I am listening to Westlife on Youtube.

What prompted this urge to re-live my late teen’s crush you ask? Well, just been to Sligo, a city north west of Ireland where three of the band member are from.

Quite frankly, I am swooned once more!

All that I want in my life,
is the feeling of peace,
deep within me truly…

Oh my god, so cheesy, but so good.

Don’t judge me. I need to write an article on this trip to Sligo – I am considering the music listening as necessary ‘research’.

A sickly return to home

A renewed infatuation with this Irish boy band did not come as a coincidence. I found a mural of Westlife while walking around Sligo that put a smile to my face and reminded me of the romantic view of the world I used to have about the world.

And, these kind of songs make soothing sick-at-home background music.

I have been coughing and wheezing through two days since getting back from Ireland on Friday night. You might think I’d be sitting here feeling sorry for myself, glad to be home to a husband whose tender care brought me numerous cups of tea as I struggle with my latest deadline (editors mostly have no mercy, don’t tell them I said that).

Not wanting to let my editors down and sever all future possibilities of getting commissioned again, I soldiered on, typing away at the dining table while the soft London rain drizzled outside in all their gloominess. There is only so much brain power I could muster before my mind began to wander, and suddenly this thought came into my head:

I wish I was out cycling.

WHAT?

Where did that come from?

I am not a cyclist! Don’t even own a bike!

Sure I know how to ride a bike, and occasionally we might go on a short ride on our travels but this thought had deeper meanings that stemmed from my most recent experience in Ireland. This thought wanted me to go out and cycle the length of the Thames, or better, get back to north west Ireland and tackle some hills!

I have a dream, a song to sing
To help me cope with anything
If you see the wonder (wonder) of a fairy tale
You can take the future even if you fail
I believe in angels
Something good in everything I see….

 

Being idle is my worst enemy

Writing has its benefits. It is something I could do anywhere, at any time. However, the downside is, while I am writing, I am not out there. Being idle, at the desk, is my worst enemy.

As I said, there is only so many hours you can spend thinking about one topic (currently working on a piece about Russia), and the rest of the time clips of daydreams float in and out of your consciousness.

And a lot of that daydream are a collection of little infatuations and fantasies based on the activities, the towns and villages and the people I meet on my travels. Seeing that I’ve just spent a week with a brilliant group of people cycling the countryside of north west Ireland, getting up early in the morning for our yoga sessions before saddling up for a day of adventure (in my case, struggling to keep up with everyone) – the adrenaline can become addictive, and a sudden cut from this activity back in London just seemed…. boring.

I could just jump back on a plane and go somewhere I could get back on a bike, or I could buy myself a bike…

I’m too shy to ask, I’m too proud to lose
But sooner or later I gotta choose
And once again I’m thinking about
Taking the easy way out…

But before I go out to buy that bike….

I can’t tell you how many times this has happened to me. To be infatuated by the events and people immediately after a trip.

Everybody’s looking for a something
One thing that makes it all complete
You’ll find it in the strangest places
Places you never knew it could be

I am not stupid. If I go out now and buy that bike, it’ll just end up being stored away for most of the year. Just like the time when I wanted to buy an inflatable kayak, to join a soccer team, learn Regency dancing, own a cat cafe, move to Peru or cuddle up to the cute guy at the bar whom I got on really well with (wait, is my husband reading this??)…

That’s what travel does to you.

It shows you all the possibilities out there, all the different things you could do and things you thought you could never do (cycling, for example); people you never thought were perfect for you and friendships you couldn’t possibly have if you didn’t make the decision to get out there.

It makes you question a lot of things – your life, your choices, your loyalty and your assumed prejudices. Above all, it makes you feel free.

When I am out there, on the mountain and by the sea, with the sway of trees whispering in my ear and robins chirping their love songs at my feet, these are the things that infatuate me and make me feel alive.

Just like Westlife’s song – travel makes me fly without wings.