Terrible (Read and have your say)

[Into my Arms]

The fact that you have only really latched on to my slightly exaggerated point about eating chips every night (I just meant I couldn't afford the expensive meals and was forced to eat snacks instead) shows you don't really disagree with the rest of what I am saying.

I gave this festival a real chance and saw as much as I could. There were good aspects as I mentioned above. Meeting some great people from all over the country, Durham, Essex, Belfast, Liverpool to name a few and seeing some fantastic bands, Metric, Fleet Foxes, Kasabian, BDB, Nick Cave and Regina Spector, who I didn't know too much about but she blew me away. Having the opportunity to discover new bands was a great part of the festival for me as was the random stuff such as the strange pink marching band.

Unfortunately, the things I menitioned in my post above sort of clouded it for me. It's my loss though at the end of the day so don't worry about it! I'm glad I have experienced Glastonbury and may even go again. I just won't be expecting some kind of spiritual experience. You just have to go expecting it to be a dirty shit hole where you see a few bands, some other random stuff and meet some cool people and maybe you won't be so dissapointed. People just need to realise what this festival actually is and stop kidding themselves.

Anyways, I have a life to lead now beyond talking over this over rated, commercial festival so am off but seriously it has been good listening to everyones opinions and this is a fun forum. I have shared my experiences and that is what going on a forum is about. It's easy to just reply to other peoples posts saying shush etc and just agreeing with other people in the safety of numbers...

[abu hamster]

I see glimmers of correctness in what you are saying.

but

The stall holders all pay to be on site. They charge what they like its called supply and demand. On site you can eat chips from £1.50 to £3.50 a portion. Why???????? when there is some of the best food at a festival you will ever see? I had goat curry a sweet thai curry and some lovely hand made nachos. You like chips because you were no willing to pay more or willing to let your gaurd down.

I think that the main think here the letting go an just having a good time. If you can step away from the normal existence and let your hair down a bit you will find the whole experience just a little bit more enjoyable.

Totally with you on the kids front Glastonbury is great but its a play ground for the above 18's not free range kiddies.

PS Nick was great!

[nina3d]

(I just meant I couldn't afford the expensive meals and was forced to eat snacks instead)

[cejx]

hmmmm... for me, Glasters isn't a 'spiritual' experience, but a just a damned good few days of getting away from the shite of normal life. OK, there were a couple of things that peeved me... namely rat arsed teenagers, but then, when I was a teenager, I was getting similarly rat arsed and was pissing off the 30 somethings, and the gadzillion Peaches Geldofalikes... but again, thats me being a grump! The litter could have been lessened by folk actually putting the rubbish in the bins.

Foodwise... food prices have increased 50% over the past few years... I can't walk into Sainsburys without blowing 100 quid, so inevitably, stall prices are going to have risen. We can't hope to pay 2 quid for a burger... and if there were burgers for 2 quid, I'd bloody question them! I was happy to pay 5-7 quid for a decent meal.

[mimis]

her mother turned to me and muttered sheepishly "...er yes, a little family I know in India." A family I know? how many Somerset families do you know with friends in Bombay?

[mimis]

Ohh and as for spiritual.. did you bother going to the peace dome in the corner of the sacred space?? Most spiritual I've felt in years and I'm v much the cynical athiest.x

[mimis]

Ohh and as for spiritual.. did you bother going to the peace dome in the corner of the sacred space?? Most spiritual I've felt in years and I'm v much the cynical athiest.x

[Redcanadahat]

wtf were your eyes shut? i saw f**king SHITLOADS of policeman this year. more so than every other year i'd been.

[TomfromStroud]

When I went to one of the little markets by the circus field, I saw a lovely decorated tin, with pieces of mirror and other colourful intricacies on it. It was a set of three and at £6 I thought it was very reasonable and that I would be helping out a small business. Then the bombshell struck. The sellers tired looking nine year old daughter, who was also serving, spilled the beans. After I asked her who made them, thinking I was prompting a proud exclamation of "my gran" or "aunt Pearl" she looked to her mother, with a slightly confused "I cant remember if I am allowed to say this" look on her face and blurted out "my mum gets them from India". Ha! a bloody sweatshop in India! Embarrassed, her mother turned to me and muttered sheepishly "...er yes, a little family I know in India." A family I know? how many Somerset families do you know with friends in Bombay?

[Laura_Babs]

Just to pick up on your comment about children at Glastonbury, I saw so many happy kids there. They were on their parents shoulders dancing and singing, sitting on the floor relaxing, asleep in their pushchairs, etc... The first thing my mum said to me when I got back was 'They had something on TV about children at Glastonbury and they all looked so happy'. My mother isn't someone who has ever been or is likely to ever go to Glastonbury so she isn't biased.

And the two kids who had the innovative idea of carrying a supersoaker and setting up a sign saying '10p for a soak', looked like they were having a brilliant time and I thought it was a great idea! I did scare them slightly though when I gave them a pound, they squirted me and I screamed!

The only time I saw a seen with a child that made me raise an eyebrow was when a man came through the crowd at Prodigy with a kid who was about 4 or 5. I was standing by the sound booth and they came from further forward than me and I was a bit at that!

[Kyelo]

I'm only going to comment on one thing, the eating chips thing. I bought this stew from a wee place towards the Queens Head I think, it was made by a michelin star chef, served in a real bowl with real spoons and I had a waiter. Cost me £7, nuff said.

Edited June 30, 2009 by BenchBuddah

[Messi30]

OP - you didn't realise you can't criticize Glastonbury on here? the peace and love brigade will just shout you down and insult you. Having said that most of what you have written goes for any festival I've been at.

[llcoolphil]

Glastonbury is not a spiritual, mellow experience, lets get that straight now. It is a dirty, commercial hole serving only to make money.

[verrymerry]

As for the 'vastly overpriced' comment, I will say that you didn't look very hard to find some decent food. One of the best things about Glastonbury is the quality and variety of the food, and many outlets offer good food for acceptable prices.

[waterhg]

he also did laughing gas

[Alcatraz]

which gave him a boner

[llcoolphil]

which gave him a boner

[nightcrawler13]

which gave him a boner

[Cheesey]

Take Permaculture for example. ... A big slice of homemade cake for £1.

[waterhg]

What a spot!!

[purell]

The prices were so expensive I found myself eating chips for tea every night, nice one Eavis I hope you enjoyed your caviar.

[KatiePC]

Glastonbury is not a spiritual, mellow experience, lets get that straight now. It is a dirty, commercial hole serving only to make money.

The prices were so expensive I found myself eating chips for tea every night, nice one Eavis I hope you enjoyed your caviar.

Now for the hippies.

I've never been so angry as seeing a stupid bandana clad 35 year old woman pushing a pram with all kinds of stuff sufficating her poor kid. All you could see were his/her (sex inderterminable) short little legs peeping from this ridiculously overloaded pram. The amount of kids I saw crying at that festival was unbelievable. They don't like it so give up the dream and stay at home, or get a babysitter. Your kids should come before your lazy hedonistic vibe chasing. And as for the four year old boy waving a fire candle and then getting bollocked by the very hippy who gave it to him, dont get me started!

Going back to the greed of Michael Eavis and the organisers. There were blatantaly too many people in that toxic field for it to be safe and even close to comfortable for the £180 paying punters. But who cares when the more you cram in the more money they make. The bottom line is they dont care about your experience.

And where were the cleaners on site? I've seen less rubbish on a tip. It was like dancing in a Chinese landfill site. The bonfires full of plastic were disgusting too. But with next to no steward or police presence around the festival, who could stop that. Of course, Eavis wouldn't want to jeapordise his precious arrest figures by paying for extra police presence now would he.

The best festival ever, lower crime, doesn't he say that every year? Obviously when you rely on citizens arrests the figures will be rather low!

Now back to how commerical the festival is, brace yourself for this - seriously.

When I went to one of the little markets by the circus field, I saw a lovely decorated tin, with pieces of mirror and other colourful intricacies on it. It was a set of three and at £6 I thought it was very reasonable and that I would be helping out a small business. Then the bombshell struck. The sellers tired looking nine year old daughter, who was also serving, spilled the beans. After I asked her who made them, thinking I was prompting a proud exclamation of "my gran" or "aunt Pearl" she looked to her mother, with a slightly confused "I cant remember if I am allowed to say this" look on her face and blurted out "my mum gets them from India". Ha! a bloody sweatshop in India! Embarrassed, her mother turned to me and muttered sheepishly "...er yes, a little family I know in India." A family I know? how many Somerset families do you know with friends in Bombay?

I live for music and wanted to go to what I thought was the biggest celebration of music on the planet. But this was not good. I'm glad I've been however and there were definately snippets of fun. I met some fantastic people and when I wasnt getting crushed to death due to Eavis cramming far too many people in, I saw some great music.

What do you think?

[Edi M]

Everyone sits at the main stages all day every day.

Edited June 30, 2009 by Edi M

[spammachine]

Yeah! When I saw Michael Eavis he had caviar all around his mouth and in his beard!

[Pauljoanss]

To summarise my post above for people who have short attention spans and have to reply with deep incites such as shush or twit:

Dirty

Burning plastic fires

Hippies selling goods from Indian sweatshops

Hippies sufficating their children with excessive loads over them on their pram in extreme heat.

Hippies allowing there 4 year olds to carry fire sticks.

Not narrow minded, just what I saw...I'm actually very open minded and after five days at the festival consider my opinion to be informed and objective.