See the big smiles? My natural high lasted for almost a week. Why almost? Why only a week? School got in the way of my happy. It’s hard to retain a natural high when you’re going through the dreaded daily routine of medical school. But it came back weekend. Then disappeared on Monday because I had an exam. Now, things are normal again.

But I promised myself (and a friend) to give a blow-by-blow… so here goes. People, this’ll be long… pictures compliments of Trish’s handy phone and a friend of my classmate scored the 5k tickets and brought her camera and I saved the pictures… Coincidentally, her friend’s name is also Katrina, nickname is also Kay, fave BSB guy is also Nick. But, no, it wasn’t me (I wish!) and I don’t personally know this friend of my friend.

I already talked about the pre-concert stuff in my first BSB blog, and since I’ve got nothing more to add there, I’ll go dive right into the meaty part of that night – the concert itself.

The lights turned off… people started screaming, Trish and I stood up and gripped each other’s arms, transfixed at the backstage. Brian’s head pops out… AJ, Kevin, Howie… Nick. I’m screaming my head off… Then boom! Lights on. I was too busy checking out the backstage I didn’t even notice that they were already standing on the steps on stage.



Those steps, up those steps, was where they made their entrance. I was expecting them to come running out from the sides or something. From what I had observed in the stage before the concert, I knew very well that they wouldn’t have an entrance like the one they had in Backstreet Boys: Live in Orlando, Homecoming Concert where they kind of shot out from some hole in the ground before belting out, “Heeeeey, that’s the way I, that’s the way I, that’s the way I like it!”

Anyway, they showed up, lights on, appropriate frozen moment to give the fans a chance to observe them and start screaming. According to Trish’s breakdown, their first song was The Call. I was too overwhelmed to actually take note of what song came next, but while they were singing I was singing (er… screaming?) along.

Kevin was HOT. I mean, he had a cap on and everything and you can barely see his entire face, but he was hot. His profile was, at least. And when you did see his face? Mm-mm-mm. I mean, the type of guy who’d definitely catch my eye if I was walking by. Brian’s hair was unnaturally, uh, light. I suppose he had just had his hair bleached – his hair was certainly lighter than Nick’s and Nick’s supposed to be the undisputed blonde of the group. And I kind of found it funny… AJ and Kevin were wearing these puruntong shorts. I can understand AJ – that’s the sort of thing he’d pull. And besides, I can imagine that they’d find my country hot. But Kevin? 35-y/o Kevin? In puruntong shorts and high black socks? Hahaha cracked me up. Still. Fashion humor notwithstanding, he’s definitely hot. Have I said that enough? Nick was… er… a definite cutie. Kind of big, though. Man, they were all so HOT! AJ had too much wild facial hair for our tastes, though, and I’m really grateful Howie’s hair is all nice and neat. But Kevin? Whoohoo! Sorry, Lee, I'm drooling on your man LOL



My man in the flesh… it was in their first song, when Nick ambled over to our side that I was so overcome with e motion, I screamed his name. It was so obvious, his reaction, he was going or looking somewhere else when I screamed. He stopped. He looked at our place. I froze. Then he went back to what he was doing. Then I screamed, belatedly, and yearned for the moment when I should’ve mugged for his attention. Damn. Missed chance.



10 years, man, 10 years of unrequited love and stalking fantasies. 10 years of being obsessed about them (well, okay, the last 4 years were kind of mild to nonexistent). And here he finally is. There he finally was. 12 feet away. Nicholas Gene Carter. Liar said he dug dark-haired petite girls, which is totally me, right? But who ended up his girlfriends? Willa Ford and the infamous Paris Hilton. Both tall, willowy, and blonde. I don’t think I can like any guy who liked Paris Hilton… still, seeing him in the flesh… watching him work the audience on the other side of the stage and wishing he were nearer us. First love never dies, they say, and it holds true here.

First song, we got stuck with AJ, Howie… followed by Brian and Kevin [who I totally shrieked and screamed for]… and finally, Nick. Must’ve been choreographed so that they’d give the entire audience maximal attention and nobody would feel as if somebody was concentrating on one part of the audience too much – whatever the case, it suited me fine.



Here’s the view from our seats – although it’s much nearer than that. I dunno why the camera view made it seem like we were slightly further back.

Next song was My Beautiful Woman which has, for some unknown reason, been my LSS (last song syndrome) every now and then since their concert – and I haven’t been playing their CDs or anything. Really. I like the part where they sing, “let’s stop talking about impossible endings” coz I keep singing it with a British accent LOL go figure, right? When it was my first LSS, I actually didn’t know what the title was, all I knew was that it was before Siberia. Now I know, of course. I also imagine people doing some fancy footwork in time with the music LOL what can I say? Got a weird imagination.

Next up was More Than That and I was stressing the ‘you’ in the line/s “I will love you more than that!” and pointing at whoever Boy happned to be looking our way. I think this was where Brian was looking at our side and I was jumping and waving my hand like mad and he waved back. And – boom! – lightbulb. If I wave my hands at the guys, some of them might see me and some might wave back… hm…



AJ had more tattoos than I remember him having… and is it even healthy to have one on his neck?



Then they did Climbing The Walls, Crawling Back To You, Shape Of My Heart. During Shape Of My Heart, Trish asked if the song came from their Greatest Hits album, without missing a beat, I reply, “Black & Blue. Drowning’s the one in Chapter 1”. Man. When it comes to them, is my memory that good? LOL

Then I think they had a outfit change – that is, they changed their shirts while The One blasted out the speakers and their video played on the big screen. And Trish was like, “Oh, yeah, sure, rub in the fact that we don’t have a kick-ass stage and special effects like they did” coz we had been complaining (semi) about how their concert had no pyrotechnics, no funky costumes. It was just them – not that I’m complaining, but I guess I expected to be wowed by special effects and costume changes. And, sadly, they did not change right at the backstage where we could see them. And there were no dancing girls - which was good.

As The One was halfway thru, the boys showed up again and sang & dance to the later half of the song, then they sang I Still, which is also a favorite song of ours, as we had just been talking about it pre-concert. Next up was I Want It That Way, Show Me The Meaning Of Being Lonely, Larger Than Life. Trish and I went all “aww” when they did LTL because the boys danced. We missed the dancing BSBoys. ‘Course, one part of us thought – the logical part of our brain that was still working: A 35 y/o is dancing these pop songs, a father is still making like a teen pop sensation.

We wondered if Kev and B-rok (coz we’re likethis) brought their families. Trish thought yeah, I thought no, especially since Brian’s kid is, like, what, 1-2 years old? Can’t drag a kid like that all the way around the world.

Then Nick grabbed an acoustic guitar and played… uh… a song. I can’t remember what. According to Trish’s list, the next song up is Siberia, then All I Have To Give, but that can’t be next because they had a costume change then… er… anyway, Nick strummed a guitar…



Guess Frick&Frack really are best friends, eh? LOL although Trish and I, pre-concert, were laughingly wondering if Brian’s dedication to “Prick” in their latest album was a typo or a deliberate misspell.

And I didn’t know about this:



Although I remember hearing that all the boys had tattoos and Brian, true to his religious side, had something religious-y tattooed on his arm.



Hm… can’t remember the chronological arrangement, but… I think they did I’ll Never Break Your Heart next.



No idea what they were doing here, but they’re cute, aren’t they? LOL



Although he’s not seen here, this was in the other side of the stage across from Trish and I. Nick was working the audience on the other side and then Howie jumped on his back (Howie’s wearing the gray shirt). When I saw that, I pointed it out to Trish, laughing all the while coz they were so cute and fun.



Also, quite funny and a little proof that Flips are way decent fans – none of that craziness. Because Brain went down the stage on stage right (remember, we were in stage left?) to shake hands with some fans… and when the fans realized this, they ran to his side and Brian quickly jumped back up the stage while the security people quickly went to stop the fans. Didn’t have to. See, when the fans saw Brian go back, they just kind of slowed and satisfied themselves with taking pictures/videos of him waving and smiling at them.

Nick also did two things to the fans that made me so jealous LOL he drank a bit from his mineral water bottle, then stood in the front, center of the stage, and ‘blessed’ the fans. He didn’t, like, throw water at them or get them totally soaking wet. He just kind of waved the bottle above their heads. Then one time, he went down the stage and stepped up on the barrier and hands, so many hands, gripped him. I was sooo envious! Imagine that. Ugh. Kainggit talaga. But out of all the Boys, he spent quite a bit of time facing the band and the big screen TV floating at the back of the stage.

Haha dancing! So cute! And you know what? Based on their dance moves, I think they’re singing That’s The Way (I Like It). I noticed they changed some of their dance steps… imagine that. I noticed that and knew that. Nye… hehehe is it showing just how obsessed I was/am about the BSB? Hahaha



Here we go… All I Have To Give and As Long As You Love Me. Just to show how much of a huge fan I was (and, maybe, am… as if you didn’t know already seeing as how this is my second loooooong post about the BSB concert), I noticed that the boys changed their dancing for their songs. They only retained just a few steps from their old concerts/videos. And their security guards are different too.

Also... for AIHTG & ALAYLM, I was mildly amused at Kev's and AJ's outfits. Remember I said they were wearing puruntong shorts? Well, imagine them, Kev especially since AJ's socks were... ok. Imagine this tall, hunky man wearing puruntong shorts... high black socks (reaching about 2-3 inches below the knee... with a shirt... a blazer... and a top hat. Yeah. Not really working it, eh? But surprisingly, it worked well with Kevin (and AJ). Or maybe it's just coz it's a concert and concert outfits are supposed to be outrageous? Whatever. Also, in AIHTG, Trish and I stressed the "Does his gifts come from the heart?" Hello... wrong grammar.

See the electric guitar strapped on Nick? Yeah. That’s for the song Just Want You To Know. Officially mine-Trish’s-Brian’s song. Hahahaha Nick started it by saying that AJ was a fan of rock stars and could we do the rock hand movements. Trish and I did. Then they sang our favorite song so, obviously, Trish and I totally rocked. Then Brian went our way… and Brian looked our way… we mugged… and he laughed, then he waved, then he waved his rock-hand at us… then he grinned… then he went back to looking at the other mortals. And Trish and I screamed.

Here’s Siberia... I remember because they had another costume/shirt change, then they stood equal distances apart on the stair-platform thing. Then, their one and only special effects, a fog machine, began making smoke. When they started singing (I forget the starting lines), Trish asked me if I knew the title and I was like, “Uh.. I don’t remember, but I love this song! Crawling Back To You, I think” (listens) “Oh my God! Trish, it’s Siberia! I loooove this song!!” And she’s like, “I didn’t know it’s Siberia, how did you know?” “They sing it.” “Really? I don’t think I hear the word ‘Siberia’ in their song.” “Wait, wait, wait…” (then the part comes) “See, it’s here: tan-tan-tan Sibeeereeea…” “Oh. I thought they were saying something else…”



Other songs they did was Weird World, Quit Playing Games (With My Heart). They did Drowning and Incomplete and I’m not sure which song it was, but in one of them, AJ asked “does everybody have cellphones?” and I was telling Trish, “duh! This is the Philippines!” AJ made everyone put up their cellphones, make sure the backlight was one, and wave them around – like you would candles or matches or lighters or whatever. It all looked so pretty! The entire Araneta looked like, in Trish’s words, “a moving galaxy”. Soo pretty. So cute.

They did I’ll Never Break Your Heart and Trish said that the song always reminds her of Lee. We spent a while of that song thinking how come the song would be associated with Lee. Trish thought it might be because Lee first fell for the Boys in their INBYH video, but I said that Lee’s first BSB video was We’ve Got It Going On. I said maybe because it was Lee’s favorite? Or maybe because we both gushed enough about our respective guys in that video. I dunno. Oh, for Lee:



Although the ROR is quite strong, isn’t it? My classmate and I were laughing about it, all “grabe, lakas ng red-orange-reflex niya!” And I’m all, “check out the pupils! Napaka-dilated naman!” yeah… I know… we’re nerds, eh? LOL then again, layman’s term, that’s the red eye in pictures, right? Same thing we’re doing hehehe except that we now know exactly why that’s there.

Ooohkay… after, they did this happy birthday thing. We thought it would be for Nick and it wasn’t for AJ either because he started it with “I celebrated my birthday last week”, but it was actually for one of their band. It was his birthday and they asked everyone to sing Happy Birthday. They gave impressions that they were leaving and Trish and I were like, “are they done? Is that it? It can’t be it! Kevin hasn’t played his piano!” (there was a piano across from us) Trish and I were also kidding around. Because Jessica Zafra went to a Ricky Martin concert and while Ricky was trying to make a social service announcement (“This song is dedicated to my friene, who died of AIDS” blah-blah) and the fans, overcome with emotion, just wasn’t getting that this was supposed to be a serious moment (“I love you Rickeeee”) so, Trish and I were kidding that when Kevin does his public service announcement (the song “Never Gone” on their latest album was a song Kevin wrote for his dad… and for all the people they’ve lost along the way), we’ll probably be go, “I love you Keveeeeen!!” hahaha

Anyway, so they made as if to leave, but of course, it wasn’t yet to happen. They went for a shirt change as the piano was rolled forward to the center of the stage.



They sang… uh… don’t remember what (either Drowning or Incomplete). Hm… thinking about it now… I think they sang Drowning with the cellphone lights and Incomplete with Kev’s piano. Hm... yeah, yeah, that's what they did. Coz in the video of Incomplete, Kev plays the piano. So, in the concert, he played too.

Anyway, after the song, something happened that cracked me and Trish up. So, after the song, there’s, like, this moment of silence to recover or something. And some fan throws this stuffed toy right in the middle of the stage, hitting the top of the piano, sliding/skidding, and slamming into Brian and AJ who both instinctively jumped out of the way. AJ made some comment like, “whoa” and Brian was, as usual, making everyone laugh by exaggerating his expression/reaction of surprise and actually falling on his butt. Grabe. Galing ng aim ng taong yon ah. Although I’m sure he/she had no idea that her toss would be that, uh, fantastic.

Also, the boys were really nice to their fans. Nick, AJ, and Brian kept mugging for cameras and videos. And if a fan was reaching out some gift, they reached back and accepted it. Nick also had a fondness for checking out the big screen. And singing to the band. No idea why. He also ‘borrowed’ a big official camera of one of the tour people (who had one of the cameras that projected to the big screen) and played around with it, pointing it this way and that. But then, he put it near his and AJ’s face and then AJ went away and then it was, like, upfront his face and Trish and I were like, “that is not a complimentary angle…”

Their encore was Everybody (Backstreet’s Back) and even though people were, like, “MORE!!” they didn’t go back onstage anymore after their bows… boohoo



They were facing our side here! Hahaha see, they bowed at the center… went to stage right and bowed to the fans there… then went to stage left and bowed to us (feel ko! Hahaha)… then went up the steps and stood at the top and bowed… then ran out.

After the concert, we realized that there were a bunch of foreign people sitting in front of us (5k seats) and Trish was like, “They’re part of the tour group” but they weren’t family. And I couldn’t understand why some of the fans were having their picture taken with them. Who the heck where they anyway??

Also… another side note. Because I want to embarrass myself further. There was this time when this guy was standing in front of me (since the 5k seats were lower, he was, like, up to my waist) and I forget what the BSB was singing and who were near us, but I was, as usual, enjoying myself and screaming and the guy, like, put his finger to his ear. Medyo nahiya naman ako, diba? Hahaha but it was a concert, right? And you’re supposed to enjoy yourself! And it’s a given that people will scream.

And speaking of enjoying and screaming and all that… during the start of the show, about first or second song, this mom-person goes up to Trish and, amidst all the screaming, I hear her say, not very kindly, “Could you move over or sit down? Coz we can’t see in the back.” Trish was all, “what?”
HER: could you sit down? You’re in front naman eh, it’s not like you can’t see them. Can you sit down? Or move over.
TRISH: I want to stand up. I want to enjoy the concert.
HER: but we can’t see. You’re in front already! You don’t have to stand up!

She was being all bitchy, it was annoying. Then she was all, “Are you not going to move?” and Trish was like, “No, I’m not.” And she’s all, “I asked you nicely already” and Trish retorted, “You did not. If you had asked nicely, I might’ve moved. But you didn’t. So I’m not moving.” And I totally seconded her. I mean, yeesh, the woman did not ask nicely. Even if she, like, said she did and repeated the sentence, like, 3 times or something. Then she dropped the ‘bomb’ and was all, “If you’re not going to move, I’ll call the security guard and get him to ask you to move.” And Trish, bless her soul, said, “Fine. Go call him.” In the end, the mom-person didn’t call the security guard, Trish and I didn’t move and when I glanced back… ye gods. The mom-person was with her husband and son, who was, like, maybe 10 or something. Trish’s mood of course, was totally blown and I was irritated with the woman for that. I mean, hello, it’s a freaking concert! Get over yourself! If you want to sit down and be all calm about things, then why the hell are you going to shell out 4k for a very nice seat? Buy the CD, listen at home – it’s cheaper and nobody will be “blocking your way”. Argh. Umiinit dugo ko when I think about her. Although I’m more pissed coz she ruined Trish’s night. Coz she did talk to Trish, not me. If she talked to me, then my night would’ve been blighted by her presence. My gosh. How boring can you be? If I were in her position, if I really was bothered, I’d ask nicely. And Trish totally had a point. If she had asked nicely, then it would’ve been okay, but she didn’t, she got all attitude-y about it. So… hmph. Don’t even know why she showed up.

Anyway, back to post-concert kwento… as I was saying, Trish said that the guys in front were tour people and I was totally prepared to ask if we could meet the boys. I even had a nice intro speech prepared: “Hi, I know you get this a lot, but is there any way we could maybe, possibly, meet the Boys?” Trish was kind of ‘eh’ about doing it but I was totally prepared… except that they weren’t going anywhere near our side and if I yelled, I wouldn’t exactly know what to yell. “Hey you”? Rude much. “Hey tour person!”? Insulting much. And if I just yell “Excuse me!” I’m sure I’ll get more attention than I bargained for and what would I do then? Wave at them to flag them down? Yeah, right.

Needless to say, we didn’t talk to the tour people… but we did wait out for the Boys at South Gate. Hee hee hee hee. Trish heard from the grapevine even before the concert that the boys were staying at Crown Plaza Hotel. Not that it did us much good since none of us had any idea where it was and how to go there. Anyway, while waiting out in South Gate and being unsure whether or not the boys were still there (although the guard kept saying na wala na sila), we were making parinig all, “Do you want to go to the Boys’ hotel? Diba they’re staying at EDSA Shang?” LOL mislead them was our goal. I doubt if anybody cared, but we had fun.

Turned out the Boys left immediately after the concert (expected). On the way home, we played the “Never Gone” album, singing along and reminiscing and laughing at our Brian moment.
Again, it was a total blast. If ever they show up here again, Trish and I are definitely going. And I’ll save enough to buy the most expensive tickets… and I’ll wear sneakers (wore heeled boots while Trish wore ‘sensible’ sneakers), I’ll bring my camera and I’ll brace myself and forgive intrusion into my personal space as I squeeze through people just so I can touch Nick’s ass.

So. They had BETTER come back.