I know I talk about it often on this blog but I can’t help it. I love being around water and especially being at the beach. When I was very young, my mother refused to let me take swimming lessons because to her, that was tantamount to saying it was okay for me to drown. My arguing that swimming lessons meant the chances of me drowning would reduce fell on deaf ears. I did get swimming lessons later in life though – when I was 21 and old enough to do whatever I wanted.
Anyway, back to my love of water. I really began to notice it when we moved to a house only about 10 minutes walk from the beach. It was amazing. Sometimes, when standing outside our home chatting, you would suddenly taste salt in your mouth. That’s how close to the ocean we were. When we were to move house, I was a little sad but then discovered our new house was just a short walk from the lagoon in Lagos – a weird coincidence but I was thrilled. I often walked to the lagoon’s edge and dipped my toes in the water.
My love for the sea means that my favourite holidays have included a trip to the beach. One episode that stands out in my mind was when I went to Ghana. After a morning of sight-seeing outside Accra, our guide suggested lunch at the Coconut Grove Resort, a hotel by a beach. I was a bit jaded really. The hotel I was staying at had a beach but its ‘private beach’ was cordoned off from the sea. Coconut Grove Resort was different though. I didn’t notice any cordoned-off area and I ate lunch only a few feet from the ocean. Apart from the fact that it felt fresh to eat a meal while feeling the spray of the ocean, it reminded me of when I was younger and we lived near the beach. A warm cloud of happiness settled on me that day and I know it is one I will remember for years to come.
What is the one thing you always make sure your holiday destination has? Tell us in the comments.
If you like this article, please subscribe to this blog by entering your email address into the box on the right. You can also share this post on Facebook or Twitter and get in touch with me on Facebook or Twitter. Thank you.
Photograph by virtual photography studio
