**I’m sharing this purely to reminisce happier memories. If you’re struggling with or finding isolation hard than I wouldn’t recommend reading or looking at the pictures on this post; due to the fact that I do lust a little over our experience camping in Wales and the great outdoors in general. I apologise if this isn’t the content that you want to be consuming at the moment however, I just have been meaning to share my photos for awhile and this is the first chance that I have had. Enjoy!
Last summer, my boyfriend decided that it was time for us to take the next big step – investing in our first property… a tent. Maybe that’s a bit anti-climactic for you reading this but for us it was terribly exciting. The only problem was trying to then find a slot of time available in both our calendars to be able to get away and use it.
Although, I am chronically ill and very much reliant on those around me, I still try to do what I can. As any Spoonie knows, pushing our bodies is about the worst thing we can do however, we do sometimes fall prey to it and it inevitably comes back to bite us in the ass. I feel like that had been me for much of last year. Just about the time when I felt like I was getting my head above water, I thought I could do something and then bam -back to hibernation I had to go. And I won’t go into the details of my living arrangements here but after going through the motions of a nomadic lifestyle, along with the emotions that come with that I was beyond ready to get away.
Me and the Bearded Boyfriend toyed around with a lot of different areas to take the new tent to but we quickly decided to head back to Brecon Beacons, Wales. Somewhere that is both familiar to us and somewhere we both love. So, late August we played Tetris: Car Edition and set off for Grawen Farm.
Grawen is a quaint little farm (not sure if it’s still working) that is in a great location, being just down the road from Merthyr Tydfil and Brecon but also in the shadow of Pen Y Fan, which makes it the perfect place to pitch a tent. The farm has showers and toilets open all hours, a plethora of helpful info for visits (including those ever-important takeout numbers) as well as the friendly folks who run it. It is quite honestly the perfect place to recharge.
It’s the best thing about camping, the remoteness of it, the rawness of living, the lack of any m!ndfucks
Bearded Boyfriend, 09.07.17
One of the things that I love about camping is how grounding it is. In the fast-paced world that we live in, it is so easy to get caught up with and influenced by insignificant things. When I go camping, or not even camping but to the Brecon Beacons in general, my phone stops working, human contact becomes few and far between and through this I’m reminded of what truly matters. It reminds me of the small, inconsequential things that add to the quality of my life regardless of how silly they sound. Like going to bed in a warm and safe place. The first sip of tea in the morning and the pleasure of reading a book without being disturbed by notification sounds or the worries that I could be spending my time doing something else. Being re-introduced to the art of conversation, along with bickering and then cracking up laughing at each-other. The pleasures of driving around aimlessly until we come across a pub to eat at. Randomly pulling over to explore something we’ve only just noticed or to simply pause and take in the view. It’s pure bliss.
Camping will always hold a certain magic for me and, while I can’t wait to explore new places, I know the Brecon Beacons will have a place close to our hearts.
Cheerio for now!
withsomejam 