Why You Need To Take a Vacation
Laurence T. Gayao, MD
Why take vacations? For years I would take off from work and go to some medical meeting or some religious gathering for two or three days and counted that as a vacation. Looking back I have come to realize that those were not really vacations in the truest sense.
Studies have shown that taking time away from the job can have physical and mental health benefits. People who take vacations have lower stress, less risk of heart disease, a better outlook on life, and more motivation to achieve goals. So taking vacations in not a luxury but a necessity for the sake of one’s wellbeing.
In 2017 I took a five week vacation to the Philippines, my country of birth, were I spent the first 25 years of my life. It was the longest vacation that I ever took and enjoyed every moment of it.
During this vacation, I and my wife, Edith had the chance to visit different places in the islands. We had stayed in different hotels while visiting places. From budget inns to fancy hotels that we stayed in the hospitality and services were exceptionally good.
When we got to the Philippines we stayed nine days in Silang, Cavite, a town twenty or so miles south of Manila to attend the 100th Anniversary Celebrations of our undergraduate school, Adventist University of the Philippines. We stayed at Microtel by Wyndham South Forbes which we were told is only ten minutes from the school if there was no traffic but on rash hours we found out it sometimes took an hour to get there. My wife chose the hotel after a local celebrity Kris Aquino recommended it in her TV talk show. We got it for $64 dollars per night through internet booking, but a friend told us they just paid $54 a night also online for the same hotel.
At that price as you would expect there would nothing fancy about the facility, but it was definitely comfy. The rooms were clean and of decent size, the rest room had good upto date fixtures. They offered free breakfast buffet with a few healthy selections of food. The neighborhood was quiet, there was no taxis service but the hotel provide shuttle for hire to get around which was rather pricy by local standards. There was free internet service but you had to ask the desk for voucher each day to gain access, but anyway when you’re having fun you don’t have much time being online.
Taal Vista Hotel
While in Manila we had the opportunity to visit some tourist spots. First my aunt and uncle who lives in a neighboring town took us to Taal Vista Hotel Café Veranda for a launch buffet in Tagaytay 16 miles south of Microtel. Built in 1939, this upmarket hotel by Lawa ng Taal lake. Because of its elevation, it was nice and cool. The launch buffet offered a variety of continental and Filipino dishes. The main courses were delicious and fresh and they also had good selection of deserts. There was live entertainment by native folk dancers and a vocal trio who got around serenading diners. The venue had an air of elegance with high vaulted ceiling and when you stepped out to veranda you would be met by the breathtaking view of valley below with the lake and Taal volcano with the blue mountains in the background.
Video of our visit Taal Vista Hotel Restaurant in Tagaytay, Philippines
Villa Escudero Plantations & Resort
After a few days we went with a group of friends on a rented van from our Alma Mater with a hired a driver to take us to Villa Escudero Plantations and Resort. A premiere Eco-Tourism Resort that showcases the Philippines’ cultural heritage located south of San Pablo City, Laguna, about a 2 hour drive south of Manila.
Our Villa Escudero Plantation & Resort Escapade
Immediately when we got to the resort we taken by the beautiful rustic setting. The registration area to welcome us was thatched grass roof building with open walls. We paid 1,000 per person ($20) which included entrance fee and for a buffet at their river restaurant. A guide lead us to a waiting area were a carabao (water buffalo) drawn carriage was waiting. The slow pace ride was a welcome change from the clogged up traffic of Metro Manila with all that smog it produced. We were serenaded by young man on a guitar accompanying a lady singing Filipino folk songs.
We were brought to the entrance of the Labasin Waterfalls Restaurant. This is one of the center-pieces of Villa Escudero. We enjoyed traditional Filipino buffet lunch, while the soaking our feet in the flowing stream giving it the watery thrill, while eating on bamboo tables right next to the waterfalls. The cool vapor for the waterfall was a welcome relief from the tropic heat. You had to either be barefooted or use flip-flops so I and my wife had to buy a pair for small amount at their store in the registration area. The food was healthy, typical native Filipino home cooked meal, nothing outstanding.
After lunch, we walked around the lake above the waterfalls where they offer bamboo rafting rides. Then we toured their swimming pool area and their traditional restaurant. Looks like a good place to take the family for a couple of days to fully enjoy the place. After that the carabao drawn carriage took us to their museum.
The Escudero Private Museum is one of the largest museums in the country. Various artifacts have been collected from all over the world. “Five generations of Escuderos antiques and collection of Philippine treasures are housed and shared to the pubic in their private museum. The museum building is a replica of the San Francisco Church in Intramuros that was destroyed in 1945. At the time when Intramuros was being restored, the King of Spain gave to the Marcosesarchitectural drawings of the church because there were plans to reconstruct the San Francisco. As it turned out, the church was never rebuilt. The Escudero secured the drawings and erected the San Francisco in Villa Escudero.”
We were led by a guide through the museum which took about an hour to do so. It was full of interesting artifacts from wall to wall which the guide gave us interesting information about them. Historical relics shedding light of ancient Filipino civilization our history as a Philippine nation. They even displaced status of former presidents and their spouse with actual clothes that the wore.
Ours was a day trip but Villa Escudero has overnight accommodations with well-appointed hotel rooms by the lake. For this you need to book your room online or by phone ahead of time. For those going there on the weekends they also have native dances preformed at the hacienda’s main pavilion.
During our vacations to the Philippine because I and my wife have a local residential address we were able to obtain senior citizen cards, this qualifies us to get 20% discount on food and most services even airline tickets. This goes a long way for retired folks on a limited budget and you’re able to get ahead of the line. I have more to tell you about our vacation, like visiting my mother’s home town and meeting my 100 year old uncle and 97 year old aunt who still remembered me and were able to engage in a good conversation. I just hope I inherited their longevity genes.
Here are four science-based reasons you should book your next vacation today:
- Stress reduction. A study released last year by the American Psychological Association concluded that vacations work to reduce stress by removing people from the activities and environments that they associate with stress and anxiety. Similarly, a Canadian study of nearly 900 lawyers found that taking vacations helps alleviate job stress. The effects last beyond the duration of the vacation, too: A small study from the University of Vienna found that after taking time off from work, vacationers had fewer stress-related physical complaints such as headaches, backaches, and heart irregularities, and they still felt better five weeks later.
- Heart disease prevention. A host of studies have highlighted the cardiovascular health benefits of taking a vacation. In one, men at risk for heart disease who skipped vacations for five consecutive years were 30 percent more likely to suffer heart attacks than those who took at least a week off each year. Even missing one year’s vacation was associated with a higher risk of heart disease. Studies find similar results with women: Women who took a vacation once every six years or less were almost eight times more likely to develop heart disease, have a heart attack, or die of a coronary-related cause than those who took at least two vacations a year. These statistics are not to scare you but to persuade you that time off is important to your health in the long run.
- Improved productivity. In our perpetual rush to be productive, we often undermine our very ability to consistently perform at peak levels. Getting more done in less time allows us to get ahead and be more productive, but it takes consistent focus to be truly productive. Professional services firm Ernst & Young conducted an internal study of its employees and found that for each additional 10 hours of vacation time employees took, their year-end performance ratings improved 8 percent. What’s more, frequent vacationers were significantly less likely to leave the firm. Another study by the Boston Consulting Group found that high-level professionals who were required to take time off were significantly more productive overall than those who spent more time working. When you’re more productive, you’re happier, and when you’re happier, you excel at what you do.
- Better sleep. Restless nights and disrupted sleep are common complaints–often stemming from the fact that we simply have too much on our minds. When we can’t stop the chatter it affects our sleep, and a lack of sleep leads to less focus, less alertness, impaired memory, an increased likelihood of accidents and a decreased quality of life. Researchers say, that vacations can help interrupt the habits that disrupt sleep, like working late into the night or watching a backlit screen before bed. If you have stress from work and you find your sleep is disrupted because of anxiety or tension, take time off and learn to reset your sleep pattern.”
Vacation is a necessity, not a luxury
I don’t believe that vacations are luxuries. They are our necessities–just like shelter, clothes, and food, they make us feel like humans and not like animals that care only for survival. Just like anything else in life you don’t need to break the bank to have a good time. As someone has said you don’t have go for broke to prove there is no place like home. Why Take Vacations? Well, we have to stop and take time to smell the roses.
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