Vacation Time

I just got news at work that our number of vacation days is increasing! I currently get 26 days vacation, plus 5 paid holidays and the entire time from Christmas Eve to New Year's Day off. That will all stay the same except instead of 26 days it will increase to 29 days on January 1, 2008, then to 32 days in 2009 and finally to 35 days in 2010. Unfortunately, I won't get the full benefit of this new deal since we're leaving in 2009, but it's still very cool.

Do you know anyone who has travel insurance? I didn't until we moved here. However, it's something we recently had to purchase because a group tour we're going on this summer mandates it. Luckily it's fairly cheap, 80 pounds for annual coverage, and it covers just about any emergency you may experience while traveling. I'm still amazed by the difference in how travel is regarded here. Obviously in the U.S. we simply don't get the time off work necessary to travel the way Europeans do, but travel just seems ingrained in the culture here. In addition to the typical places, you can buy travel insurance from the supermarket or post office. Also, at the post office you can exchange 35 different types of currency!

It is very common for students to take time to travel after finishing what we refer to as high school, before starting college...and to some pretty distant destinations like South America and South East Asia. I often feel as though I'm playing catch-up because not only have the Brits been to more places in Europe than I have, many have also been to more places in the U.S. than me!!