We ask Tom all about his sabbatical in the Islands of Greece
Tom Jones (no, not that one) is a veteran of Dene Healthcare, having worked as an Area Sales Manager for the last 11 years!
Having taken advantage of one of the many benefits offered to the team at Dene, Tom has just returned from a month long Sabbatical travelling around Greece with his family! We have therefore skipped our normal newsletter questions in favour of something sabbatical related!
Favourite Destination of the trip: Paros
Favourite Food you tried: Gyros (I ate about 15!)
Pool or Beach: Beach! Piso Lavadi in Paros
Kids favourite part of the trip: Crete! Plenty for them to do including kids clubs and discos!
First thing you did when you got home: Made a cup of Yorkshire tea!
So Tom, here’s the big question; Why Greece?
We chose to go to Greece because I realised our kids are at an age where they still want to be with us all the time and they would really benefit from the trip. I went Island hopping in my 20s so had a vague idea of what it entails and my wife, Martina, has an ancient history degree so Greece was the perfect choice!
What were the kid’s highlights of your Greek family adventure?
The kids favourite part of the holiday was Crete (probably the least cultural part) as this was an all inclusive hotel at the end of the month with plenty of kids club activities. They made a lot of friends and had a whale of a time! They also really enjoyed the boat trip we took around Milos where they could jump into the sea and swim in beach areas that were inaccessible by road. They were swimming in clear water that was 20m deep and it was so salty they could almost float! Both Sam(6) and Isy (9) befriended the captain and his mate, playing games and they even got to steer the boat!
Tell us about the trip, what did you learn, would you recommend a sabbatical?
Every Island we went to was beautiful, the people were welcoming and the food was excellent! We didn’t meet many British people so we were immersed in Greek culture. I found myself completely forgetting about England and switching off from all of my worries from home. After a month away I feel completely cleansed and realise that those worries I had were completely senseless.
Being able to switch off has taught me about the things that are really important in life. We saw the sights, swam at 13 different beaches, tried new foods, watched the sun set over the sea, caught numerous ferries, buses and flights and stayed in five different hotels. We visited too many museums, drank an ocean of Mythos, tried Ouzo and I even managed to read three books! Yes that’s right, me a Dad of two managed to get through three entire books on holiday!
The whole experience has brought us closer together as a family and is an experience that Martina, the kids and I will remember forever!
My advice is that if you’re ever offered this wonderful opportunity then you should do it! You may never get the chance again and life is too short to regret the chances you don’t take. This trip has given me focus on what matters the most to me and my family. I genuinely can’t thank Dene enough; anyone who has worked with us for four years and doesn’t take a sabbatical needs to bank their head against a wall!
Roll on three years time…plenty of opportunity for us to plan our next family adventure!
