Download Festival 2013 in photos and my stories (part 1/2)

I paste some photos I took here.. and just short notes to accompany them..
I'll just split them up to two postings, the second postings more on the bands I see, the different stages, the food, the camps...
This one, I'll talk a bit about the journey..., the long walks, some basic facilities, etc..

ok if you're camping, what I noticed from travellers, and seems they talk in all kind of languages so I pressume they are from all of Europe and South America,

they all took the train with me, but they alight at East Midlands station which is about 2 stations before Derby.

There is buses to bring you from that train station to the camping site of Donington Park.

So if you are intending to camp at the Donington Park Download Festival campsite, then you should alight at East Midlands Station.

In fact, Download Festival is well facilitated that there are continuous broadcast on the train to inform about which stations are best to alight for campers to Download Festival.

As for me I alight at Derby, as I decide to stay at Derby city. So I take the special buses like above two photos showing fans going to Download and also how the ticket looks like for the bus trip to and fro Derby to Donington Park. The buses can be found across the bridge from the railway station. Its quite a distance to walk if you decide to stay at the city centre of Derby and not taking the public bus to the railway station.

I am sorry if I got the spellings names wrong, ok once you reach the bus area for Donington Park there are a lot of bus services there serving rock fans to other areas not on Derby, I think places like Louborough or something.... and there are taxis...or you can always go out to Derby first before changing to trains. Not a problem really,the logistics are great its just that with 100,000 fans, many camping at the huge campsites, many using own vehicles at the huge carparks, and others taking public transport, you just have to be patient. Don't worry, even at night at the end of the last band playing, with all the crowd queuing up to take buses to different part of midlands, you just have to be patient as long as you are on the Derby queue.

But its tiring...

I think this is the small town/village of Castle Donington on the way....very very beautiful place.

I think there are also a number of lodging or backpackers place you can find here.

The time taken is about an hour if its heavy traffic, the walking time from the bus stand to the actual entry place is far, maybe a km or more? But you need to walk a lot at this festival because its so huge.

So you walk and walk....and walk...and walk...

Toilets is most important for me haha... So dont worry lots of portable toilets, you just have to be patient...

Lots of them...everywhere really, so no complains...

I think the ones at the camping areas even got those paying ones, more exclusive haha.

next,

this festival is unique because Clashes between bands happen most times...

That is why I MISS THUNDER BECAUSE THEY CLASH WITH MOTORHEAD... sigh!!

But maybe you really dont find any band interesting, you already eaten and drink and so you can join in the fun provided. You have sort of the merry-go-rounds, and you have the rapelling ones from one tower to another which looks fun, especially if they got stuck halfway and some guys start throwing bottles at them, but I think nowadays all beer bottles are plastic ones....

and you have the death-defying action packed fair attractions if you want haha.

one thing I really respect about the organisation of this festival is the facilities it prepares for rock fans who are handicapped in one way or another. You have viewing ramps etc.

So its common to see fans in wheelchairs ( manual or electric ones), blind fans , fans incrutches...

Basically I think even stage 3 inside the tents have this facilities. This is one facing the main stage.

So I just sit down on the (WET) grass, but its common to see people carrying those tiny portable easyto carry chairs.

I think I stop now...to be continued dont know when haha.. maybe this weekend...

Oooo tshirts......Maiden ones of course takes centerstage, but I think you can find tshirts from other bands, there is the Download official tshirts merchandise which is nice, but....once I realised Maiden got an event tshirt specially for Donington Park 2013 Download Festival...

you guys know where that British pounds go to haha.

Anyway, I took some very short videos to for my own memories of Download Festival 2013especially since I was a school boy I always wants to see Maiden headline Donington Park in front of their own countrymen... in this most legendary of places in the history of rock music..

So I think I upload about 15 of them to my YOUTUBE channel...just in case...

I'll talk about the bands next time if I got the chance...

One thing was, I was hearing from some guys during Download  about what happen in 2011 or was it 2010?

Seems when ACDC headline here, they got their own stage. I mean literally they got their own STAGE!!. and that is why? maybe their name is not on that years tshirt??

When I was there then I really understand it......ACDC got their own stage , solely for them haha.

Now that is ACDC haha.... But the area is so huge... I think Bon Jovi can fit their stage no problem...

Imagine a football stadium, Bon Jovi stage was like from one corner flag to the other.

I saw them at Villa Park, and I was like....AWESOME GILER!!!!

TO be continued.

ooo these are the videos...

http://www.youtube.com/user/tempehasuka666/videos