The day is approaching ... it is almost time for us to sail off to the high seas of the Eastern Caribbean for what may be the longest-awaited vacation in my recent memory. Every year I plan out my vacation days differently. I always, always take off the last week of the year, both to celebrate the holidays with our family in NJ/NYC and enjoy my birthday (two days before Christmas!). Then, I allot the remaining days accordingly. Last year, I spent a lot of them as "long weekends" throughout the summer months -- a 3-day weekend here, a 4-day one there. But by September, I was burned out! I decided that in 2010, I'd take a full week off during the summer, instead of short mini-vacations.
But then 2010 arrived, and we chose to plan a cruise for late September ... which in retrospect has turned into pure torture. We have been awaiting much-craved time off (seven days of luxury!) while watching everyone else head off to the beach for months now.
But whatever! Our time has come. And you know what? It's been ultimately worth it, both financially (September is a very budget-savvy month for cruises and other tropical destinations) and personally (HA everyone else is stuck at home until the holidays while I get to sip cocktails on an island HA!)
So in honor of this soon-approaching day, I'd like to focus today's Top Ten {Tuesday} on vacation thrills -- the little moments and things that make time away from the everyday so immensely refreshing.
Top Ten {Tuesday}: Oh, The Thrills of a Vacation
1. Waking up on a Monday and realizing that no, you have nowhere to be by 9AM. Or 10AM. Or ever that day. Or the next.
2. Cocktail hour every night if desired. My Alcohol-Free August will be done, and you better know that I will take a break from WW to have a 5PM cosmopolitan :)
3. That immense feeling of relaxation you get as soon as you hit the road/arrive at the airport departure gate. I can't even tell you how much I am looking forward to that exact moment.
4. Seeing new places that you have never visited before. For me, this will be all of the islands we are heading to, what an adventure!
5. One-on-one time with your significant other/spouse/BFF/new boy toy.
6. Checking something off your Bucket List. While I'm not sure the phrase "unlimited rum punch" is necessarily on mine, I think that if I had one, it would definitely have "digitally unplug for a whole week" like I plan on doing :)
7. Bonding time during the trip itself. There's nothing quite like a car ride across country or an international flight to help you bond with your travel buddies, or reconnect with yourself and your favorite music.
8. [Insert Ideal Vacation Moment Here] For me, it is lounging pool/oceanside, drink in hand, with a cool breeze, sunshine, and live [reggae-type Island] music playing. For others, it could be setting up camp after a long mountain hike, or sitting at a sidewalk cafe in some foreign city after a day at the museum.
9. Feeling refreshed at the end, prepared with albums of pictures and stories to share with friends once back.
10. Remembering as you arrive home, that there is nothing quite like your own bed, after all.
What would you add to this list? What is your ideal vacation moment?
3 comments:
In addition to agreeing with you on everything else, I also LOVE not having to clean anything up. Getting back to the hotel/guest-house/condo and NOT seeing my usual piles of stuff to go through is a BIG relief!
Just not having to worry about what to make for dinner, cleaning the house - all the mundane stuff that is just done for you on vacation. Seriously, a cheap hotel with an attached diner would do it for me. OK maybe there would need to be a pool. And a bar..
Heather - you are SO right about the cleaning thing! Though I am so Type A, I almost always straighten my things up around a hotel room, I just can't help myself! :P
Jen - the dinner part is also so true, I hadn't even thought of not having to make anything for myself. If all I had to do that day was decide what type of food I wanted for dinner, that would def be the life. Plus the bar :)
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