What a bittersweet weekend. My fourth and last Sienafest, full of music, dancing, memories with friends, and of course, free food, Sienafest weekend lasted from April 11-14, and was probably the best one yet.
This year’s Sienafest was ’90s themed, which meant the people-watching while sitting on a blanket with some friends was even better than normal. Denim jackets, miniskirts and fanny packs as far as the eye could see. Starting on Thursday, people started rocking their ’90s aesthetic and it was so fun to see how into it everyone got. And there were tons of fun activities happening around campus, allowing you to get the most attention on your ’90s looks!
Sienafest kicked off with a bang on Thursday when Siena’s PRIDE-GSA club took to the quad to put on an exciting painting event. “Straight but not Narrow” allowed students to dip an arrow in some paint and shoot it onto an easel in the middle of the quad. The main point of this was to show how many allies the group has on campus. Super fun and a great way to get some energy flowing before the weekend got started! SEB (Student Events Board) later put on an inflatable bumper car event in the SSU, going on until 11 p.m. that night. While I didn’t attend this, instead choosing to get some much-needed rest before the weekend, and can’t imagine what inflatable bumper cars might have looked like, I’m sure this was a bumping good time.
Walking through the townhouses during Friday afternoon, the smell of grills and cooking burgers filled the air, which was definitely nothing to complain about as people took advantage of the warm-ish weather before the rain hit that night. SEB also set up lots of other events, so that everyone could be hydrated and fed before the big event happening later that night. Alex’s Lemonade Stand, always a crowd favorite, set up shop and there was a free barbecue happening in the dining hall. Then came the moment we had all been waiting for for the last month or so – Fetty Wap himself graced our campus to put on a show for us. There was a lot of talk that he wouldn’t show up, as he’s been known in the past to cancel last minute or not show up, but no worries, he provided Siena with decent time that night. Students had previously competed at an event a few weeks ago, – Musical Mayhem – to open for Fetty Wap, and a student band called “This Is Us” won the coveted spot. After they performed, Fetty went on and students got to listen to hits like “Trap Queen.”
Saturday brought with it the most beautiful weather we’ve seen in a while, and after having all three of my past Sienafests rainy and cold, this was a nice change. It was so nice spending the day outside with friends while getting some much-needed sun. The day’s events kicked off with a carnival, full of rides and good food. There was a swing ride and a huge slide, among others, and students enjoyed those all while having access to free food. There was a kettle corn truck, a taco truck providing fajita bowls, tacos, chips and guacamole, and even a truck for pizza. It was really cool that Siena provided this, so students didn’t have to worry about getting enough to eat that day. One of my favorite events of the day was just hanging out outside of the MacClosky townhouses. Everyone was outside, either playing frisbee, football or a multitude of other things, and good energy was flowing as everyone walked around enjoying their last Sienafest together.
Around 5 p.m., there was a free Padua Beach concert, where students enjoyed lounging around on blankets, to rest up for a little while after the long, crazy day outside. Soon after, in the SSU there was an arcade, including a dessert bar, and immediately after that was a glow party. Everyone was given white t-shirts and fun glow-stick lights to wave around while dancing. The night ended with some karaoke in Casey’s.
No matter what you got up to this Sienafest weekend, you were sure to have a good time making some memories with friends. The weather was good, the food was better, and it was most definitely a weekend to remember.