At the start of the year me and Tamzin went to meet Ashton in her home town, Hull. We ended up spending most of the time inside as it snowed SO MUCH as was too cold to want to leave the comfort of the living room. Although we got to see a bit of Hull, I was dissapointed we didn’t get to spend any time down at the marina and Humber Street (somewhere I know the HEY Bloggers love as its super colourful!) ?
So, in an attempt to try again, Ashton invited us to the annual Humber Street Sesh – a ‘street fair/festival’ style event that aims to support local bands. Having never been before and wanting a weekend away with the girls, I pencilled it in WELL in advance.
We originally planned to go to both the Friday and Saturday events, however as we arrived late on the Friday we decided to save our energy for the next day instead – which was a very smart move on our part as I was absolutely knackered by the time we got home Saturday night.
We arrived at about 6pm on Saturday (after a bottle or two of Passion Fruit Prosecco) and made our way into the festival with our bands from the University of Hull – the events main sponsor. We grabbed a beer and wandered around to see what was going on, as there were so many different stages and things to do.
We spent most of the evening walking around, listening to bands, eating very cheesy chips and drinking lots of beer – which to me is pretty much the definition of a day festival, right?
We also paid a visit to the University of Hull VIP area, where their main aim was to reduce the amount of plastic that was used at the event.
Whilst walking around (especially towards the end of the event) I really could see how much plastic waste there was lying around, with patches of grass covered in plastic cups and gutters along the streets filled with rubbish. As someone who doesn’t actively watch how much plastic I am using, it really made me think about the collective damage I am doing when there are so many other people who don’t watch the amount of plastic waste they throw away.
What the University of Hull VIP area was doing was actually really awesome, and something I hope all festivals take on board. In return for picking up plastic at the event, you could get yourself into the VIP beach hut, as well as get yourself a couple things inside – including biograbable glitter and a reusable Humber Street branded cup.
The whole thing really made me think and although I don’t think I could realistically cut out plastics all together, I’m really going to start looking at the smaller changes I can make – like taking reusable bottle and straw with me when I go out, as well using my own bags when going out shopping.
Originally this post was going to be a photo diary of the event, however the message of having your own ‘plastic pledge’ seemed so much more I important.
Do you try to reduce your plastic waste?
Kirsty Leanne
xoxo
