Solace II at Phoenix ParkSolace II at Phoenix Park

If the first house is the quiet one, this is the bright one. Deep navy against yellow, a wall of teal at the windows, pale marble-look floors, and daylight arriving from two sides at once. It is a cheerful room to walk into, and a better one to come back to.

The table is usually laid before you arrive — yellow mats, white flowers, the plant in the corner throwing shadows across the floor by mid-afternoon. Behind it there are two queen bedrooms, a full bathroom and a proper kitchen with a gas stove, and enough room between them for four people to eat properly, put their feet up, and not be on top of one another.

You park on the property and close your own gate behind you. That is most of what people mean by feeling settled somewhere: nobody through the wall, nobody at a desk, and no particular hour you have to be back by.

Kingston is a short run up the causeway, Hellshire and the coast are ten minutes the other way, and the mountains are a morning away. Take the day, then come back and make something to eat.