plan a vacation

I woke up and chose where I wanted to live for the rest of my life. Now my life IS a vacation. 3 months ago

today my summer vacation draws to an end. I had such a good time again this year.

I’m sure I’ll have lots to dream of in the coming months :) 5 months ago

Today I focused on writing a few more e-mails & confirming a few more details, as well as finding some other small presents & buying a few more travel necessities. I was pleased to see that some gift items arrived safely today via FedEx/UPS. yay The biggest travel tasks remaining, I think, are to finish the laundry & do the packing (luggage counts & weight limits argh). Oh, & to print out copies of various paperwork (from boarding passes to travel insurance documentation) that we will (or might) need. 6 months ago

have been arranged by now.

This was really difficult this year due to the cat sitter disaster(s). But now I’m set, with someone who I have a good feeling about.

Soon now, soon :) 6 months ago

Continuing to confirm details (dates & times & places of meetings) & to purchase a few more tickets that are available online (amazingly enough, there are still a few things that don’t allow advance purchase & require one’s physical presence grin).

I also spoke with the person who’ll be handling lawn care while we’re away, alerting her to the presence of the house-sitter (& vice versa).

Buying presents was the most fun of today’s vacation-related activities, as I got some gifts using a $10 off coupon & the others using a 15% off coupon. Just a few more left to find…. smile7 months ago

Focused today on booking the last of our lodgings (except for the more or less spontaneous overnight trips at the end of the vacation)—just in time, too, as the booking sites I visited were showing “only X rooms left” in red print all over their pages. I felt very grateful to get what we needed for an acceptable price without running into any “sold out” signs that would’ve bumped up room prices a notch, making the trip more expensive.

A couple of gift items (things I could only find online) arrived via FedEx/UPS today, so those have been stashed away for packing.

And I also confirmed with the house-sitter, giving her our new contact information & discussing a few more household details that she’ll be covering for us. 7 months ago

Today I purchased a few small items to take as gifts for friends that we’ll be visiting, replaced a few items of clothing that I’ll need while traveling, & collected a few personal items to put into our luggage. It’s beginning to feel real! smile7 months ago

Focusing today on logistical details (e.g., booking airport shuttles & day-trip vans). smile7 months ago

the major things now.

However this is proving very difficult, since I still don’t have a 100% confirmation on the new cat sitter. The day we were supposed to meet, she ended up in a hospital (!).

Nothing serious probably, since I just got a reply saying, we’ll be able to meet this week.

Still, that’s a kind of stress I hadn’t expected… 7 months ago

Additional details confirmed re: lodgings, advance ticket purchases, & the timing of meetings with friends. smile7 months ago

My cat sitter canceled the time I had arranged with her well in advance, since she needs to travel due to family matters around that time.

That sure was a blow to my planning. I hope I can find a trustworthy alternative in time.

After some soul-searching I’ve decided to go ahead with my plans anyway and start booking things for my vacation, before time on some things potentially runs out. 7 months ago

A lot of work done on booking lodgings & advance purchase of tickets (concerts, museums). smile7 months ago

I booked the white and red cottage in Kilfenora ! I love the cottage and the cottage loves me. I know what I’ll do this summer. I’ll wake up early and go for a walk on the trails of Kilfenora, I’ll go up the hills, I’ll cross fields of stones and wild streams and when I be tired, I’ll be back to the little cottage, I’ll brew tea for me, share milk with my daughter and I’ll tell her about a grave where daffodil and lily wave and we’ll sing the song of the Happy Shepherd . 7 months ago

deciding what’s a must-see & what to skip (given there’s never enough time to do everything) & arranging details for the travel sequence within each country we visit. smile7 months ago

Kilfenora, is a lovely place. I feel it’s a lovely place. I close my eyes and and can see myself walking in the moor, smelling the wet scent of heath. Soft rain, soft sun, everything is balanced.
So I was day dreaming about my new love kilfenora, when I heard a low voice, gaelic flavored accent « kilfenora is too far, Kerry region is better » he said.

Far ? I just don’t get the idea of « far ».

Far from what ? I thought. I was born in a microsopic french island in the middle of the caraibian sea, wherever I am, I’m far from home. I don’t even know what and where « home » is exactly. And I need a dictionary to spell the word caribbean correctly.
Well, this year, I’m not going to enter into a lethal fight : Rest of the world versus Kerry. I am not even irish. I have a camisole shamrock color, that’s all irish I can be. I also have a green hooded sweat shirt but I don’t wear it. I’m french, I don’t wear hoodies. And, By the way, I prefer Scotland, their whiskey tastes better. My heart is in the highlands,but I’m on my way to Kilfenora. My thoughts are. The little cottage is crying my name. 7 months ago

House is cleaned, ideas are in order. The psychorigid vacation planner in me is ready to act. Laptop screen is immaculate, keyboard unspotted. Tea pot is full.Vacation planning is like war strategy : it’s &#@*¨ serious. There is no strife, no prejudice, no national conflict in outer space as yet that could avoid me from planning my vacation in Ireland. But why, some say,Ireland ? I don’t know. Maybe, because of the stout.
Among ridiculous insane villa owners who think I’m going to pay a month salary to see sheep graze on a meadow, and other zany optimistic hippies who embolden you to breathe, feel and seize the day in a remote barn in remote Inishmore on remote Aran islands, with a 18 month old.
Well among all these comical propositions of time-off laymen, vacation dabblers, amateurs who beleive vacation planning is a hobby, I found my pearl. Impeccable. A little traditionnal irish cottage. Neat. All painted white, red doors. In Kilfenora. Let see if it’s possible. 8 months ago

some more detail plans. Things are starting to come together :) 8 months ago

I like my tea warm, not hot. I like cheese with baguette, only. And I like the vacation, planned. That’s all. 8 months ago

for this year’s summer vacation. Felt good :) 8 months ago

I began by coordinating time off work & collecting vacation dates for friends with whom we’ll travel. It’s a lot of work, but worth it, since it means we’ll get to see more people! smile

We’ve settled on the timing & locations for one portion of the trip, & now we’re finalizing the other portion, as well as deciding details of the sequences within each country (what order to visit where & whom); this will depend on what I hear back from everyone.

I’ve booked our flights, well in advance this year, after researching the best days to fly, the air carriers with the most convenient departure schedules & lowest bag fees, etc., using a variety of web resources to compare & contrast & finally (just yesterday) buying tickets (using www.cheaptickets.com).

I’ve also written the house-sitter to firm up our schedule (I’d checked with her in advance about the range of dates that we had in mind), received her confirmation, & paid the deposit.

I always forget how tiring travel planning can be (so many little details to figure out)—but it’s always well worth it when the vacation runs smoothly as a result! smile8 months ago