You know that feeling where you need a holiday after your holiday? Of course you do. Experts share their secrets with David O’Sullivan for making sure you stay sane and happy this time round
It’s ho-ho-holiday time again, and you know what that means. Fun, relaxation, good cheer, a welcome break from the humdrum routine.
Well, except for you, dear parent, for whom the holidays can equally mean hard work, high stress levels, and a perpetual battle to occupy and amuse your offspring.
Whether you choose to “staycation” at home, or hit the road with a boot full of luggage and a hamper full of padkos, you’ll know it isn’t always easy to cope with the backseat chorus of “are we there yet?” or the home-bound refrain of “I’m bored. What’s there to do?”
That’s why we invited three experts in the art of finding things to do into the BrightRock studio for an Iris Session hosted by David O’Sullivan, himself a parent who was eager to hear the answers.
His guests: Nechama Brodie, journalist and author of two acclaimed city biographies, The Joburg Book and The Cape Town Book; Kojo Baffoe, writer, poet, and editor; and Kate Els, blogger and social media marketer.
This lively session is packed with wisdom, insight, and practical advice for holidaymakers, so we hope you’ll take a little time to sit back and watch before you get into the holiday groove. In the meantime, enjoy this sneak preview:
Embrace the Power of Boredom: It’s a good idea to plan activities as the holiday stretches out before you, but don’t overdo it. Leave space in the agenda for your children to sit around and do nothing, because it’s in that space that spontaneity and creativity can blossom. Left to their own devices – and we’re not talking about phones and tablets, for a change – children will invent games and harness the joys of unstructured play. Boredom can be a gateway to unleashing energy and imagination.
Give Your Children the Gift of Your Presence: Make the most of holiday time by leaving the stresses and hassles of work behind. It’s a chance to “be there” for your children, so seize it and share in the fun. That will be a gift for you as much as for your children.
Enjoy being a Tourist in Your Own City: It’s a myth that you need to go far way from home to have a good time on holiday. If you’re a Joburger, for instance, there’s plenty do in the Big City, from the buzz of active learning at the Sci-Bono Centre in Newtown, to the song and colour of birdlife at the Montecasino Bird Park, to the weightless thrills of trampolining at Bounce in Midrand. Avoid the crowded, noisy malls, and see the parts of your city you don’t normally get to see. There’s a reason tourists travel from far and wide to see them!
Take the Back-Roads and Take it Easy: The holiday rush shouldn’t be a holiday rush. That’s a sure way to stress yourself out, as you notch up yet another big fine for racing past yet another small town. Part of the joy of holidaymaking is venturing off the freeway, and strolling around Platteland dorpies that have their own stories to tell. You’ll meet interesting people, see interesting places, and get to your destination in good time. Let your children be your guide. If they see something intriguing on or off the map, follow their suggestions. Let the “there” in “are we there yet” be somewhere they weren’t even expecting to go.
Pack Pad-Books Along with the Padkos: In the back of a car, in a queue at an airport, at the poolside, holiday quiet-time is the ideal time to haul out a book and get some reading done. Not on screens, which offer too much in the way of distraction, but on good old-fashioned paper. No matter where you’re heading, or even if you’re not, books allow you and your children to travel to faraway worlds and different times. A good book is as good as a holiday, and a good book on holiday is even better.
*For more expert insight and advice on having a great family holiday, watch the full BrightRock Iris Session, hosted by David O’Sullivan here.
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