GEMMA REEVESdescribes her holidays
What's your earliest holiday memory?My family went to Cornwall when I was about five. The place was really set up for kids and I remember running in an organised race. I was delighted as I got a purple ribbon at the end, until I turned around and realised that everyone had one and I was one of the last to finish!
What was your worst holiday?I went to Spain with my boyfriend after we'd been working hard and were dying to relax and recharge. There were two dead cockroaches in the apartment when we arrived. We were both naive to what that meant, but discovered at 2am that the place was infested with live ones. After nights of using bug sprays and leaving the lights on we checked into a hotel. We came home exhausted and stressed.
What was your best holiday?I had an amazing holiday with my family (my parents and brother Danny) in Cuba a few years ago. It was great because it can be hard to get us all free at the same time. It was a mix of a bustling city, history, and a few days swimming – from Havana, to the colonial town of Trinidad and the beach area of Varadero. If budget or work were not a restriction, what would be your dream holiday? My boyfriend and I went to Thailand for a week and hadn't booked anything. We found an amazing beach resort for the last few days with no one else in it. I have never mentioned the name of it as I'm afraid it will be overrun. Ever since, I said if we had the money we would go back. My dream is that it would be empty and I'd wake in the morning to the sound of the ocean in a beach hut.
If you had your pick, who would you bring on holiday with you?I'd love to rent a house with my parents, brother, boyfriend and family friends. I'm not picky about the place – I just love the idea of everyone together and having big meals in the evenings.
What's your favourite place in Ireland?My godmother Caroline has a little house on the water in Cleggan, Co Galway, which I get to sometimes. My godfather, who passed away suddenly when I was 21, used to love it there. It's the most beautiful, serene place. Your recommended holiday reading? I always end up bringing something which I think is light but is actually heavy. On the last holiday, I read Flesh and Blood by Michael Cunningham. It was a mammoth but beautiful book. I finished it on the plane home and cried my eyes out for the last chapters. What people must have thought of this miserable girl, sitting beside her boyfriend and crying all the way home!
Where will you go to next?I've never been to Italy and would love to go to Rome.
Gemma Reeves plays Cecily Cardew in Rough Magic's production of The Importance of Being Earnestat the Gaiety Theatre. Previews on now and runs from June 8th-19th. gaietytheatre.ie
In conversation with Genevieve Carbery