Lindsey Best

Andrew Youssef

[Editor's Note: Longtime concert photographer Andrew Youssef found out almost two years ago that he had stage IV colon cancer. In that time, he has continued to shoot tons of music events for outlets including our sister paper OC Weekly, on top of his day job at a hospital, of all places. As he continues to fight for his life, this column, called Last Shot, gives him a platform to tell his story in his own words.]

I am happy to report that I survived Coachella. It wasn't without some close calls and numerous trips to the bathroom. I'm still sore from walking around the polo grounds and have a few bumps and bruises to prove it. My feet also despised me for a couple of days although I wore my comfortable Nike running shoes. The sandstorm that hit on Sunday, the first weekend, was the ultimate souvenir from Coachella as I'm still finding sand in various places.

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Timothy Norris

Here's everything that bothered us about Coachella's second weekend. Hey, at least there was no dust storm!

Native American Headdresses
These have still not gone away. In fact, one particularly irritating woman (not pictured) wore a towering feather mohawk weave, a sartorial statement that combined racism with rave gaudiness. On Friday, she pushed her way in front of us, obstructing our and everyone else's view of the show. Congratulations, lady, you're Coachella's worst person! -Andrea Domanick

See also: Worst of Coachella 2013, Weekend One

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LP Hastings

Butterfly?!

The Visual Stimulations for People Who Were High
Coachella's art installations -- the ones designed to impress you while you're high, aka all of them -- were particularly impressive this year. There was the tesla coil, the crane that was formerly a flower but now a praying mantis, the giant florescent snail, the golf cart that looks like a jellyfish, as well as remote controlled sharks and butterflys (above). There was also a structure designed to look like a mid-century, Palm Springs modernist mansion, called the Mirage. Projections onto the house created the illusion of a swimming pool, and a swinging cocktail party. Then there was the "Coachella Power Station," at which guys in hippo masks and white lab coats stood in a glassed room, like mad scientists, playing around with computer, video, and stereo equipment. Occasionally, they danced to Ricki Martin. -Ben Westhoff

See also: Best of Coachella 2013, Weekend One

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Creative Commons

We told you earlier about the ways folks try to sneak drugs into Coachella. Also, we told you about how to avoid trouble with the police. But what if, despite your best efforts, you're arrested? Or even taken to Coachella jail? Yes, it is a real place.

See also: We Hang Out With Some Crazy Marines Drinking Their Asses Off at Coachella

We got the story on it from a guy we'll call Derek, who was arrested for possession of pot and cocaine in 2009. It went down like this:

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Nate Jackson

Collapsing at the campsite

Coachella can be brutal: Dry desert heat, sand storms, endurance tests. It's hard for folks to survive with their health intact. That is, unless you're in the Marine Corps.

Jimmy English and Tidas Friday (not their real names) repair tanks and other military vehicles. They recently returned from a rumbling military convoy in Kuwait, where they were shouldering 60 pounds plus of equipment. Neither are old enough to rent a car -- which makes them Coachella's prime demographic. For the past couple of years, they spend their leave roadtripping to Coachella. Is it about the music? Somewhat, though they didn't seem psyched to see any artist in particular this weekend. But man, can they party.

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Oliver Scherillo./td>

The crowds at Coachella this year have been by and large well-behaved. Still, between the heat and the beer, there's a tendency for crowds to get reckless, and we've seen a slew of downright disrespectful behaviors this year. Here are five of the worst -- as well as some tips on how to avoid being "that guy" next time around.

See also: We Hang Out With Some Crazy Marines Drinking Their Asses Off at Coachella

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Colin Young-Wolff

The EDM-focused Sahara tent is twice as tall this year, and much wider and longer too. It's now roughly the size of an airplane hangar. The arched mega-tent is not just a dubstep paradise, but a behemoth of truss and LED panels. The visuals are otherworldly, with kaleidoscopic light and graphic displays built on thousands of precisely orchestrated lasers, strobe lights and ADD graphics. They flash on the hexagonal visual displays hanging over the crowd and comprise a pyramid-shaped structure around the stage.

See also: Which Coachella Stages Have the Best (and Worst) Sound?

Forget the music -- the visuals are a show onto themselves, something akin to a lazer light show combined with an IMAX film combined with whatever ODB was smoking. We talked with the dude behind it, and we've got video and more pictures below if you're in the mood for some Sahara tent porn.

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Timothy Norris

Main Stage

It's the last day of Coachella. Your last chance to smuggle in drugs, possibly get caught, possibly make things easier on yourself in court later, and possibly be out on bail in time to see some more good shows.

But which stages are the best? The sound quality varies widely, so much so that where an artist performs can and should affect your choice to attend. Here's our ranking, from the best to the worst.

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Credit: Marco Torres

This guy didn't bring any drugs into the festival, but his blasé attitude was not embraced by security officials.

If you're at Coachella, chances are you experienced full throttle security measures attempting to snatch any drugs you might have. As usual, these include three tiers of security checkpoints, at which eventgoers are frisked and searched. It can all feel a bit personal, particularly considering that drugs and Coachella are practically synonymous.

See also: Doing Drugs at Coachella? Here's How to Avoid Trouble With the Police

But the on-site cops' attempts to snatch our crops haven't, of course, stopped many people from trying to have the best darn weekend of their lives, pharmaceutical-style. Here are some stories about attempted smugglings.

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Alejandra Loera

Have you heard of Coachella? We've been writing a lot about it! Though most of you are there to, um, see the music (and, of course, smuggle in drugs) sometimes you want to take a break from all that and roam around. So here are five spots you might not have yet hit up, to cool off, people watch and maybe score some swag.

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