“Read wherever you can, even if it’s pouring with rain.”
The privilege of reading in a campsite next to Lake Navaisha, Kenya. Photo By: Heather Lind
There’s not much time to read these days. It used to be easy, grabbing a book in the evenings after a day of teaching or reading a quick few pages on the subway as we travelled up to Seoul or Pyeongtaek for various reasons. The ultimate relaxation was lying on a rickety lounger or a colourful towel with salt spray in my face. I’d fliick though an old, yellowed novel that I’d found on a resort’s shelf nearby or swapped with another traveller.
A Winter Escape With Piles of Books
There was one winter holiday where we had a few days off and couldn’t stand to be in -10 degrees for another second more than necessary. So, we hopped onto the cheapest flight we could find and headed south to The Philippines. In that case, it was to an island called Virac. The flights were cheap because it was the rainy season in that area, but who cares.
We took rain jackets, quick-drying shorts, and waterproof hand luggage. It absolutely poured when we arrived, and continued to do so for the whole week we were there. Since we needed rest more than adventure for those few days, we made full use of the hut on stilts we slept in with bamboo floors and a big mozzie net. And then we found the books.
Without much Wi-Fi around, even Oribi Dad got stuck into the whodunnits, corporate thrillers, and spies on offer. Days and days and days of reading, interspersed by meals of freshly caught crayfish… I mean who can really complain about a little bit of torrential rain?
Travelling To Tropical Islands Just To Read Books? Why Not
That happened to be a world-famous surfing beach with a festival of hundreds of people in July. But in January, we saw one other family arrive the entire time we were there.
The family who owned the five huts at our ‘resort’ seemed confused about why we were there. They kept apologising for the big box of books that were still wet from flooding before we arrived. We were glad that we could contribute to their income while getting a holiday out of it ourselves. And they made the most delicious crayfish and fresh fish meals for us every day.
When I pick up a book back at home, that’s the memory it triggers. Well, that, and the many other places I’ve been privileged enough to read books in. May there be many more in this lifetime!
Published here.
Focussed on preserving its natural assets, Gili Meno boasts a shallow lake (a mangrove conservation area teeming with birds, monitor lizards, Fiddler crabs and golden orb spiders), a turtle sanctuary, a tiny port and a handful of laid back locals and their horse carts. The few lodges, resorts, bungalows and homestays dotted around the island are far enough from each other to give some privacy, but close enough to take a quick walk to find meals. The beach is at most a 10-minute walk away, in any direction.
We had an awesome stay at 
In Bali, luxury villas are now all the rage for travellers seeking comfort and privacy. These cosy, stylish holiday homes abound, especially in the busier tourist areas.
Crystal Bay was beautiful in both coral and creatures with amazing visibility. Manta Point is a cleaning station (where the Mantas come to the surface for fish cleaning) and as snorkellers this was a once-in-a-lifetime sighting.
The last outing was to 
