It’s a common misconception of those who live elsewhere that we rock dwellers spend all of our free time lying on the beach under a palm tree with an ice-cold drink in our hand. To be perfectly honest, that is also exactly how I picture 90% of my free time, with the other 10% allocated to sleeping on said beach under the aforementioned palm tree. However, reality is generally very far from that ideal.

Is it just me or is getting to the beach to achieve those Instagram-perfect photos always… So. Much. Work. In the end, I might end up actually going to the beach maybe around 5 or 6 times in a year… if I put in maximum effort. Why is that?

Is it because the beach is far away? Nope, not at all. I grew up in the south of Mahe, which is the main and largest island in the Seychelles, and it is an area known for its collection of beautiful and pristine beaches, as it is far from the urban areas. So basically, most beaches are a 5-minute car ride / 20-minute walk from my home. As an adult, I have moved to several different areas within Mahe, each area getting closer and closer to the beach, in fact. So it’s not the convenience factor of distance getting in my way.

If I had to guess, I’d say it’s all the little details in planning that get in the way of my potential beach days. It usually goes something like this:

From the moment I think up the idea of Hey, it’s hot today, l should go down to the beach, the nightmare begins. I usually do not like to go to the beach alone, as the chance is high that I will be harassed by some random or another. And so I must take the needs and preferences of others into my beach planning.

The decision process usually starts with discussing options with whichever friend/family member I’ve invited: “Which beach do we want to go to? One closer to my place or one closer to your place?” I once spent an entire day trying to decide on a beach to go to with my sister and we ended up not going anywhere at all because we could not come up with an answer that would satisfy both of us. During that decision-making time, I walked down to the shop which is literally right next to a beach, got some groceries, and walked back home while we were still deciding. Crazy, I know.

If and when we finally decide on a beach, it then turns to what we should take with us. Do we go early and bring lunch with us? Or do we have lunch first and then meet at the beach? What time are we going to meet? This one is super important because if someone suggests a time, you know you then have to calculate in island time and only turn up 4 hours later than the decided upon meet-up. Having been born and raised on an island, you would think I’m a pro at island timing, but I still always manage to turn up early, then spend the half the day by myself (which I was specifically trying to avoid by inviting my now-late friend). And so, based on this experience, I always wait to head to the beach until I know someone else will be there.

Eventually, we do decide a plan and once we are all in agreement, we usually set a date for two months from now.

And naturally, on that day, it will be raining.

Do you, too, struggle to actually make it to the beach as often as you’d like? If so, what usually gets in your way of #BeachDayEveryday?