It was a rainy Sunday afternoon...

[byslantedlight]

...and how is it that I can't make a single weekend plan and have it stick? Work was flummoxed yesterday morning when the server went down, chores in town were flummoxed by laziness and a desire to finish The Kashmir Shawl, I've not yet preserved a single lemon, and then everything I was going to do to catch up this morning was flummoxed when what would normally have been an hour's chat with my mum on the phone turned into three and a quarter hours!

During the course of that three and a quarter hours, as well as wandering through mum and dad's old photos (her via photo albums, me via folders with scans of the photos made by my sister in no apparent order and with no regard for chronology/any writing on the back) and just being interested, I glanced at some old family tree notes from over a dozen years ago and saw that a third cousin of mine married into the van Niekirk family... (she later divorced him... *g*)

On top of all that, I've barely set foot out of the house all weekend, and having decided that I must get some exercise today, every time I look out the window it's raining...

Can I be here now, please?


Oh, or failing that - where shall I go for a brief but sunnily exotic break in March? Which is, after all, why I've kept on with more than just my boring day job... Where, where where? Where would you go? Where shall I go? I need to make actual plans so that I go somewhere! Thoughts? Recommendations? *g*

Comments

[ailcia.livejournal.com]

I know - I've had one of those weekends, myself, but I must admit I've rather been enjoying it, and have turned off the guilt-switch in my brain...

As for mini-breaks, the only two places I can really suggest from personal experience are Lyons in France (stunningly beautiful and interesting, with an Old Town and a Roman Amphitheatre) and the island of Madeira, which is exotic and beautiful and sunny and genuinely unlike any other place I've been to in my life!

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Ah, I've never thought of Madeira, I must go and look... *g*

My guilt-switch for the weekends generally isn't too bad, except for the twice a year (once after this one) that I work a relatively short but intense time, and the weekend is really needed. But the server was down, and people were slow, and my book was good, so... I'm not going to fret too much this time. I'm up to date with it!

Oh, but I do want a proper holiday, where there aren't even guilt-switches in reach...

[moonlightmead.livejournal.com]

I'm going to sulk if you do this, because I haven't, yet! But lots of my friends have been seduced by Barcelona. Can't be sure about the weather, but it is apparently very suited to mini-breaks. Gaudi architecture, Spain but *very* independent, a city you can get about in without a car, Catalan (I took Catalan lessons for a bit and found it very disorienting), history - lots of history... and even Cowley-history, of course.

Somewhere interesting that is probably sunnier is Sardinia. I want to see the nuraghes! They look amazing! Only, I have just realised, you're an archaeologist type, you probably know all about them anyway...

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Lol - I'm afraid that Barcelona is actually quite high on my list at the moment, having come across Gaudi's work last year, when I never had before... I've never been particularly fussed about Spain to be honest - until I saw his buildings... *g*

Sardinia I've never thought of though - well, except of course for the nuarghes which I know all about, because I'm an archaeologist... *g* I had a friend once who thought I was a qualified helicopter pilot, on the basis that I'd once said I wanted to go up in one. Must be the way I tell 'em... *g*

[moonlightmead.livejournal.com]

I think I remember the discussion about Gaudi, actually - you had posted a picture of one of his apartments in a collage of vividly coloured photographs.

Ah, well, you see, obviously you would know about flying helicopters. It's being an archaelogist. I have seen Time Team, I know you all have to go up in the air and look down at the landscape! So it all hangs together. Yes :)

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Yes, he came up a few times I think - and moth2fic sent me some gorgeous photos to dream about...

Wish I had been able to fly a helicopter... though I did get to fly in one finally, and loved it! *g*

[constant-muse.livejournal.com]

van Niekirk - hee! Them Pros writers knew their stuff.

yes, do go somewhere lovely and warm soon. Google tells me it's snowing here, but it isn't quite, not yet.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Hee - I know! *g*

It's not warmth I'm desperate for as such, just... somewhere different! An adventure, somewhere new... oh, I want something new!

[milomaus.livejournal.com]

Corse:
https://www.google.de/search?q=korsika&hl=de&client=safari&tbo=d&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=JiQYUczVJe_64QTM-oHQBA&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1024&bih=672

*sigh*

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Ah, Corsica... somewhere else I'd not thought of... oh, and d'you know I've always assumed it had ended up part of Italy, but it's not at all, it's French... *adds to list*

*g*

[moth2fic.livejournal.com]

Seconding Barcelona, here. At the moment, nice days and cold nights...

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

I must admit, Gaudi is pulling me... *g*

[siskiou.livejournal.com]

I was going to suggest Iceland, but I don't think it quite fits the requirements (sunnily, or at least not *warm*).

Someone suggested Madeira, and that would definitely interest *me*.
Wherever you end up going, please take pictures and report in! :)

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

I'd love to go to Iceland actually, but I think I am after a bit more of a change than that would feel just now... (we've had snow again this morning - well, the sleet-ish kind rather than the kind that stays, but it was nice to see the flakes!)

And I strongly suspect there'll be pictures... *g*

[alicambs.livejournal.com]

New Zealand. :-D

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

D'you know, it's rather been on my mind to go back to New Zealand after all - I'd like to spend more time there (though I'm not sure how I could unless I actually found a job out there for a while... which I might keep half an eye out for, because I want new adventure! Plus I keep remembering our week-of-tramping-with-Mr-Alicambs, and that I ended up feeling sooo much fitter in just that short time! Plus excellent coffee... *eyes job vacancy pages*...)

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

An assassin in the family! We'll be a lot nicer to you from now on *g*

For a mini break that doesn't involve flying, how about Aberystwyth?

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Yes! Your icon! *g*

I sooooo need a holiday that involves flying... *g*

But I am intrigued - what's your connection to Aberystwyth?

[miwahni.livejournal.com]

No real connection, just very fond memories of a picturesque seaside town. This was the first place where I watched an episode of Dr Who on British soil; where my GPS started reading street names out in Welsh which was no help to me at all; where we stayed in a B&B where the fire escape was through our room; where we were given a lavish menu for dinner only to find everything but eggs were off so settled for omelette and a light salad; where the street sweepers got started at 7am on a Sunday RIGHT outside our room... at the very least you'd have a tale to tell afterwards.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Hee - I'm not entirely sure a 7am wake up call from the road sweepers is what I'm after... *g*

But yeay for fond memories of seaside towns! Actually a seaside town does sound rather nice, too... *g*

[etain-antrim.livejournal.com]

You might like this: http://photos.msn.com/slideshow/local%20edition/incredible-star-trails/23mexpe9

I saw it and thought of you.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Oh, I do like that - thank you! *g* And actually that's something else I'd like to do - learn how to take some of those gorgeous night-sky shots... I did star trails when I was a kid (not that good though!) but now they've got those gorgeous deep-sky pictures...