it’s the little things

I like to think I am a very down to earth kinda person. My idea of luxury seems to be very different to most people’s.

I am an incurable romantic. I am incredibly touched by little things. Things that most overlook. A warm hug, a gorgeous sunset, a caring gesture.

Our world nowadays is so attached to the virtual, so easily seduced by one’s fake happiness, getting more and more drained into today’s society dark and ugly mental health sewers.

People have become disconnected from what is really important. Image supercedes reality.

More than staying in a fancy hotel for the holidays and spend all my sweat and tears well earned money for a few Instagram pictures, I choose an average one. And more often not, that has been proven the best choice.

When going abroad I like the idea of getting to be closer to real life, genuine people, to be priviledged enough to actually learn the local culture. The concept of “being there, doing that” for me, is then true. And the photos I share are an honest representation of what I lived and my view of the world.

Risking to paraphrasing Shania Twain, fancy cars, expensive clothes, posh restaurants “don’t impress me much”.

Once more staying true to myself has paid. What you expect from a 5 star hotel may differ from the destination standard. This difference can put things in perspective.

To avoid disappointment I never go for the best but for the second best. A great stay is a combination of three things. It’s people, their culture and education.

It’s the people who make a difference. Not everybody is cut out to welcome, host and care. Certain cultures are better equipped to receive well than others

I have met people from all walks of life and that has taught me that people are always people, no matter their background. We all have the same needs, the difference is how we perceive and prioritise them.

It costs nothing to be polite and respectful, and for me that is priceless. Equally it is hard to find people with a good degree of common sense.

I have encountered people which my naive side expected those qualities and they just weren’t there.  Others from whom I expected nothing and were an amazingly pleasant surprise.

I fall in love with people that consistently do the right thing, (especially when nobody’s watching). I cannot stand opportunistic people or people that don’t follow the basic rules common decency to get ahead of others.

Airports and hotels are disrespect hotspots. Why people get so miserable with their own kind when they are ON HOLIDAYS is beyond me.

People that are kind to others despite their troubles normally come from lower class backgrounds. Because they don’t have such an easy access to items most of us take for granted, they focus on real things, taking pleasure from making other people feel good, therefore they are more resilient. These are the world class hosts.

I see all the latin and Mediterranean people as such. They are friendly and caring and do go the extra mile to make us feel comfortable. That’s why we chose Greece to start our BFF Bucket list. And although we know life will get in the way, we will be keen on making this an annual tradition.