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Is your other half really your best travel partner?
Amy Huang questions why we really travel with our nearest and dearest.
It’s six in the morning. My husband is already dressed and for some reason I never know is already moving furniture around the room. The loud screech of a couch being dragged across the floor wakes me from a blissful night’s sleep, and I can tell he is not sorry for it. I give him a bleary stare.
“I was just going to read the papers by the window, but now that you are up shall we go eat breakfast?,” he says.
I should point out there is nothing wrong with this scenario; it happens every morning before we head to work, except that this is not a regular morning. We’re on holiday.
I can hear the morning bird calls coming from the forest nearby and the smell of pandan and coconut drifting from the restaurant below. We are in our favorite retreat in Bali, and my husband is ruining it. At times like this, I have to remind myself that I really did marry him for love.
It has been said that traveling as a married couple can be the most trying of times. People like different things and just because you are married it doesn’t mean you want to be up at the same time. Outside the comfort of our own homes we need to rely on each other for support and companionship, but with the daily chores and regular schedule of the day removed, personality differences can really show.
My husband Will, is a naturally early riser, eager to start the day to see the sights, afraid of missing out on some exciting encounters that might happen that no doubt we will miss should we be that little bit late. He is easily bored, which means lying on the beach or reading by the pool is done only in moderation before he is up on his feet again ready to go.
I on the other hand, don’t get to sleep in much and I take the opportunity when I can. While I do want to see the sights and all that exciting stuff, I also enjoy nothing more than relaxing on a deck chair and sipping on cocktails.
Once breakfast is over, the challenge continues between husband and wife. What shall we see first? I wanted to browse the colorful markets of Ubud and perhaps buy a trinket or two. Will is keen on trekking the five kilometre back track through the town Taro among rice fields. Splitting up is not an option as we did not have any means of communicating with each other if we needed to. Another issue is we only have one camera. After twenty minutes of negotiation, we decide to do both: trek only three kilometers of the track so we can get back to town early enough to shop. Perfect.
Later that day I return to the retreat with a stomach bug. I lie in bed with hot and cold flushes, blaming Will on the choice of stall we had eaten dinner in only two hours before. I mumble an: ‘I told you so,’ before I realizing a cold towel is being gently placed on my forehead. Will tiptoes around me, tucking in blankets that had fallen off the bed, and retreats quietly to the corner to read his paper.
I’m sick but I smile. He may be impatient in the morning and not want to do everything I do but despite all our differences, I know I much prefer to travel with him, than anyone else.
Who do you love and hate to travel with? Is your other half your best travel partner? Let us know in the comments below!
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