Yes, I am terribly late again. My apologies. I can try to make an excuse and say that it was a holiday and I tried to make the best of it (spoiler alert – I failed miserably), but the truth is I just didn’t have enough motivation to write the post and decided to be lazy, even tho I have several ideas ready to develop.

But yes – it was a holiday indeed (Catholic Easter) and this is exactly the topic of this (hopefully) short blog post. The one week (and a few days) holiday in which I decided to go home – in Bulgaria. But wait…

Why does this have to be a blog post?

I am studying in Denmark and I usually don’t bother going home for those vacations lasting only 1-2 weeks. It takes me one entire day to get home and it is simply not worth it money- and timewise to go home for those short breaks.

This was yet again a suggestion by my biggest supporter and contributor – to write a post about the experience of breaking out of the well established routine and lifestyle of a Digital Concept Development student and returning to the comfort and warmth of the homeplace for such a short time.

And no worries, I will soon introduce you to the above-mentioned routine and lifestyle in another blog post, but without further ado and distractions let’s get to the point.

The way home

As I mentioned, it is a long way home for me. Luckily I truly enjoy traveling and I don’t mind that I have to spend the entire day changing different vehicles and being on the road.

The reason I am mentioning this is because I consider traveling as part of my short holiday. I used the time on the road to catch up with some books, one of which was

The Business Model Navigator: 55 Models That Will Revolutionise Your Business by Oliver Gassman.
And for anyone interested in marketing, business, and innovation – this is a must read, which will teach you a lot of essential information for starting a business and making it a success.

With a good book and quality music, the journey didn’t seem that long.

Day 1 – The inspiring encounter

Upon my arrival, I had the pleasure to meet a very good friend of mine, who I don’t get to see very often. He always manages to transmit his energy and passion in an incredible way and inspires me greatly and this was not an exception. My holiday started with an interesting, thought-provoking conversation with him, catching up with what is going on in our lives, and meeting new, inspiring people thanks to him. It was a good start and I thank you for that, my friend.

PS I will win the next game of chess!

Day 2 – Catching up with the family

I dedicated the second day of my short holiday to my mother and father, I spend some time with them, cooked something for them, and we watched a movie together. Catching up with the family always stays on the back of my list when I go home for better or worse, but this time I reversed the order and started with that. It is a good feeling to spend some time with your parents until they start getting on your nerves of course.

I also saw another old and good friend of mine, who surprised me with an amazing gift of 80 (+ a few more bonus) Copic markers which I have been dreaming to try for quite some time. Thank you! I will do my best to produce a drawing with them as soon as I can and share my experience with you.

Day 3 – Finally the reason I came home

Naturally, I have my reasons for going home despite the short time. I am ashamed to admit that I didn’t get to spend enough time with the person I wanted to see most.

The third day was the day I got to see the person I wanted to meet most and spend some good time together. I finally truly arrived home.

It was an interesting and exciting day, which marked the end of half of my holiday.

Day 4 – A short trip

On the 4th day I had to take care of some important task, call them chores if you wish, and after that, I went on an (unfortunately) short trip to see the above-mentioned person again. It was a day full of excitement and joy, nostalgia, and good series and food. If you haven’t yet seen Riverdale I definitely recommend you give it a try, the series is really interesting, tense, and the actors do a great job in playing their characters.

This was the best day of my holiday for sure. I once again got convinced that there is no other place like home.

Day 5 and 6 – The countryside

On the 5th day, I returned home from my short trip, but just for a while. My parents and I went to the countryside, where I met my grandmother, my aunt, and cousins. I always enjoy going to my grandmother’s house, I have to admit this time the plan to go there was different, but it didn’t happen as I wanted it. Nevertheless, I still enjoyed it quite a lot, I spend some time with my grandmother and one of my cousins. It was good catching up.

On the 6th day, I helped my grandmother with some work around the house and the yard, feeding the animals and cleaning their sheds. As funny as it sounds, I really love doing that and it recharged me with positive energy.

Look at those awesome rabbits

I also found one of the first drawings I sent to a contest. I was only 10 years old and my drawing looks terrible, but I won a prize for it. I was really happy back then and it got published in a magazine for children, a success I haven’t felt in my life since that time.

Masterpiece

Day 7 – Table tennis and getting ready to leave

On the 7th day, I used the time to play some table tennis with my father (he is really good at it) and with a friend of mine. I was playing table tennis and regularly training some years ago, but I have definitely forgotten most of what I knew.

My father destroyed me, but it was a good experience. I got to remember the times I used to play this awesome sport and it was nice to do something resembling a physical activity for a change. (Yes, the fitness and exercises were also on-hold during the holiday. Shame, shame, shame)

I started packing and preparing to leave, getting all my documents ready and I came to realize this short holiday went by way too fast, I didn’t have time to meet almost any of my friends, not to mention the one I actually came back for. I spend some time with my family and enjoyed the sweetness of home, but by the time I realized I am on a break, it was already over.

Final day

The final day went by without me even noticing. By the time I took care of the remaining tasks, I had to do before I left my time was up. I wanted to leave in different circumstances and do something completely different from what happened, but once again I failed.

Bad time planning, too short of a holiday, bad prioritization, regardless the reason my holiday didn’t turn out to be what I planned and expected. I did enjoy it, of course, but it was not what I imagined. It was over before I managed to realize what is happening.

So basically

It was a nice short break from the tiring everyday life of a digital concept development student and all the responsibilities and tasks associated with it. I didn’t plan my time and priorities accordingly and I failed to achieve what I came back for, which ruined part of my holiday. The time flew away way too fast, I failed to see the people I wanted to see properly and I got caught up in annoying tasks and chores, which didn’t really allow me to fully enjoy my holiday. My bad prioritization and time estimation made me feel stressed and overwhelmed, but the only person to blame for this is me.

Did I mention breaking my two-month fitness/exercise routine (no worries I am already back at it). So to conclude, my advice if you are planning a short holiday and plan to return home for just a few days:

• Set your priorities straight – don’t compromise and follow them if you want to make the best of the holiday
• Plan your time and consider there will be delays, which will complicate your plan
• It is a holiday – remember to enjoy it in the way you prefer
• Appreciate each moment you get to spend home

Once again my short post got long, but I wanted to tell you all about my experience. I hope you enjoyed it and I really hope you don’t make the same mistakes as me. Enjoy your holidays to the fullest and stay tuned for a post about the day in the life of a designer/digital concept developer next week. Also, I will be posting a short update on my second month of fitness soon, I still have a few challenges left and I have several ideas for different types of blog posts. Sorry for my delay and thanks for reading!

Instagram     LinkedIn     Portfolio