Confessed: 'I lied about our holiday destination'

Everyone has a secret now and then, a white lie, something they'd rather not say out loud. In Metro 's Confessed column, a Metro reader dares to do just that. This week: Nora (29) lied to a slightly too curious and enthusiastic acquaintance about her holiday destination.

"Trust me: you would too, after reading this story. Last summer I just thought I would share a nice travel story with an acquaintance I meet every now and then at birthday parties. I told her enthusiastically about a planned tour through Malaysia with my boyfriend, something I had been dreaming about for months. She immediately responded with great interest and asked when exactly we would be leaving. I thought she was just curious, but it turned out that she mainly wanted to know when we would be leaving. So that she could book exactly the same trip, on the same dates. Without me knowing about it.

Because when our trip started and we were at the airport, we suddenly bumped into that acquaintance and her boyfriend. Seriously? How do you do something like that without consultation? They reacted overly enthusiastically, but it mainly felt like they had hijacked my travel plans. And as if that wasn't enough: the four of us were forced to sit on a terrace every evening for almost three weeks. Not exactly the quality time I had in mind.

The holiday itself was of course wonderful – Malaysia is a great country – but their presence prevented me from fully relaxing. At every beach, viewpoint and every photo I felt their proximity. Sometimes that knowledge was literally breathing down my neck. That whole experience made our dream trip less special than it could have been.

What bothers me the most is that they didn't say anything beforehand. I would have liked it if they had just asked, if we had thought about it together - especially if it's a trip you take as a couple. But no, apparently my enthusiasm was enough to infect them and they saw that as a kind of invitation? In any case, they suddenly decided to just go along. I can tell you: even my best friend wouldn't do that. But that acquaintance apparently felt no embarrassment at all. I'm still really angry about that.

This year I have another trip planned, to South Africa. But this time I'm keeping the destination to myself. Of course I ran into that acquaintance again recently and she asked about my holiday plans. I just couldn't get it out of my mouth, so I made up some kind of tour through Canada that I happened to see on an acquaintance's website. Will she believe me and book 'the same' trip again? No idea, but I don't want to go through that again. And if not, I'll make up an excuse at the last minute , if she actually does go that way. But confess? Hell no , I really don't feel like having her follow me everywhere again.

This experience has taught me at least one thing: some things you apparently have to keep to yourself, no matter how nice it seems at first to share with others. I now realize that this is also perfectly possible afterwards, when you are safe and sound at home again.

Due to privacy in combination with sensitive topics, the names are fictitious. The real names are known to the editors.

Curious about more savings stories from other readers? These previous editions of Metro ’s weekly column The Savings Account are favorites among our readers:

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