If you're ever thinking about packing up a car and taking a road trip with your best friends, don't think twice, just do it. If you're all willing to take a drive, split on gas, and belt songs at the top of your lungs on the road together, you should absolutely do so. The destination, however, should to be just as amazing as the journey.

Music festivals are becoming more and more popular, and some festivals are gaining much more attention than they have in past years, due to social media as opposed to just flyers and word of mouth. New festivals are sprouting up each year. The demand is high, but have you ever wondered what's all the buzz about? I've always heard about festivals, but never actually thought about physically being there myself. It never seemed like something that would actually happen for me, like a pipe dream. Spending days listening to various artists live in the great outdoors? There's no way I could have an opportunity like that, or so I thought...

Coachella is a big music festival in California that has attendees who range from celebrities, to college kids, to the elderly. It's a major festival that's made quite a name for itself. Living in Pennsylvania, attending a festival 3,000 miles away on a minimum-wage budget didn't seem very reasonable. The tickets were fair, but it was across the country. Somehow I caught wind of a little something called Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tennesee. I read the lineup one year and after silently sobbing to myself over how beautiful the list of performers was, I told myself that I would attend the following year. Some strings were pulled, change was scrounged up, friends were assembled, and then my glorious best friends and I hit the road on an eleven-hour drive. There were five of us, not including a car full of our friends we were following who attended Bonnaroo the year before. I was tingling with anticipation and excitement; I couldn't believe I actually made it happen! I wasn't really sure what to expect. It was my first festival experience, and my friends' second. I was a festival rookie for sure, but I could honestly say the weekend was 100 percent pure bliss. I had the opportunity to meet some pretty amazing people from across the country, and believe it or not, across the world. I had no idea that people came from all over to go to this festival; I also had know idea how large the magnitude of festival goers was going to be. I've always heard Bonnaroo was like “the Coachella of the East Coast,” but actually seeing it all with my own two eyes was incredible. I was surrounded by over 100,000 people, the most who've ever attended thus far. I camped out on a giant farm, slept under the Tennesse stars, and watched the sunrise every morning. I've never been surrounded by so much positivity in my life. Everyone greeted each other with a high five or a smile. There was nothing to be mad about, it was like Disney World, it was to me the happiest place on Earth. All our cell phones were dead pretty much throughout the entire weekend, but we couldn't have had a better connection. I discovered some new artists who I have never heard of before and got to see some larger names such as Elton John, Jack White, Vampire Weekend, Skrillex, Zedd, Wiz Khalifa, Cherub, Arctic Monkeys, and Cage the Elephant. I was swooned and speechless by the Frank Ocean show I attended; I felt like he was singing directly to me. I cried very, very happy tears as I watched my favorite rapper, Kanye West, perform under a clear night sky and a full moon. Every day at Bonnaroo presented itself with a new adventure. Each night was more thrilling than the last. I can't believe how much I did and all the artists I saw in such a short amount of time. Let me tell you, it was worth every single penny.

Attending a music festival is truly an experience that brings people together. It makes you appreciate the little things, like seeing an ear-splitting grin across your friend's face as they watch their favorite artist perform in front of them, or dancing the night away with a stranger. You can really open your eyes and see that it's not all about taking pictures and tweeting about what you're experiencing at that exact moment, but it's about just experiencing it. It's about taking it all in, the beauty of it all, the power of people, and the power of music. The memories you store in your head can be much more precious than the ones you store in your phone. The aura of it all is astonishing. A friend passed a quote along to me regarding experiencing a festival that was something along the lines of “the social boundaries between individuals dissolve and people experience transcendence.” I couldn't agree or emphasize that enough. Everyone becomes one, the music brings everyone together no matter who you are, where you come from, what you look like, or who you love. Everyone's free in one place.

My best gals and I made memories and some friends whom we definitely will not forget at Bonnaroo. We couldn't have been more sad to have to leave such an amazing weekend and head back to our jobs and our home life, but we left with even more positivity than we came with, and that is honestly more than I could have asked for. A little crazy as it may seem, I've had a different perspective on the way I should go about life ever since. My crew made our own little pact to attend a festival together every summer; Bonnaroo inspired us that much. This past summer we attended a newer festie called Firefly, in Dover, Delaware, and had another thrilling experience for the books. It was a blast and a unique experience that I'll hold onto. Events like these are a place to let go, dance, scream, yell, laugh, and have sleepless nights, because there's too much fun going on. Forget about your worries and dance until your feet hurt, then dance a little more. You won't regret it.

Put some money aside and go, go, go! Festivals aren't as expensive as some may think; you get what you pay for. If you legitimately want to attend one, the great thing is nothing is stopping you! Plan and you can make it happen. There are festivals of all sizes, all genres, and all expenses. A large four-day excursion such as Bonnaroo cost me a $300 ticket (Firefly was about the same price). For one ticket, that may seem a tad hefty, but it is definitely worth the bill. It covers your camping pass (being able to camp on site with tents and a car for the four day weekend) and your general admission ticket, your key to seeing over 150 artists live. It's an opportunity that I think everyone and anyone who enjoys music should take on if they have they chance. It's not every day you're given the opportunity to see a plethora of genres playing in one place. One of the best thing about festivals is that they're general admission, meaning you could be in the very first row for a performer, or you could be in the back; either way it's something that you won't forget. For the majority of festivals there's no age limit, so all are welcome. Either take advantage of your youth, relive your youth, or have a youthful spirit throughout. Round up your friends, your siblings, or your significant other and take a trip. Live a little, worry about the rest later.