Vacation: (vey KAH shun) Noun. Suspension of work, study, or other obligatory activity, with the purpose of rest, recreation, or travel.
We just returned from a week visiting South Carolina. We had a great time with family and friends, hanging out at the beach, reading, golfing, sightseeing, eating too much and drinking too much.
I need to go back to work to recover.
As an instructor in Recreation, Park and Tourism Management at Penn State, I have both a personal as well as professional interest in the concept of leisure and recreation. My colleagues at Penn State research all aspects of leisure and tourism, why we choose certain places or activities and how we use leisure and recreation facilities. The benefits of leisure and recreation (a.k.a. play) are well known.
Our culture looks for different things in our expression of leisure and, subsequently, our vacation time. Some of us look for excitement and adventure. Others look for relaxation and “kicking back.” For many it’s a time to reconnect with friends and family.
The health benefits in taking a break from our day-to-day lives have been well documented: lower blood pressure, lower rates of depression, etc., but there are social benefits of vacationing as well. These include building and maintaining our relationships, positive family interaction and celebrating important milestones in our personal histories.
Research has strongly demonstrated that employees who don’t have access to or who choose not to take time off are not as productive as those who do. Time away from work and other obligations can be a offer us a place for personal control and individual expression and can make us better employees, friends, spouses – people – when we come back.
We derive enjoyment from planning and reminiscing about our vacations as much as from the vacation itself. In the Kleban household, the vacation starts with Mom and Dad making the decision about where and when we are going (with increasing input from the kids as they get older).
We usually take at least one trip a year to a beach, although home repairs and college tuition have occasionally pushed us off that schedule. We’ve vacationed at beaches in Maryland, North Carolina, Delaware, Florida and South Carolina. Our cruise didn’t really count as our “beach” trip because we only spent one day of the week on a beach.
This year, friends who own a gorgeous house near Pawley’s Island, graciously offered their home to us to use for a family reunion. We put out the call to Grandma and Grandpa, aunts, uncles, and cousins and said “Be there or Be Square.” Some weren’t able to make it because of kid sports, work or other plans but we managed to fill the house for most of the week with assorted Kleban relatives. We even dragged along some teenage friends for entertainment for the kids. It’s been on the calendar for months.
A few weeks before, I start thinking about what I need to do to get ready. This year, Daughter No. 2 started summer semester at Penn State, so she was out. (Her post-graduation trip to Charleston last month made that easier to swallow). I make sure that I’m caught up at work before leaving, and sometimes I make arrangements for the dogs and usually stop the mail service.
In the days before, I review the packing list with all of my kids even though they are old enough to pack on their own. I buy sunscreen, make sure we have cash, take care of any bills that might come due while we are gone and make reservations for the hotel stop on the way down.
In the meantime, my husband does the same. He works like a mad man in the days before we leave so none of his clients go without in his absence. He also makes of list of needed items (i.e. the “skim” boards) and makes sure the cars are ready to drive the distance.
The stress of preparation sometimes leads to what the kids call the “pre-vacation argument.” The thrill of leaving for the beach, in the dark of the early morning, with pillows for the kids and coffee for the adults, is part of the ritual. These rituals help add to the excitement of the trip.
For adults, the actual tasks on vacation are sometimes not all that much different from tasks at home. I still had to go to the grocery store. We still had to cook and prepare meals. I even did some beach laundry while I was there. I was at the beach most days by 10 and read four totally trashy novels – definitely different from my normal routine. I took my laptop but mostly used it to check the weather report. This year, I actually turned off my Blackberry except to check the time and to text the teenage boys to find out where they were.
Vacationers look for different things. I don’t think Grandma and Grandpa made it to the beach once although but they took sightseeing trips to Georgetown and Charleston. My husband came to the beach one late afternoon but was happy golfing with PA friends who were also visiting SC the other days. The boys rode golf carts, looked for alligators and tried to ignore the mother/lifeguard who was overexcited about rip tides. The college girls went through several bottles of tanning oil and only came up from the beach when we made them.
Different strokes for different folks. What we look for in our leisure often suggests what we get out of it.
After a 14-hour car ride home, which included 4th of July traffic around DC and lots of bathroom stops, I took a several hour long nap the next day. All of that rest and relaxation tired me out.
Coming home from vacation is always a little sad. Months of planning and anticipation are over until the next time. I’ve learned that the best way to combat the post-vacation blues is to start planning the next one.
