Patricia Callan in conversation with GENEVIEVE CARBERY
What’s your earliest holiday memory?
I’m a farmer’s daughter, so we didn’t have full holidays but went on day trips. I remember places like Lough Key Forest Park, Mosney, Glendalough and the beach at Bettystown. When I was 13 we went away to London and had to plan the trip six months ahead of time.
What was your worst holiday?
I’ve missed plenty of flights and had my fair share of disasters in airports. But during a stopover at Brasilia airport, in Brazil, we were told that the plane was delayed and wasn’t going until a certain time. When we came back to get our flights, the plane had already left. We had been travelling between Iguazu Falls and the Amazon but missed our connections as a result. We had to try to sort it all out using our phrase book.
What was your best holiday?
The best is probably the Amazon itself. It’s a truly amazing place. Manaus city has an opera house in the middle of the jungle. We went up the river on a flotilla to a point where the black and white water of rivers meet but don’t mix. It was fun swimming in the water, not knowing what is biting, and eating grubs in the middle of the forest. We also visited a family who never left the Amazon – I expected it to be a backwater, but then, standing among the chickens, I heard a Justin Timberlake song on the radio. It’s somewhere I’ve always wanted to go since I studied South America in Inter Cert geography.
If budget or work were not a restriction, what would be your dream holiday?
Most places are so achievable now if you are willing to stay in dodgy hotels. So the ultimate dream is space, and maybe it will come on stream while I am still alive.
If you had your pick, who would you bring on holiday with you? The husband. We went on a seven-week honeymoon. Everyone said we’d get divorced when we got back. We went to Fiji, diving, and on to New Zealand and Australia, stopping at the Victoria Falls, in Africa, on the way back.
What's your favourite place in Ireland?The Cliffs of Moher before they built those stupid walls [near the cliff edge]. You have to risk going outside the walls and going past the Do Not Pass sign to get the true experience. It's a most stunning place, and it is magic listening to the sound.
Your recommended holiday reading?
The guidebook. I spend the entire time reading the guidebook – the history and culture keep me going. My pick is probably the Rough Guide, but the Top 10colourful guides are good for cities.
Where will you go to next?
I’m going back to Washington to visit my brother. It’s a fantastic place with a great buzz.
Patricia Callan is director of the Small Firms Association