As a reward for almost four months of Furlough - drinking beer, excising, and playing on Hive, I've booked two week holiday to Spain!
It's been just over a year since I left Mallorca to return home to England, and although I've not felt the weight of the often grey clouds get the better of me, I am very much looking forward to blue skies and vitamin sea. I'm heading to the region of Andaluc铆a, it's a part of Spain that I have visited in the past but on lads holidays, there is not too much sightseeing taking place - at least on in the traditional sense ;)
With Covid-19 magically disappearing for the summer months (while the European/global economy desperately tries to recoup some loses), it is now possible for Brits to travel to and from a host of countries without being forced into a two week quarantine on arrival or returning home.
I wondered though if my work would be OK with me travelling at this time, and the answer was a resounding yes. Businesses are in a tricky situation where much of the workforce have a bunch of vacation to take before the end of the year. Even though it's likely that the number of days allowed to be carried over to 2021 will be increased, there will probably be times where there is only a skeleton crew in the office.
And so my boss was most pleased to hear that I was looking for a holiday during the next couple of weeks, before I (probably) return to work on the 27th July. The additional bonus for me is that if I take holiday whilst on Furlough I am paid full salary, so i'll be getting paid a little more than of late at the end of this month.
Which is good, because the flights were not cheap. It's going to take me most of the day to make journey each way - A stopover in Milan, and then in Barcelona on the way home is a bit crap, but I'm sure I can find something to do to past the time - like drink over-priced airport beer and write a blog.
I'll be staying with a friend, overlooking Cadiz, and 'free' accommodation certainly helps offset the travel costs. The plan is to travel light, as I didn't fancy paying another 140 euros for a suitcase, and buy a couple of things on location, or do a lot of washing :)
As far as things to do, we are both into our fitness and sports and so I'm hoping there will be cycling, swimming, padel, and volleyball, as well as some of the more traditional sports (so I actually have a chance of winning something) such as Pool and Table-tennis. When I lived in Spain, I saw and heard a fair amount of padel being played, but didn't get the opportunity myself. 
I'm told this part of the country is extremely flat, unless venturing inland, and so hiring a bike makes sense. Hopefully the number of tourists around will be low and I can get a bargain on the hire - and the bike needs to be fast, I'm not losing this one!
Hopefully I'll remember to take some photos, and there will probably be some taken of me whilst I cry into my beer following another sporting defeat.
Before this, I hope to find a place with a beer garden close to home as the pubs are open again for tomorrow. However, I'm not going to be fighting any crowds to make this happen, and have the feeling that the whole country will be on the lash tomorrow - the plan is to be out of the country before the 2nd wave arrives, and maybe I can extend the holiday further? :D
Cheers all, have a good weekend!
Asher
