Monday 3 June 2013

directions to Westival (from London)

Right then, Toby here. Its not normally me that writes the posts, but bear with me, I'll try to keep this short and sweet just like my wife!

So, to follow are instructions on how to get to the field from the general London area without satnav.

We have done this journey twice now, first time was with our car satnav which is crap and got us a bit lost towards the end.
The second time, I used my Iphone (Maps) to get us there, which worked much better, the only problem with this is, it used a lot of my phone battery and charging a up a phone in the middle of a field with no electricity isn't easy!

Even though these directions are meant for people coming from London, they will probably be relevant to everyone else once you get onto the A21 and close to the field.

So here we go...

M25 - Come off at Junction 5 which is the A21 which goes towards Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells & Hastings

• Continue on this road for about 25 miles which will take anywhere between 40 minutes and an hour depending on the traffic.

• Eventually you will pass a BP Garage with a SPAR which is the last shop and garage you will see en route to the field.




• Keep driving along the A21, a mile or so later you will see a sign for Hurst Green.



• Drive for another mile or so until you see the White Horse pub on your right hand side. When you see this pub, you need to take the left hand turn opposite.



• Follow this road for a couple of miles until you reach a crossroads which has the Curlew pub on the left hand corner. Turn right at this junction.



• Carry on for almost a mile on this road (Junction Road), until you see a sign for Westival!





• Just follow the track round until you reach our field!

• Below is a map of the field and surrounding area.




• Good luck and we look forward to seeing you there!




Sunday 19 May 2013

yes, we really are going to camp!

Okay, do not panic, you lovely people. 
I can tell you all about it now.

When Toby and I decided to get married, of which you can read all about it here, we didn't have to think twice about how we wanted to celebrate our togetherness.
We wanted get married in the field with no restrictions of what to do and what not to do. We couldn't get our heads around to all that heavy traditional stuff, and just wanted create an event that really reflects who we are.

So, we started our search of finding that perfect spot, perfect food, perfect booze, perfect guests and etc, as you do. (Knowing us two, it is quite likely that nothing will be perfect, but we did our best anyway.)
Honestly, this journey of finding that perfect things to make this one memorable day is stressful. You can read all about it here.
I smoked more fags and gained excess wrinkles I didn't need, had plenty of sleepless nights and lost some weight, of which I am not going to moan about too much, had more than enough arguments with the husband to be, and revealed many of my wild sides that may have appeared quite ugly at times, of which of course, could have him think twice about marrying me!
So one day, I wrote him an email in an attempt to salvage our sanity, and the following was his response. 



I know, by now you will all be fooled to think he is such a sweetie cutie. 
Yes, I know. He can be when he wants to be. And that seldom sweetness of his lovely humble gestures were why I walked down the isle of the lovely magnolia painted room at the Ealing Registry Office, but I choked up when I remembered that there will be many other days of oh-not-so-sweet marriage moments like many others do. I think he did too. Bless him.
But for now, we are just the same as we have been, and for us, no changes are a good thing, very good indeed.

Anyway, moving on, FYO here is what's going to happen at the Westival.

  • Our field is situated just off the Park Farm Campsite. It is 50 acres of private field, so there won't be any other campers. It is for our sole use for the weekend.
  • It is a camping weekend. So please be prepared for every possibilities of good and bad weather of this ever so changeable British summer.
  • As it is camping, please make sure to attend the party with food and booze to entertain yourselves for the duration.
  • However, on Saturday, which we regard as the main day of our event, we will be providing food, drinks, and some entertainments for children and adults.
  • Vintage Scoops will serve all of our guests some of the most delicious ice creams between 3pm-5pm on Saturday.
  • Specially chosen tacos will be made available for hungry souls by Taco Truck between 5pm-7pm on Saturday. We have chosen 3 specific recipes to serve meat lovers and vegetarians.
  • We have some wines, British ciders and some alcoholic ginger beers for you to enjoy. And for those of you who may wish not to drink, we will have some sparkling water, lemonade and coke. We'd like to think we have got enough to go around to make sure everybody is well watered, but please do bare in mind, the taps aren't unlimited.
  • For those of you who have chosen to stay at B&B, please remember to book your taxi journey back to your hotel in advance. We have been advised by Max at the Park Farm that it is strongly recommended to prebook the taxis.
          Here are the numbers for couple of  local taxi firms.
          Adams Private Hire 01580 819 292/07957 404 201
          Robertsbridge Cars 01580 880 988
  • We know it is very possible that some of us may wake up on Sunday morning with sore headache and may not feel up for cooking up much needed good fry ups. The Castle Inn in Bodiam Village is the only and nearest pub serves cooked breakfast on Sunday. Breakfast is served between 9am-12pm, and food is served all day. James and Wendy who run the pub would like a pre-warning phone call, if a large number of people are coming for breakfast so they can prepare themselves. So please, if you intend to have cooked breakfast served for you, do call James on 01580 830 330.
  • A few people have asked how you could donate. You could give us a card with money when you see us, so we can thank you. Or alternatively you can send the donation to Toby's account with your name as a reference, so we know who to thank for the kind gesture.
          Please contact Toby for bank details.
          
  • One last important thing, we have done a few trips to the field so far, and we found the best way to get to the field is using iphone sat-nav which will take you to the Park Farm. We struggled with our sat-nav but we think this is mainly because ours were a bit old and not up to date. Our field is slightly up or down the Junction Road depending on which side of the road you are on. But We will make sure to put up a sign saying 'Westival' by the entrance, so you can't miss the field.

That's all about it really.
It is less than 3 weeks to the Westival, and we can't wait to see you all!


Lots of Love

Toby and Su xx