Summer Solstice @ Well-Being Sanctuary 2023

ABOUT

Free spirits, this is our tribe and this is our time. A time for celebrating the Summer Solstice with ecstatic abandon. Of drumming, chanting, singing and dancing around a sacred bonfire, sparks swirling and rising to meet a canopy of stars.

This is our time of magical co-creation, of sharing our gifts and talents from heart to heart. A wonderful opportunity to honour the Earth and her cosmic cycles, to value our own uniqueness and the divine light in others. To learn together, grow together and give back to the land by planting trees.

At our unique family-friendly event, alcohol and drugs are not welcome. Nor are bad attitudes and big egos. We love to dance and make merry, as well as strike a good balance between sound and silence. Our musicians, DJs and drummers have their glory moments, but not to the detriment of a good night's rest for all. We encourage each participant to make the most of an amazing environment where you can relax and resource yourself from nature... while having loads of fun into the bargain. Welcome to the next evolution of our ongoing journey!

DATES

>> Arrival: from 2pm on Thursday, 14 December

>> Self-sufficient camping (or glamping): Friday, 15 December

We encourage you to participate in a Sweat Lodge on this day, to help you land and ground after a busy year. Take long swims in the lake, walk along the leafy footpaths in the indigenous forest, connect with the horses of the land... or simply hang with friends and meet people.

>> Saturday, 16 December to 8am on Friday, 22 December

Six days of immersive community Summer Solstice celebration

>> Friday 22 December 8am to 2pm

Pack up and leave by 2pm at the latest. Leave NO TRACE and take all your trash away with you.

PARTICIPATE!

By contributing your own creative skills, you can help elevate the event to new heights. Through the initiative of past participants, we've co-created some vibrant spaces: the New To Me closet space, Earth Crafts Zone, Inspectro Tent, Rose Temple, Red Tent, Jam Zone, Space of Grace and Resonance Zone, among others.

We're striving to build on that success with new ideas and additions. Please watch this space for new developments, and feel free to step forward with your own creative flair. We'll do our best to help bring your ideas to fruition.

A hallmark of the event is that it offers various personal development opportunities. It's anchored by several modalities of Conscious Dance and a Sweat Lodge poured by experienced facilitators. There's the Red Tent to explore our Divine Feminine, the Man Cave to explore our Divine Masculine and the Inspectro Tent to explore everything in-between. In addition, you can experience Yoga, Qi Gong and Tai Chi, meditation, gonging and breathwork sessions, a diversity of workshops and dialogues with practitioners and specialists in a variety of fields as well as an assortment of body therapies.

In terms of entertainment, we guarantee you won't be bored! There's drumming workshops and circles, fire dancing, sound journeys, fireside acoustic music by gifted musicians, diverse DJ sets, spontaneous live music performances and so much more...

One of the highlights of the event is a series of rituals on Thursday, 21 December, when the sun is at the apex of its trajectory. It's a day filled with soulful sharing and co-creative wizardry. We honour our connection to the Earth and our place in the community of all things with a feast of abundance known as the Rainbow Meal. We plant trees to honour the land and give something back in return. We partake in a cacao ceremony to energise us for the Ecstatic Summer Solstice Dance and a pulsating night of wild abandon around the Sacred Fire.

Do come share your own unique gifts and talents with the community. You may post your offering with a picture in the DISCUSSION section of the Facebook events page (https://www.facebook.com/events/623539006424204/?active_tab=discussion) or on our Summer Solstice Creative Cradle platform on Telegram (https://t.me/creativecradle). Remember to tell people what you will be charging in Talents or Rands. Alternatively, you may also 'Gift' your offering free of charge.

WHAT ARE TALENTS?

It's a mechanism for trading your skills or goods with others. It stems from the global Community Exchange Talent System and makes the event more accessible to those who are financially challenged and may not have much hard cash to spend.

The ethos of the event is for all those who attend it to experience a sense of financial buoyancy. In order to achieve this, we highly recommend you engage with the Talent System and immerse yourself in the experience. It's easy and effective – all the more so if you show up and honour yourself!

To register for your personal exchange number, go here: www.community-exchange.org/home/

TICKETING POLICY

We care for the Well-Being Sanctuary environment and are committed to managing the impact of our footprint on the land. We also favour intimacy, quality over quantity, and spaciousness rather than frenetic activity. Thus, ticket sales are limited to a maximum of 600.

The ticket price is the same whether you come for the whole event or intend to attend only for a day. This is to encourage you to immerse yourself in the community experience, and to discourage the nuisance factor of curious spectators dropping in without understanding how we roll. 

Importantly, please note: we do not sell tickets at the gate! And we have a NO REFUNDS policy. If, due to unforeseen circumstances you cannot attend the event, you may sell your ticket to a friend – on condition that you notify us in advance of the arrangement.

HOW WE DO IT

The entire event is a communal gathering bonded by the glue of co-creation. Some of it is pre-conceived, yet much of it arises spontaneously in the moment. Whatever you have to offer, please let us know and we’ll strive to weave you in. For more information, contact Dion Viljoen (072 433 7421) or Mariette Carstens (066 256 8468).

The venue has hot showers and excellent compost toilets. It also has good drinking water. Beyond that, the emphasis is on maximum self-reliance. Take responsibility for feeding and nourishing yourself. You'll have to sign an indemnity form at the gate and are responsible for your own behaviour thereafter. Thank you for respecting all boundaries.

Also, the event is open to all who have a conscious camping mindset. This means, you take responsibility for your own recycling, take your rubbish home with you and leave no trace when you pack up and go.

Meal offerings from various food stalls will be announced closer to the time. This will be done via the DISCUSSION thread of our Facebook events page (https://www.facebook.com/events/623539006424204/?active_tab=discussion) or via our Summer Solstice Creative Cradle platform on Telegram (https://t.me/creativecradle).

TELL ME MORE ABOUT MAXIMUM SELF-RELIANCE?

Once you've bought a ticket, you'll receive a detailed list via e-mail of suggestions on what to bring. Feel free to ask questions if need be. In general though, please arrive with a can-do attitude and EVERYTHING ELSE for a comfortable camping experience, plus additional food to share for the communal Summer Solstice Rainbow Meal feast.

What not to bring (and do):

>> No pets! And no alcohol, drugs or psychedelic stimulants. Right of admission reserved, so respect this boundary.

>> No open fires where you camp (as this is a high fire-risk venue). There are designated fire circles and a cooking area where cooking fires may be made. You may also cook your own food using a gas burner at your campsite, but not inside a Well-Being Sanctuary glamping tent.

VOLUNTEERS

Volunteers are the heroes of our show, in that they provide an invaluable service to the community. We call on them to help set up, manage and pack up. All volunteers receive a Fair Exchange Ticket plus a cash donation (provided they stay till the end). There are only 12 places available – so if you snooze, you lose. To register as a Volunteer, contact Dion Viljoen (072 433 7421).

GLAMPING

If you would like to arrive and camp in style, Mariette Carstens of Well-Being Sanctuary has you covered. Preference will be given to those who want to come for at least five days or more. WiFi is available for glampers as well as eating from the organic garden on request. A refundable damages deposit equal to one night’s rental is required. You receive the deposit back if all is well at check out.

Cost:

R1,200 – for 1 to 2 people per night per tent

R1,800 – for 3 to 4 people per night per tent

Glamping questions and bookings – Contact Mariette 066 256 8468

DIRECTIONS TO THE VENUE

The GPS co-ordinates provided below will only take you to Lake Avenue. But if you read the directions below, you'll get to the venue. Guaranteed!

https://maps.google.com/?q=-33.971325,22.776617

FROM THE SEDGEFIELD SIDE

Once you pass through Sedgefield on the N2, take the Karatara turnoff to your left. Travel about 4km to the first turn to the left (also signposted: Karatara). Pass over a low water bridge, travel about 3km to the first left turn. It is a dirt road with a sign saying Hoogekraal/George.

Follow the road over the river and up the pass for about 5km to the first left turn. Signs say Well-Being Sanctuary, Wilderness Forest Estate, Fynbosvlei. TURN LEFT into Lake Avenue.

From the top of Lake Avenue just keep following the blue and white WBS arrows. At the bottom of the road you will see a face brick entrance, TURN LEFT and you will see a large wooden gate. You have arrived.

Once through the gate (where you will be required to present your pre-booked tickets as well as your Talent Exchange number) travel along the grass road and park your vehicle in the designated area. Voila! Enjoy a blissful time!

FROM THE WILDERNESS SIDE

Once you pass through Wilderness on the N2, take the turn off to Hoekwil. Travel for approximately 21km and take the right turn onto the dirt road to Ruigtevlei.

Travel approximately 3 km along the dirt road and turn right into Lake Avenue (at this juncture you will see a few signs, including Wilderness Forest Estate, Fynbosvlei, Tomorrowland & Well-Being Sanctuary). TURN RIGHT into Lake Avenue.

From the top of Lake Avenue just keep following the blue and white WBS arrows. At the bottom of the road you will see a face brick entrance, TURN LEFT and you will see a large wooden gate. You have arrived.

Once through the gate (where you will be required to present your pre-booked tickets as well as your Talent Exchange number) travel along the grass road and park your vehicle in the designated area. Voila! Enjoy a blissful time!