I hired a camper van and escaped to the coast

One afternoon in January 2021, I loaded up my boot after the supermarket shop, sat in my car, took a few deep breaths, and just sat there quietly for about 20 minutes. Reader, it felt like a spa break.

The schools were closed (again), everybody was home, and those 20 minutes felt like the only true alone time I’d had in almost a year.

Between my two children, my husband, my busy job and my friends – all of whom

I love dearly – there are days when I still feel stretched to breaking point.

Everybody wants something from me, all the time, be it a reply to their WhatsApp, a PE kit washing, a dinner making, a work deadline met, a question answered. The exception is my dog, Molly, which is why she was the only one who made it onto my first ever solo holiday, which I took in the Roaming Delilah, a luxury campervan.

I collected it from its Hertfordshire home and drove to a campsite in Norfolk for two days of walks on the beach, swims in the sea, coffees in cosy pubs and lots of alone time.

Equipped with gas, electricity and solar power, a hot shower, speakers, a film projector, a barbecue and firepit, and a fold-out king-size memory-foam bed, it had everything I needed.

But all I really needed was the solitude that I have been craving since lockdown started (who am I kidding… since I had my first child in 2010).

When I told friends about my plans for a solo trip, they were mostly envious, although one asked whether I would get lonely or bored. Did I? Not for a second. I read my book, I made tea, I pottered, and I loved every moment.