“I can see why you picked this place”, he said. We live in a house of clean lines and bright minimalism, but there is a part of me that is drawn to details, all things vintage and some things twee, so long as the colours stay bright; and all of those things were at Naish Farm in abundance- a converted farm that is home to the Honeybuns Bakery, as well as the one luxury ‘glamping’ spot I had chosen for A’s first (very gentle) introduction to camping.
Ok, I’ll be honest, this was picked as much for me as for A, a pre-birthday treat with my camera in mind, but it turned out to be the most treasured weekend for us all. There were, of course, the details in abundance. We spent most of our time just ambling around noticing what was around us. The thoughtful touches from the farm’s owners – all manner of reclaimed and vintage paraphernalia, the field-fresh flowers in jars on every surface, and of course their trademark cakes left for us to nibble; but also the details of the acres of nature surrounding us – the dozens of crickets that hopped away as A barged along the cut-grass path on some urgent barefoot errand, glowing dusty plums weighing down a tree branch, and the blissful quiet.
It was, unexpectedly, the quiet I enjoyed the most. It takes me days to unwind on holiday, and the thought of nothing to occupy my anxious mind fills me with dread; but with patchy phone reception and cut off from the television we slump in front of exhausted most nights, I devoured a book, danced with A to the crackly radio, and slept better than I have in months, despite sharing with a snuffly little girl with a cold.
The lovingly-restored Ark was of course the highlight, packed with the cosiest of beds and everything we needed; made all the more luxurious due to the sole use of a gorgeous bathroom (A was positively obsessed with the roll-top bath), camp fire and the Bee Shack cafe to shelter in for the hour or two of rain. In the morning the caravan filled with orange morning light and A woke up giggling, delighted to find her mummy and daddy were in the next bed.
I had expected to be telling you about this trip over on my gluten free blog, because the first reason for booking was that the caravan, specific parts of the kitchen and barbecue were dedicated gluten free zones. (Something that appeals when managing my coeliac disease). Actually this very fact made worrying about food such a non-existent part of our break that I enjoyed the rest of it so much more than I otherwise would. Normally any kind of shared or self-catering accommodation involves me eating packaged nonsense and planning each meal to the nth degree; without that worry I was free to indulge in my other loves, and of course, another Honeybuns cake.
We booked and paid for this trip directly with Honeybuns.
