Sam Radford

June 4, 2022

Thoughts from away

I’m in Mallorca with extended family at the moment. That explains my lack of posts this week. And also last week, as preparing for our first international travel since March 2019 was all consuming! 

What follows is a somewhat random and eclectic collection of thoughts I’ve had while away. 

  • Guaranteed sunshine is nice! Waking up each morning, knowing you’ll see the sun, that it’ll be warm and dry, is a welcome change from life in England.

  • All inclusive is great. Only done it once before when on a cruise, but not having to think about food preparation—or argue about restaurant choices!—is a real relief. (Excuse me while I pause and get a beer… Included, of course…)

  • I was in real need of this break. It’s been a tough old year to date with health challenges across the family, and getting away from it all has felt like an opportune rest and reset.

  • I still don’t get to read as much as I’d like on holiday. I always—foolishly, clearly—still have high hopes of lots of reading when away. A holiday with kids just doesn’t coincide with lots of reading!

  • Different settings lead to different conversations. Being away with people you’re familiar with, in a different context, opens the door to new, fresh conversations which is always a lovely discovery. (Not totally bored of all my family yet! 😉)

  • The sea is magical. It doesn’t matter if it’s the sea at Scarborough, or here in Mallorca, there’s something magical and almost therapeutic about being by the sea.

  • I love palm trees. Nothing to add to that!

  • Sunburn sucks. Thankfully I’ve avoided it so far, but both my girls have suffered thanks to their pale skin coupled with a desire to spend hour after hour in the pool. So I’m blaming them rather than any poor parenting on my part…

  • Making decisions in a big group is a challenge! There are eleven of us away in Mallorca—four kids, seven adults. The kids’ ages range from three to thirteen, so there’s lots of different wants and needs. And then adults with a range of expectations too. Trying to keep everyone happy all the time isn’t straight forward. (Just in case you thought my holiday was all bliss!)

  • Getting kids ready and out of the house is just as hard on holiday. Sigh.

—Sam

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About Sam Radford

Husband, father, lover of books, writer, tech geek, sports fan, and pragmatic idealist from Sheffield, England.