Well as you may have heard, One Night Stand got cancelled part way through. But it was still pretty good. Our group met up at about 9:30am and from there we had to pick up a few more. There we were, the 12 of us, finally on our way to the adventure of a life time. Nothing could stop us in our tracks... Well except for that toilet break.
Yup. We took a few group photos. Look, aren't they beautiful? Look at that blue sky...
Once we had all refreshed, we were off again. Again, nothing could stop us in our tracks. We drove (at the correct speed limit) to the town of Toowoomba. Here we refreshed again and supped together at the restaurant we people call McDonalds.
Where we saw one of the guitarists from The Medics. (my friend casually struck up a conversation while we were still in the van, trying to find a park. His reaction was the best when she said "Hey! Are you from the Medics!?" he turned around, and smiled as if he knew her and then his face changed to a look of slight confusion as he realised he didn't actually know her and that she was in a van full of people cracking up laughing from their conversation.
Friend: "Are you going to Dalby?, we are Dalby people going to Dalby...." *says quietly to self* "Ah WHAT!? No we're not... Oh man" hahahahaha It was one of the funniest things to happen on the trip.
While in Toowoomba, some of the group went on a gum boot hunt, as the forecast was that there was an 83% chance of rain in Dalby. BUT the rest of Brisbane and it's surroundings had beat them to the punch. As there was a particularly small selection of gum boots left to chose from. (Lucky for me, I thought ahead and bought some gum boots prior to the trip!) So some of the girls bought boots, although a few sizes too small... they were purchased just in case.
We all met back at the van and were off on our way again.
THIS TIME, nothing was going to stop us in our tracks.
We listened to Matt Corby and The Temper Trap to get keen (even more keen then what we already were). Then all of the sudden it started to rain...
But nothing could get us down! We were on our way to the night of our lives!
We cheered at every car we past and screamed "YEAH DALBY" every few minutes, until we actually entered the "larger then imagined" town of Dalby! Wooooooooooooooooooooo!
We got there and worked out the plans, just in case we got separated.
With jumpers, scarfs and gum boots on, phones in zip lock bags and ears at the ready, we ventured to find the show grounds. At this point it was raining and rather solidly too. So we made a quick pit stop to look for plastic ponchos but they had all sold out. But that did't stop us. We continued on, getting more excited by the minute.
Finally, the show grounds were in view! Just before we got there, we were informed that umbrellas weren't allowed.
So now, no ponchos and no umbrellas... "AH WELL" we said to each other and ventured on.
We had finally arrived! Walking through the gates was a great feeling!
The night started off quite well.
He was quite splendid! My favourite part was when he started singing Brother and the crowed went wild. The feeling in the air was electric... beyond incredible!
I also loved that the crowed sang along. "OooEeeoo, OooEeeooo, Ooooooo, Ohh, Ohhhh" Such a wonderful moment!
Thankfully the rain held off for a bit.
But it wasn't long before it started to rain again. This time with a bit more force. It looked set in.
It soon became VERY, VERY, SUPER wet! Which soon made it super cold! Words cannot describe how wet we were!
There was this one part during 360 (some rapper) when we were trying to get food and the rain was SO heavy! And it was freezing! So the group of us getting food (about 5 of us) huddled together under a tarp for warmth. But even in our huddle, we were all shivering. We got some food (which quickly became rather soggy and gross) and went back to the crowd. When we did, we were surprised to find that it was actually really warm! This was because of the body heat from the crowd. And it was so much so, that against the cold, there was steam rising from the crowd!
We stood through the end of 360 and waited for Temper Trap to come on... But unfortunately they had to CANCEL the end of the event, as water was getting amongst the gear and electronics and because of this, it could of been a possible danger. So, Temper Trap, who I was probably most keen to see was sadly cancelled. Thankfully though, they came out on stage and said a few words of apology. They said how much they were looking forward to playing and how disappointed they were that they couldn't.
With much less people in our group, we made our way back to the van.
When I got there, I had to ring out my scarf and jumpers and pour out the water that had filled my gum boots to the top!
Considering the fact that in the venue, in some parts, the water was half way up my lower leg!
So much mud! (Sorry this photo is blurry. That is because of the zip lock bag, which you can see the edge of in the photo)
So we started for home. Leaving Dalby (even at 9:30pm) was like trying to get to the city in peak hour traffic! It was nuts!
On our way, we made a stop at Gatton McDonalds, to fill our bellies and to clean and warm up a little. While there, we saw one of my beautiful friends and her brother. Unfortunately their car had broken down (convenient spot though... I mean McDonadls, cmon! Best place to break down haha)
So we hung out with them for a bit which was fun.
And then made our way home again.
By the time I got home, it was about 2:30am and I was still wet and quite cold.
We calculated that our group had spent about 17 hours together.
It was without a doubt, a great bonding experience. And a incredible memory!
Although it was all pretty nuts, I had a truly amazing time! I am so, so glad I went!
Even if I have been left with a horrid cold and no voice.
It was so worth it!
☼
