Virtual Hesfes 4
Yesterday (Thursday), we got back to Charmouth early afternoon, having had a slow start to the day at home – including showers and baths all round – the children definitely looked a bit too clean in comparison to the campers 
They had had rain overnight and the marquee field had turned very very muddy, but it didn’t rain until teatime (annoyingly!).
Still, the fact that I didn’t have a tent to sit and drink tea in actually turned out to be rather good, as it forced me to go and do things with the children – we did some woodwork (finishing off a spoon that Anna started earlier in the week), some copper beating which was a combined effort by all three children (hurrah, yet another copper bowl to display in the dresser), and Abbie did some weaving. It’s probably not a good thing that it took for my tent to have disappeared for me to go and do the activities with the children, but there we go.
Anna then disappeared off with a friend, it started really raining, so Josiah, Abbie and I went for coffee in the Blue Laguna Cafe, then ended up watching Wallace and Gromit in the Groovy Movie tent, before the Children’s Cabaret started.
The Children’s Cabaret, from what I can see, is part of Hesfes tradition – during the week children can sign up to get on stage and do their turn, rehearsed or not. The diversity in what the kids do on stage is amazing, but there is still a painful-to-the-ears element to it, and it takes forever! The two eldest HEMUK girls and our two girls had decided to sing something together – Anna nearly chickened out during the afternoon but somehow managed to be persuaded to take part – anyway, they were about 30th in the list of performers, and that was only a third of the way down the list, I think. The four of them did really well though.
After that we said our goodbyes and drove home – I was desperately trying to make it back in half an hour but it took me 35 minutes! The Puddles had made their way back a bit earlier, visiting rellies on the way, and it was mainly quiet upstairs so the children all went straight to bed. We have the ongoing saga of a lost phone, here, despite having turned the house upside down we still haven’t found it, so that will be this morning’s task.
Anyway, back to Hesfes. Although we decamped slightly early I still really enjoyed it this year. The toilets (which were in no way ‘refurbished’) and the field (which was in no way ‘flat’) didn’t live up to promises made by the campsite owner, which was a big shame really. Even the slopey field would have been ok if the toilet block had been clean and big enough for the amount of people there, but it just wasn’t. That aside, we had a great week, and will definitely be going again. Camper van next year though!
May 20th, 2005 at 7:33
Umm, it does all sound rather good. I think we may make the effort to get there next year. ikwym about being forced to do stuff with the chiildren
. Still being homeless is a bit drastic isn’t it LOL. I’m just the same though 
.
May 20th, 2005 at 8:00
Good toilets will be a bare minimum. Otherwise i won’t go next year, all that was WAY outside my comfort zone. I still haven’t worked out how Joyce was more relaxed about it than i was!
May 20th, 2005 at 8:01
Oh bum, that was me, Merry, not Sarah!!!!!
May 20th, 2005 at 10:02
She will be there next year, mark my words …
May 20th, 2005 at 10:36
weather not so problematical for me in a tent, but good toilets and absolute must!! maybe an investment in a portaloo!!
May 20th, 2005 at 10:41
So what is a *good* toilet………fwiw the mens at HESFES were better than sum of the loos in the John Radcliffe Hospital….
May 20th, 2005 at 11:57
the wanderers return
Hello!!!!!!!!!!
May 20th, 2005 at 12:09
It should flush. tbh I don’t think we could have avoided the muddiness (although there were other more suspect patches which weren’t mud), because that was the fault of the weather rather than anything else, but if the loos had been in good working order it would have been better.
And there should be soap to wash hands with, plus something to dry hands – a dryer or paper towels. I consider the handwashing stuff to be as important as the toilets themselves, really. Found out later in the week that the soap in the toilets had been provided by campers, not by the site. Big surprise there.
Really the *number* of toilets/showers was not sufficient for the number of people – a portaloo block would be a good investment for next year’s hesfes I think. I would be prepared to pay for clean toilets, I honestly would.
May 20th, 2005 at 12:10
Hello Layla
May 20th, 2005 at 13:39
I misread Portaloo for Portico. Brings a whole new meaning to this!!!!
May 20th, 2005 at 14:26
Please let them have sussed the loos out by next year! They are making enough money!
Welcome home everyone
May 20th, 2005 at 14:26
I was almost going to say we’re going next year – but the toilet stuff is seriously off putting *yuck*
May 20th, 2005 at 16:14
welcome home.
yes, flushing [or non-smelling composter] with taps, sink soap. kept in a clean state.
Mind you, could have a puddlers area with own hired portaloos with Joyce in charge!!! [I would def leave it spotless with the threat of a joyce inspection!]
May 20th, 2005 at 20:58
We took a portaloo and everyone in the tents around us found it a godsend. I started to get peed off with having to empty the thing though.
Perhaps some enterprising kids could keep the loos clean and have a donations tray by the door. I bet they would make a fortune!
May 20th, 2005 at 22:30
Hmmm though, there are *more* toilets in that block than there are in the block in the bottom field, aren’t there? And I’m not sure there were any more non-flushers than there usually are either. No soap and only some bits of greaseproof paper to dry your hands on was bad though, although the bottom field loos only have one sink in each side! The main thing was the *mud* – having the toilet block sited at the bottom of a slope (going into a ditch) on one side and surrounded by grass on all sides meant they ended up covered in mud – and brown sludge all over bathrooms never seems good. At least you can walk to the other toilet block on tarmac all the way, makes a big difference in the perceived cleanliness – not convinced the *actual* cleanliness was any worse though really.
May 21st, 2005 at 0:35
If they finish that other block, that would make three blocks to service the site, and if he actually maintained them at a rate similar to the rate they are being used (maybe cleaned them twice a day???) it would all be a lot better. Top block is always going to turn into a mudbath though.
May 21st, 2005 at 7:05
Alison, I do think you’re right – the top field toilets were no worse this year than the bottom field toilets were last year. But then I thought they were bad last year!