UK Vacation

We are off on our long awaited UK holiday. 8 hours on the flight have passed and 6 more to go. I am seated in the center seat with the 2 younger kids on each side. It took us some time to figure out the most comfortable sleeping position - both pairs of feet on my lap whilst their heads rest on the armrests cushioned by pillows. I sleep with my arms and head over the tray table. The comfort of flying economy.

We decided to fly British Airways because it would be easier to organise the connecting flights to Inverness - yes we are going to the Scottish Highlands in the middle of winter. It has been awhile since I’ve flown BA. My first time was when I left for the UK for undergraduate studies. And now we are flying as a family of 5. Made me think about the time elapsed. At first the kids were sceptical, “What? We are not flying Singapore Airlines?” Their minds were put at rest when they saw the personal entertainment unit on the A380. There is a sense of familiarity on the flight - ‘highlife”, the inflight magazine has the smell of British magazines that come with the weekend newspapers. 

We were on holiday in the UK 6.5 years ago. At that time we only had 2 kids and that was meant to be our last long holiday for the next 2-3 years as we were planning to have Baby 3. We were talking about that trip a few days back and the idea that Mei Mei hadn’t yet existed was confusing for her. She said she was in mommy’s body, which I guess is partially correct. To some extent, this holiday closes the gap in the kids' shared experiences. In less than 2 years, my eldest son would be starting his National Service. Beyond that, I am not sure if he will still be interested to travel with the rest of the family. Long holidays as a family may be rare.

Tracing a little further back, my wife and I met in the UK when we were studying in the University of Warwick. We were talking about university life with the kids yesterday night. She told the kids how miserable she felt when it dawn on her that Coventry was not quite like London. After that the kids were quite set on studying in a local university. I told the kids how her 2nd year off-campus accommodation was full of boxes, like someone either just moved in or someone was looking to move out soon. The kids saw the humour in that. Time flies; we celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary recently. You could say that the 3 kids were in mommy all those years back in university.

The UK holds many fond memories for us, and I am looking forward to more on this trip with the entire family.