When it comes to festivals, it is safe to say I am now firmly on the side of 6 out of 10 magazine and their stance in the article ´Why festivals aren´t for me´.
Now, I am the first to admit that Kate Moss and her crew of super cool friends still look amazing glamping in their Winnebago´s, complete with their own toilet and home comforts. And yes, the music is still super exhilarating in its brilliance. I am so looking forward to the Goddess that is Florence Welch headlining this Friday night. But I will be just as happy to watch it on the TV in my Menorcan hotel (blessed with all BBC channels) rather than actually experiencing it at Glastonbury.
Why? Well there´s the British Weather for a start. If I wanted to bathe waist high in mud, I would make sure it had some theraputic or beauty properties first – maybe in a Turkish mudbath? British festivals are well known for mud, rain and storms, it just seems the mention of the word ´festival´ seems to turn the best British Summer into Monsoon season!
And then there´s the toilet situation. The 6 out of 10 article hits the nail firmly on the head when it says ¨…It is insane how much of my festival hate is urinary based´. There are the portaloos filled so high you literally rise when you sit down on them. The obligatory peeing in a bottle, and then throwing it (if it´s cold it´s beer, if it´s warm it´s pee…) is a sad but true fact when you have found yourself a good space and don´t want to lose it. Why would we pay good money to put ourselves through a urine soaking?
Then there´s injuries. Pryers Solicitors have produced a great infographic of festival injuries that you can also view on the 6 out of 10 page. Falling whilst crowd surfing, being hit by flying objects, slips, trips, falls and all manner of crushes just add to the absolute ´fun´of festivals.
When you put it all together, maybe it is best to enjoy it all from the comfort of your armchair, with a clean toilet just a step away…
