were standing, and I had to assure him a few times that I was sure I had a seat. So I got a line all to myself, and was in quickly. Crowded, crowded.. I had a quick look at the merchandising, but didn't see anything new - and no programme stands! There was a handy map of the different sectors, so I knew to continue to the end, and found my place without too much difficulty. And oh, what a fantastic seat.. front row, right to the side of the "i" stage:

I was sat just above Red Zone, as it happened, which is much better located than it was in Amsterdam, and borders the stage. I still maintain, though, that it's no advantage for this set-up, where the band moves throughout the whole floor area.

Well, Barcelona absolutely trumps Amsterdam for crowd enthusiasm! It was like someone spiked their coffee.. like someone put a bomb under them. They were electric! Someone screamed at one point (over-excited) and my whole section jumped to its feet. Bono developed a habit of saying "wow!" throughout the concert, and frequently stood back and let us sing the songs.

Speaking of which, here's the setlist (and how handy it is that it's reproduced now on u2.com)..

SET 1

The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)
Out Of Control
Vertigo
I Will Follow
Iris (Hold Me Close)
Cedarwood Road
Song for Someone
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Raised By Wolves
Until The End Of The World

SET 2

Invisible
Even Better Than The Real Thing
Mysterious Ways
Desire
Angel Of Harlem
Every Breaking Wave
October
Bullet The Blue Sky
Zooropa
Where The Streets Have No Name
Pride (In The Name Of Love)
With Or Without You

ENCORE

City Of Blinding Lights
Beautiful Day
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For

It was so cool - there was a particularly hyper guy, just to the right of me, who went crazy for every single song. So nice to see someone getting their money's worth.. Interesting, for this concert, was how, when Bono was saying something, a translation was provided on the vidi-wall. Thoughtful..

The "interval" between Sets 1 & 2 was, again, filled with the drum version of The Fly - the evocative words again displayed on the "wall", but this time in Spanish. The girl pulled from the audience for Mysterious Ways turned out to be French too.. oh, and if you want to watch that bit of each concert they put on Meerkat, look for pages on the U2 website referencing future concerts; they put a link to Meerkat there, so you can sign up to watch on the night.

Somebody got pulled up again to play guitar on Angel of Harlem - and turned out to be living in Dublin! Again, he got to keep the guitar - minus the strap! And a third person got pulled up to sing on City of Blinding Lights. In fact, Bono led him down the catwalk, gave him his sunglasses and jacket to put on, and waved bye-bye, sending him into the darkness. He spent the rest of the concert without them, and the other chap wasn't seen again. As someone remarked, it's the first time in 20 years we've seen Bono (in concert) without his glasses! And I did feel that little bit closer to him. I think it was deliberate - I do think he was moved by the sheer force of emotion in tonight's audience, and wanted to connect. Lordy, the next two will be incredible at this rate. If this was a Tuesday night crowd..!

I was absolutely wrecked by the time I got back to the hotel, despite the downward walk back. Drained the minibar of water, and am looking forward to my bed. I fly back tomorrow, late afternoon, and am headed to People, Places and Things at the National on Thursday. Good job I booked early - apparently they're completely sold out now. The London Dramatic Arts group is off there on Saturday, so we can compare notes! On Friday, I'm here for the last two U2 concerts in Spain this year.. and I have some walking ahead of me, eh?

On Monday, I'm back with the Crick Crack Storytelling Club, in the Soho Theatre again, for an interesting-sounding evening called The Heart of a Hero, apparently with an Egyptian storyteller. And on Tuesday, I'm back with the World Music Meetup, for Varlden's Band, in Rich Mix. Long time no see this group!