This is the trip you’ve always dreamed of, isn’t it? You reckon it’s time for you to relax and reap the rewards of a lifetime’s hard work. You’re right.
Many over 50s have spent the past four or five decades running around like mad things just trying to keep their heads – and their family’s heads – above water.
For many, even retirement doesn’t bring instant relief. The kids may still live around the corner and you’re on permanent babysitting duty, or you may be helping one of your offspring through a messy divorce, or offering financial support during a busy time.
If it’s not the kids, it’s probably the neighbour’s drum-playing teenager or the traffic noise from the road out the front. It could be anything – but the one thing that most grey nomads have in common is the need to get away from it all, to take a sanity break.
This could be the first time you have had proper time to yourself for as long as you can remember. Don’t waste it. Many travellers report it feeling very strange being away from the madness of their everyday lives at first. But it grows on you. However, if you find yourself freaking out when the bedlam of family life is replaced by the silence of the road, don’t worry … be happy.
Here are some of the things experienced grey nomads have learned to do:
A lot of people make the mistake of thinking that relaxation means sitting around doing absolutely nothing. It doesn’t. Relaxation can mean doing anything that you want to simply because you enjoy doing it.
So, take up that crazy hobby you’ve always dreamed of – start painting, make shell necklaces, discover photography, learn the guitar, write a book …
