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Beach

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Every time it is the same: after working for six months straight, you think to yourself, "I need a vacation." Where is the first place your daydream takes you? The beach. As soon as you think vacation', beach' just seems to pop up too, along with sun, sand and sea (not forgetting ice cream!). Naturally, the beach is the first thing we think of when thinking of vacation.

If we look into the past at where terms like vacation' and holiday' came from, a lot more sense can be made of the situation. William the Conqueror first brought in the term vacation' to describe a break taken by the courts over summer in preparation for the harvest. A holiday', a term more common in Britain than America, refers to a holy day', which was a religious day of rest and peace. Which brings us nicely into the next paragraph.

Three R's: rest, relaxation and recreation. This is what I look for in a vacation, and wherever in the world you look, coastal holidays just seem to deliver all three by the sandy bucket load! I can't think of a better way to recharge my batteries than dozing away on a beach; the sun hugs my body, the sea provides the perfect ambience, and laughing children are all around. As far as recreation goes, the beach can provide activities not limited to surfing, kayaking, canoeing, wind surfing, jet skiing, water skiing, beach buggying, kite surfing, even donkey rides!

A vacation based around a beach can be a saviour for anyone, from the new parents to the lone businessman. I have found that some beaches seem tailored for specific people, whilst others welcome the cosmopolitan culture. And the amazing thing about this is that these completely different people can be united by the beach. How many times have you heard stories of two best friends or lovers meeting by coincidence whilst on a beach? On the flip side, beaches can provide the perfect escape. When I'm on the beach, depending on popularity and time of season, I usually find myself surrounded by people. But the magic of the beach means that I can be surrounded by people but still be immersed in my own bubble.

Of course, this is not to say that an equally tranquil time can be had in the mountains. A few summers ago, my family and I traveled around the West Coast of Canada: on the beaches of Vancouver Island pottering over to the great city of Calgary in a hired RV. A fantastic time was had by all, in the surf of Vancouver Island and in the Rockies of Banff and Jasper. As an English tourist who had never

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