Gurtenfestival 2014

I’m writing this post sitting at our big dining table and eating pasta straight out of the pot. Things you can do while home alone. In the corner I can see my bag, all ready for an early start tomorrow off to Ireland. But before I’m going to embark on this new adventure I wanted to write a quick post about the festival I attended last weekend, the one that I already mentioned in my Summer Bucket List post. So let’s get crackin’!

My friend Sarah and I are quite the beginners when it comes to on-site festival camping as we both chose other places to stay over night last year. I stayed at a friend’s house close to the festival and Sarah was camping down by the river. So basically, we had no idea when to get there and what to expect. When we arrived at the valley station on Thursday morning for the little train that brings everyone up the hill there already was a queue, everyone was cheerful as the sun was shining and people were already drinking wine out of plastic cups. You know, you have to empty the glass bottle before you get in…so down with the stuff! Because we were still quite early we had to walk all the way back to the end of the camping site. Note to self: don’t come to early. But at least it wasn’t as noisy during the night. Pros and cons, always pros and cons to everything.

We set up our tent, went back down the hill to buy some lunch in the supermarket and made our way back up to sit in the sun for the rest of the afternoon and wait for the first gigs to start. Biffy Clyro were playing that night which I was very excited about, as I’ve wanted to see them for quite some time now. They were absolutely smashing it and I was singing at the top of my lungs through the whole gig (something I did several times during the four days of festival and which made me sound like a 60-year old chain-smoker in no time)

The rest of the first night was filled with lots of laughing, acting silly, some dancing and getting back to our tent as the sun was starting to rise.

Not the sunrise but the sunset was pretty stunning as well.

That has to be one of the most beautiful views you get at a festival!

 A little more than two hours later we were up again. Damn you, morning sun! Tent + hot summer days = not your friend when you’re trying to sleep. We escaped the heat and moved our sleeping quarter under a tree to doze a little longer. I can’t handle not sleeping enough and I later fell asleep during while we were sitting on the grass listening to a band. We watched the Irish band Kodaline and headed straight to The Kooks on the main stage, only to realise that singing and dancing (even just standing) during two gigs in row is pretty exhausting.

Saturday started with a nice breakfast and some time off the festival site to relay a little. And oh boy, it was a good decision! We later needed all our energy for what was my absolute favourite moment of the whole festival: Franz Ferdinand’s gig. 

 See, I have this list at home where I write down bands that I really really want to see live. Franz Ferdinand have been on this list for a couple of years now and I never managed to go and see them. I was looking for a clip from their performance but wasn’t lucky so here’s one from this year’s T in the Park, just so you get an idea of how much fun it was. 

It was not just fun and in general absolutely amazing but also a great work out at the same time! Jumping up and down for 1.5 hours straight can get you quite sweaty as it turns out. After some more music, Nutella crepes and some mood swings from both, Sarah and me, we decided to head home at around 3 in the morning. There was a rainstorm coming and because we are nice weather camper, we spend the night in the comfort of our own dry beds. Very good decision!

The next day started with rain, so it was time for wellington boots and raincoats. We saw a band called Kensington and later Jake Bugg, who is one of my favourites, and during his gig the sun came out again! Still, we were just to knackered and there wasn’t much on the program that day to excite us so we made our way back down, home to dry off, unpack and go to sleep. Mostly for the last one.

Although there were some ups and downs, we had a great time and will definitely go again next year. Maybe I can practice managing some days with little sleep without turning into grumpy cat until then!

Thanks for reading! I will be in Ireland for the next 10 days but you can expect new post at the beginning of August. Have a lovely time.

xx

Making Memories

What’s your favourite memory?

If you asked me that question, I would probably tell you about that time I was in Prague with three friends and we got completely soaked on the way back to our hostel. We had been out until the early hours of the morning and when we finally decided to go home, it was raining so heavily that the streets got flooded. We stood under the roof of the entrance for a short moment, considering our options. Then, we took off our shoes and started running. As we were making our way through the old part of Prague towards our hostel (that was luckily not too far away) we were laughing so much it was hard to breathe, trying not to slip on the wet stones and splashing each other with even more water. It really didn’t make a difference at that point.

It might not look like an extraordinary special moment to anyone else, but to me it’s just priceless and my three partners-in-crime seem to feel the same. Just the other day one of my friends said that it was one of her favourite memories – the reason why I had the idea to write this post.

What makes a moment so special that you would put it in a box if you only could, seal the lid so that nothing escapes and just every now and again take a little look and relive it as if it was happening all over again? 

John Lennon memorial wall, Prague 2013

 You are constantly making new memories but only a few of them get stuck in your brain, possibly forever. I’m sure that my friends and I will still be thinking about that particular night in Prague in many years to come, but first, it’s time to make some more memories.

My bedroom is currently cluttered with clothes, sunglasses, a sleeping bag, a straw hat and other things that I should be packing, as I am getting ready for some new adventures. Fingers crossed that there will be at least one moment to add to the list of favourite memories.

My Summer Bucket List

It’s summer and I can’t say that I’ve made the most of it so far. As always, I have loads of ideas (nothing exciting, just your general summer stuff. Most of it involves food) but so far I just haven’t managed to drag myself up (from the sofa/bed?) and actually do something.

In my head, making a list of all the things I want to do in the next two months and put it on the Internet sounded like a good idea. So here we go:

Summer Brunch 

 I see fresh berries, milkshakes, waffles and definitely a nice little summer drink. I have saved endless recipes and ideas on Bloglovin’ and can’t wait to get a few friends around a table for a lazy morning filled with nice food.

How good do these Mango & Apple Daiquiris from Top with Cinnamon look?

  Enjoy Camping

 I don’t like camping. But I’m going to the Gurten Festival in less than two weeks and for the first year I’ll be camping on site. I can already see a lot of advantages of having a bed right next to the festival (like not having to get up that bloody hill every day) but at the same time, my comfort-loving self has its doubts. But I want to enjoy the whole thing as much as possible and just try and be relaxed about it. I will let you know how that goes. 

Make a road trip playlist  

I’m going to Ireland with three of my best friends at the end of July. We haven’t made any concrete plans but we are definitely going to rent a car in order to be able to explore on our own. So I thought it would be a nice idea to put a little playlist together to listen to in the car. I already have some songs in my head that I know will HAVE to be on it (there’s definitely going to be a little bit George Ezra, Saint Raymond, Mighty Oaks…) Let me know if you have any suggestions!

Swim in the river  

From where I live it takes about five minutes to get to the river. If you take 10 minutes you get to a point where you can enjoy a good half hour just chilling (literally) and letting yourself flow down the stream. When you get out, it’s again just five minutes to my doorstep. So what’s my excuse for not taking a plunge on every single warm evening? There’s no excuse. Honestly, I should be ashamed for not making the most of the location. I’ll try harder, I promise.

Make ice cream  

Last summer we bought an ice cream machine and used it once. ONCE! It’s a crime, I know. But now I already have all the ingredients and will start the ice cream making tomorrow. Matcha frozen yogurt anyone?

Go stargazing  

Not much to say about that one. Get a blanket, maybe a small snack and drink and go for it. Counting shooting stars is not optional.

(Go on a beach holiday)  

This one is still very vague but I haven’t been on a proper beach holiday for a while and at some point during spring this idea just came into my head and has been stuck there ever since. I really hope it’s going to happen at the start of September when the Mediterranean Sea is nice and warm and the prices are relatively low. Plus, I will need a new motivation to go work during August, as it’s a lot easier to get the hours done when you have something to save up for.

I will let you know how I get on with these. What are your plans for the summer?