T'was the night of the Lights Fest, when all through the house the Courtney was stirring like a crazed mouse.
Let’s just say that I was extremely excited for The Lights Fest event. It had been quite a long time in the making. Back in July when the tickets were first released, my bff, Alyssa, and I had bought our tickets in a frenzy of excitement. I got the cheap tickets because I signed up for text alerts. SCORE!
As the days went by, I eagerly awaited the Lights Fest in October. But when the weekend had finally arrived, I received a disappointing email that read: “Philadelphia Lights Fest Postponed”.
NooOoooOOOOooooOo!!!
The Lights Fest team had discovered that the wind was blowing in the direction of a major nearby freeway. Uh oh! The event relocated to another venue in November.
Fast-forward to Nov. 4th. Ray, Alyssa, Phil and I loaded ourselves, blankets, and food into my car and set off to a random farm in Kennett Square, PA.
When we got to the event, there were no entrance barriers. We could walk right in and set up our spot. Although we arrived 2 hours early, most of the area was already full!
Alyssa and I got in line to trade our tickets for lanterns and soon realized that we didn’t have to buy a ticket for each of us. We could have simply bought one lantern ticket and launched it together. Instead we each got a ticket & lantern. This cost more money, but was also more fun!
As we all waiting for the sun to set, we listened to live music; ate our hoagies; and drew designs on our lanterns. I drew a rocket ship!
Once the sun had set and it was completely dark. The Lights Fest staff gave us a quick lantern lighting tutorial. We were to use tiki torches placed every few feet to light the base of our lanterns.
As the speaker gave instructions, she very clearly stated: "Please wait to light your lanterns, DO NOT LIGHT YOUR LANTERN BEFORE YOU ARE INSTRUCTED TO!" She repeated this multiple times.
YET, one idiot could not follow these simple instructions. The crowd was shocked to see one, lone lantern soar into the air. A few people shouted, “BOO!” Then the Light’s Fest host exclaimed, “EVERYONE BOO THAT PERSON!” The crowd erupted into BOOOOs!
It was pure gold!
Once the booing finally subsided, the host let us know that it was time for launch. One by one, the lanterns lit up and took off into the sky.
That’s when things got magical.
In a matter of the minutes, the entire sky was filled with bright, twinkling lanterns. They soared and floated around us. Serene music played in the background. It felt like we transcended into space and existed among the stars. It was a feeling that I had never experienced before. TRUELY MAGICAL!
This event is one of a kind and I look forward to lighting up the sky again!
Advice for future Lights Fest attendees:
Sign up for the VIP list and get cheap tickets right when they are released.
Save money by only buying one ticket. You can bring as many people as you want to experience the event and only light off one lantern.
Do not book any hotels or travel for this event because it is likely to change time and location. Pick an event in driving distance to you.
Arrive early! The area fills up quickly and you need to be within the area that has the torches.
Bring your own markers if you want to get creative and decorate your lantern.
Bring your own lighter if you don’t feel like waiting behind a whole bunch of people to use the torches.
Leave right after the Lanterns are all burnt out. Parking is crazy and it’s better to get out fast.
Sign up for a Lights Fest event here: https://thelightsfest.com/
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