Travel The World!

If I’m honest, the idea of “travelling” never really appealed to me. The sort where you spend months on end, in a far flung country back packing I mean! I remember friends going off, either before, or after uni and often working en-route. Now THAT doesn’t sound like any kind of holiday to me! One friend, I remember, went to a kibbutz, another saw Oz but had to work while she was there and frankly… I far rathered staying at home with my Mum doing my washing and buying my food with all my creature comforts. I don’t regret it, not one bit!

But… I do like to travel, in short bursts, never really having to miss home (and the people in it, not to mention my bed). And I like to do it in the form of an actual holiday where I don’t have to work. Oh! And another thing about me when it comes to travelling is this. I don’t really mind too much where I am, I just want it to be hot, on the beach, AND next to a pool.

It may not be very cool or sophisticated I admit. And I could pretend that I want to see sights and be cultured, but honestly, I couldn’t imagine anything worse, and that’s another reason why travelling with a back pack was never for me as a youngster! I’ve been to lots of places, I just haven’t been to the “places of interest” because for me, the interesting bit is inside the pages of whichever Shiela O’Flanagan book I’m reading whilst sipping something cold (preferably alcoholic) and dangling my toes in the pool/sea (I’m not fussy which)!

I went to Egypt and we didn’t leave the hotel. The rep mentioned the pyramids and a 24 hour coach journey and I switched off. Did I like Egypt? I loved the beach, yes! Been to Greece multiple times and haven’t so much as batted an eyelid at a ruin, Spain but absolutely nowhere near a city, Portugal the same and so on… I did go to NYC once but even then I made us get the train up to Coney Island for a day on the beach! If I can possibly help it, that’s what a holiday is for me. And it’s GREAT because I don’t have to think about much, just choose a nice looking hotel (All Inclusive all the way – ease, ease, ease) and make sure I can fly from Norwich (WHY would I fly from anywhere else?!), check the weather for the month I want to travel and it could be absolutely anywhere!

It’s not JUST about the weather, the beach and the pool. I promise, it’s really about the people too. I only want to be on holiday with the people I love most in the world. My little lot, my Mum, Jonny’s parents and sister and our niece and nephew. We have all been on a big holiday together twice before, once to Dorset (it rained – see, you need the sun, but this was JUST post Covid and needs musted) and then 2 years ago we went en-masse, with some pals too, to Tenerife. It was the best holiday ever and that’s because coupled with my magic formula of requirements, we were all together! My Father-in-law suffered with a stroke during the pandemic and it’s made it so that holidaying as a family, being together and making memories as a group, is more important than ever.

We are so grateful to have all our key players together that Dorset in the rain, or Tenerife, whichever… Well we’ll take it and be thoroughly happy to do so. It just so happens though that next summer my lovely in-laws have booked for us to go away to Spain again. I think it must be costing them a small fortune being so generous taking us all, not to mention that travel insurance after a stroke can be quite a tricky one to navigate (it doesn’t have to be – you just have to know where to look) and we are so thankful to them for giving everybody the opportunity to have another lovely holiday together.

So… While I may not actually want to see much or travel the world unless it leads me to the sunshine, I do want to travel. With my people, and my set criteria, and that’s good enough for me thank you very much!

This is a collaborative post.