Waiting for the Backstreet Boys

Back - Index - Submissions - - What is RSS? Date: Jun 09, 2099 Source: Frankfurter Neue Presse Submitted By: Cisarovna@aol.com by Michael Dellith Frankfurt- Thick rolling tears run over the two girls totally overtired faces. They have to leave their over night place at the back entrance of the concert hall. In their arms they carry big teddy bears. "We have been here since yesterday at noon. We slept here," tells Clarissa (16) from Schwienfurt (a city). Now she and Gabi, along with about 50 other fans of the Backstreet Boys, must clean up their camp. Garbage, garbage bags, plastic bottles, and cola cans are left behind. Via loudspeaker, the police demand the teenagers to stand up and for a row on the sidewalk. The they should bravely wait until evening when they would be let in. "For security reasons," says a policeman, "We also did that two years ago." The security set out that in the evening that up to 12,000 fans will be there. The line fits around the whole concert hall. Also an ambulance with paramedics stand by. One worker says, "Until now everything has gone without any problems. Tonight there will be 70 helpers, so that all of the fainting kids can be quickly taken care of." Many teenagers spent the night in front of the fence so that they could be as close as possible to the boy group during the performance. In the line behind the fenced off area- before midday there were already about 250 fans - also waiting was the blonde Isabell (11). She also held a teddy bear tightly in her small hands. "I have been a fan already for two years," she tells proudly. Other than than she had a sigh with her upon which she had painted, "Nick, I love you!" in big colorful letters. Right next to Isabell, Tatjana (14) and Verena (15) are in line. The two girls have come from Mainz (a city). They have small teddies with them, but in spite of that they are really big on the boys, "We have been here since 9 am. Our parents brought us here. And they will pick us up after the concert." Even more considerate is the mother of the 14 year old Daniela. She has a comfterable camping stool near the street under a tree and waits patiently the eight hours until she and her daughter are let in. She does not appear to be the slightest bit annoyed. Exactly the opposite, "The weather is wonderful. The sun is shining. Food and something to read, I have everything with me. At the concert at the Loreley last time my husband and I tented down on the Rhine (river), the kids were up by the concert. But we will also have a nice day here." A little off to the side stand two girls that look a little annoyed. "We are not fans of the Backstreet Boys anymore," says Astrid (17) defiantly. "Yeah, before we were totally enthusiastic about them," announces her friend Jasmin. "We followed the boys all over, we went to concerts in Hamburg and Kiel. We actually went to Florida, and checked into the same hotel. We persuaded our parents to take vacation in America." But it is now over with the funny stuff. Now Jasmin and Astrid are selling all their Backstreet Boys devoted things, for example photos that they took themselves, for two, three marks a piece. Astrid and Jasmin have come to believe that the boy group is actually only a product of the entertainment industry and cleverly marketed. "They always said that they did not have any girlfriends. And then it came out- all lies. We were totally surprised." expresses Astrid. The first surprise of puberty sits deeply. Also out of financial reasons. "We have spent about 3,000 Marks (a little over 1,500 US dollars) on photos and pictures," estimates Astrid. "We are finished with them," says Jasmin. Now comes the hope to make good again. "We are still getting rid of our photos," says Jasmin and points to the increasingly long fan line. "They have not yet noticed that it is only something previously made up. But they come still at our age. Comment on this item. Recent Comments Submitted by: Kcezxyno It really does not seem fair can easily avail these loans without any difficulty., Comment on this item. Next Item: Boy power: They're topping the charts and melting fans' hearts Prev Item: BOYS POWER