Wallingford Bunkfest 2013

l-r Janet, Jo, Shereen, Kay, Pips, Esme, Mel, Rita

We're back from the 12th Wallingford Bunkfest festival - nearly the end of the outdoor season for 2013 (sniff)!  We had an amazing time with the wonderful Oxford Drum Troupe (ODT) and the dance line-up included Shereen and Mel of Nirzari from Hampshire, our own new student troupe Ashnah-Talmiz (with 'our' Janet being joined for the first time by Esme - congrats 'our Esme' on your debut), and also a first for us, our collaboration with the lovely Jo Taylor of Namaste all the way from 'up Nawf' - Stockport (lalalalala)!!!

Oxford Drum Troupe (ODT)

Ashnah have been going to Bunkfest for over 6 years or so and dancing with many a good Morris side, as we did this year - brilliant fun when one gets to participate by receiving the odd kiss (Shereen), clapping sticks together with Berkshire Bedlam Morris (though Kay used her zills as didn't possess a stick) and generally each side cheering each other on!!!  If I may say my personal favourite people have always been Beltane Border, and this year, at last, Ashnah shared a slot with them - they're the 'heavy rockers' of the Morris world as far as I'm concerned, long may they stomp, shout and growl (and roll of course)!!!  It was a foregone conclusion by Ashnah, that if we weren't ATS® dancers, we'd be joining a Border Morris group and don Doc Martens, big 'ug' sticks and black our faces!!!  Looks great fun!!!

Esme

Beltane Border

All danced out after the daytime festival and filled with 'real' lemonade, beer, iced Pims, all manner of yummy food, we then trooped off to a local curry-house (where typically many of us over-indulged), then ventured back to the festival to listen to some live bands and bop around some more.

l-r Kay, Shereen, Mel, Pips, Jo

As Jo was down in our neck of the woods for the whole weekend, Pips, Kay, Jo and I went for a walk on the Sunday and showed her some local sights - venturing up Wittenham Clumps, climbed a tree to view Oxfordshire below (yup, we really did climb a tree whilst Rita played at being a caterpillar, ahem....), walked to Wittenham lock and weir, played 'Pooh Sticks' (Jo won one race and Kay the next), walked for an hour and a half then ended our lovely day in a local pub garden for lunch and beer (shared with a few local Oxfordshire wasps)!!!!

What a fabulous weekend it was!!!!!!

report by Rita/blogged by Kay

a perfect day......