RTÉ broadcaster Maxi describes her holidays
What's your earliest holiday memory?My dad is from Co Down and my mum is from Keenagh, in Co Mayo. I spent equal time in both places during summer holidays. Mammy was a schoolmistress in Keenagh before she got married. We would meet her past pupils whom she had encouraged to sing, and it nurtured that part of my life. I remember going around in my aunt's ice-cream van in Co Down. She used the greatest psychology by letting us eat anything we liked; you'd eat like crazy in the first few days and then not want anything at all.
What was your worst holiday?As I teenager I went with a gang to stay in a caravan in Wexford. We thought that all we needed were a guitar and singing. But on the first night the bedclothes fell out the window into the muck, and I had no replacements. I like my creature comforts and hated myself for not thinking ahead.
What was your best holiday?I took two weeks off and went to Zambia with Unicef to highlight the malaria problem there. I didn't want a luxury holiday but wanted to get balance into my life. It opened my eyes to how much we have. I met young Zambian children, each with a dream to become a lawyer or an actor. They are living in these huts with a cauldron of soup to share between them.
If budget or work were not a restriction, what would be your dream holiday?I want to go on the Orient Express from London to Venice for the joy of the train, the scenery and the pampering. After a heavy day I will put on music from the 1940s, as it soothes my soul.
If you had your pick, who would you bring on holiday with you?My dream man, who has lived a little, has been high on joy and low on sorrow, a rock'n'roller with a skinful of music and poetry: Paul McCartney. But he must disappear and meet for dinner at 6pm, as I am a solo flyer at heart.
What's your favourite place in Ireland?When I need to get away I go to places listed in Ireland's Blue Book, such as the Hodson Bay Hotel, in Athlone. I loved the spa and took a boat on the lake. It was very nourishing. I like to stay somewhere for a short while rather than a long time.
Your recommended holiday reading?Novels by Irish writers like Maeve Binchy and Claudia Carroll are perfect for on a river boat. I always bring a book I can read a little of and then stop and think, like Life's Missing Instruction Manual, by Joe Vitale. I read Eric Clapton's autobiography on my last trip to Venice.
Where will you go to next?I really want to go on the Orient Express next. I'd also like to go to Las Vegas, as I would love to see stars like Bette Midler.
RTÉ broadcaster Maxi presents a Eurovision Extravaganza concert at the National Concert Hall, in Dublin, on April 15th. www.nch.ie