5 ways to extend your holidays

 
One or two weeks of holidays might bring you to places that approach the sunny or snowy images of glossy magazines. You enjoy a different climate, culinary excursions, new sensations, new people, new cultures,  … You discover new scents, you discover new dishes, … Or when you are headed for a wintersport destination you will discover the slopes of the mountains and inhale the incredible fresh air.
And then you return to the grey reality of daily existence. And the holiday experience becomes a fading memory.
It does not have to be like that. Or at least, you can slow down the process. There are ways to extend this experience. Let me share with you 5 ways to extend your holiday experience after your return.
1. Don’t clean up too fast
After having returned from holidays you rush to the washing machine, you put away the maps and guides and you clean up your car. Don’t do this to hastily. Leave a map on the table so you can browse through it and retrace the places you have visited. The Tuscan dust in your car reminds you of the small roads that took you to your borgo.
We can recommend poggiacolle and borgo tre rose in Tuscany. And for winter time (and summer) Sporthotel Neustift.
2. Import your destination
Buy local products so that you can use them at home. I am not only talking about food (pasta, pepper) and wine (castello di ama, antinori, poliziano, avignonesi, …) but also about daily products such as soaps, schiuma (for shaving), German white beer … With a bit of luck you will be using some products for the next couple of months or even years.


3. Relive some sensations
3 examples of how you can relive the sensations of your holidays.
When in Italy we listened to radio subasio, radio kiss kiss. After our return we listened through the internet (www.radiosubasio.it/). So we listened to the same songs and language which brought back memories of the trips, visits and evenings. Mind you, the radio station broadcasts a lot of crappy music, but on holiday you do not mind too much.
When baking potatoes we use olive oil, which we had bought in Italy, and spice it with rosemary (from our garden) to create the rosemary potatoes we had eaten in different restaurants. Or try to imitate the delicious ravioli from the bottega in Radda.

Another way to relive sensations is to try and extend some holiday habits. Why should you not play a game with your kids after the holidays like you’ve done during the holidays? You have probably not watched TV during two weeks, so why should you do that after your holidays? Try and hold on to some positive habits you have developed during your holidays.
4. Make some of it durable
Try and bring something durable back from holidays. It’s not necessary to buy something. It can be a pebble stone or a bowl of sand. But you can also purchase something that is linked to the trip. By looking at it, your memories will be revived. It’s a lifetime extension of your holiday experience.
5. Expand your experience
You might have seen many things during your trip. And you can expand that after your trip by reading up on the things you have (not) seen. Or by reading novels that have your holiday destination as setting. You can find some examples for Italy on http://www.lifeinitaly.com/potpourri/novels.asp. Continue your exploration after your return.
Enjoy your extended holidays.