Any other Mumsnet Greenbelters?

[ChuggaChuggaChooChoo]

I'm sure there must be an overlap between greenbelt-festival-goers and mumsnet people. We could just have a thread to share tips and ooh-go-and-see-this moments. We could even try to arrange a meetup if we're not all too busy festivalling.

If you were at the Peterson Toscano thing earlier and were constantly disturbed by someone trying unsuccessfully to keep their overtired 3-year-old quiet - sorry, that was me. But the performance was marvellous.

Do you let the kids stay up latelatelate or keep normal routine? Do you expect them to come along to grownup things and keep quiet or do you stick to child-friendly things?

Yes

Soaked

just came home tonight

To other questions, a bit of both. We enjoyed music sessions and the village play area but I just got sick of saying "stop jumping in that puddle" after 100 times when the site is now just a big mega-puddle.

I like Greenbelt generally though, such a breath of fresh air to hear Christians getting interested in equality/social issues/the environment not just navel gazing church stuff.

Hope you had fun DD went a couple of years ago. She had a great time with a gang of 12-13y girls who managed to treat it as a junior festival and totally avoid religion.

As an atheist I thoroughly approved, but I'm not sure it was the lovely vicar who took them's plan

It is quite ridiculously wet! Today is supposed to be sunny all day so perhaps some of the puddles will dry up (DS has wader-trousers that come up to his chest so I think we're OK with puddles, but he hates being rained on so we'd probably have come home if the better weather wasn't coming.

We had fun at the Owl who was afraid of the Dark and the nursery rhyme eucharist, then made DS play with trains almost quietly during the God Particle drama and the Jesus-Was-a-Pirate talk.

starball it's entirely possible that this was entirely what the lovely vicar had in mind - that's the experience of most younger greenbelters! The 11-12yo gang I know are spending most of their time in infinite beads making jewellery. I try to keep my GB experience at least one-third visual and performance art and music, at least one third social justice and international issues, and fill the rest with only those religion bits that are creative, unusual and interesting - I'm with fossil on avoiding navel gazing!

I'm just nosing in here, GB was a big part of my teens and while there were families there it seems to have become more about the family than it was.

I went to GB in my teens too and loved it, also loved the emphasis on justice and looking outwards. I go to New Wine now and find that it is equally outward looking. I'd love to go to GB still and have many friends who do but cannot for health reasons. I'm glad it is so family friendly now, my friends with dc love it, although one family came home yesterday as it was just too muddy and the dc were too whiny

Have a fabulous time!

I went a couple of times as a teenager and loved it. Don't think I could handle camping in the mud with little ones though and it is further away from us now (went to the old Castle Ashby site).

And at last my child is clean and asleep, my feet are clean and I can sit back and have a glass of wine. Top moments today were doing the "big sing" (iona community) - fab vibe; DS (age 3) taking me firmly by the hand and pulling me into a random music venue we were walking past, pulling me down to sit down and refusing to budge for half an hour ("no, we listen to loud music") and morrocan pizza. Low point - that lake of mud is NOT fun. You don't know how deep it is in many places, and sometimes it is deeper than a 3yo's wellies will reach. We are not going to be visiting the performance cafe or beer tent tomorrow, I don't want to get this muddy again - there is a non-muddy track between the Big Top and the concrete concourse so it should be possible to keep relatively clean till home time now.

We loved (almost) every second of it. DDs are ardent Fischy music fans so I had a job to drag them out of the Northern Lights tent until the mud overtook it. We also loved Owl who was Afraid of the Dark, Emperor's New Clothes, and storyteller Nell Phoenix who was spellbinding...
That was our tenth Greenbelt - and our muddiest - but I think the kids saw the mud as a bonus. I certainly didn't!

I know this is a zombie thread. I am pretty sure I am the OP from 10 years ago, sounds like me anyway but mumsnet settings says that ain't my name. I just did an advanced search for Greenbelt threads and this is the top result so hey I might as well resurrect it.

But are there any Greenbelt Mumsnetters now in 2022?

I've mostly finished packing and am waiting for the pizza I've cooked to cool down before I go to bed. It will be my first Greenbelt, so I'm very excited.

Hi @DaisyWaldron - brilliant to have you joining the fun. Are yiu coming with a group / others who have been before?

I think this is about my 15th Greenbelt, excluding the online one. I'm really looking forward to it.

I'm going by myself, but a couple of people from my church are going, although I don't know them that we'll, and I've arranged to meet up for a drink with someone I know from online places. I'm half excited and half terrified that I'll be lonely and too cold to sleep.

We're mostly all packed (just food left). Being picked up at 9am but can't sleep.

We've been about 5/6 times I think, haven't been since the first Boughton year (8 years ago?). I remember the walk from car park to campsite being really long and taking multiple trips. But the DC are older, bigger and stronger now so hoping we can do it in 1. Well 2 technically. One when we arrive with most of our gear. And a second when my friend arrives with our tent.

Does anyone know if the food stands will take cards? Or should I get cash before we leave?

And oh.. the mud in 2012. It was something else! The DC loved it, and it's one of the things they remember best from all our years there

We have packed everything but pyjamas and toothbrushes and have set the alarm for 7 but of course I am awake from 5:30. The 3yo from the OP is now 13 and will be extremely grumpy at having to wake yp before 10:30.

@imnotwhoyouthinkiam most of the traders will take cards - i believe that they get access to a wifi network that is strictly off limits to the rest of us so their transactions don't rely on the dodgy phone signal, but a few will prefer caah only so do take some cash.

@DaisyWaldron totally sympathise with your apprehension but hopefully you'll dive right in and find you are having a brilliant time. Have you found the "unofficial greenbelt" Facebook? Lots of unofficial meetups have been arranged there one or more of which might be something that appeals to you for meeting new friends e.g there's meetups for boardgamers, atheists, disillusioned deconstructionists, Ukrainian refugees and host families, clergy spouses, neurodiverse greenbelters etc. The creative workshops are also good for getting chatting to others. But do bring a hot water bottle - someone who arrived yesterday has posted that they regretted not bringing theirs.

...and barely 12 hours later, on site and gathering with about 50 others at Forest Church evening prayer...

...and barely 12 hours later, on site and gathering with about 50 others at Forest Church evening prayer...

DS2 and I did some marbling while DS1 went to an "out at Greenbelt' thing. Had various things for dinner. Now back in the tent listening to something loud.

The only thing I'm a bit miffed about is the lack of taps. They used to have long sink things near all the toilets. So you could wash hands/ rinse plates/ clean teeth/ fill bottles etc.
Now there is 1 tap and no 'sink' so the ground around it is boggy already and people are brushing their teeth and spitting on the ground (not envy. Teeth and spitting gross me out)

Other than that we've seen 5 Church people around site. (not including the 3 we are actually camped with)

Have a great time you all. I wish I had found you during my Greenbelt years. Might return next year actually!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend and safe journey home. I'm still processing it all!

What a weekend! Really enjoyed at all. Very tired now. How did you get on @DaisyWaldron?

Pre covid I went but moved further and changed jobs now ( used to volunteer for free entry!) kids now all grown

@gogohmm how did you find out volunteering? I'm thinking of doing that next year, now the dc are older and don't need me always with them.

I used to volunteer too pre-DC. But the shifts are 6 hours long which left me too knackered to enjoy the festival much. Way better to join the team either building/decorating beforehand or clearing up after which leaves you free to do everything.

They usually start calling for volunteers around april. Follow the festival on your social media of choice to be alerted when applications open but this year they were still repeating the calls for more volunteers even a few weeks till the festival.