Planning a holiday is always an adventurous task for me and my husband. We literally take a virtual tour of the entire world before deciding on our final destination! One day we’d be thinking of a road trip somewhere in Europe, the next day we’d be scuba diving in Maldives, the following day we’d be on safari in Africa, and eventually just end up watching a repeat episode of Game of Thrones at home, leaving the booking for another day! Here’s an attempt at explaining the thought process that goes behind all the planning ….

Where & When:
The weather is the main factor for both of us but for very different reasons. My husband loves photography, so as far as he is concerned, winter destinations are a no-no as either the lens fogs up or taking pics with gloves is no fun or the views are never clear enough (lesson learnt during a trip to Sydney in winter) I, on the other hand, adore winter destinations, as not only does that mean getting to wear boots, but also feeling fresh and having no bad hair days (lesson learnt during a trip to Singapore … 25 minutes to straighten the hair, 5 seconds for it to poof up due to the humidity!) So in the end, both of us compromise a little and end up going to a place where it is neither too hot, nor too cold.

What & How:
This is my biggest worry while planning a holiday …. what to pack and how to fit it all in one suitcase! My husband usually prefers one suitcase as it means less time waiting at the luggage carousel .. but when I object saying how will everything ever fit in one suitcase, he lets me pack whatever I want first, and then makes the most of whatever space is left… if any! Haha .. No matter how hard I try, I can just never be one of those adventurous travellers who can fit everything in one backpack and off they go! I mean, how do you do that!? The only time I was forced to travel that light was when we lost our suitcase during a trip to US/Canada and travelled back with just a trolley bag … I must admit though, it felt nice to travel light, but only because it was on the way back from the trip and the holiday was practically over anyway! Besides, a photography-loving husband means I need plenty of colourful outfits with different shoes, so that each picture can look different…never mind the background in each will be different , but that’s the excuse I make anyway… In fact, one of the reasons I have not done a safari trip yet, is because of the very same issue … as somehow running in high heels and a suitcase doesn’t seem the most ideal of scenarios if I end up being chased by a lion ….. yea, yea laugh at my expense, why don’t you?! But hey, i’ll get there one day …

Why, Why & Why:
One of the biggest mistakes I make before most of our trips is shopping for shoes… in fact an even bigger mistake than that perhaps is buying the ones that are on sale! There has to be some reason they don’t cost as much as the others do right? But I’m just thinking about how they’d match perfectly with a certain outfit etc etc … First day in those shoes works out great, second day is spent in socks to cover the tiny blister, and by Day 3 you’re practically walking around in slippers coz of the “blisters” … So perhaps it is a good thing my husband does not like winter destinations, as I don’t know what I’d have done then …Think I struggled the most in Rome, as it was mostly cobbled streets, so it just added to the footwear problem, but at the same time, it was the perfect place to have one, as they have the best variety of colours available and I ended up buying a pair of stylish blue strappy sandals! I always promise myself I won’t make the mistake of buying new shoes before the next trip but of course by the time we get back home, those shoes have gone from being new to comfy, and I end up telling myself it wasn’t the shoes, and probably the fact we walked everywhere that killed the feet …

The moral of the story is ……
Pack light i.e ditch the make up, shampoo and straightener, wear flats…. and most importantly, make sure your husband forgets his camera at home! How hard can that be to do though? Only way to find out is by booking our next holiday …. only one problem though …. new episode of Game of Thrones on tonight :D:D:D ….

Until the next post, have a good one!