Sunrise Celebration @ The Big Chill 2008

United Kingdom | | 15 August 2008

We drive around the beautiful Herefordshire valley for an extra hour desperately trying to locate our gate into The Big Chill Festival. It’s unfortunate that we’re directed to South field camping and Sunrise Celebration is in the North Field, however, we console ourselves with the fact that along with the rest of The Big Chillers, we are getting two festivals for the price of one and the morning and night trek can only mean more experience of both festivals which can never be a bad thing!

We spend Friday getting our bearings in what seems like a much larger site than expected; there’s lots on offer between The Big Chill and Sunrise and I wonder how we are going to fit it all in, it’s shortly after this slight worry that whatever it is in the Sunrise Celebration air begins its impact; I am, very shortly after arrival, extremely chilled and this is a novelty for one who spends most festivals in a haze of giddy fever.  We spend a relaxed evening at The Small World stage taking in the ambience, surrounded by the friendliest of people, with chai, and enjoying Green Angels play.  It’s clear there is much going on at Sunrise that I can’t make out in the night, other than the simply stunning brightly lit ‘in spiral’ structures that surround the central space at Sunrise and the outline of towering iconic tipi’s nearby.  I resolve to get up early the next morning, make the trek over and get involved.

Shortly after my arrival, I meet Dr Nicholas Sireau of charity Solar-Aid, a charity that enables the world’s poorest people to have access to clean, renewable power.  After explaining the new and mutual support between their charity and Sunrise, Dr Sireau introduces me to Kat, one of the organisers of Sunrise Celebration.  Kat tells me that they are really pleased to still be able to run the Sunrise Celebration at The Big Chill and hopes that more of the Big Chillers will access Sunrise, thus their message will be spread wider, as she goes on to explain the Sunrise ethos and commitment to sustainability.  I’m overwhelmed to learn that their whole festival; that is three stages, numerous tents and food outlets are all powered by wind and solar energy, even having compost toilets! It is truly inspirational to witness this in action, and Kat is visibly thrilled as she points out the spinning wind turbines and solar panels whilst giving me a tour of the site.  All 13 arenas at Sunrise are aligned in a circular mandala around a sacred fire, lit during a special ceremony; this year they are fortunate, the fire is lit and a ceremony is held to coincide with the partial solar eclipse. 

During the afternoon we really experience Sunrise Celebration, my daughter spends hours revelling in the inspired kids area. As ever with children, simplicity is all that’s needed so a sprawling climbing dome and secure area containing, joy of joys, numerous space hoppers and giant floor games of jenga and snakes and ladders is quite enough and some contrast to The Big Chill kids tent that we had experienced earlier; a comedian entertaining a packed tent of kids with jokes about the different types of coffee in Starbucks, I kid you not. More worrying is that the kids got it and clearly found him hilarious. Back to Sunrise; Daughter is thrilled to have her face painted, I’m thrilled it was only two quid and she goes on to make us all special festival badges.  I take her to see the special circular labyrinth that has been created for the festival and Daughter spends a good hour in there, making herself incredibly dizzy and enjoying falling over, she’s having a whale of a time, as are the other kids in this packed out area.  I manage to drag her out of the labyrinth as I discover a pile of open suitcases with all manner of dressing up paraphernalia spilling out. We all make ridiculously low price purchases from here after enjoying another hour playing in this area; thus daughter is now a dog called Digger for the rest of the weekend and I am a bat-lady, excellent!

We go to the PermaCulture garden area and partake in a basket making workshop, which, being honest; I really don’t have the patience for but was enjoyable nonetheless.  We continue to wander around the Sunrise areas, there’s a whole area devoted to charities and campaign information and we take in some interesting antiquarian talks such as the theory of dowsing in the Out of the Ordinary area and drumming workshops at The Chai Chapel.  We have a go on some didgeridoo’s though I confess we avert our eyes and flee sharpish when the naked didgeridoo player arrives!  I love it here, the enthusiasm is infectious and if there is one complaint, it is perhaps the lack of food outlets in this area, we struggle to get food at different cafes and the Buddhafield Café that’s been recommended has enormous queues, leading us to seek food back in The Big Chill area.  This leads us inevitably to the nearby Victorian funfair; we then decide to take advantage of Sunrise occurring at The Big Chill this year, getting our places to enjoy The Mighty Boosh along with the rest of the festival.

We return to Sunrise later and dance the night away to 60’s psychedellia in the chilled out Eartheart tent in between sets from The Travelling Band and the beautiful world folk songs  sung by duo Emma and Nathan.  A trip to the Triban Stage sees me losing daughter in a sea of flailing hand dancing to Planetman & The Internationalz and, once she is retrieved we sit with a freeform drumming circle for a while before deciding to leave and head back to the tent when a lady in the centre of the circle gets rather more involved in the drumming than we find necessary!

I’m back to giddy fever on Sunday as my favourite astrologer Jonathon Cainer is to do a talk at Out of the Ordinary area about the credit crunch and the Mayan tribe prediction of the end of time in 2012.  I’m starstruck when I see him and he draws a large crowd, but I leave disappointed by his ramblings, though enlightened and positively energised by the crowd discussion that follows it.  We wander round the ethically made clothes stall throughout the afternoon and finally enjoy food from the Buddhafield café, which deserves it’s reputation as having healthy vegan offerings at reasonable prices and have a sit in at The Small World while Dragonsfly play.
 
Sunday evening is spent in The Big Chill’s Mind and Body area. It seems to offer much of the same in terms of alternative therapies as Sunrise, albeit at inflated prices, nevertheless I cross a palmist’s hand with silver and discover the much sought after hot cider bus ready for a rather chilly but outstanding performance from Leonard Cohen at The Big Chill main stage. As a wicker man is burnt to the right of the stage and fireworks screech in the sky I reflect on the experience of two festivals in one. I can see how, in many ways, the two festivals complement each other. The Big Chill is committed to promoting green initiatives, but while The Big Chill is vast, complicated and expensive, by contrast, Sunrise is small, simple and perfectly formed.  There is no competition here obviously, but it’s good to see so many Big Chillers enjoying and participating in the Sunrise Field, thus ensuring that their ethos and message is spread further and joint initiatives such as an ethical clothes fashion show on Saturday morning help to bring both the Sunrisers and Big Chillers together. Result.

by Anne Marie