Hi there

[BeyondIndigo]

Hi guys, I'm Indigo. I'm 26 years old, female. I'm from England. I live in York but originally come from Liverpool, you know, where the Beatles come from I work as a support worker. Two and a half years supporting homeless people and not long since I started a new job where I support people with learning and physical disabilities. I love the work I do. I swear that if everyone knew how awesome people-work was they'd never do another job.

Um...I feel kind of silly. Because I only found out that Burning Man existed a few weeks ago. Since then I've been all over the website, FB page, Tumblr tag, Flickr streams, etc etc...and honestly I just made a snap decision that this is something I need to try and attend. I'm generally fairly sensible but this felt different. This felt instantly like...recognition. Like something I NEED to do. And I just never knew I needed it till now.

It's actually kind of funny because I've never been to "a festival" in my life. I always said I would never go because I'm quite partial to daily showers and a clean toilet. I have VERY limited camping experience and I've never been to an environment this harsh before. Oh, and obviously, the logistics of getting out there are pretty overwhelming if I allowed myself to think about it in those terms - which I'm trying NOT to do (I'm telling myself: "You just get on the coach and then you just get on the plane. You get off the plane, you buy some stuff. You hopefully find some people who will be friendly and give you a ride. It will all be fine.") these all feel like things I can deal with. And I know that based on everything I've just said I sound like a complete idiot ("Sparklepony" I believe they are called) but I KNOW I lack experience and I'm going to do my best to find out as much as I can before I go. I understand that the desert is a formidable place and I know I need to keep an eye to my health and wellbeing.

I'm not sure who I'm bringing with me yet, if anyone. My B/F is all indecisive about whether he wants to come. I registered for two tickets because three of my friends have also expressed an interest in coming. One of my friends I think would really benefit from the experience...but that's another story.

I've just realised how long this is getting. Ahem. I'm just really pleased to be here and in the ticket lottery.

[Savannah]

Official hello, & stuff.

It's actually kind of funny because I've never been to "a festival" in my life. I always said I would never go because I'm quite partial to daily showers and a clean toilet. I have VERY limited camping experience and I've never been to an environment this harsh before.

That was me, too. It worked out.

[JDCookMS]

Hey Indigo! Welcome to eplaya!

Trust me, I (and I think most everyone here) know how stressful it can be thinking about what we need to do in order to get ready to go to Burning Man. I do want to point out that I am also a birgin and everything that I am listing here I have either read on here or was told by other burners. I have a checklist of stuff to do and it makes me want to scream every time I look at it, but what has personally helped me is that I break it down into what I need to do every month. For instance: Feburary, I need to buy metal for the geodome, find a way to cut it and use a metal press to flatten the ends out... so, it's not really that much and if I finish that early enough, I can always add on more stuff.

Make certain that you read the Survival Guide http://www.burningman.com/preparation/event_survival/ as it has A LOT of useful information for people. Another thing that has been really helpful for me is I watched Halycon's Tips and Tricks videos on youtube and it gave me a lot of stuff to think about that I would not have considered. But, you should definitely consider at least having a list of stuff that you need to buy here and stuff that you can bring with you on the plane. For instance, if you can take a tent or whatever with you on the plane, then there's no reason to buy one here. I would google Burning Man checklists and check a few of them and see what exactly you think that you might need. As for finding people to ride with, people on here said that it's usually pretty easy and that a ride-sharing forum opens up on here closer to time.

Oh and an extreme no-brainer, check out the stuff here on the forum as there is A LOT of useful information that you just can't find elsewhere. Also, please remember that the search button is your friend.

So, welcome to the forum and hope to see you out on the playa!

[Elderberry]

Hey there, welcome to eplaya!

[lemur]

welcome..


as you seem to be reading up on stuff already you should have no troubles

ive met lotsa international folks at burning man that I meet and who have cycled through my camp through the years..

they always seem to be so comfortable and enjoying it all..


dont be afraid to ask questions

[TomServo]

Welcome to eplaya!

Check out the regional groups in the UK.. http://regionals.burningman.com/index.html

[BeyondIndigo]

Most of the activity in England seems to be in the South...and I'm pretty far in the North and it's difficult for me to travel

[theCryptofishist]

How far from Belper?

[BeyondIndigo]

Not as far as from the others, but A) I do not drive and B) I work shifts and don't have a weekend.

[theCryptofishist]

Forgive me. I"m sort of ignorant about both geography and travel logistics.

[BeyondIndigo]

I am too. LOL.

Also, English people have a different attitude to distance than people that come from large countries. Like I know that in the US people think nothing of crossing state lines to go to a party. In the UK, you'll hear people saying "but it's across town and that's too far!"

Due to my job, I could be required to work at any time of day or to do a sleep-in shift at night...so it's hard to make plans that involve travelling. It kinda sucks but it is what it is *shrug*

Is there a big burner scene in Derbyshire then?

[theCryptofishist]

I dunno. But one of my favorite english burners (or from anywhere, really) lives in Belper.

[Savannah]

I am too. LOL.

Also, English people have a different attitude to distance than people that come from large countries. Like I know that in the US people think nothing of crossing state lines to go to a party. In the UK, you'll hear people saying "but it's across town and that's too far!"

It's true. Two friends and I once drove from Seattle to LA for an epic party with a bunch of people we'd only met online. It was a 24 hour drive! In our defense, there was to be 2 full days of carousing, free accommodations, and a pool . . .

The Burn is closer.