How To Spend Your "Staycation" in Riyadh

The eid vacation is upon us! Where are you going? Visit our revamped travel page for some suggestions. We're pretty sure a lot of our kabayans are getting ready to hit the outdoors as far from Riyadh as possible. Al-Khobar and Dammam, anyone? Or Jeddah perhaps? Some are going out of Saudi Arabia. Sampaguita Pride is currently on a Europe trip with her family (such a lucky gal) while the rest of The Pink Tarha ladies will be spending our eid vacation at home. At home. Yes, seriously. 

Eyecandy and I have been out of the country months ago so we're lacking money to fund more trips. Shoegarfreeruby is going to the Philippines this September so she's saving up for that. All in all, we're really stuck in the house for the time-being. Well, as we always say, find positivity in your situation. So for those who will be hanging out their houses with no plans of going out this week, here's how to have some awesome "staycation" (stay-at-home vacation)! 

1. Take naps. 

More time to snooze!

Lots of it, if you want! You can even sleep through your vacation and we won't take it against you! Haha! You deserve it. Also, the idea of staycation is feeling the feeling of being on a vacation by deviating from your daily routine. You can disregard your chores for 2 days or more and just eat and sleep; the same things you can do while staying in, say, a hotel or a resort. Of course you have to get to your chores after but at least you get to relax, have fun, and enjoy your time first. You earned this free time  this year so... own it!

2. Be creative. 

Admittedly, when I went here in Saudi Arabia, all I ever did is surf the net in my laptop, update my Facebook, and blog. One day, I bought a coloring palette from IKEA's kid section on a whim. It came handy when I grew tired of being online all the time and looking at the screen for most of my life. I cracked the palette open and just drew and colored. I used the crayons, watercolors, and colored pencils like I really knew what I was doing (I don't) and it really felt good to unleash this kind of creativity that doesn't involve Photoshop. Have a go at it! Who knows you have an inner Picasso in you? You can also paint your room like what Eyecandy plans on doing.

3. Read a book. 

Traveling without going out of the house.

It's time to get into the habit of reading. Of course you'll find it boring but you just have to find the genre that will tickle your fancy. I wrote a few recommendations here and you can find more in Good Reads. To find a good book, I read the first paragraph. If it catches my interest, it goes to my to-read pile but if not, I move on to other books. I recently hoarded travel books when the Lonely Planet online shop went on sale. The books arrived before the eid vacation started so I'm pretty much busy going through the beautiful photographs and reading well-written travel stories nowadays. It's also wise for parents to show your kids that you read to encourage them to pick up a book once in a while instead of concentrating in their gadgets. 

4. Write. 

When was the last time you took a pen and paper, went to your corner, and write? With the advancement in technology, handwritten letters and notes have been sidelined. It's quite a shame really, especially when handwritten notes have always been seen as more personal and more heartfelt. For this vacation, I plan to write poems, an item in my to-do list this 2012. Of course, there's nothing wrong in using your laptop or computer to write. As long as you write. In this regard, The Pink Tarha, will soon hold a workshop on blogging and writing. Hopefully it pushes through (hopefully you attend too, haha!). I have to get to writing our proposal then. Haha. 

5. Organize your closet.

A section of my closet which needs some organization pronto!

My closet is in a disarray and I'm sure there are a lot of you out there who have the same dilemma as me. Why are we such pack rats?! I have more clothes that I don't wear anymore than those I wear in my closet. I've been telling the ladies we ought to do a garage sale soon so we can let go of our pre-loved items but we haven't had the time to clear out our closets of those clothes. This vacation is perfect for some trimming, throwing, and salvaging, don't you think? Here's an awesome inspiration article from Apartment Therapy on how to organize your things and make your closets manageable and classy.  I know, even my closet doesn't look as good as those featured but boy, I can dream! :) 

6. Organize your dresser! 

Magulo ba? 1/4 lang yan.

I've been telling myself to take one good look at my dresser and throw away those cosmetics that are already way past its expiration date but at the same time, I'm also convincing myself that there are better things to do than group my stash into compartments and holders. Well, I have no reason not to organize my dresser especially now that I couldn't fit all my lipsticks in its drawer anymore. Time to make some space! Here are some nifty ideas from Pinterest on how to store make-up and cosmetics. You can find cheap organizers, cases, and holders in Riyalin and affordable ones in IKEA. While at it, you can try on the make up you neglected to wear during work days and come up with new looks.

7. Exercise. 

Sure you can! There's no excuse to do so now. You don't need to go to the gym. There are thousands of exercise videos in the Internet that you can try. Zumba, yoga, belly-dancing, pilates etc. What more can you ask for? You have lots of hours to spare! You don't even have to spend a single cent for your this, and you don't have to put much effort in dressing up, lugging your gym bag around, and sweating in front of strangers. 

8. Cook a new dish. 

Or if you don't know how to cook, learn! Among the Pink tarha ladies, I'm the undomesticated diva. I don't know how to cook but I can try by following recipes. So I plan on cooking one dish this vacation all by myself. Good luck to me. Haha. You can cook a new dish and invite friends over for an instant picnic in your flat. Or bake! A lot of Filipinas in Riyadh are now into baking and I would love to try all their products if given a chance (and money). You can check out homebakers in The Marketplace and probably share recipes and tips with them.

The purpose of a staycation is to enjoy your time without spending anything. I think it's a brilliant idea especially when you're with your families here in the desert. It gives you time to enjoy each other's company and bond. For those who don't have their families in Saudi Arabia, it's a week of me-time! You can do something that you've put off for so long or discover a skill you never thought you had. However you spend your eid vacation this year, ENJOY!!! 

Oh wait, here's one more thing you can do just in case you can't really let go of the Internet. 

11. Chat with The Pink Tarha. By that I mean you can comment in our Facebook page or message us. You can also ask questions or share stories through thepinktarha@gmail.com. Also, if you have mini parties at home, can you please invite us just so we can break our cabin fever? Hahaha. 

EID MUBARAK!!!