Who watched the Eurovison Song Contest Saturday? I had never seen it before but someone told me I would enjoy the music and dancing, the whacky costumes, and the general European zaniness of it all, and he was right! It’s really fun!

For the uninitiated, the ESC is a musical competition in which countries that are members of the European Broadcasting Union submit songs (well, I guess they really submit singers…) to be performed live during one big, crazy night and are then voted on by people in the member countries who are watching the show on TV. No one is allowed to vote for the song from their own country; you really are supposed to vote for the song you liked best. This year, the contest ran for three nights, the first and second nights being semi-finals where the initial 43 entrants were whittled down to 25 for the big Saturday night show. The “countdown” at the end of the night, where representatives from all 25 countries announced which songs got the most votes from their countries, was exciting.

I know it all sounds cheesy and “American Idol"-like but it’s better than you’d expect. The contest has a long history, too. It started in May, 1956, and was an attempt to bring some unity and cheer to a Europe that was struggling to rebuild itself after the war. Of course the format and glitz-factor has changed over the years, but the unity and cheer is still there and it’s so interesting to see what kinds of song and dance routines the neighbors of Europe are offering to each other.

Russia was the big winner last night with a song called “Believe.” It wasn’t my favorite song but the dance routine was definitely the most entertaining of the night. How the ice skater managed to fling himself around on that tiny stage is beyond me but it’s the funniest thing I’ve seen since "Blades of Glory." (Note: I’m actually not sure it’s supposed to be all that funny…) Here is Dima Bilan:

Norway came in a very respectable fifth place with Maria Haukaas Storeng singing “Hold On, Be Strong.” It’s a lovely song and she’s got a terrific voice but, to be honest, I’m surprised she got so many votes because her backup singers are boring and robotic. They’re hot, though, and that counts for something in ESC, if the skimpy outfits worn by the ladies of Germany, Greece, Sweden, and Ukraine (and the dude from Israel*) are any indication. Here’s Maria:

I felt sorry for Husband while we were watching because Britain got hardly any votes even though their song was a perfectly catchy popfest by Andy Abraham. Britain ended up tied for last place with Poland and Germany. Poor Britain.

A couple of songs I liked a lot came from Bosnia & Herzegovina and Spain, both of which were weird and wonderful. But my favorite song of the night---the one I think should have won---came from France. It’s Sebastian Tellier and he’s fantastic and loads of fun. Catch the point where he inhales from his balloon…

* Yes, Israel. See why I get confused about what is Europe?