Dreamed up on the principle of presenting an eclectic, unpretentious line-up curated for people who love discovering new things, Secret Garden Party has been a highly anticipated festival each year it has come around. Hosted at the Downes family farm in Camden, each nook of the forest is transformed into a fantasy of fun and outrageous themes to showcase music, arts and entertainment.
Being their eleventh and final year we couldn’t miss out! Arriving on the Friday evening having jumped on the train out of Sydney straight after work, I was more than ready for a weekend to let my hair down and soak up the free spirit party atmosphere.
We were lucky to get VIP tickets given that my boyfriend knows the owners, so we had easy access in and out of the festival. Our camping setup was ideal too with a trailer we had borrowed from a friend featuring a proper double bed and indoor standing area for changing – my kinda camping!
I couldn’t wait to get out the sparkle, some whacky jewellery and my outrageous headdress for the occasion. We even made friends with a lovely couple camping next door to us, so us girls got excited with our glitter and fake tattoos as we pre-drank back at camp!
Saturday the sun came out but it wasn’t unbearably hot with some cloud cover, perfect festi weather. Some highlights included the Daft Punk tribute act, all the hidden forest dance stages and the yummy food stalls offering that naughty but necessary food you always crave at festivals. My boyfriend even designed the funky 70s inspired theme stage and bar named ‘S.G Airlines’.
It truly was a weekend of letting loose, embracing the crazy wonderland built by the team of volunteers and joining in the Secret Garden Party community to celebrate together one last time…S.G ’11 and Out!’
Dani Aneka 