Relaxation and Vacation

I think the people who inhabit the rest of the world are on to something. They take vacations. Actual vacations that last more than, say, the 4 days of a long weekend. Vacations that are actually long enough that when you return to work and home, you feel refreshed and rejuvenated. Not jipped and like your vacation sped by. I've realized that when I take a vacation, anything less than 7 days is useless because I spend the first few days unwinding and the next few worrying about seeing and doing everything I want to do before I have to catch my plane home again. It's just not enough time for my mind and body to really let go of all the stress I typically carry around at home and work. I think a minimum of 4 days are needed to unwind and be able to settle into the "vacation mode" followed by, at the very least, another 4 days to enjoy the feeling of stress free relaxation. Then another day to pack before I have to leave would be ideal. I have that much vacation time, and I could take it, but I have let my work drive my schedule, and I plan my short vacations around the slow times in my calendar. As I've gotten older I've realized that the work will always be there, and it'll keep piling up whether I am on vacation for a week or not, and I might even be more productive if I had some new experiences and travel under my belt. Why do we Americans have such a hard time with this concept of vacations?? I am going to try, in this next year, to put my new attitude into practice, and to take actual vacations, work be damned. I hope I can start a trend!