9.01.2008

Burning Man 2008

I'm going to start this post by saying that I've decided that there is no way to describe to other people about what Burning Man is, what its about, or why people go. I'll do my best still knowing that it won't do the experience any justice, but here it goes.

This was my first time going to Burning Man and I couldn't have been in better hands. I was pretty nervous not knowing what to expect, what to bring, or if I could handle being out there for 5 days. Taylor has been going almost every year since '01, so he knew. He has worked the event several times as a paramedic so I knew he would take good care of me. Nerves settled, we were on our way.

We left on Wednesday evening and on our way out we had to stop for a pee break. At this stop there was the funniest sculpture of "Donkey" from Shrek. Since we were already in the mood for havin some fun we jumped up for a quick picture.

















Puttin on our mean faces. I guess the bug glasses don't look mean, but we do :)


Our first morning out on the playa.
After going out the previous night and dancing the night away, we woke up (drenched in sweat and dirt...yum), took a shower and headed out for some sight seeing.















By special request from our kids we had to take some pictures of the GIANT hummer. No, it wasn't functional, but it was huge. Mostly made of metal beams and plywood, it served no purpose but was really cool to look at. We climbed up on top to get a better view of the layout.

This was what looked like, the biggest jungle gym I've ever seen. At the very top there was a chair for one person only. People were climbing up and waiting to take turns to sit on the throne. It looked incredible at night. It was lit up in every color so you could see it for miles.



















The Temple
This was straight out across from "the man" all by itself. Its a temple that was made from scrap pieces or metal and wood and other miscellaneous pieces material. From my understanding everyone who visited it could either write something or leave something that would be burned on Sunday night. You were supposed to do this to help heal something from the past or let go of whatever it is that you were holding onto. Everyone found this to be a very spiritual place to be. Definitely peaceful.

Here you can see how intricate all of the pieces of the temple are.















This was the view from the top of the temple looking directly out at "the man"



Here Taylor was writing his piece to go up in the burn.





















The Tower of Babylon
This, unlike everything else out there that was made of wood, was made completely of metal. Just as it looks, its a tower of stairs and platforms in the middle of the desert. The fact that someone would have to completely construct and take this back down was AMAZING. It was sooo tall. We climbed up several different times because the view was so incredible.
Here is a view of about 1/4 of the city from the top of the tower.













THE MAN
After a day of walking and climbing we decided not to climb up the man, but as you can see its not just a stick sculpture made of wood. I was impressed at how detailed all of the sculpture was.

GOing OUT
This was my favorite part of Burning Man. Every night everyone would get dressed up however they wanted (usually less was more) and we would go out dancing and partying all night long. I have NEVER been to clubs or parties that were that big, in my entire life! It was amazing! The music was so good that it seemed to pick you up and move you with it. I like to dance anyway, but this was the most fun I've ever had.


















It looks like snowflakes in front of the camera but its really just small dust particles picked up by the lens. I'm not gonna lie, it was really dirty out there but no one seemed to care.
The Bubbles
Another one of my favorites. Taylor and I went for a walk one evening to watch the sunset. We walked out onto the middle of the playa to sit alone and enjoy the serenity of the evening. Just after the sun went behind the mountains, we turned around to watch the prettiest thing I've ever seen. There were about 20 huge bubbles all choreographed to music that would light up and seemed to dance in the desert. I could have stayed there all night wrapped up in Taylors arms watching the dancing bubbles.
They were actually made of latex and felt just like over sized balloons.
Before we left, we went back so I could have a picture of one of the "bubbles"



This was the attire for one of the nights that we went out to party in the city. I had decorated my outfit with fake rose petals and after all of the time that I put into that outfit, I was glad to see that it turned out really well. The fur coats were a life saver out there. It was a long walk across the playa and after a night of dancing and it would've been a dang cold walk without a coat.
















Playing with the boys...


A beautiful sunset from on top of the trailer.















Spending some QT with my boyfriend
It was a great way to get away from all of the responsibility that real life has to offer. We were able to be alone without our kids, or a house to clean or chores to do. We were inseparable from the time we left til the time we came home and we loved every minute of it. I feel so blessed to have such a great guy in my life.
The Dust Storm
On Saturday the entire city was a complete white-out from the dust storm that lasted for almost the whole day. Not wanting to miss out on an experience, we suited up in our hazmat suits, goggles and masks and took off across the playa. Thank goodness for our friend with the GPS system who was the only reason why we found our way to the temple and back because the visibility was down to about 20 ft. It was insane but we had so much fun!













The Burn
A great way to top off the trip. Saturday night everyone gathers around "the man" to watch him burn. Try to imagine almost 50,000 people all lit up with glow sticks (so that you don't get hit by an Art Car while crossing the playa at night) dancing to the music from the couple hundred different art cars. Its a truly indescribable experience. The fireworks went off and from several different explosions the man caught on fire. It burns in a huge flame until it finally topples to the ground.














The Exodus
We left on Sunday morning at around 11am. We sat in line for 4 hours waiting to get onto the road that takes you out back towards Gerlach. That is a lot of people!
Am I going to go again next year?
ABSOLUTELY!!!

3 comments:

Jo said...

Ahhhh! I am so glad you had a good time! Your outfits did turn out good! Where's taylors brown vest we found him? And where did you get all the fur? You looked amazing by the way, I'm sure you were sportin a better bod than most!

Anonymous said...

I Love You

Hayley said...

joleen is totally right. you look awesome! i love the rose petal outfit and your boots in the other photo. i bet it was nice to shower when you got home, or did you have one in the trailer? thanks for sharing.