Blogs by Ella Fisher

It was time for another party, and personally, I think winter parties are the best. During that dark, cold season, you can really use something that gives your mood a boost. In my area, there are themed parties quite often, and usually (like this time again), I score a matching outfit. The theme for this one was 1001 Nights (Arabian Nights). I never go too crazy—between 20 and 30 euros you can already get a fun outfit. Afterwards it either goes to the thrift store or into my oldest daughter’s dress-up box.

Of course, I was going with my best friend—who else? We both love a good party. She came over first so we could have a pre-drink, and also some coffee, so I’d say we behaved ourselves. Once we were in our outfits, we were totally ready. We both have this dark, sarcastic sense of humor, so the jokes were already flying across the table. And right then I thought: Yep, the tone is set. It's going to be a fun night.

I wore a cute belly dancer outfit and honestly felt like one of the animatronics from the Fatamorgana ride at the Efteling. If anyone from the Efteling is reading this: I’m totally willing to play a live version of one of your dolls in this outfit, haha—perfect side job. My bestie looked amazing too. I felt overdressed, and she felt underdressed.

It was freezing cold, but we still took our bikes—because yes, we’re that kind of hardcore. Luckily, the venue is close by because otherwise I absolutely would not have done it. My hands were almost frozen after that tiny ride on my electric bike (or maybe I’m just fragile, that’s also possible). At least I was smart enough to wear thick tights under my pants; I knew the cold would be brutal. My legs were nice and warm when we arrived.

As soon as we walked inside, we got compliments on our outfits—always a good start. We dropped off our coats at the cloakroom and bought drink tokens. I’m not a huge fan of the beer they serve at these kinds of events because I swear it’s watered down (if someone from the venue is reading this and that’s not the case, let me know—I’m genuinely curious). Or maybe it's just gross beer, haha. I also had the feeling the plastic cups got smaller again this year, but maybe that’s just me.

The vibe and the crowd were a bit disappointing in the beginning. I’ve seen it much busier at the start of a party. Luckily, after about an hour, things finally picked up. I did think it was a shame to see someone wearing the exact same outfit as me, but that’s always the risk at a themed event. And then there were people wearing their regular clothes. I personally wouldn’t do that at a theme party, but hey—maybe that’s their way of standing out?

Pretty quickly, my bestie grabbed her phone and we were already posing for a picture with the Q-music DJs—front row, like two groupies of course. Meanwhile, we were texting our former bootcamp instructor asking where he was (someone saw him walking outside 😃) and telling him we were already totally drunk (which was, obviously, a joke).

We’re really the type who don’t care if there are many or few people—we start dancing right away.

The most annoying song of the night was Engelbewaarder. I already don’t do well with Dutch music, but this one is truly the worst song I’ve ever heard (sorry in advance to the sensitive souls among us). What I did love was that they played a lot of Charlie Lownoise & Mental Theo and DJ Paul Elstak. That brings back school memories—at least for me.

They even played a Kabouter Plop song, which I do not enjoy dancing to, but eventually you just join the craziness in the room. And as always, I loved Paradise by the Dashboard Light—it’s so bad it’s good, and secretly you just go crazy. I also went wild when Europa by Joost came on. I told our bootcamp instructor there’s this insanely good part in that song, but I doubted they’d play it… and then guess what? Yes! They actually played “my part”—the moment where DJ Paul Elstak goes off. Even my two daughters at home know that that’s Mommy’s favorite part, even though I’m not really a hardcore or gabber fan, haha.

We also did our classic “whoop whoop!” (from Sound of da Police) multiple times—it’s tradition. Our bootcamp instructor even gave us a compliment, saying it was fun to finally see us go wild in real life because he usually only sees us on social media.

The funniest moment of the night was when my bestie almost slapped my contact lens out of my eye, haha. I still laugh thinking about it. Luckily it stayed in place and I could still see everything clearly (not counting the alcohol).

We saw plenty of interesting characters again, and also some guys where you think: please… go dance somewhere else. And of course, the people who constantly jab their elbows into your sides. That’s when it helps to have a bestie who’s done kickboxing—my personal bodyguard. I complained about someone, she said: “Switch places?” and boom—the problem was solved. Ideal. Everyone deserves a friend like that. 😉

The downside of this venue is that when the downstairs area isn’t open, it gets unbearably hot upstairs. Squeeze a few hundred people into one room and the temperature skyrockets. And honestly, the decoration and atmosphere could use some improvement. Probably a budget thing, but still—could be better. Let me decorate the place and I’d pimp the whole venue (in case anyone working there happens to read this).

I love these “foute parties” because people act wonderfully silly, it’s fun watching the crowd, chatting with strangers, and dancing to music you’d normally skip on the radio.

We took about thirty photos and videos again—totally normal for us. It’s so much fun looking back later and saying, “Remember this? That was insane,” or “We can never do that again.” We also scored more sunglasses from Q-music (our collection is still not big enough) and some fanny packs. Well—I didn’t get one at first, but our bootcamp trainer grabbed one for me and I was thrilled.

For us, we actually behaved pretty well. The party ended at 1:00 AM and we biked home. My bestie’s e-bike battery died—truly unfortunate in freezing weather—but she made it home safely. As I stepped outside, I thought: Yep, that was a good one. I wouldn’t have wanted to miss it. Even though in the beginning, when it was still quiet, I had my doubts.

The only real downside was getting your coat back at the cloakroom. Everyone leaves at the same time, so naturally a line forms. Maybe they can fix that next time.

When I got home, I thought I was tired, but I couldn’t sleep right away. We’d had some Flügels, so I’m pretty sure the sugar kept me awake. I was also very glad I wore sneakers instead of sandals, which I had originally planned. It was way too cold. So yes: 1001 Nights with a bit of a rave twist. I doubt anyone noticed—no one looks at your shoes while you're dancing (unless someone steps on your toes).

What I love about these nights is that they give you a little mood boost. And like I said earlier—especially in winter—you sometimes really need that.

If I had to rate the night, I’d give it an 8+. The DJs truly made it something special. Why not a ten? Because I had a few points of critique, of course.

And no—this is definitely not the last foute party we’ll be going to. I’m already curious what the next theme will be.

But for now: time to rest.