Body & Soul 2016

We do love a good festival - and Body & Soul 2016 did not disappoint. 

Despite the weather being a bit of a mixed bag it's safe to say we all had an amazing weekend. The thing about festivals is that you pack so much into such a short space of time that it's almost impossible to know where to start explaining what you got up to. So when people ask you 'So, how was Body & Soul?' Your mind races through about ten thousand adventures that you got up to and then you give a very uninspiring 'Yeah, brilliant' response. 

So really it's probably better to just show some pictures and list some of the most memorable parts. Here goes...

Family camping area - tonnes of space!

Dance workshop

Free facepainting courtesy of Nobo

This is just a tiny bit of what we got up to...

Woodland walks and hidden stages
Aeroplane chairs and Helter Skelters
Crazy hay fights
Face painting
All the hats
Bonding with neighbouring tent dwellers
Good bands and bad dancing
Hot coffee and early mornings
PJs and wellie boots
Food trucks
Light shows
Experimental German accordian players
The girl with the big smile and the light up shoes
Bloody Marys
Crazy goggles
Hugs from strangers
That Swedish bloke from Trim (don't ask)
Giant bean bags and aching limbs
Hiding out for quiet time
And plenty of strangers with good karma coming their way

Despite the fact that I managed to miss every band I wanted to see, I came back supremely happy.

The overriding memories will be of quality time spent connecting with the kids and the goodness of so many of the young people that were there. Whether it was joining in armies of hay fighters, asking for cuddles from the kids, handing over money when the nine year old didn't have enough to buy his chosen bracelet, giving the 7 year old a packet of Oreos just for being cute, or, most importantly convincing the 12 year old she had cool parents (unheard of!) - this young generation of festival revellers had their hearts in the right place.

It was a lovely lesson in how I'd like to see my kids go through their teenage years (and we'll just bypass the ones that didn't go to bed at all, collapsed partially clothed on top of their actual tent, fell headfirst in the mud and stayed there for the entire day, got lost for the entire weekend dressed in a silver homemade fairy outfit, or got escorted from the toilets by Security, unconscious, dressed as Beetlejuice.). I guess their parents had high hopes from them too...

So thanks Body & Soul. It was a real experience!

Disclosure: I was provided with a weekend family pass in exchange for an honest review. All words, opinions and pictures are my own.