I’ve heard a lot of playa stories, but going myself was a much more intense experience than I anticipated. The environment is extreme, the dust pervasive, but the city is exhilarating and the connective possibilities really are magical.

The thing that surprised me the most was the public atmosphere where everything is gifted instead of sold and the norm is creative and cooperative rather than competitive. I made a pledge to “say yes” to new experiences, and this resulted in some fun escapades:

  • attending a “Nude Photographers Workshop”, where both the models and the artists were unburdened by clothing
  • taking a hotdog communion from a naughty priest
  • listening to Kind of Blue at maximum volume at 3am
  • climbing a vertical tower 45 feet in the air
  • delivering mail addressed to “a barefoot person at noon”
  • blissing out in a chime-filled chapel in the early morning
  • soaping up with Dr Brommers amid a hundred other dirty friends

It was something to experience at least once in life, and my campmates at BRC3PO were incredibly welcoming and helpful at navigating the space.

Playa Dreams
Photos on Flickr

Onwards, with renewed energy to build a better default world.