ABC Overseas

What do I remember about Rome? Our time in the city of Roma although the shortest, was a whirlwind of mixed feelings. Walking through the airport doors we were greeted by excited scheming taxi drivers and haggling customers. “Rome you were suppose to be the city of awe and romance,” I thought to myself. Shouting Italian men and clueless tourists were not how I imagined my first impression of you to be. Wary of what Rome had in store for us, we were delightfully surprised that our living accommodation exceeded our expectations. A large spacious apartment, our troop of 5 fit comfortably in our temporary home. I recall the sweetest of watermelon being consumed (and being left) there.  

Oh Munich, equivalent of a fond memory of summer love and lust. I could write forever about the castles, or our car ride there, or even about our spontaneous boat ride. McDonald’s right down the street from where we lived. A new bar waiting to become a long lost friend. French fries, weiner shnitzel, today’s special, learning stick, rowing down a clear blue lake, exploring castles, 50 cent shots, clubbing with our waitress, learning about Munich’s men. Summer love and lust. Trying to explore the city in only a few days, I’m lost for words on how to exactly describe beautiful and exciting Munich. I can only express my thoughts about a place with such a rich culture, Munich I shall be back.

read the signs above our heads as we entered Tomorrowland, my first ever electronic dance music festival.

How do I even begin to describe the event, the people, the feels- magical, diverse, all encompassing. The three-day event, of which we only went to two, was everything and nothing like I had imagined.

Electric Daisy Carnival got nothing on this. 

After enduring the 2 hour line to receive our bracelets we were well on our way to the highly anticipated weekend of EDM, excitement, and nights to remember.

photo credits: Alexander Chu

Two Euros for one ticket was the currency exchange of this makeshift world. Making water 1.5 tickets and food 3-6 tickets, hella expensive. The meatballs were however really to die for. 

So how did my first electronic music festival start? On the wrong foot, and my ass. Excited by all the mayhem, I ran down the giant hill between me and the epic dance party that laid ahead, stepped down on a slippery mat that in reality should have prevented this sort of thing, and came tumbling down the rest of the way on my butt, in front of hundreds of people. Some probably didn't even notice, some laughed, one even helped me up. I wasn't even drunk.

The main stage. My first thought was: manure. Dear god was it the odor of thousands of bodies packed with no space between them? Or was it the wet grass squished under the rubber anti-slip mats that didn't work. Probably a combination of both.

It really was that bad.

No matter, the wretched stench didn't stop us from anticipating what was going to be one of the most memorable parts of the trip.

Below was a crowd of hundreds of thousands partying it up. There were inflatable everything from beach balls to over sized bananas and dolphins to even people being thrown around above the crowd. It was complete chaos, but it was a view that we soon came to see as normal as the weekend went on.

Skrillex, Demetri Vegas, Armin, we saw all of the big name DJs. On stage they would play their hearts out above the mass of fans. Behind the electronic music stars, was a decked out steam punk-esque stage with full working gears, watermill, and large LCD screen. I kept thinking, is this even real?

Making our way through the crowd, we were greeted by others wearing Canadian and American flags, hugged by strangers, and welcomed by the blaring beats of whatever DJ was performing. By the time we reached the center, our legs were covered in mud, we were sweating like crazy, and someone had definitely tried to sell us drugs.

But the music, the atmosphere, and the hourly confetti windfall quickly made us forget our struggles as we joined in the jumping body of people.

photo credits: Alexander Chu

As night fell over the crazy scene, the light show really began as lasers shot from every direction and fire exploded from the stage. I stood with my friend’s under the fireworks on both nights feeling like these moments would never end.  

A moment during the first night was what was most memorable to me. In the mix of it all, suddenly I was being lifted off the ground. Was it a transcendial experience? Had I somehow gotten high off of the music or the atmosphere? I soon realized a group of guys had lifted me and my friends onto their shoulders. Looking around I felt infinite, soaring above the crowd. As my guy turned around away from the stage, i got a full view of the sheer amount of people surrounding us. It was phenomenal. I looked back to my friend group and one of my friends grabbed my hand. “DO not let go” she said. I realized that she was deathly afraid of heights. Soon the guys let us down as we laughed at how ridiculous that moment was. Armin Van Buren closed that night.

Paris, France

The man in front of me was wearing an Argentina jersey, probably for the game that was going to be on tonight. 50 euros saying that we’d probably be watching that too. He looked like he was in his mid 30s. On his left wrist was a bracelet made of brightly colored rubber hairbands, like the ones my friend’s little sister wears. I started to wonder who had given him the accessories- sibling after a visit to his parents maybe? Or did his daughter give it to him before he left home for the day? Where was he going now? I wanted to ask him when the subway car jerked forward and the crowd packed elbow to elbow, tumbled on top of each other. Shoes were scuffed, apologies were exchanged, bags were readjusted, and then everyone was normal again keeping to themselves in the small space that smelled like piss. God did it smell like it.

I felt a tug on my shirt, a signal from my friend that they had found a bigger area to stand in. We moved in front of a lady wearing a black hajib. Did she feel warm in that? I was wearing a sweater and leggings and I was feeling the heat from all of the bodies crammed together. The automated voice announced the stop we were at. I watched the blinking light on the map above blink and then fade away as the train lurched forward to the next destination. 3 more stops. I looked for the man with the bracelet, but he was no where to be found. I missed my chance. Our stop soon came up and we all scurried off the subway, going our separate ways.

Staying up the whole night before getting on a train for three-hours is one of the worst ideas. After our fiasco of rush packing and getting to St. Pancras station at four in the morning, we successfully made it to Paris! The day was very eventful- arrive at our airbnb apartment, shower, paninis for lunch, nap for six hours, dinner, sleep. At our first home cooked dinner in our Paris apartment, it was the first time our group felt a little like family. As we passed the baguettes and filled our glasses with wine, we shared what we expected from the trip and got to know each other a little better. So the day wasn't exciting, but definitely a positive step forward for our group!

London, England

We were off to a rough start- five people who barely knew one another about to embark on a month long trip together.

The time difference, the lack of sleep, and the small hostel room we were sharing with each other plus one stranger, was starting to wear our patience thin. For a while I thought that this trip was going to be a complete disaster based on the tension we first experienced.

After a few days though, after the jet lag and exhaustion disappeared, we learned to coexist in the small space we called home for 5 nights. More importantly we realized we were on the journey of a lifetime, as cheesy as that sounds, and that these experiences dealing with differing personalities, being outside our comfort zones, and cramped spaces was going to make one hell of a trip.

Give me that old school lovin’