Me, Myself, and Denmark: Roskilde - the Danish Woodstock

In the little city of Roskilde, every year they host a giant music festival with artists such as U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Coldplay. This year's the big names were Prince, Muse, Jack Johnson, Gorillaz, and Prodigy. There was also a ton of smaller Scandinavian artists, some African, and bands from all around the world.

My favourite performer of the festival - Jack Johnson

The tickets are about 250euros, but luckily I was able to volunteer and get in for free. I was a "pansamler" or "refund collector" meaning that I had to walk around and pick up cans and cups in order to get refunds which go to DanAid. They donate the money to eradicating poverty in Africa; it is a very broad mandate! My first shift was June 26 from 17.00-1.00; the music didn't start until July 1! I wasn't expecting there to be too much to do since Roskilde didn't actually open until 18.00 on June 26, but people had pushed the gate at 14.00 and the place was already full of people and cans.

This year 71,000 people camped out at Roskilde and 4,000 bought one-day tickets. It was a great time and unlike anything I had ever seen! In Copenhagen, there were thousands of people with camping backpacks, tents, and baby carriages full of beer, sleeping bags, and pavillions. All of Denmark slows down during Roskilde as most of the people are here. This year the attendants were 85% Danish and 15% internationals.

The 'clean and silent' area of the Festival

It was well organized; almost every band started on time. And everyone follows the rules of having the tents within the designated areas. It was like a little city with shops, grocery stores, and restaurants. Certain tents have been around for so long that they become popular among the attendants and they host parties and music before the actual concerts start.

People basically camp here from June 27 to July 4 (when the music ends) or July 5 and then they leave. And people leave almost everything behind; pavillions, tents, sleeping bags, clothing! I left right after Prince on July 4 so I missed the after ritual of burning tents. Even leaving directly after Prince I was still caught in a mad rush to return to Copenhagen; I got to the train station at 1.15 and missed two trains because they were all full of festival guests. Finally at 3 there was a train with enough room for my friend and myself and I managed to get home where I promptly showered off all of the dirt that had been collecting on me for the past several days.