AS the winter weather makes us all wish it was summer, you might think that a trip abroad would be the ideal way to chill out and relax. Well, spare a thought for a local couple who have done anything but that so far on their holiday.
Dave and Beccie Roberts, who run the Woodshop in Upper Frog Street, Tenby, have been spending Christmas and New Year, along with their children, in Bali - but not all has gone according to plan so far.
As their plane left Heathrow on December 22, a bird flew into one of the engines, resulting in the aircraft having to return to the airport to make an emergency landing.
After inspection, they were told there was no way they could fly and that it could take up to four days before they could travel out to Bali.
Eventually the family managed to get a flight to Singapore, but couldn't get a connection to Bali until the next day, so were put up in a hotel.
When they did arrive, their luggage went astray, so they were left with only the clothes they had been wearing, but kindly given £20 each by Singapore Airlines to buy essentials and told they had to stay in Ubud until their luggage could be found.
And as if things couldn't get even more disastrous, the family were given a welcome to the New Year on the island, when they were woken at 5 am last Friday by the room shaking so violently that everyone had to run from the building for fear of it collapsing.
The cause was a severe earthquake that shook the islands of Bali and Lombok, injuring 29 people and damaging dozens of buildings, but thankfully the family were unharmed.
Perhaps the only thing that anyone from Tenby reading this story might envy, is the Bali Boxing Day Swim where the sea temperature was 28 degrees!
The family are still currently holidaying in Bali and the children, who were promised the holiday of a lifetime, certainly won't forget this one in a hurry.