Glastonbury....?? I just don't get it!

[Loosehead]

Now I may have missed the point here but can someone tell me the attraction of camping in a muddy field full of dope heads listening to what passes for music and paying hundreds of pounds for the privilidge?

[funnygirl]

An acquaintance here has gone, packing blankets, wellies, umbrellas, macs and lots of jumpers.
Rather her than me!!!!
Mad the lot of them.

[Kim A]

I thought the same, Loosehead, til I went, after many years of persuasion by my friend Phil, in the year that I turned 40 - it seemd like a good idea, and I thought it would shut him up for a while. Besides, he bought me the ticket, so it would have been churlish to refuse.

Now, i'm a high maintenance kind of a woman - I like home comforts, being warm and dry and well fed and I wasn't looking forward to it at all. Phil is a dyed in the wool hippy type, happy to bivvy down under a smelly old blanket in a leaky pup-tent. My husband laughed his head off whren I told him i was going, and gave me a wodge of cash so that i could come back first class at the sign of any gruesomeness. He knows me well, you see.

Going there changed my life - all I can say, really. REM by the light of a full moon. Ah, me.................................

Don't dismiss it out of hand til you've tried it.

[Loosehead]

Blimey Kim, your old man sounds very tolerant, I don't think I'd let my Mrs, bed down in a tent with some far out hippy!

[Kim A]

Ah, Loosehead, but you ain't met Phil. If you had, you'd know why Mr A is cool with the bedding down thing. Besides, Phil and I had the 'I love you, but you do nothing for me in that way' conversation many years pre-Mr A. And Mr a is dead cool. S'why I married him...............................

[andy-hughes]

You can deride any activity by taking a few aspects and exagerating them - football is just twenty-two over-grown boys kicking a pigskin full of air between two posts ... and so on.

Of course, life is never that simple. Glastonbury is a unique experience as a fsstival, gathering a vast range of diverse musicians together in a massive village invironment. People adore it, which explains it popularity - if it doesn't float your boat, then fine, but that doesn;t mean you can simply dismiss it as being a 'muddy field full of dope heads'.

Next you;ll be saying that Morris dancing is a strange pastime ... hang on, I haven't thought this through ...

[Will__]

andy_hughes - nice one.
Exactly what I was going to put.

It doesn't float everyone's boat, but then, isn't diversity a great thing? I love cricket, but can't stand football. But I tried playing and watching football before I said no.

As my grandfather used to say, you should try everything in life apart from incest and country-dancing.

I've been to Glastonbury three times; two dry, one wet. Loved all three.
It's a very tribal thing. I don't mean in some fake, overly hippified way, but being a field is a great leveller. With the exception of the VIP areas for bands & friends, there are no beds, few showers, everyone uses the same loos. There aren't any separators: cars, houses, restaurants, clean clothes, etc etc...

I rather like the fact that walking around in a field I can pass a merchant banker dressed as a flowerpot, a crusty in jeans, and a housewife with her kids in wellies.

It's gone a bit commercial in the last 15 years but then it had to to survive.

And with the exception of symphonic orchestra, Glastonbury has just about every kind of music you can imagine.

I think you should try it before you make up your mind.

[Loosehead]

There are children there? Surely not a suitable place.

[andy-hughes]

Lots of children go camping - which is what the Glastonbury experience is - and enjoy it, and have a whalw of a time.

Why 'not suitable'? i think the chance for children to spend a few days with their family in a totally new, fun, enjoyable environment seeing a seriously large amount of adults having a good time can only be healthy. A bit of mud never hurt anyone!

[Will__]

On the contrary, there are thousands.

There are family-only camping areas, family play areas, good food for everyone, and obviously you don't get too close to any of the stages since the speakers are very loud, but all the stages are so big that you can always enjoy the acts without getting close enough to the systems to risk any kind of hearing issues.

10 years ago I wouldn't have taken children, but with the current level of policing and security, it's really no more dangerous than taking your kids to a Blue Water on a sales day. In fact, probably much safer, in that it's a completely sealed/patrolled area.

Sure, there are some drugs casualties here and there, but if you go there to get wrecked you just do that and nothing else, you don't start intimidating families/kids. Go shopping in any major city and how many homeless people/smackheads do you see? (and let's not forget, it costs �145 minimum to get in! And that's before food, supplies, transport, clothing, tents, cash.....)

I think it's good to take your kids to places that aren't too squeaky-clean sanitized; we're too unaccustomed to any kind of dirt it's nice to go and rub your hands in the earth for once.....

And it is enormous. Absolutely gigantic. Room for all (and you never see everything; not even close). For me, it's great to be somewhere where, for the most part, it only appeals to 'nice' (or at least like-minded) people. Horrible word, I know, but it's kind of accurate. Lots of people smiling and having fun.

I hope you go some day.....

[Loosehead]

I just don't think children should be around adults taking drugs. Before you jump up and down that includes booze too, I hate to see children in pubs and bars also. I agree with the outdoors bit and camping and getting dirty all good fun for kids but not when the air is thick with various forms of smoke etc.

[Will__]

That's something that's up to each parent, of course. I would say, however, that unless you choose to, you really won't come across it.

I bet you could wander round the site for three days and only very ocasionally sniff the scent of some weed. Seriously - it's not as if people wander round with needles hanging out of their arms....

But of course it's up to each inividual parent. For my part, when the time comes (got an infant son) I shan't mind him being exposed to these things gradually - and explaining them as we go.....not when they're 6 or 8 or whatever (and at that age you could just tell them they're in a good mood anyway and be believed).But at some point.

Don't think I'm telling you how to raise your children - I would never presume - I'm just saying for my part, I think that hiding them from these things will just make drugs (be they spliff/speed/or coke) all the more dark and mysterious when they eventually do come across them (and they will - that's for sure).

Just my two cents.
Obviously not going this year but feeling it......going to have to watch a lot on TV (it's just not the same).

Cheers! Let's all hope for some lovely weather down there....

[smudge]

We used to make mud pies as children & I'm sure little ones would enjoy the same experience at Glastonbury!

Altho' I enjoy my home comforts too much these days!

[Goodsoulette]

I went for the first year when I was 13 and have been most years since, even the pregnant years.

I love it.... there have been a few muddy years and I was one of the unfortunates to get ecoli the first really muddy year. I had a pass this year as I was going to help out on my mates stall this year, however with the mudfest it is and school on monday its not worth it. I wouldnt have minded catching Pendulum buts not much loss. Ill just hold out for V!

[shivvy]

Hi Loosehead,

I reckon that this is a case of "don't knock it until you try it". 177,000 people in a field enjoying a bit of live music and not being bothered that they are hip-high in sh1te seems quite cool to me.

[jt011d3852]

I'm sure they are all mad