I was recently at Future Music Festival with my friend from the The Sunshine State. It was bitter sweet as it was the first and last time I got to go to a music festival with her before she headed back home to Japan.

Anyway, long story short it was a fantastic day, even though the sun was glaring down trying to give us all heatstroke (it’s March in Melbourne, it shouldn’t be this hot! Damn you global warming!*) I got to see Gypsy and The Cat, Temper Trap and Psy xD All were pretty amazing. **

The very last act of the night was Avicii and I swear everyone was there. I was in line to get into the mosh pit, where I met a cute guy. He wasn’t usually my type, but when you are at a festival, why not? Getting back to the story, I find out he was a Polish guy, on a working visa and he had only arrived three days before. There was an instant connection as I was in Poland last year and I know a few words and Polish sentences.

When Avicii started up, we started to dance and it got pretty steamy (I would never lie to my readers ). As you can probably deduce, it was then that I started kissing him. He was pretty darn good at it too! Long story short, we exchanged numbers (even though we both knew that it’s probably just an in the moment festival thing), I got the train to go home, gushed with my friend about him and went to bed. So all in all a perfect day.

Come next morning it was not so perfect.

I had to wake up at 6:30 am to get to class, and I realised that I was more tired then usual (I like to get up at 5:00/6:00 depending on the season/daylight savings). When I got to class my voice was super husky and by the end the day, I had no voice! The next day I was sniffly and what felt like, plugged up with phlegm. It was not a pretty site! It just got worse throughout the day. In the end I couldn’t go to the beach like I planned because I was home bound. The day after that, I called in to work saying I was sick.

The reason why I got sick is probably a combination of things (work/uni stress as this year I am doing up all my notes on the week/weekend and showing my friend around didn’t leave me a lot of time to relax and possibly the late nights and early starts) but the culmination would have to be a kiss with a guy that had just travelled internationally.

Let’s just say that for a girl who likes to keep on top of work, uni, a social life and keep a tidy house, getting ill now is a nightmare. Also getting sick over a guy you weren’t really invested in, really sucks.

So let me be a cautionary tale. If you have a lot going on in your life and can’t afford to get sick, keep your mouth away from other mouths, especially when they have travelled internationally.

{Image Source: The Weird Worder}

*For all you smartie pants out there, I know global warming/climate change isn’t all about how hot the earth has gotten, it has a lot to do with air quality, changes in seasons, rain, etc. I know that, but for the sake of the story, let’s call it a joke and move on

**I know everyone is over Gangam Style, but you have to experience it live with hundred of people (maybe even a thousand?).

If you happen to be in New York this month and next, or are travelling there, and you also happen to enjoy getting your gay history geek on, then you might want to check this out. Journalist and NYC expert David Cobb Craig is offering a SideTour that explores the homosexual history of one of America’s biggest cities.

Walk with David on an eye-opening journey through Central Park, while he describes the background, secrets and anecdotes of the many locations significant to gay history. Learn how the Whispering Bench got its name, how the Ramble earned its reputation and how the legendary landscape of Strawberry Fields was designed. Discover world-famous landmarks that have hidden stories as well as relatively unknown sites that are iconic in the gay community. Throughout the experience, David peppers the conversation with the history of Central Park from inception through design, providing facts and figures that weave a fascinating historical path from centuries ago to present day.

It’s $25 per person and at the time of writing, there’s 8 slots left for March 16th, and numerous spots available on March 24th, April 6th, April 20th and April 27th. New dates may also be added later so if you’re planning a trip over the Pacific in the near future, you might want to keep an eye on it!

Let us know if you’re going/you go – we’d love to hear about it!

[SideTour | Image Credit]

Mardi Gras is better known as Carnaval in Spain. The celebration also goes by the names of Shrove Tuesday or Fat Tuesday and it actually stems from Christian origins. It’s all about celebrating with rich, fatty foods before Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent. During Lent, Christians must either fast or give up some sort of luxury for a period of time. Traditionally, the celebrations involve dressing up in fun costumes, dancing around, playing games and generally enjoying yourself. Of course, the Sydney Mardi Gras has now been overtaken by the gay rights movement – rather ironic don’t you think? A Christian celebration that has been appropriated by non-Christians. Interesting how the tables turn huh? (*cough* Christmas *cough* Easter *cough*)

Anyway, I was lucky enough to go to Tenerife, one of the small Canary Islands. This set of islands sits just off the coast of Africa, but is officially owned by Spain. Locals, however, seem to consider themselves more Canarian than they are Spanish. Regardless, the town was very Spanish by culture  – and the Carnaval celebrations simply went off!

The celebrations literally goes on for weeks. I actually arrived late, having landed on the Tuesday itself, but I still caught the parade and fireworks that day.

But the party went on every night following. Ash Wednesday saw the ceremonial burning of the sardine (“entierro de la sardina”) where they burned an effigy of a sardine and shot more fireworks in the air, symbolising the burning away of the repression of the past.

Besides the food, the music, the party, the colour, the fun, there was one feature that made the whole Carnaval absolutely awesome. The number of beautiful, beautiful men. And beautiful, beautiful men with their shirts off.

Yes, there was so much eye candy, I feel like my eyes are going to need fillings. And travelling with a straight female cousin was the best – “ooh look at that guy” was said far too many times.

There was actually a “gay area” as well during the festival and on Friday night, it was absolutely wild.

At first, we went there and it was filled with kids – boys who looked no older than 16 at the most were there, shirtless and making me feel just a bit paedophilic. So we migrated to the side and over time, the crowd got a bit older. More like our age – men in their 20s looking hot and having a good time. And then as time went on, it seemed the crowd continued to age and by the end of the night we were definitely surrounded with men who looked at least in their forties. I’m not sure if this is the way it normally happens, but it was an interesting phenomenon to witness. Regardless of the age of the crowd though, the party was always happening and everyone was dancing. And Spanish men – gay or straight – really know how to dance!

What was also cool about the gay area, however, was that it wasn’t like a segregated gay section – there were plenty of straight people there, and we met many gay people in other parts of the city (yes, the Carnaval covered the whole city). It was just that this was the place known for being the gay area – and therefore gays felt more comfortable. And, of course, they played the best music so we stayed there most of the time for that reason. That said, my straight female cousin managed to pick up more than I did! She is a gorgeous little minx though.

Basically, Carnaval was this wild, crazy and incredibly awesome experience. I highly recommend it to anyone. And while we were there, we stayed in a little hotel called Hotel Horizonte. The prices were reasonable and the room wasn’t terrible. We had our own bathroom and the reception people were great. It was only about a five minute walk to any of the major areas of the city – which is also just far enough away that you aren’t disturbed at night if you want to sleep. It was actually kind of perfect and so if you’re going to stay in Santa Cruz, stay there.

Also, if you’re going to Tenerife, go stay in Santa Cruz. It’s further up north, so you’ll have to take a bus that takes about an hour from the airport, but it’s worth it. It’s a much more local city and you’ll get a more Tenerife experience. Of course, if you are looking for a more touristy experience, with beach resorts and pampering, then the southern city of Los Cristianos is probably more your style.

But if you’re planning on going to the Carnaval for 2014, then you’d better book fast and book in Santa Cruz – because that’s where it all went down. And it was awesome.

And here’s just a few more pictures, just because:

So Accoring to DeviantArt on Tumblr:

To expand on this, this is a chance to collaborate with Gaiman on matching his tales to your art.

The idea is 12 stories each relating to a month of the year. This means it  gives 12 different people from all artistic mediums the chance to produce and publish their art.

Submission of entries start from February 19th and close March 11th, 5:00pm GMT, all entries have to be in landscape.

Go to their website for more info or to submit! Or hear from Neil Gaiman, himself!

The illustrious Alicia Keys and Robert Rodriguez have also joined the BlackBerry Keep Moving project. To find out more just go to the BlackBerry site!

{Image+ Source Link}

Happy Valentines, everyone. I always thought Valentines was a ‘meh’ sort of day, but I do like the fact that it has given me this:

My favourite Valentine would have to be Hagrids’, when I read that I was all like ‘whhaaat?’ But then I figure it’s the sort of card I can give to my enemies, hehehe.

{Image Credit: Tumblr}

You’re never too young to be a genius – and never too young to come up with the next greatest idea in Science. Contrary to what many would think, we aren’t reaching a pinnacle of science. There’s still so much to explore, and the guys at Google know it. That’s why they’ve set up a whole online science fair, where you can submit an idea for what you think might just change the world.

“The Google Science Fair is an online science competition open to students ages 13-18 from around the globe. We’re looking for ideas that will change the world. To get started, all you’ll need is a Google account.”

There are some really invaluable prizes for the winners, including a 10-day expedition to the Galapagos Archipelago with National Geographic, a $50,000 scholarship from Google and a trip to CERN and Fermilab!

It’s a real chance to get some global exposure for that ingenious idea you’ve got that the world simply hasn’t done yet. So if you’re a gifted science geek within that age bracket then get on it and take your first step towards becoming a full-fledged scientist-inventor. Even if you don’t end up winning the prize, the experience would be more than worth it.

Apply online now, submissions are due by April 30th 2013.