Sometimes You Need a Holiday From Your Holiday

Barcelona with the family can be wonderful.

Breakfast together.

Sagrada Família.

A walk through the Gothic Quarter.

Someone wants ice cream.

Someone else needs the toilet.

Nobody can agree where to have lunch.

Your mother wants to know why you didn't bring a jacket.

And somewhere around day four, you realise something:

You need a tiny holiday from your holiday.

I see this more often than you might imagine.

Someone contacts me while visiting Barcelona with family, a partner or friends. They don't have an entire afternoon available. Sometimes they barely have an hour.

They have simply found a little opening in the itinerary.

"They're going shopping."

"Everyone is taking a nap."

"I told them I was going for a walk."

"I have exactly two hours."

Perfect.

Come in.

Put your phone away.

Take off the backpack you've been carrying around Barcelona for three days.

For the next hour or two, nobody needs anything from you.

You don't have to decide where everyone is eating tonight. You don't have to find the entrance to Park Güell. You don't have to negotiate whether one more museum is really necessary.

You can simply lie down.

Sometimes that's all someone wants: a good massage, quiet, touch, and the delicious experience of temporarily having absolutely no responsibilities.

Sometimes they want something a little more sensual.

Sometimes they arrive slightly mischievous, because slipping away for an hour has already made the experience feel like a small adventure.

I rather like that.

There doesn't always have to be a profound reason for seeking touch, pleasure or connection.

Sometimes you're in Barcelona.

You're relaxed.

You're curious.

You've managed to escape the family WhatsApp group for 90 minutes.

And you want to have a little fun.

Then you shower, get dressed, step back onto the street and return to your holiday.

"How was your walk?"

Wonderful.

Now, where are we having dinner?