Sorry for all the posts about holidays this week, but I am in full blown holiday mode now that Ellie has finished school, and is indeed already in Spain for a week. On a cheeky girls week with one of her best friends at school. Seriously who knew that girls weeks in Spain would start at 16?!
She is back just long enough for bikinis to dry out and then we are off on our summer holiday. And with that in mind I am now thinking about what I will do for two glorious weeks on the beach. Reading is always pretty close to the top of my list but it got me thinking about which books and if there were other things to do, after all I am not a “just lie there gently poaching” kinda gal.
Fiction
You cannot beat a really good book for helping you completely switch off when you lie on the beach. Being totally swept away up in a story is one of my favourite ways to spend an afternoon. I have quite a pile of books to take with me this year as I am going to re-read some classics, and tackle some I have never read before. I sat and watched Anna Karenina the other night on TV and thought it was about time I read the book. The Works are doing 6 for a tenner on the classics at the moment so I am going to have a splurge, and then leave them in the villa for the next person to enjoy.
Adult colouring books
When I bought one of these for Lady B for Christmas last year I had no idea how “on trend” I was. How they are the thing for people to do. In fact on that flight to Spain Ellie and her friend Emily spent most of their time with an adult colouring book and pencil case of felt tips. I love the idea of doing this on the beach. There is something incredibly calming about the idea of lying on a beach “doing colouring in”. I can see why they are called Art Therapy books by many.
Listening to music
There are so many albums I haven’t listened to in ages, I tend to have radio 4 on at home and now I am not doing a school run over the summer I don’t hear music at all. So I am going to spend an hour or two everyday just listening to albums, both old classics (ELO’s greatest hits anyone?!) and a few new ones. I watched Lionel Ritchie at Glastonbury this weekend and had forgotten just how many fantastic songs he has recorded.
The only danger with this of course is singing out loud inadvertently.
Crosswords
I love doing crosswords with Mr B’s parents. I am often better at them than I think, and really love getting my head around the cryptic clue. And shouting “Oh. Yes. I have got that one” and then sitting back with a smug grin. Would be fun to do a few with Mr B on the beach as it means we can actually do something together.
How about you? What are you top things to do on the beach? I would love to hear! Or are you just a “lie there” type of beach person?
Photo of the book on the beach courtesy of Shutterstock
This is a collaborative piece
I try to snore quietly.