This past weekend there was a huge festival in Neuchâtel, called Fête des vendanges. It is a huge tradition for the town, celebrating the vineyard harvest. Basically it's a huge three-day party and the whole town goes completely insane. It was great. The first night I went out with Meline and some of her friends, and we just explored and ate cart food and rode the carnival rides. It was incredibly fun. There were various stages set up all over downtown, and DJ's, bands, and performers filled them with music and entertainment. The festival officially ended at 4 each morning, so buses pulled through the streets hauling packed, intoxicated people for the entire night. The inebriated sardines would pile out, pushing themselves into a crowd that reached for blocks and had no visible end. The city's old streets became a sea of color, carpeted with confetti that children and adults alike threw at each other and at common sense, banishing it for an entire weekend. Saturday night I met up with some friends from school who are in a band together, and who were performing that night. We hung out until the performance and then I watched and cheered with the crowd of other high schoolers, and enjoyed watching them suck their cigarettes and rock out. Music, food, fireworks, and most importantly alcohol filled the hours for the first two nights for the town of Neuchâtel. On Sunday there was a parade. Huge floats made of flowers and more confetti cruised by us, offering free bread, cheese, wine, and chocolate and carrots instead of the candy that my American up-bringing led me to expect.
On Saturday I am leaving to spend two weeks in Austria with my friend Vince (it is Autumn Break at school). He claims to have already planned many adventures for us, and I promise to faithfully document them as much as possible. See you in Austria!
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