5 Reasons why a family visit is different from a sun holiday
If part of your family lives abroad, you ‘have’ to visit them again and again. Whether it's once a year or less, frequently doesn’t matter. The fact is that you keep going back. Such a trip is amazing and enriching, as I previously wrote in my family blog, it enriches your life. But a family visit is anything but a relaxing holiday from which you return home refreshed.
1. Relaxation holiday
The hustle and bustle begin as soon as you arrive. The whole family is eager to see you. So, there's no chance to calmly recover from your journey. Instead, you drink and chat away. This continues throughout your entire holiday. Just when you settle down with a book in the garden after an afternoon of sightseeing... someone comes by who hasn’t seen you yet!
2. Swimming during the holiday
For a sun holiday, you usually choose a hotel or apartment with a nice swimming pool at the door and the beach as close as possible. A few shops around the corner for shopping are undoubtedly also on the wish list. Your family home is not a hotel, so if you’re unlucky, you can leave your bikini in your suitcase and your debit card in your hand luggage.
3. Wine and other local delicacies
Do you always stuff your suitcase with as many clothes as possible? Forget it this time! You want your cousins to taste licorice, treat them to stroopwafels, and convince them that Tony’s makes the best chocolate bars. And if you’re happy that this weight doesn’t have to come back with you. Too bad! You’ll get enough bottles of wine and local sweets to take home and share.
4. Homemade food
During a holiday, you love to find special restaurants. Now, you eat at home with the family almost every day. Those who know me well know that I only get happy with snacks like fajitas, fries, and pizza. So, eating home cooked meals is usually not my thing. Luckily, in Argentina, the barbecue is often fired up, and Milanesa Napolitana (schnitzel with tomato sauce, ham, and melted cheese) is frequently on the menu.
5. Local favorites
You do everything together with the family. Making a plan of what you want to do during this holiday is unnecessary. That’s also nice for a change: go with the flow. And the best part is, of course, that you don’t go to the places where all the tourists go. Instead, you go to the spots where the locals hang out. That’s always an adventure!
Yes, a family visit is really different from a sun holiday. Luckily, I have the best memories of it. I’ve never returned home rested! Or is that just because I have to travel 40 hours to see my family?
How long do you have to travel to visit your family?