Where do I begin…I guess the best place to start is to give a basic history of “why” I decided to get make the infamous journey to the small beach city of Sitges on Tuesday night. To make a long story short, it has been tradition to celebrate “Carnival” here for many a generation of individuals. The area provides a quaint Mediterranean city which is highlighted by its proximity to the beach and the short train ride from Barcelona. The Carnival celebration itself lasts for about seven days (February 11th – 16th, festivities end at sunrise on the 17th) and during that time, it is nothing but non-stop partying in this city. Furthermore, this cultural event is defined by the flamboyant costumes and the extravagant parades that the locals participate in that perpetually draw large crowds. To avoid getting too detailed into the “history” behind the festival, I will just try to provide a “lay-man’s” description of the history behind the festival. Essentially, the festival begins the week before the first day of Lent; in many ways, it provides the populace with an opportunity to engage in whatever “sinful” activities that they desire. People are basically free to do whatever they want for this period of time and gladly utilize that liberty. In most instances, people dress absolutely ridiculously, drink to excess, smoke gratuitous amounts of pot, and have sex on the beach; this is a bit of an exaggerated description but you get the idea. It should also be noted that the gay community makes a strong showing at this event as thousands of gay individuals flock to Sitges during this time; in most cases, the men dress up like women (as I did) or dress up like penises (a funny sight to say the least). Anyway, this is the scene in this city for all of the nights only to finally conclude on the Sitges beach early on the morning of the 17th – the traditional burial of the sardines marks the end of the event and the beginning of Lent.
Now, this is what is “supposed” to happen when you visit Sitges. You are given the opportunity to dress extravagantly, drink excessively, and just have an overall wonderful party experience. However, this is NOT how mine went…it is pretty safe to say that I made a good start to enjoying the festivities as I drank quite a bit and was “feeling pretty good” once I got on the train. Once on the train…that is where things began to take a turn for the worst. In the true spirit of Carnival, everybody was offering drinks to one another and I did not have any difficulty in finding free booze. I think the most basic math equation will paint a fantastic picture here – lots of booze (+) more free booze (+) inhaling whatever everybody was smoking (=) death. Yea, that about sums it all up.
Long story short, I only remember fragments of the night. My friends would like to state that “not remembering means that you certainly had a great time!” Although this logic is a bit tempting, it is certainly not the case…I got separated from my friends and I was forced to walk around Sitges for a few hours by myself because none of them had phones. Needless to say, it was a bit of a traumatic experience. However, I was able to take a few pictures but as you will see, I was definitely NOT walking in a straight line when I took them (clear indication of my intoxication). The night was finally topped off by having to make the journey home by myself…in a cab. Yes, a taxi took me home from Sitges. We’ll leave it at this, it was a “drunk decision” that required me to withdraw too much money out of the ATM.
All in all, I remember going to my Spanish class still completely drunk and that was a horrible experience (something that I will never do again). However, it was worth the experience to go and see Sitges during this traditional holiday. Although, I think the next time that I go I will try and be a bit more sober so I actually remember all of it…
Now, this is what is “supposed” to happen when you visit Sitges. You are given the opportunity to dress extravagantly, drink excessively, and just have an overall wonderful party experience. However, this is NOT how mine went…it is pretty safe to say that I made a good start to enjoying the festivities as I drank quite a bit and was “feeling pretty good” once I got on the train. Once on the train…that is where things began to take a turn for the worst. In the true spirit of Carnival, everybody was offering drinks to one another and I did not have any difficulty in finding free booze. I think the most basic math equation will paint a fantastic picture here – lots of booze (+) more free booze (+) inhaling whatever everybody was smoking (=) death. Yea, that about sums it all up.
Long story short, I only remember fragments of the night. My friends would like to state that “not remembering means that you certainly had a great time!” Although this logic is a bit tempting, it is certainly not the case…I got separated from my friends and I was forced to walk around Sitges for a few hours by myself because none of them had phones. Needless to say, it was a bit of a traumatic experience. However, I was able to take a few pictures but as you will see, I was definitely NOT walking in a straight line when I took them (clear indication of my intoxication). The night was finally topped off by having to make the journey home by myself…in a cab. Yes, a taxi took me home from Sitges. We’ll leave it at this, it was a “drunk decision” that required me to withdraw too much money out of the ATM.
All in all, I remember going to my Spanish class still completely drunk and that was a horrible experience (something that I will never do again). However, it was worth the experience to go and see Sitges during this traditional holiday. Although, I think the next time that I go I will try and be a bit more sober so I actually remember all of it…
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