Random Musings From A Week's Vacation

Some thoughts that occurred to me during, or following, a week's holiday in Cornwall:

• Cornwall is a long way from Leeds, especially with a toddler in the car. Stopping over half way was a good idea.
• Driving from Leeds to Bristol on a Friday night can cause a man to develop up a mighty craving for whisky.
• There is no booze to be found at the Days Inn at the M5 J19 Gordano services.
• Nor at the nearby petrol station.
• Holidaying with a 12 month-old is a totally different experience to holidaying as a couple.
• In years to come, when The Boy reflects on the newspaper covers from the day of his first birthday, he'll either think "Wow, doesn't Obama look young!?" or "Who the hell is that guy?"
• Seeing the number of cute young ladies in Newquay makes me begin to question why I spent so much of my twenties holidaying in bothies in the remotest regions of the Scottish Highlands.
• At £8.50 for approximately 20 minutes' entertainment, the Blue Reef Aquarium in Newquay is pretty poor value. Fish fans and animal lovers get a better deal at the Scarborough Sea Life Centre, The Deep in Hull, Monterrey Bay Aquarium, the Haus des Meeres in Vienna, or even just Tropical World in dear old Leeds. Yeah, we sure visit the occasional animal house!
• Listening to the same CD of nursery rhymes too many times in succession can do strange things to the mind.
• KenKen appeals to my mindset much more than Sudoku ever did.
• Ben Elton's latest paperback, Blind Faith, is a good read - especially for those of us who spend too much time exposing ourselves on the interweb.
• A SatNav really comes into its own when holidaying in an unfamiliar area...
• ...but having updated maps loaded would have made it even more useful.
• Pervasive GPRS is great, but finding an HSDPA connection is better.
• Brocks Barn is a small but perfectly-formed barn conversion with all mod cons - highly recommended for couples or small families such as ours.
• Getting back into a work mentality after a relaxing week away is tough.