Ferie Freak-Out

Reading Time: 5 minutes

I value having paid vacation. Days off for fill-in-the-blank leave. But like with anything else in this world, there has to be balance, and it has to make sense.

When I was in grade school, my school adopted a novel-for-that-era schedule. From 3^rd grade through 5^th grade (6^th grade I left for middle school), I was on a year-round schedule, meaning that the school was open year-round, but parents had the choice to put their kids in one out of four tracks.

We had red, yellow, green, and blue tracks, and their distinguishing factor was what months each track got off.

My parents were intrigued by blue track because the off months were perfect for traveling sans crowds. September? January? May? Sure, their kids would have to sit in class during the traditional dog days of summer, but at least they could plan a long trip to India in the off-season and save hundreds on our flights.

I personally wanted to be in red track, because naïve little me thought I could use third grade to win over Jainey’s friendship, even though she made it clear time and time again I could never fit in with her Filipino clique.

But I digress…

Looking back, I’m glad I got to have that unique experience. We had some really amazing family trips during our off months those years, and I think they might not have been so great if we had to battle summer crowds.

Also, going to school during the summer wasn’t *too* bad. My teachers were usually lax, and we got to do more activities outside, while cooling off with treats like popsicles and ice cream cups after a long, hot week—if my teachers thought we were deserving of it!

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I eventually got to experience my years of a real “American summer break” once I hit middle and high school, but family vacations were no longer the priority. They couldn’t be, since I was worrying about college and figuring out how to use my time wisely. Long story short, it really didn’t matter, and I do wish I hadn’t been so anxious about things out of my control at such a tender age…

Because I was so used to working through “traditional vacation time” (a lot of my high-achieving, “poor student” friends were), I entered my PhD not batting an eye at the thought of spending almost every day in the lab in some form. For a five-year period, I was able to find moments to carve out time away, but it was never in the form of an elaborate, dedicated vacation.

Even if I was away, I was always “on-call”. In fact, my Dad can attest to the fact I always had some anxiety-ridden episode during my “time off” because one of my undergrad students would message me with a mini-emergency, or my boss would send an urgent email.

I once got in trouble for going home for Thanksgiving. I ended up having a heated meeting with my boss, and even the question of “do PhD students even get time off?” was brought up in conversation. It’s a sad occurrence that is brushed over in the real world, but PhD students don’t have mandated days off. They are at the mercy of their superiors, but even if they do get the okay, the guilt that follows is incredible. When working in the lab, there is never a “good time” to leave…

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When I first came to Italy, I was excited about the thought of the mandated 20 vacation days I heard so much about. I was thrilled about finally having the chance to achieve work-life balance, but what I didn’t realize was that academia is the same all over the world. Even though I was working in Italy, I was working in a lab, so the “standard rules didn’t apply”. It was like I was doing my PhD all over again, and it was one of the many factors that contributed to my misery…

Now that I’m working a “real world” job, I finally have the chance to experience a true “vacation” period, but being Italy, there is always a catch.

Since my contract switched from the US-to-Italy mid-year, my yearly vacation days were adjusted as well. Unfortunately, I “had” to use a good chunk of them during the August period, since that’s when the company I work for (along with most establishments in Italy) closes up shop to “vacation”.

According to this article, abandoning “real life” for the majority of August is an Italian tradition dating back to the BC era. But if I’m being honest, it’s a kooky one that desperately needs to be relooked.

I mean, the article says some Italians have taken out loans this year just to vacation in August. Um, WHAT?!

Why with the criticism and lack of appreciation for the fact I even have time off finally? Because at the end of the day, there is no freedom in this procedure.

It means not being able to plan an October trip to Malta with my lab bestie from Germany, but rather forced to spend two weeks staring at the ceiling because I am “stuck” in the city. It can be incredibly annoying for those few who are still working/forced to be in the city, since even essential establishments like pharmacies can close up. Google becomes incredibly inaccurate during this time, and not being able to know if a place is *truly* open fuels the frustration even more…

Lucky for me, my cousin in Cardiff had a change of plans with her summer vacation and I’m actually heading over there for a long-overdue visit this weekend, but if that idea didn’t occur to me, I would indeed be abandoned in the ghost town that is Milano.

If I was “abandoned” in Austin, I could at least count on some vegan restaurants being open. Nothing that I value would be open in Milan…

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This is not to say a dedicated period for time off is “bad”, but forcing everyone to take time off during the period (by mandate or peer pressure) is counterproductive to say the least.

I mean, I get you can’t convince a Boomer to change his/her ways, so have it at August ya’ll! But do I have to be dragged along?

I wouldn’t mind if my superiors got priority to leave in August and I was asked to take leave in the fall (like how it works with my lab bestie’s company in Germany). In fact, I’d be thrilled by it. This would also be of benefit to companies since they can continue to be productive, even if “half-staffed”. Depending on one’s job, it’s not that hard to take on extra tasks temporarily if it means a well-deserved vacation later.

I’m also the kind of person who prefers scattered breaks throughout the year. I have 20 days? Let me do a week off every three months or so…pair it with some national holidays, and BOOM, constant feeling of refreshment while still maintaining productivity!

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Of course, there are people out there that disagree, but I’m a mature individual who encourages discussion and respects healthy discourse. I just think that if we are touting the notion that “one size does NOT fit all” in most topics this day and age—from working style to body image to sleep—how we vacation is something that should be rethought and not another thing to overlook as a tradition everybody loves.

Ha, I’m that American who shakes her head every time she passes a “chiuso per ferie” sign 🤦🏽‍♀️  

What do you think about how Italians approach mandated vacation?

Do you prefer flexibility with your vacation or like that there is a designated, uniform period for time off?

Share your thoughts with a comment!