Sleeping with Stangers
By Samantha Romero ‘16
Moments before the The Strokes frontman, Julian Casablancas, exhaled his first lyric at Landmark Music Fest in Washington D.C., I was overwhelmed with excitement and peace of mind. I was seconds away from photographing my music idols. It was quite an adventure getting to this point.
A few weeks ago I traveled to Chicago, New York and Washington D.C. all in one week, to follow my passion of photographing musicians.
Immediately after receiving my photo-credential confirmation from the Landmark Music Festival I was in complete shock. The credentials gave me access to the photo pit in front of the main stage as a USC Neon Tommy photographer. After following the band from Los Angeles to Barcelona to London, I was ecstatic to finally shoot The Strokes.
“I had no idea who I would be staying with nor where, but what I did know was that over-planning kills the magic. “
A flight ticket was the only thing that stood between me and my favorite rock band of all time. I could have easily purchased a direct round trip flight for about $300, but after living in Paris for the summer, I had this overwhelming itch to travel and explore. That’s when I came across a multi-city flight offer from Student Universe. The flight included travel from LA to Chicago, Chicago to NY, and D.C. to LA for $180. I booked the flights immediately.
I had no idea who I would be staying with nor where, but what I did know was that over-planning kills the magic. With only a few days to spare before embarking on my week long journey to photograph The Strokes I turned to one of my favorite apps, Couchsurfing.
The application opens the doors to an amazing community that welcomes travelers looking for a place to stay. The first time I used the Couchsurfing application, I was traveling to Austin, TX for South by South West Music Festival. I was hosted by the sweetest couple whom despite being complete strangers entrusted me with a key to their loft. Similarly with only hours before I boarded my flight from LA to Chicago, a host kindly accepted my visit.
After settling in the windy city, I set out to take in the sights and of course order a slice of deep dish pizza. But time flew by just as soon as I had arrived in Chicago, two days later I was already departing for the big apple. To my surprise my host in New York was a professional photographer from Spain who invited me to join an app launching party.
You find friendships in the least expected of places. (ahaha good you took the original first sentence out!) It was at the app launch where I met my talented friend Luis Lucio, a film photographer. The following day after wandering Chelsea Market, I met up with Lucio to return to one of my favorite rooftop bars in Wlliamsburg.
With little time to spare I rushed to pick up my luggage and catch a taxi to the bus station in Time Square. Needless to say I missed my bus. At this point I was uncertain on how to get to D.C., I grabbed my luggage as tears ran down my cheeks. I felt defeated, there was no way to get to D.C. in time for the festival. I felt defeated with no where to go and no idea of what to do next. A butcher who stood outside his shop noticed me and wiped off my tears with a napkin and told me to not worry because everything was going to be okay.
I rushed to the station with the last bus to D.C. that night only to discover that the bus had canceled the trip. This is where I met Christiane, a student visiting from Brazil who also needed to be in D.C. the following morning. The only option was a $300 train ticket.
However, my impulsive and rather irrational self came up with a different idea. I asked Christiane if she wanted to rent a car and drive to D.C. together. We decided it was the best option. We didn’t even know each others name until after we signed the rental agreement and sat in our little green Ford fiesta at 1 a.m. in Times Square determined to defy the odds that were against us.
Five hours and a whole lot of coffee stops later we were in D.C. After dropping off Christiane at her hotel I garnered enough energy to drive to an Airbnb rental where I would meet up with my longtime friend who also flew out to D.C. I released a heavy sigh of gratitude as I pulled into the driveway. I had finally made it.
