camping by the river

This weekend I went camping by a river deep in the mountains with some friends. We jumped off big rocks, swam naked in the cold water, got sunburned, had a campfire and sang around it, barbecued, beered, bonded. Something happens to a group of people who go camping together. After all, it's a very, very long party, with continuous conversations with each other and with nature. Friendship, that sacred and mysterious love, is shared and strengthened, and many people report having a kind of mystical experience (feeling of connection and peace) when spending extended periods outside, surrounded by nature. The environmental change is often quite dramatic, providing the individual and group with a prolonged "altered state of consciousness." We feel ecstatic and moved to dance and shout and get dirty. Some of us don't get out much.

The feeling is captured beautifully in this new Sigur Ros video. This is what my camping was like.





We listened to the new Sigur Ros album on repeat the entire 3 hours back, actually. The song in the video is track # 1. If you like Sigur Ros, you will love this album. On our trip to the campsite we listened to Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, Sleeping beauty, and The Nutcracker. Kind of interesting.
Ma, the guy pictured above, gave me and some friends a ride. He is also a dancer.





I had never seen an orange-red roof like this one. Stunning against that green.