What happens when you take 3 gay men, 2 princesses, and a very open-minded guy, out to the bush for the weekend? Well, surprisingly, lots of very sedate fun!

Damien, Sean, Broc, Richard, Sunita and me, went this past weekend to Leura in the Blue Mountains. Here in Australia, because we don’t have our Christmas during the cold time of year, we have this amusing semi-event called Christmas-in-July. Its a chance to do Christmasy things at a time when you can light a fire, cook a roast, and feel all festive. As my little group have all lived in the UK for part of our lives, there is something that draws us to these crisp climates and cosy environments. Besides, we wanted a little holiday, and there is nothing better than a weekend in the Mountains.

I found this incredible place to rent in Leura called the Mountain Ark, and we instantly knew we found our surrogate home. Arriving there late on Friday night, we knew we had struck it lucky. The Ark was stunning, originally designed, so cute and cosy, and so remote and quiet. It was heavenly.

The weekend was divine fun. Is there anything better than going on adventures with your best friends? We did everything one does on a weekend away: drank bucket loads of lovely wine, spent hours cooking a lamb roast, snacked on endless amounts of junk food, watched DVDs, read trashy magazines, went on long walks through picturesque Leura, had giggly lunches in cute cafes, raided the Leura lolly shop, and most importantly relaxed with each other. I think I had a permanent grin on my face, and my sides ached from endless laughter. What a privilege to have such funny, adventurous friends!

Funniest moments: realising you should never send me and Richard to shop together, as we have no self-control and end up with more food than an army could eat in a week; debating over who was going to sleep in the outside studio, and then agreeing we all would so no one would be left out; coming home after lunch in Leura only to discover that Sean had locked our keys inside, and we were trapped outside in the cold! (luckily Richard could break in through the window); Richard’s gloopy glue-like potato mash (that was a nightmare to wash up!); watching Broc take more photos of himself than some super-models do in a lifetime; oh, so many moments.