This is very beautiful, thank you so much Alexandra for taking the time to write this up and share it. I've always been curious about Burning Man but have been on the fence. The ethos & philosophy around Boom sounds much more palatable.
I also really appreciate that you included a reflection on this:
> One challenge at Boom is wanting to have a magical time but not having a magical time. I spent several days magic-hunting—going here, going there, and having moments of magic but feeling a little let down.
I feel like I often go to experiences like this where people report such transcendence and feel disappointed that not every moment is magical (It's hot, I'm thirsty, I didn't sleep well, it's crowded, I need some alone time, etc. etc. etc.) but it's a good reminder for me to hear that a beautiful experience doesn't mean or need to have every moment be transcendent.
Thanks for reading, Omar! Boom is like Burning Man light—a lot more infrastructure is provided for you, which makes it much easier. However Boom is still quite intense with the sun and heat. It ended up not making it in the final edit, but I originally wrote about how much the sun and heat wears you down—which is both good and bad, as it cracked my defenses and I became much more raw. My experience had lots of challenges, including overall feeling low energy from the heat and even catching covid at the end! Definitely was not all rainbows, but being accustomed to a more climate controlled life, I felt that braving the elements and having physical challenges was a fortifying experience.
This is very beautiful, thank you so much Alexandra for taking the time to write this up and share it. I've always been curious about Burning Man but have been on the fence. The ethos & philosophy around Boom sounds much more palatable.
I also really appreciate that you included a reflection on this:
> One challenge at Boom is wanting to have a magical time but not having a magical time. I spent several days magic-hunting—going here, going there, and having moments of magic but feeling a little let down.
I feel like I often go to experiences like this where people report such transcendence and feel disappointed that not every moment is magical (It's hot, I'm thirsty, I didn't sleep well, it's crowded, I need some alone time, etc. etc. etc.) but it's a good reminder for me to hear that a beautiful experience doesn't mean or need to have every moment be transcendent.
Thanks for reading, Omar! Boom is like Burning Man light—a lot more infrastructure is provided for you, which makes it much easier. However Boom is still quite intense with the sun and heat. It ended up not making it in the final edit, but I originally wrote about how much the sun and heat wears you down—which is both good and bad, as it cracked my defenses and I became much more raw. My experience had lots of challenges, including overall feeling low energy from the heat and even catching covid at the end! Definitely was not all rainbows, but being accustomed to a more climate controlled life, I felt that braving the elements and having physical challenges was a fortifying experience.
Thanks for your insightful comments!
passing the time under a tree with no agenda sounds like pure bliss 💓
thank you for letting us peek into your experience! now i’ve got the being gathering on my radar 👀
ooOOoOoh would love to be with you there!
Can you put a price on the sublime? 🥹