There I was, seated in the subway, traveling to the center of the national capitol with my dad to see the Independence Day fireworks. When we finally arrived and got off, though, there was a slight problem ' we were a bit late. Honestly, we were an hour late, in fact ' you see, unbeknownst to us, they had started early this year! Dad and I were quite disappointed; not deciding to let it ruin our night, though, we made our way aboveground and into the streets ' and that's when the chaos hit us.

The fireworks display had ended at about that time, so naturally this was when everyone that had watched it began to push their way back into the metro and to their beds. Up until that point, I had never, ever beheld this huge a crowd in my life. As we made our way to the main intersection, we were being absolutely swarmed by masses of red, white, and blue bodies, pushing, jostling, shuffling, the air alive with impatience and humidity'¦all we could do was hang in there, plunging headfirst into the raging, tricolor river, struggling the best we could against the current, refusing to drown.

Finally, after what felt like forever, we broke free and reached the main intersection. Clinging to a lamppost for dear life, I stood at the corner and just watched everything, the roaring masses of people, just taking it all in. From this perspective, I could see where every tributary flowed into one mighty, surging river, every person pushing in the same direction, flooding the streets, nearly sweeping away cars that were virtually submerged in the waves. As I gazed around, taking in the chaos, my ears ringing with a million voices and footsteps and the honking of cars and the revving of engines, all blending into a thrumming white noise, I watched small flare-ups spark here and there, noticing the disruption of flow as minor skirmishes broke out. I was, admittedly, a bit disappointed that there were no major riots; the place was absolutely ripe with all the tension needed for a good, all-out brawl. As I watched a bus attempt to crawl its way through all that was bogging it down, I noticed a light slicing through the air ' and, glancing up, I noticed a chopper zoom over our heads, its spotlight cutting through the thick crowd, the pilot undoubtedly garnering just as much joy from all this as I was.

Finally, though, after what felt like an eternity of madness, the crowds began to thin out, wasting away to nothing more than a mere trickle. At this point, my dad (who had been with me the entire time) and I finally crossed the street that had been overrun with locals and tourists alike just mere moments before. We hung out at some lovely plaza for a bit, watching skateboarders ollie over Roman candles; soon afterward, we grabbed a bite to eat and made our way home ourselves.

Although I didn't get to see the fireworks this summer, I'm still incredibly happy with the way things turned out ' in fact, looking back on it, I may easily prefer having watched the crowds than the actual display itself. All in all, it was a fun, exciting experience ' and, if given the choice, I would miss the fireworks to see the crowds all over again.

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