Where does the word vacation come from?

What’s the first thing you think of when you hear vacation? Many people think of doing certain activities they don’t otherwise have the luxury to do. In the last few weeks, I’ve seen several of those people herded like cattle by their tour guides. The origin of the word vacation is a little ironic then: it comes from the Latin word vacare which means “be empty, free, or at leisure” ("to be empty” is the direct meaning, the others more constructed). The root of vacare is also connected to the words avoid, evacuate, vacant, vacuum and void, among others. 

I wrote this blog at the start of my summer break. Yet the only part of literally “vacating” something during this period - the apartment where I ended my lease - was anything but relaxing. If we stick with the etymology, I wonder if on some level we’re trying to vacate something intangible when we go on vacation. Is it a vacating of routine? If so, is it vacating routine thoughts, routine activities, or both? Or is it less escapist, and more a seeking of goals? I recently attended a talk by an avid mountaineer who described his expeditions - his motivations to pursue them and how they impact his life. I wouldn’t describe them as vacations. He does in theory use most of his time off toward them. But as he candidly explained, many are grueling and even unpleasant. And it didn’t seem like he had much reason to “vacate” his cushy life with a well-paid job in Munich. For him, like for many with a passionate hobby, dedicating time toward challenging climbs is a pursuit of a goal. He even admitted that part of the ambition is simply ego-driven. I know others who choose to spend some of their time off in meditation retreats. Having tried one myself (naively thinking it would be calming), I can confidently say those too are definitely not vacations. 

During a trip with a group of 10 friends earlier this year, it became apparent to me how strongly people feel about allocating their vacation time. For most, it’s like money. People form clear preferences about how to spend the scare resource and often get discontented if they’re made to do so in a way that’s incongruent with their tastes. We often talk about “vacation planning” - filling up days with itineraries. At the same time, it’s a common occurrence that we don’t salivate over the “attractions” next door; the local of a place has often not visited its top 3 attractions that others fly thousands of miles to see. These contrasting trends make me wonder if we plan detailed itineraries for vacations in part because of societal expectations. Is it that, for some people, the idea of a vacation subliminally begins by a desire for a break from routine activity, work, and mental demands, but then morphs into a “plan” with flights, hotel bookings and sufficient instagrammable activities once the desire is verbalized? 

As a final musing for this blog, I reflected on a recent time I truly felt like I was on vacation. Not by its strict definition or norms. Just by the feeling of having “vacated”. It was when about 30 of my classmates casually organized a picnic. We walked 25 mins away to a scenic spot on a hill and chatted for a few hours. Nobody would say it was a vacation. We weren’t even on an official break yet. But for those few hours, any thoughts or worries about the day-to-day and hour-to-hour tasks subsided. 

I might try to use more of my free time, official vacation or otherwise, to truly vacate - if that’s what I need.