Du 27 au 31 août 2008: BURNING MAAAAAAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Il était tant attendu, et c'est enfin l'heure d'y aller! Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee haaaa!!! Steph Roulland, Mister Kiss et moi sommes sur le départ! On l'a préparé bien comme il faut! Pu qu'à aller chercher la voiture de loc ce matin, la charger à mort, se taper les 8h de route sur une musique qui nous met grave dans l'ambiance et hop là Nicolas!!
Le temps de faire tout ça, de perdre un peu (beaucoup!) de temps avec l'assurance de la bagnole, que finalement on arrive à partir non assuré… après ce qui nous était arrivé l'an dernier, c'est du propre… m'enfin! De faire les arrêts pizzas et pipis réglementaires, on arrive à Black Rock City au beau milieu de Black Rock Desert au nord du Nevada vers minuit… le reste… que du bonheur!!!!
Sur place, on va retrouver Philippe le cousin à Steph Roulland, Yohan, Boris et Mui. C'est encore une fois indescriptible comment c'est trop fort!!! Je vais laisser les photos parler d'elles-mêmes, bien que la bienséance et le désir de garder nos appareil photo en état de marche nous aient beaucoup limité leur usage… les photos sont là.

En piqûre de rappel, mon expérience de l'an dernier est là.
Pour les anglophones, voici une description de Mister Kiss, pour qui comme Steph Roulland, c'est la 1ère fois.
Pour le reste… z'aviez qu'à être là :D

Le Burning Man selon Mister Kiss:
My first burning man experience in just a thousand characters ? Are you crazy steph ? Alright I'm gonna cheat and post many comments. Hope you're ready for it. I just loved it ! Overall, I can't think of anything else I've done that was more fun than this. Running in the desert, dancing more than you've ever done before, and when all your muscles hurt and you think you can't move anymore, dancing, dancing, and dancing again... the music and the atmosphere are just too exciting. Sleeping 2 hours, waking up at 9am cause it's too hot in the tent. Walking around, dancing, drinking, laughing. Being mesmerized by hula hoop girls. Learning hula hoop. Taking art cars and mutant vehicles without knowing where you'll end up, meeting people, playing mini golf, asking cute girls about more hula hoop tricks, playing guitar in a random bar, cooking sauerkraut in the dark, meeting people, and here you go again...
People had told me about burning man all year long, I had huge expectations, and yet I was surprised there, cause it's too creative and irrational for you to possibly imagine what it's gonna be like if you haven't been. It's hard to sum it up in a few words cause there's many parts to it. It's like being the most free and carefree that you've ever been, in a very nice place, and a creative environment, surrounded by people who feel like you do, for the most part. And it's not just about having fun, it's also inspiring. Being in the desert is just amazing. The sunrise everyday was fantastic, looking at the stars and the surrounding lights lying outside is unforgettable, and the creativity of many people there is stunning. The art is pretty cool, but the crazy art cars and the diversity of what happens there is the best part. Add great music on top of that, and you get this uplifting environment that forces you to empty your mind no matter what.
Also, it made me think. Cause you can look at it like a festival. But soon it starts feeling like a small town with its streets, its center, its residential areas, its public transports. Almost like a new society, where most of the things you're used to just don't exist anymore, or are replaced by their burning man counterpart, so much more fun and exciting that they seem to be making fun of the outside world, pretentiously saying "society lacks creativity, and everything is just better here". No money, no hierarchy, no adds... It doesn't seem like a big deal, but when you think about it, society has a set of implied rules, and whether you realize it or not, you're part of a system that you can't escape. You have to live by those rules 24/7. No matter what you think of them (you've probably never asked yourself the question anyway), it's nice to have a break once in your life.
It's nice to walk around and be surprised by everything you see cause it's so diverse, unpredictable, and original. It's just that instead of being shaped by big corporations, the world there is shaped by individuals. And believe me, those people are much more creative than corporate executives... They're much more relaxed actually, and it reflects in their work. Stupid commercials are replaced by hilarious street signs in the desert. And they're not even trying to sell you anything. When you take the bus, you're not sure whether it's a giant banana, a dinosaur, or a flying carpet that's gonna come. It made me think, cause we had so much fun and felt so happy with so little. I probably won't change that much the way I live, but I'm gonna look at things differently now. I'm not ready to go live in the desert and create a new society yet, but it does make you realize how much clutter society adds to your life.
When you leave in the morning with nothing in your pockets you're like "did I forget something ?". No watch, no phone, no wallet, no keys, no money... Actually you didn't. All you need is yourself. Then you start thinking "What was the use of all those other things again ?". For just a moment, it makes you realize how all those things you thought were essential in life really aren't. No emails to check, noone to call, no schedule to worry about, all you need to do is eat, and sleep. That's it. You'll probably want to have fun there, but you never have to, it's up to you. How does that compare to what you had to do today ? Or I should say what you thought you had to do. Trust me, if you haven't tried you don't know what freedom really feels like. And when you leave and you realize you've had one of the best time ever with a 30$ tent, a 15$ camping gas stove, and a rusted frying pan, you wonder whether "Into the wild" is not the way to go after all, "Societey, you're a crazy breed"...
The most ironic part being that you've barely used the tent cause you slept in random couches somewhere else most of the time. We work to improve our lives, and ultimately enjoy ourselves more, but we do so in a way that's so convoluted that most people get lost in the process, and mistake the mean for the goal, forgetting what they're working for. So what did I get out of it ? Great memories. Art is important. Whichever form it takes, whether it's sculpture, music, photography, or just the beauty of the landscape, being inspired is what takes you from "being satisfied", to a state of mind that I can't quite describe, but that really makes your life worth living. Lack of freedom and things you worry about are probably what prevents you from feeling truly happy most of the time. And once you're having fun, just share it with people in the same mindset, and it will resonate.
Intense freedom, intense happiness, lots of fun, crazy & endless dancing, cute girls, inspiring environment, awesome music, nice art, creative, fun & positive people... Did I say I liked it ? Unless you really hate electronic music (and even then...) just go !!! Life changing ? When you're there, no... When you come back and think about it... hum ;-) Addictive ? Hell yeahhhhhh !