There are a few moments that stick out as truly magical in my life: the midnight premiere of the final Harry Potter movie, the first time a boy told me he loved me, the time my mom and I got matching tattoos, and a few more that I won’t bore y’all with. As soon as I walked into ACL, I knew that I had another event to add to my list. The festival was full of music, food, and weirdos, AKA everything I love. I may only be 19, but I'm ready to consider the 3 days I spent in Zilker my glory days. The lineup this year was stacked full of great acts. I previewed my game plan a few weeks ago, but even that packed schedule couldn’t fit in everyone I wanted to see. I made sure to hit the highlights and catch a few whole sets, but I spent a lot of the festival just wandering around, taking in all of the music around me. Of the artists I did see, my favorites were Foster the People, Ryan Adams, Allan Rayman, Angel Olsen, The Head and the Heart, and The Killers. I have an even longer list of fantastic sets, but those were artists I saw for the first time at ACL and was really impressed by. The staging, sound, and timing of the festival were impeccable. I work at shows whenever I get the chance to, and I was awed by the professionalism of everyone at ACL. Putting on one show in a small club is hard enough, but the workers at ACL had 3 full days of shows to put on and killed it. If ACL wanted to, it could moonlight as a food festival. Whoever picked which local spots to give booths to should be a national hero. Everything I ate was incredible, from empanadas to ice cream to grilled cheese. There was a great blend of well-known restaurants and hidden gems, each with solid shortened menus. The atmosphere of the festival was incredible. Everyone was so warm, inviting, and accepting. Little kids were jamming out next to college kids, middle aged couples were getting down next to teenagers, and every attendee was having a great time. We were all there for the music, and that bonded us all together. If you didn’t get the chance to go to ACL this year or you want to relive the glory days, enjoy these shots from the festival! ACL sponsors great shows year-round in Austin and offers deals leading up to the festival every year. Keep up with them to see who they're bringing to town and grab tickets for 2018! Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aclfestival/ Twitter: @aclfestival Instagram: @aclfestival   Article and photos by Sierra Brown.