For all those music lovers who missed the Coachella ticket sale, do not fret! Austin City Limits is another music festival with a plethora of bands and a more… “family-friendly” atmosphere. This festival occurs every October, at Zilker park in Austin, Texas, and I was lucky enough to attend this year. Following the lead of the Coachella festival, another weekend has been added this year owing to the festival’s popularity.

The multitude of food choices helped make the three-day festival a huge success. Local restaurants and pop-up stands, such as Tiff’s Treats, lined the sides of the festival, satisfying taste buds, and foods ranged from Korean Barbeque to Kettle Corn. However, the most satisfying for me were the refreshing (and delicious!) Watermelon Agua Frescas and snow cones, two yummy snacks that are great to beat the heat.

Like all outdoor festivals, though, there were some disgusting downsides. There was so much trash at the end of each night, it was difficult not to trip over soda cans and boxed water. Not to mention the unfortunately necessary trips to portapotties, often filled with beer cans and vomit!

But the experience of being so close to some of your favorite bands generates a thrilling and passionate feeling inside you, and definitely overpowers any unfortunate incidents. In my opinion, the first day was the best; I got to see Tegan and Sara, Avicii, The Black Keys and Florence & The Machine, who is unquestionably my favorite artist. When she performs, she interacts with the crowd with so much love and excitement which creates a pulsing energy through the entire audience.

Over the course of three days, I ran around a huge park in the dark through the rain, gripping my purse, all the while singing (although some would consider it screeching) with thousands of other music lovers.

All girls (and guys!) with an eclectic taste in music should consider attending this festival next fall!