So I’m going to a Canadian festival roughly modeled after Burning Man alone this week. I’ve never gone to something like this before, but expect to have a weird time (hopefully in a good sense).
Have you ever gone to something kinda like this (BM itself, a regional burn, outdoor multi-day music festival with that kind of vibe)? I’d love to hear people’s stories/hard-earned wisdom.
Edit: It was the coolest thing I have ever experienced, and I now understand why people had a hard time picking out one specific story in this thread :)
Dunno if you’re still looking for input, but I did say I’d have more to say about this once I did it, so here it is:
I helped show someone to one of the camps when I was wandering about, and they gave me a great piece of advice: you can think of burns basically as a giant version of the smoke pit outside a rave or a club. Everyone’s having a good time, and 99% of people are open to whatever kind of pro-social interaction from the other participants.
Beyond this, unless people at theme camps are literally knee-deep in logistics/organizing specific stuff, they want you to talk with them. They want you to eat and drink the stuff they have on offer, sit in their plounges gabbing about whatever, poking the interactive stuff they made, asking random questions or sharing random stories (a good story is a gift!), etc. Basically, it’s a safe assumption that people will act like they (and in 99.9% of cases truly do) want you there being part of the action, as your most authentic self.
If you’re anything like me - a little more on the introverted side in unfamilar surroundings - it’s a bit of an adjustment. If you want to be left alone and communicate this, people will leave you alone. But if you want to participate, you will be welcomed with open arms, even if you’re a little awkward. ‘We welcome the stranger’, at least in my experience with the burn I went to, isn’t just lip service. It’s true.
Even if we put all of that aside, you know what’s cool? Seeing a giant ass structure doused in accelerants go up in flames. The burns went incredibly well, and it was certainly something to see in its own right.
Bro - pull the trigger on this. I really do think you’d have a good time.
Damn, there’s a local think happening near me in a couple days, but I already signed up for some shifts at work. But thanks for the encouragement! I’ll look into it more!