Those who know me will know that I am not really a festival girl. They include too much mud, rain and sleepless nights for my liking. However, when I heard about Solidays, Paris's big summer festival, my mind was changed due to the simple fact that festival-goers were bused back and forward from the city centre every night. This was the perfect solution for me, I could still enjoy the atmosphere, music and all round merriment of a festival without having to freeze to death and suffer blocked up smelly toilets. Sounds dreamy doesn't it? Well it was.
Beautiful sunshine, incredible music, great crowd and a worthy cause. Solidays is all about showing solidarity towards finding a cure and help for those with AIDS. Something I could not be more supportive of. The weekend campaigns to raise awareness and to prompt government action into providing those afflicted with medicine. Des medicaments pour tous! During the weekend we took part in a "die-in", a sort of flash mob when festival goers all lie on the ground creating a human graveyard and in doing so create a powerful message for the world.
Raising out hands to providing medicine for all AIDS victims!
We also saw some incredible music over the weekend, and hopped, well walked, between the five stages to see as many bands as possible. Including Soma, Balthazar, Django Django and my new French favourite Tété. The highlight for me was being front row seeing the Hives, I have never been to a rock concert and for some bizarre reason being crushed against the barrier by a music-worshipping mob was my idea of heaven for an hour or so. Definitely ticked that one off the life-to-do list.
The festival continued deep into the night and we spend hours dancing in the Desperado's bar, watching break dancers and drinking warm beer from eco-friendly cups. Bravo France bravo!
On that point, the French have no idea generally how to organise anything, it usually includes months of endless amounts of complex paperwork. However, the French certainly know how to do a festival. No queues to get in, no queues for the toilets, good festival food, eco-friendly cups for all and the holy grail of all festival highlights.....toilet paper in the toilets!!! Very bizarre considering most French toilets are a positively inhumane experience. Enough about toilets, I apologise.
We found some cool storage containers that had been packed out with bars and fun, including one painted entirely in chalk paint so we could write fun messages in florescent pens.
JC and I very much appreciated the French attitude of "just because you are at a festival, it doesn't mean you should eat badly." Another point to France. We munched our happy way through gourmet burgers, italian gelato, nougat, pulled-pork baguettes and moroccan patisseries.
We rounded off the incredible weekend dancing the night away to David Guetta's incredible set, complete with fireworks, lasers and a rain-storm of glitter. I can't imagine a better weekend spent in Paris and it was the perfect way to bid farewell to the wonderful JC, a girl who has added a generous sprinkling of fun to my year in Paris. You will be missed.
Mood- tempted to go to Glasto!
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Thanks for all your messages, I really appreciate each and every one! B x