Burning Man Sucks and I Don't Recommend It
It may have been cool once, but these days Burning Man is by turns boring and physically uncomfortable. I guess if nudity (of ugly men) or overfigured large installation art impresses you, you might like it.
I don't even know how many people I saw having a horrible time on drugs. I wish someone would send a memo: a dangerous desert prone to whiteout conditions is not a good place to do drugs. I know "dangerous" doesn't convince people, but how about this: it doesn't look fun either. I'm sure that if what you want is an outdoor rave, you can have a lot more fun in a meadow somewhere.
If you're a woman you can forget being treated like a human being out there. You are nothing but a piece of meat with exchange value. The money economy may be banned, but the sex economy is going strong. Frankly it's enough to make a one consider a burka as a fashion choice.
It's hard to fully express how physically miserable it is out there. The dust is caustic and very fine. It gets everywhere. Yes, including your sleeping bag and underwear. Since you have to put on sunscreen every day, but yet can't wash properly, you get these nasty bits of sunscreeny goop pilling on your skin. You can forget all about your hair. During most of the day it's too hot to move. During the night it's freezing cold.
Bringing your own water doesn't sound that bad until you realize that you have to take all your gray water home. You can set up an evaporation pool, but unless you invest a lot of money and resources into it, it will only create a nasty sludge. Then you have to take that home.
Maybe if the art was really cool or the "gift community" was really cool it would be worth it enduring the physical hardships. But actually you can kind of get used to the physical hardships a little (except for the prota potties), and it's the lameness of the art and "community" that makes it really suck in a deep way.
Maybe the regionals are better, but Burning Man is over. There's no good reason to go anymore.
Edited to Add: If you get your period while you're out there (and for some reason the harsh conditions make a lot of women get it early so don't think you're safe), you're going to have to keep the dirty tampons or pads with you and take them home. Fun, right?
I don't even know how many people I saw having a horrible time on drugs. I wish someone would send a memo: a dangerous desert prone to whiteout conditions is not a good place to do drugs. I know "dangerous" doesn't convince people, but how about this: it doesn't look fun either. I'm sure that if what you want is an outdoor rave, you can have a lot more fun in a meadow somewhere.
If you're a woman you can forget being treated like a human being out there. You are nothing but a piece of meat with exchange value. The money economy may be banned, but the sex economy is going strong. Frankly it's enough to make a one consider a burka as a fashion choice.
It's hard to fully express how physically miserable it is out there. The dust is caustic and very fine. It gets everywhere. Yes, including your sleeping bag and underwear. Since you have to put on sunscreen every day, but yet can't wash properly, you get these nasty bits of sunscreeny goop pilling on your skin. You can forget all about your hair. During most of the day it's too hot to move. During the night it's freezing cold.
Bringing your own water doesn't sound that bad until you realize that you have to take all your gray water home. You can set up an evaporation pool, but unless you invest a lot of money and resources into it, it will only create a nasty sludge. Then you have to take that home.
Maybe if the art was really cool or the "gift community" was really cool it would be worth it enduring the physical hardships. But actually you can kind of get used to the physical hardships a little (except for the prota potties), and it's the lameness of the art and "community" that makes it really suck in a deep way.
Maybe the regionals are better, but Burning Man is over. There's no good reason to go anymore.
Edited to Add: If you get your period while you're out there (and for some reason the harsh conditions make a lot of women get it early so don't think you're safe), you're going to have to keep the dirty tampons or pads with you and take them home. Fun, right?