Nant yr Onnen Barn

I’m a city girl – it’s true. I love London, its where my heart belongs. But my soul? My soul is most content in the country. I grew up out in the sticks, and I loved being outdoors as a kid. Every now and then, you need to get out of all the hustle bustle and London brings, bundle two of your best girls in a car along with your suitcases, book an Air B n B in the middle of nowhere, roll out of London (and hope your car makes it up any hills you encounter… She did by the way, well, just about…)

As I’ve written about before, it took a really long time for me to find ‘proper’ friends – and I’m so glad I did. I’ve been so blessed with my housemates, but also two other people I’ve not mentioned before who are just THE most awesome girls you will ever meet, are H&J, who came along for the ride with me to Wales.

H & I met in Mumbai when we got thrown into working on an event there together – nothing truly accelerates a friendship like SEVERE deli belly. We crossed a lot of friendship barriers it takes other people years to cross in the space of a few weeks, and H&J have known, and lived with each other for over 10+ years. I don’t work with H anymore, and H&J no longer live together, so when we get together, we like to go all out and do it ‘proper’ justice 😉

I’m not one to say I have “talent” at anything, but one thing I have a ‘knack’ for, is finding cute, super affordable Air B n Bs. (Check out my birthday post for an awesome little spot in Middlezoy!)… My superpower landed the girls and I in remote Wales – Llandovery to be precise.

After a quicker drive than expected, we drove further rural, the sat nav no longer recognising we were even on road and J, my front-seat navigator, instructing me on how to get to where we needed to go. We couldn’t check in until 16:00, and arriving at 2pm, we decided to stop at the pub 100 metres away from our ‘home’ for the weekend. It was lashing down outside, but happily there was a roaring fire place and abundance of prosecco!

One thing I bloody LOVE about Wales, is the people. EVERYONE is friendly – Everyone! Of course momentarily you have that “WHY are you being so nice?” that any one who’s been in harsh London for a while has about them, but that soon dissipates when you realise that Wales is just a different, friendlier pace of life 🙂

After teaching the girls a few card games, and how to play Dominos, 16:00 had rolled round, and it was time to let ourselves in to the barn. We knew it was picturesque in there, but we had no idea just how amazing it was going to be. It was truly the epitome of ‘the pictures don’t do it justice’.

The bedrooms are downstairs, and are all beautifully kitted out and super cosy – but where you will spend ALL your time, is upstairs. The open plan living and kitchen area is stunning. A big comfy sofa, the perfect sized kitchenette, and the most breathtaking views will greet you. We cosied up, cracked open some prosecco, and watched the clouds roll over the hills.

We were so excited we ran down to the Dutch hot tub – this type of hot tub is not your usual bubbly-affair, it’s heated by a fire, so it’s a bit more hardwork, we got the wood, lit the fire, and returned every 30 mins to check on the rising temperature.

Whilst we waited, I whipped us up a super simple paella (I’ll post the recipe soon I promise!), the sun dropped down behind the sky and we watched the smoke pour from the chimney out of the secluded part of the grounds where the hot tub lies…

Finally, the water was the perfect temperature, we were ready, lifting off the lid we jumped straight in and instantly felt ourselves relax. The clearing where the hot tub is, is surrounded by a stream, so you’re surrounded by the sound of water gushing through the stream. And nothing, nothing will beat the sight that greets you when you lie back and look up. There is pretty much zero light pollution, so the sky is stunning – you can see millions of stars, we saw satellites and even a shooting star! Plus, there’s a little woodburner in the hut, so when you can come out, you can slip straight into a lovely warm room 🙂

We had grand plans for hiking and adventuring on Saturday, but the weather had other ideas, so instead we decided to stay in, watch DVDs, and spend the weekend having a massive girls catch up. It really helped lift my spirits, made my sides hurt with laughter, and reminded me how lucky I am to have girls like H&J in my life.

Kate x