Some words are just made to give you an itch you can’t scratch when hearing them. My current favourite: staycation. Horrible! After the hygge and lykke and yolo there is this word that is supposed to make you feel comfortable in what you are doing in that moment, which is staying at home scrolling through your friends’ holiday pictures on all social media because that is the only thing that exists on the interwebs these summer days.
I’m sitting at the kitchen table writing in my psychedelic night gown, drinking cold rose from a fancy glass, listening to Anderson .Paak’s record because hey, I’m on staycation! Which means I spend all my money on cocktails, records and festivals instead of booking a flight somewhere and soaking up the sun and culture elsewhere.
Even though the word makes me cringe, I never though I would actually enjoy staycationing. But I do! Brussels is showing her best side, filling the streets with lightly dresses people and packed terraces, park dance parties and garden delights. Sweaty bike rides (yes, I bought a new seventh hand bike. She’s named the Trusty Rusty and brings me places with high speed, since her brakes are more rusty than she’s trusty) take me on adventures, friends from far away lands visit my home town and bring out the excited tourist within me.
And when the city gets too much, there are the wonderful weekends away with friends. To places that feel further away than they really are, since Belgium is pretty much the tiniest country on earth. A one hour drive and people speak different accents, sunflower fields and blazing temperatures give you the feeling you’re on a proper vacation. Playing cards, swimming in a dirty lukewarm lake, petting sheep, crossword puzzles and all my granny holiday dreams come true. This world traveller has fully embraced her inner grandma and is feeling the staycation more than ever.
If you find me living in a trailer park playing bingo with other oldies but goldies, please return me to Brussels. Thank you!