The best parts of a holiday

I had a great time in Townsville - I met some wonderful people, saw some beautiful scenery, we managed to squeeze a lot into just a few days. But I find that the best parts of any holiday are the ones that might mean the most to you, but perhaps other people mightn't give a second thought to them. Like, something you see, something someone says to you, something that makes you laugh. So I thought I'd share some of my favourite moments from my trip to Townsville.

- Running into someone at the airport, someone who perhaps doesn't play a part in your life anymore but did once, and those times still make you smile, and you wish that people hadn't changed.
- Perusing the Airport bookstore for something to read. Finding a book written by your GP (he writes short stories and poems, not anything medical). Then you see a book that immediately grabs your attention. You read the blurb and immediately buy it, as if it's spoken to you.
- Watching people at the airport while you wait for the plane. The single mothers, the old couple, the young people getting time away.
- Running through the rain across the tarmac to get on your plane. Something to maybe annoy you sometimes but other times, it makes you smile, and you regret that they'll be changing the terminal soon to stop that from happening anymore.
- Getting a window seat and seeing something magical, like the way the rain and darkness disappears once you go above the clouds, and the sun first hits you, and it feels like this is a totally different world.
- Reading that book you bought and realising you've never felt this way about a book before. Has this author delved into your mind? Sure seems like it!
- Meeting people you've known for so long for the first time.
- Meeting the people who are letting strangers stay in their house and realising they're exactly like your own parents.
- Finding that unique thing about each person you're meeting (some examples follow).

Andrei has this way of eating food that is like nothing you've ever seen before. It's like a steak is something to be savoured and eaten only after analysing every bite, turning the food on his plate this way and that, until he finds the next best bit of meat to cut off and eat. He also has a smile that warms your heart.
Chris is not as crazy as you imagined him to be, which is somehow settling. He will say things, just off the cuff like an everyday remark, and not even know how funny what he said actually was. People like this is what you need in everyday life, to keep you laughing and sane.
Sammo is exactly in real life as he is online, his mannerisms, everything. He was always smiling and happy. He had this way of doing things to irritate me (like slurping frozen Coke during. the. entire. movie.) but you could never ever stay mad at him, he's too much of a kind spirit.
Sam was, for lack of a better word, admirable. He pulled me aside and apologised in person for something that had happened over a month ago, and that meant a hell of a lot. I suppose it shows he really does consider me a friend, to bother doing that. He also gives the best hugs, and the little kiss on the cheek at the airport meant a lot after all the crap we've been through :)
Darren was the youngest person there, and I was over 10 years older than him. And yet, the only reason you get reminded of his age is because he will do silly things, things that make you go "oh man, I remember when (such-and-such) and I would just do random things like that" and you'll laugh. Then think about what he just did, and laugh and laugh some more. It's an awesome quality to have.
Greg is very much the same but in a much more subtle way, as if the jokes he shares with people are a lot more intimate, I guess because he's a bit more shy so you need to pull him aside to see his funny side. In other ways he was completely different to Darren which was great, because it made them both unique. He made me laugh as others had over the weekend, but this guy really cracked me up, to the point of laughing until tears welled in my eyes. Laughter I haven't had in such a big way in such a long time. And he did it just by being himself, and that's a friggin wonderful way to be.
Jen is being mentioned here last but is by no means the least. I can honestly say that I think she's a beautiful person. Someone I consider to be the perfect woman. It sounds so odd to say that, but, despite being beautiful on the outside, she's quiet yet funny, so friendly, very easy to talk to, values her friends a hell of a lot (who else would fly across the country as a surprise to her friends), is basically just a wonderful person all-round. The only one-on-one time I had with her only lasted a couple of minutes but I really did love that time. For someone who had never spoken to her before apart from a few sentences online a few months ago, she made me feel... like what I had to say mattered I guess. Hard to explain.

All the things that you see and do during your time away are important and memorable ofcourse, but these few moments shared with each of the people above are the times I hold most dear.