Top 10 Musikfest tips for 2007- from me, an artist at Handwerkplatz, who actually has only attended the festival once as a normal festival goer and not as an artisan.
10) Walk around, see everything, that includes the artisans and even sit and listen to some polka for a few minutes. You don’t need to love it, you need to experience it, there is lots of music out there to try from many different cultures, you may be surprised what you like, and at the very least, enjoy people watching and watching people enjoy themselves and each other.
9) Don’t get too drunk. Try and remember that the alcohol has a diuretic effect- this means you will need to pee a lot (in porta pottys) and will be thirsty (and water isn’t cheap). And on the 95+ degree days, drinking a lot will increase your changes for dehydration and heat stroke. Not to mention being an adult and stumbling around drunk makes you look like an ass.
8) Prepare for the weather. The hot can be brutal, and dusty. The rain can be warm, cold, light, or hard. And yes, it will probably rain on days they don’t think it will, and not rain on days they do. Bring a backpack, carry raincoats, and just go on rain or shine. It can actually be more fun in the rain- less people and easier parking.
7) Parking sucks, even for those of us with a parking pass. Get there early, and please, please don’t park in a marked lot. We need to park there, get to our booths/areas quickly and safely, both at the beginning of the festival and at the end. It is not easier “to pay the ticket than to look for parking”. Most of us vendors make our living doing this and making us walk farther (and even sometimes pay for parking) because you are parking in our spaces is a really bad way to start and end our day, and ultimately, you pay for it, both in the ticket and at our stands, because our prices rise to cover expenses.
6) We are not information booths, if you need information go to an information booth or find a volunteer. Honestly, if it’s not the closet potty to my stand, or the same dozen vendors I am near all festival, I really have NO CLUE what is going on. I spend 120 or so hours in a 10x10 tent, honestly trying to make as much money as possible.
5) Don’t treat free food samples like they are there for you to eat as lunch (or dinner). There is plenty of free things to do and enjoy, if you want a snack, buy one. I say this because a few years ago our local newspaper did a huge disservice to a small company by announcing their free samples were not only available, but a free alternative to buying a snack or meal. Yes they got a crowd, yes they did make some sales, but they went through a ton of product to boot, just giving out samples to people who had no intention of buying, ever.
4) Be nice. Be nice to the volunteers, the security, the vendors, the musicians and entertainment, just be nice to everyone. You will get it in return. This is a place to have fun, so have fun.
3) Pack and bring in some food and water. Now I know this isn’t supposed to happen and if you do it you are sort of breaking the rules, but man prices are hefty, and lines can be long. I have a great cooler that is a backpack, stick in some frozen water bottles, some cookies and chips, and maybe even a bologna sandwich. You’ll thank me. But don’t try walking in carrying around a huge cooler, its frowned upon. If you get a good parking space you can leave your big cooler in the car and just walk back for a snack too. Then you can turn on your car and blast the AC while you eat.
2) Try and keep porta pottys clean. I mean, people, just because they aren’t yours to clean doesn’t mean you don’t need to aim. Enough said.
1) And my number one tip is to dress accordingly. If you are 60 and don’t look 16, don’t try and dress like it. Bras are not optional (for most people, you know who you are). Flat shoes work best, there is a lot of walking and some of it is on grass, or in the mud. I’m all for fashion, but if you are all emo, or goth, or whatever the "I dress in all black" fashion is called these days, at least wear black shorts, you can’t really be comfortable in all that garb. It makes me hot just to look at you.
No comments:
Post a Comment