Thursday, September 04, 2008

Six Glorious Weeks

I am suffering from shock. In the space of two days, I went

from this...to this.

Arrived home from Scotland yesterday, after six glorious weeks; but, less than twenty-four hours later, I don't feel as though I've been away at all. Thus, I am in a somewhat downbeat and reflective mood:

Things I missed while I was away
My induction hob and thick-bottomed pans
Functional broadband
My dictionary
Virgin Radio

Things I loved about where I was
Islay beef mince
Islay Ales (Angus Og in particular)
Everyone waving at everyone
Water so soft you could cuddle it
Big skies and big landscapes
Popping to the shop (every village has one)

Things I didn't miss
The sheer weight of traffic
Being hassled by other drivers
All the mess on my desk at home
Tescos
The noisy builders working over the road
Rude people
Dead animals in the road
Chlorine in the water
Any fine weather (from what I heard)

Things I didn't love
Having to come home.



Have you been away this summer?
What did you like/dislike about your holiday?

17 comments:

Lane Mathias said...

Water so soft you could cuddle it. I love that!

It certainly does sound like a glorious holiday. No away holidays here but still finding the 'back to normal' a bit difficult.

Cheryl said...

I loved Dorset. I loved the fact that I could breath fresh air. All I missed was my bed as the ones in the caravan were teeny

Jenny Beattie said...

Oh crikey, that does look a bit of a difference. I'm sorry that it's so tough coming back.

I'm not sure I can get started on this being away/being home thing because I'm not sure which one is which anymore.

I hope you settle soon.

Tamsyn Murray said...

What a depressing contrast :-(

I loved being away from home but the main problem was that I missed my pets. Next time, I need to find a way to take a cat, two rabbits and four hamsters...

Leigh Forbes said...

Lane - You'd have loved the water too. I have a bottle of it here, and is it simply devine.

Lily - Mmmm, a comfy bed is all-important, isn't it? And you never seem to get them on holiday.

JJ - Thanks, JJ. Trouble is, I think I'm settled already, to the point where I've already lost the benefit of being away [sigh].

Tam - You can do it! We took the guinea pigs everywhere with us, and I've been known to take a cat away before (he was a particularly good traveller mind).

Beth said...

Good things about holiday:

sunshine and warmth
time away from the daily grind
remembering some of my french
lovely food
a break from the internet and the hoards of emails that overwhelm me every day
the nice paris people

Bad things about holiday:

cost a fortune
two random patches of sunburn where i didn't get full coverage with the suncream
easyjet checking in at paris charles de gaulle. horrendous.
the rude paris people
smelly sticky streets
having to go back to work afterwards. not that i dislike my work... but it's never fun to have to go back afterwards a holiday

i wish i could work like half time. that would be the coolest.

Deborah Carr (Debs) said...

Blimey, what a contrast those pictures are, no wonder you didn't miss all that traffic.

Glad you had a great time, it's a shame when a holiday comes to an end.

I haven't been away this summer and out of three weeks off, I did have one that had sun in it. Mind you any time off is better than being at work.

Karen said...

Holiday? What holiday? Haven't bloomin' had one for two years, that's what I don't like!

Kath McGurl said...

I miss the animals! All those elephants and whales and baboons. What I don't miss is the constant moving on. Nice to be sleeping in the same bed night after night after night again.

Many South African roads were as quiet as that Scottish one - especially as August is out of season for them.

DK said...

sounds like a blissful holiday - shame about the come down though!

Leigh Forbes said...

B - Sound like a good time overall. Not sure about the airport bit, though. Sounds awful.

Debs - Yes, you're right. It's better to have some kind of break than none at all. Glad you got to see the sun.

Karen - Well, book up for next year now!

Womag - Oh, what a great time you must have had. The same as Scotland, but with animals and sunshine? Sounds devine!

DK - Oh, you're sooo right there!

DAB said...

Paris the "city of love"
Drawback = It wasn't long enough - six months would of been just perfect methinks :) TFx

Leigh Forbes said...

TF - Oh, Paris! You lucky thing. I don't think a lifetime would be long enough to spend there!

HelenMWalters said...

Oh, to go away ...

Leigh Forbes said...

Helen - Well come here, honey. No excuse needed.

steviewren said...

I recently spent a week in Florida. I dropped in when Katrina was on her way out and when Hanna was on the way in. The weather was sunny. The beach was white. The water was lovely, although it did have a bit of marine life in it. A good time was had by all.

Anonymous said...

Actually, I dislike soft water - I can't seem to quench my thirst with it, and soap is hard to rinse! I guess I'm used to hard water.

I went to the US to see friends and to see some sights (I'm English). I loved the dry heat of Utah and Nevada. California had a heatwave going and was far too hot. And then I caught a hideous virus and the last week was not so much fun.

Loved western style riding, loved the fountains in Vegas. Missed English food and proper cheese and real hot tea.