“WHEN was the last time you sat in a bar and had a drink with strangers?” Someone asked me that the other day on a Zoom call.
He was in Amsterdam, I was in Singapore. We were reminiscing about the wonderful bars we used to frequent in his city.
Not that I am counting but as I write this, it’s been 326 days since I last flew on a plane. I reckon 326 days would also be my answer as to the last time I sat in a bar and had a drink with strangers.
I have to confess, I’ve tried to be brave through 2020 but as January has come and gone, I am beginning to feel a sense of weariness settling in. There’s a sameness to each day that is getting to me. Same view. Same place. Same faces. Same walks. Same stuff.
I guess this is what people mean when they say you have “cabin fever” – I’ve never felt it before till now.
Now I know. Travel breaks the monotony of sameness. That’s why we do it as much as we do. It gives us the variety that makes life spicy, often sweet, occasionally sour.
To remind us of the different tastes of travel, Expedia Singapore this week delivered folks like me “The Wanderlusting Singaporean Snack Box”. At a time when delivery has become one of the highlights of our same-same-Covid day, it was such a thrill to receive the package and unwrapping it felt like Christmas all over again.
In it were signature snacks from across Asia. It says a lot about me that I recognise all of them and where they come from – instant tom yum noodles (Thailand), Honey Butter Chips (South Korea), Tokyo Milk Cheese Factory cookies (Japan), Salted Egg Fish Skin (Malaysia), Country Egg Rolls (Hong Kong), Pocky Kaya Toast (Singapore), Kacang Telur (Peanuts, Indonesia).
The idea is for me to guess which were the most-searched destinations in Asia by vacation-deprived travellers on Expedia.com.sg for travel in 2021.
It is timed with the release of Expedia’s 2020 Vacation Deprivation® Study, which took a look at vacation-related trends of working adults around the world following a year in which almost every aspect of life was spent under one roof and not surprising, Singapore is the country that is suffering the worst case of vacation deprivation.
The study doesn’t go into the symptoms but from personal experience, I’d say, VDS (Vacation Deprivation Syndrome, I made this up) would feel like this.
• Choking up for no reason when thinking of dinners with different friends in different places
• Trying to spot a plane for no reason
• Crying in the bathroom while singing “Hit The Road, Jack”
• Getting overly excited about finding new local cafes with cute themes
• Dreaming frequently of missing flights
• Fantasising about hot air balloons, umbrellas, rockets – any contraption that looks like it could fly
• Hyperventilating when reading that in Wuhan, they are dancing again in clubs.
• Thinking GameStop is a Netflix TV series (you’d be right, they’re making a movie about it)
Every meeting I have had the past month with travel industry friends living and working in Singapore has felt like being part of “Travellers Anonymous”. We speak, and we share our pain and how we cope with our withdrawal symptoms. (Whisper to self: Maybe I should set up Travellers Anonymous on Clubhouse?)
Here are some tips you might find useful if you are suffering from VDS.
“I am attending a class that teaches you how to visualise outcomes. I visualise myself and my family in our house (in European country) this summer. I don’t care what happens, I am flying out in June.”
“I find booking flights very therapeutic. So I have booked a range of flights for December and whichever opens up, I will get on that one.”
“I went on a cruise – it was fantastic. My wife slept, I went to the casino. I am going back.”
“I went on a staycation and never left the hotel.”
“I went forest bathing and touched a palm tree.”
“I went on the duck tour and screamed. Very cathartic.”
Ah, the simple pleasures to be had when once you can’t travel.
Here’s to that first drink in a bar with strangers.
