An ideal getaway does not necessarily have to be a vacation to the fancy land of candy, nor a loud trashy party with your friends. It could be as simple as a good book with a cup of London's Finest Tea  on a sunny day. Personally, I have more than one ideal getaway. A road trip in New Zealand during the summer; lying in bed, home on the morning of a weekday; sitting in a chilled corner of the regional library, reading my favourite book. As Maria from The Sound of Music would sing in her bird-like voice, "these are a few of my favourite things".

In New Zealand, what appeals to me more than the picturesque scenery found literally nearly everywhere has to be the people. I daresay the Kiwis and their lifestyle are as different from Singaporeans as can be. They live in a relaxed, slow paced society, facing barely any form of competition from their peers. The Kiwis are also the most friendly and good natured bunch of people I have met, with their ability to kick start hearty conversations with mere strangers. People like this along with several other contributing factors make New Zealand one of my ideal getaways as they fill one with social warmth and love that we seem to be starved of locally. One of those other contributing factors has to be the phenomenal scenery as earlier mentioned. From the vast grey mountains to the open seas of clear, rich saltwater, it is impossible to not be compelled and completely overwhelmed by the magic of nature. The infinite beauty and strength of the nature there have a certain soothing effect on you.

Home. The first place that comes to mind when you need a refuge, the number one source of comfort. When you lie in bed, you are able to revel in the fact that you are finally resting after an entire day of dealing with the reality of your life. It is the only place where one can fully let go and be themselves without a care in the world. Home is where you are free from nearly all forms of mental stress and pressure, and where you are in a perfect position to confide and reflect on your own life. It is the ideal getaway because you have nothing to run from when you are home.

Last but definitely not least, my ideal getaway would be to a well-stocked library, queer as it may seem. Any library can feel like wonderland to me, because I believe that books are like the diamonds of words with an added dose of a vast imagination. Books are also the perfect escape from reality for anybody who needs it, and some are powerful enough to evoke aspirations and hope in readers through means of creation. A sense of isolation is also induced by the air of silence and the chilliness of the air-conditioning. That isolation is a gift, even for a day. Especially when you have seen and experienced more than what is tolerable, you want nothing more than to shut the world out, that's undeniably what makes the library the ideal and most simplistic getaway.

To sum it all up, what makes these three getaways as ideal as they really are is how they are different as can be from the reality of the world. The scenery and people of New Zealand are practically what defines nature and the beauty of it, present in the hearts of the Kiwi; without the reassurance and comfort of home, there would hardly be anything keeping me going; books and isolation on a typical overwhelming day can serve one just as well as therapy will ever do for the soul.

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Okay there it is. What I stayed up the past two hours for and probably also a factor why I am probably not going to sleep tonight. I should really resort to writing essays in the dead of the night more often. Well, I hope mrs foo is happy and I can safely say she does not deserve this from me.