If I were to sum up Download 2016 in three words it would be mud, nachos, and rain.
We arrived on Wednesday with a view to getting a good pitch and the most camping for our money. Turns out this was a very good idea, as the pitch we got was still miles from anything, and would have been even more miles from anything had we rocked up on Thursday.
It became quickly evident that this year's Thing Everyone Shouts was "HOLD THE DOOOOOOR!" which is a Game of Thrones reference that I do not yet understand, and will not spend any time thinking about because I don't appreciate spoilers.
Here is our nest before it got grass and mud in it:
Thursday was sunny, so we drank and chilled out with our neighbours. They were very nice chaps, though they didn't stay our neighbours for very long because some other guys pitched their tents in our garden. To be fair, the space was massive so we kinda expected it. I was chuffed as nuts because I won cards against humanity. I also didn't get a sun burn despite being ginger and especially susceptible to being set on fire by the sun, and using sun cream that was a couple of years out of date. The answer, it seems, is to shelter beneath a big ol' pashmina for most of the day.
Friday - the day of the rain
I was preoccupied for most of Friday with the peril of hypothermia, since this was the day the rains came and I got drenched pretty much as soon as we got to the arena. When I checked the weather it said 3% precipitation, so I got over confident and let the rain just kinda happen, until I was so bloody cold I couldn't actually catch my breath, and I realised that maybe the rain might also have a weekend ticket to the festival. I got my poncho out, but it was too late. I didn't die of hypothermia though so I guess everything turned out okay.
We saw Alien Ant Farm, Killswitch Engage, and Korn, all of which are bands that I know and love a couple of their most famous songs, but am not so familiar with the rest of their music.
Rammstein were definitely in the top three bands I have ever seen live, if not the best. They are known for putting on amazing shows with FIRE, and they did not disappoint. The pyrotechnics were welcome seeing as I was still pretty chilly and damp, as well as you know, just being damn awesome.
Oh my god the NACHOS. I wish I had a picture, my words are not going to do justice to how amazing the nacho bowl was. To put it simply, the nachos were inside an edible bowl made of a tortilla, and topped with all the best nacho things. It was HUGE and AMAZING and horribly unhealthy.