Hello lovelies!
It’s that time of year again! Tents poles are being
untangled, wellies still coated in mud from last year are being dusted off, and
the country’s baby wipe supply is rapidly depleting. Which can only mean one
thing: it’s festival season once more!
Up until last summer I had only watched the festivals on TV,
envious of all the tanned, euphoric (probably totally spannered) people loving
life at Download, V, Run to the Sun, and Isle of Wight. But then, twelve months
ago, I got the chance I’d been waiting for: tickets to the biggest and best
festival of them all – Glastonbury.
And it was mental.
Like absolutely nothing I’d ever experienced before. So many people had shared
nuggets of info and advice prior to setting off, but nothing anyone says can
prepare you for the sheer awesomeness of Glasto. Picture a city made entirely
of canvas and mud, add in streets of food and handmade jewellery stalls
interspersed with huge open-air stages, and that’s roughly it. Oh, plus an
average of 100,000 people on-site at any given time. A far cry from the tame
familiarity of Brownie Camp for little ol’ me…
As a total festival virgin amongst many Glastonbury
old-hands last year, I learnt lots of useful tips for surviving the weekend at
Worthy Farm. So this year I’ve put together a little guide which might help
anyone popping their Glasto cherry. Even if you’re a seasoned festival-goer –
or, to use a term coined on the office Twitter lately, a #GlastoGeek – feel
free to have a nose. You never know, you might even get a couple of ideas!
Wet wipes and dry
shampoo
These two are first and foremost on the list because god
knows you’re going to need them at Glasto, and woe betide you if you’ve only
brought a travel size Batiste.
Baby wipes are ridiculously cheap in high street chemists
and supermarkets, and a decent-size pack ought to see you through the weekend.
If you can, try and find a small packet to carry around with you during the day
as well as a big one which can live in your tent. They’re lightweight and ideal
for a quick cleanse when needs be – though you’ll still have a solid layer of
grime come Monday!
Dry shampoo is a godsend on most days, but it’s never needed
more than when at a festival. Don’t bother attempting to wash your hair in the
communal running water troughs – it’s pretty annoying for everyone having to
wait, and at the end of the day everyone will be in the same greasy, slightly
whiffy boat (I’m really selling it here, aren’t I…). Dry shampoo will end up
making your hair stick out at all angles and it’ll be a dry, unruly bird’s nest
by the end, but it does help manage the grease situation and masks some of the
old, unwashed hair smell which becomes inevitable for guys and girls alike!
Hand sanitiser
This was a bit of a spur-of-the-moment purchase just before
leaving last year, but it turned out to be really useful to have when out and
about on-site. You can get tiny bottles of antibacterial hand sanitiser gel for
pennies from places like Boots or Superdrug – I picked this
one up at Wilkos for a grand total of 50p, and it smells delicious as well
as keeps your mitts nice and clean! When the hand-washing facilities become a
bit mud-encrusted, or there’s a massive queue, or the soap has gone AWOL, this
stuff is perfect and doesn’t take up your entire bag.
Pro Plus
When the weekend starts you’ll be on a natural high from the
festival atmosphere and the tasty food and amazing music, but as the nights
wear on and you end up crawling into bed later and later only to not be able to
sleep because the sun has already risen, caffeine will quickly become your best
friend. There are numerous coffee/tea outlets around the site, but a quick buzz
from Pro Plus will do you wonders (though don’t, whatever you do, wash down a
tablet with coffee. Take it from me, the crash from that combo is worse than
any lack of sleep!).
Sunhat
Not wanting to sound like your mother here, but if you’re
going to be out in the sunshine (it’s not entirely unknown for the sun to make
an appearance at Glastonbury, believe it or not) then don’t forget a hat.
Heatstroke is a horrible thing to have and will ruin your day if not your whole
weekend if you’re unlucky enough to come down with it. Go for a pretty, flowery
straw hat (I'm a bit in love with this one) for a really chilled festival vibe or a more retro baseball cap so
you can be bang on trend and sun-savvy all at once!
Snacks and water
Instead of having spent your entire budget on food and/or
cider by the Friday morning, take along some lightweight snacks to keep you
going through the day. Cereal bars are ideal for a bit of a sweet energy hit,
and the odd apple once in a while will make you feel better for the inevitable
pizza/burger/pasta/Chinese take-out diet you’ll be surviving on over the weekend.
Bring a decent size water bottle with you to sip from – it’s
common sense really, but if the sun does happen to come out you’ll be thankful
for a drink of water after pints of the local cider which, although tasty, will
dehydrate you even more. WaterAid stands around the site will fill up water
bottles for free so it’s definitely worth making the most of one if you happen
to be stumbling by.
Go with the flow
On entry to the festival you’ll be given a little booklet
detailing all the acts on all the stages over the weekend, as well as tips on
what non-music-based things are going on at the same time. My advice in this
respect, though, would be to not plan what you’re going to do in minute detail–
just try and see where the day takes you. Obviously make time for the acts
you’re desperate to see, and it’s okay to basically plan around them, but it’s
fun to sometimes go off agenda and find something new. By exploring a bit you
could come across a new band to fall in love with, or see some cool circus act,
or discover something to eat you’ve never tried before. There’s so much to see
and do at Glastonbury there’s not really much point in making hour-by-hour
plans. Just go off with a couple of mates for a wander and see where you end
up. It’s the best place to just relax and soak up the atmosphere.
Thick skin
Seriously, take everything with a pinch of salt at festivals
– you might find you’ll struggle a bit if you start letting things like dirt,
drunk people, and deplorable toilets get to you. There are no airs and graces
to be had at Glastonbury, so don’t start panicking that you’ve got a speck of
mud on your pristine shorts or that the smell from the long drop is too much
for your delicate nostrils to bear. No-one else will care, and neither should
you: there are way more important things to consider, and most important of all
is making sure you’re having the best fun and making the most of everything.
Even though the Foo Fighters are no longer headlining
(excuse me whilst I traverse a lake of tears in a boat of broken dreams), I’m
so excited for this time next week when we’ll have set up camp and gone
exploring whilst it’s still relatively quiet.
Are you going to a festival this year, Glastonbury or
otherwise? Have you got any advice to add to my list? Stick it in a comment –
I’d love to hear any pearls of wisdom from Glasto veterans!
x
x
No comments:
Post a Comment