Denmark has won the ESC 2013 with 281 points, beating runner-up Azerbaijan by 47 points.

To the delight of fans who attended the afterparty at the Euroclub Emmelie de Forest later presented her winning song against the backdrop of a glowing Danish flag. Also seen at the afterparty were fellow Nordic contestants Krista Siegfrids (Finland), Eythor Ingi (Ireland) and Margaret Berger (Norway).

It was a huge disappointment to fans of Finland at the Malmö Arena when Krista was placed 24th. out of 26 contestants with a total score of 13 points (awarded by Denmark, France, Germany, Israel and San Marino). Many had hoped that Finland would have been at least in the top 15, but being Finland the country will surely be back again next year, ready for another try. The split jury/televoting results have not yet been released, and it would be interesting to see if the jury and televoters had awarded differing votes to Krista's song, since apparently there was some hoo-ha in some countries about the girl-on-girl smooch at the end of her performance.

We say goodbye to host city Malmö with many thanks for its welcoming hospitality and a well-organised event, and see you next year across the Öresundbron (bridge) in Denmark!

Suomalaiset euroviisufanit ja muut Kristan fanit kokoontuivat hyvissä ajoin Areenalle fiilistelemään loistokasta Kristaa. Häähuntujen määrä olikin valtava ja fiilis loistava. Vaikka suomalaisen iltapäivälehden toimittaja erehtyikin luulemaan että kyseessä juhlitaan Suomen menestystä jääkiekossa oli kyseessä Euroviisut ja Krista Siegfridsin kannustus.

What a night it was with ecstatic fans, a great selection of competing entries as well as pop stars Darin and Agnes on stage as interval acts - here are some snapshots of it: https://picasaweb.google.com/RossKamarulBaharin/Semifinal2Qualifiers?authkey=Gv1sRgCOKuwLnagsHY3QE#slideshow/5878947666998613090

Europe has voted for ten countries to qualify from Semifinal 2 to the Grand Final on Saturday. Naturally there was some disappointment among the fans at the Malmö Arena when their favourite contestants were not selected, or when a song which was not a favourite did make it through (in this case Armenia).

There were quite audible boos going around the Malmö Arena when Armenia was called out, which to many others in the Arena was not good sportmanship and in fact was downright silly. The 11 000 attendees in the Arena are only a tiny fraction of the televoters and juries around Europe, and the majority had decided that Armenia would proceed to the Grand Final - like it or not, this is the way it is.

Before the live broadcast of Semifinal 2 started at 21:00, Euroviisuklubi had called for a gathering of fans of Finland at the Arena, and many turned up dressed in wedding finery. Even though there was a message on Facebook that Krista might be attending the gathering, in the end it was a good thing that she did not - she should save her best for the stage, which she did when she gave a tremendous performance which took Finland to the Grand Final: whoopee!

Again the Semifinal 2 press conference yielded some cute little bits of info. Overheard..

When asked if he would bring the ESC back to the Land of Fire Azerbaijan, Farid Mammadov (Azerbaijan) replied, "It's a good idea..".

When asked what she would like to say now that she had qualified to the Grand Final, Krista Siegfrid (Finland) replied, "I was wondering if Farid wants to "Marry Me"..".. To which the Azerbaijan contestant replied, "..If you will "Hold Me"..".

When asked how he felt now that Malta is in the Grand Final, Gianluca (Malta) sang, "Euphoria..!".

"Thank you..", said Eythor Ingi (Iceland) when the event hostess teased that he looked so cool.

When asked what brought Greece's entry "Alcohol is Free"to the Grand Final, Ilias Kozas of band Koza Mostra replied, "Maybe some people were a little bit drunk..?".

The Armenian contestant is a band called "Dorians", and when asked which of the five band members was actually Dorian, the reply was, "No one..".

When asked the secret of his cool demeanor on stage, ByeAlex (Hungary) ruefully said, "Actually I was really nervous..I almost fainted..I didn't have time to eat..".

When told that her many young fans usually comment that she looks like Lady Gaga, Margaret Berger (Norway) jokingly said, "..If you look at my video on Youtube from 2006, I say that Lady Gaga looks like me..!".

When asked how important it was for them to qualify to the Grand Final, Nodi Tatishvili (Georgia) replied, "..This is important not only for us, but also (to) Georgia..Today in Georgia is a mourning day because three soldiers died in Afghanistan..".

When the event hostess teased Cezar (Romania) that he was "different", a pouting Cezar replied, "Not SO different..". Then the event hostess commented that many people thought that he looked like Dracula, and Cezar (Romania) ad libbed, "..or Nadia Comaneci..".

Krista on suorassa lähetyksessä juuri ennen omaa esitystään. Eli viritä tietokoneesi taajuudelle: http://supercharged.eurovision.tv/ ja kuuntele Kristan tunnelmat ennen suurta koitosta.

Press conferences are always good places to pick up scintillating bits of info, and the Semifinal 1 Qualifiers press conference last Tuesday night was no different.

It was interesting to note that unlike previous years, this year the qualifiers would only draw to decide whether they will sing in the First Half or in the Second Half during the Grand Final next Saturday. The actual position numbers among the 26 available places will be decided later.

Overheard..

When asked how she felt to qualify to the Grand Final, Birgit (Estonia) replied, "It was a surprise for me because Finland was not in this Semifinal..". (Ross: as the ever-loving-neighbour Finland would certainly have voted for you, Birgit!).

When asked about her barefooted performance, Emmelie de Forest (Denmark) said, "I feel comfortable not wearing shoes.." (Ross: and pretty feet she has too..).

When asked why she looked emotional on stage, Dina Garipova (Russia) said, "It is a song about all of us..We are One..". During the voting Dina had a doll with her which she said was "..a gift from my fans - a little grandma..". (Ross: wonder if the grandma fan was one of the Russian grannies who sang last year?)

A journalist commented that Ukraine keeps sending beautiful female singers and asked Zlata Ognevich (Ukraine) if the country actually has any handsome male singers. Zlata replied, "Of course, we have VERKA SERDUCHKA!".

Before Anouk (the Netherlands) could draw her performance position in the Grand Final, she was asked if she would prefer to draw the First Half or the Second Half, to which a curious Anouk replied, "..What's the deal..?".

Roberto Bellarosa (Belgium) revealed that he had made a bet to cut his hair if Belgium made it to the Grand Final (but we don't know exactly when the hair cutting will happen though..let's wait and see how he looks next Saturday!). The Belgian Head of Delegation said that Roberto should celebrate his success, but she will keep a close eye on what he does because he is only eighteen (..aww, Bless..).

Ignoring the non-political nature of Eurovision and this year's slogan of "We Are One", a journalist asked Alyona Lanskaya (Belarus) if a win for Belarus this year would help the country become more open and democratic. The concerned event hostess said that she was not sure if the artist would be able to answer that question but would let the artist decide what to do, and Alyona Lanskaya simply said, "I love my motherland, and if we win everyone will be welcome to Belarus..". (Ross: You GO girl..good answer!).

When asked how long her dress actually was, Aliona Moon (Moldova) replied, "We don't know..". (Ross: the dress really is long..and high..and lights up..).

Ryan Dolan (Ireland) admitted that his priest is coming to Malmö to see him perform, and before Ryan left Ireland the priest even "..Gave me a medallion to keep in my pocket..". (Ross: no wonder Ireland is so successful in Eurovision when even their priests are involved..).

When asked to whom he dedicates his song, charming Andrius Pojavis simply said, "For my country..".

Here we go with Vola and Dingdong - these are just some of the exciting bits to look forward to on Semifinal 2 tonight.

Fans here at the Malmö Arena had a sneak peek at the staging of Semifinal 2 last night at 21:00 during the 2nd Dress Rehearsal - this was also the event when the jury of of the participating countries together with France, Germany and Spain will cast 50% of the total votes to decide which 10 countries will proceed to the Grand Final next Saturday.

The Malmö Arena did not seem to be so full last night as it was at the Semifinal 1 rehearsal last Monday, but certainly the entry procedure has been improved and the lo..ong lines of last Monday were no longer there. Security also has been improved with the presence of police with anti-explosive sniffer dogs.

Judging from the rehearsal last night, Semifinal 2 tonight promises another spectacular show, from the ululating Romany melody of Macedonia's Esma & Lozano through the dramatic expression of love by Azerbaijan's Farid Mammadov to the cool elegance of Norway's Margaret Berger.

Other than the possibly titillating above-the-knee skirts of the Greek guys of Koza Mostra, there will be few eye candies for television viewers tonight, but Semifinal 2 itself is enough to excite - after all, it is EUROVISION!

Krista Siegfrid (Finland) delivered an amazing performance last night with a cute little twist at the end, so to find what that is remember to tune in tonight at 22:00 Finnish time to YLE2.

Finnish fans will gather outside the Arena this evening at 18:30 dressed in wedding finery to show support for Finland's entry - Krista has said that she also might attend.

Finland votes tonight, so keep you handphone nearby and help decide who will proceed to the Grand Final, perhaps even some of these: https://picasaweb.google.com/RossKamarulBaharin/Semifinal2Rehearsal?authkey=Gv1sRgCJvh7Inc-pustwE#slideshow/5878559052107075586

Kipeät jalat unohtuivat eilisissä OGAE Internationalin järjestämissä juhlissa. Bileet olivat neljännet mitä on järjestetty ja kaikki OGAE -jäsenet olivat tervetulleita paikalle. Faneja riitti kolmelle tanssilattialle jotka olivat illan täynnä ja jono sisään kiemurteli pitkin Folketsparkia. Kiitos OGAE Internationalille, juhlat olivat menestys ja uskoisin että osallistujamäärässä tehtiin ennätys.

Artisteja oli paikalle saatu paljon ja DJ:t soittivat takuuvarmasti kaikki suosikkiviisut. Tapahtumassa arvottiin myös yksi lahjakortti OGAE Finlandin ja Tallinkin järjestämälle Euroviisuristeilylle elokuussa. Tänä iltana matka käy areenalle kannustamaan Suomi finaaliin. Fanit kokoontuvat häähunnuissaan hyvissä ajoin Areenalle kannustamaan Kristaa. TODAY NR 5.

Päivän kuumimmat Euroviisu-uutiset löydät http://supercharged.eurovision.tv/ -sivustolta. Siellä TeliaSoneran euroviisutoimittajat Riikka ja Jertta raportoivat päivän kuumimmat Euroviisu-uutiset. Toimittajakaksikkohan on Euroviisuklubin jäseniä.