The Art of Wandering
My approach to long term travel (to root myself in a city and take side trips from there; to orient myself by walking in various directions until something strikes my fancy rather than planning everything out) has been condicive to refining a particular skill: the art of wandering.What is wandering, you might ask? To wander is to walk towards a particular cloud that strikes your fancy until you see something else more worthy of your gaze; to wander is to find the nearest Hard Rock Cafe and then immediately walk the opposite direction; to wander is to take a right at every cute dog or person text-messaging on their bike that you see; it is to ask the flower vendor where she's from and where the best cup of coffee in town can be found; it is counting how much money the guitar/singing street performer makes in comparison to the man (woman?) in the Darth Vador costume; it's walking until you don't see a single person for 2 minutes and then take out your map to discover where you are; it's engagine in a discussion about American foreign policy after asking a friendly looking local where the best Indonesian restaurant in town is located; it's watching a local football practice and rooting for the team in orange.
In every city where my feet have struck pavement I've discovered something new through the art of wandering. After 4 weeks in Europe, I've made a list of facts, ideas, and tips about this art for the as-yet uninitiated.
1) If you find yourself in a popular city such as Amsterdam or Dublin, orient yourself in the more famous, central district, get a free map from the tourist information office, and immediately walk as far away from the info center as you can get. The smaller the streets, the better. Only look at the map when you have a driving curiosity about where you are; otherwise, keep you head up, for the objects of everyday life hold the capacity for joy if we only look at them with that expectation.
2) If you find wandering to be too structure-less, pick a theme; in Bruges, I became obsessed with door-handles. I had no idea they could come in so many different colors, styles, and textures. PIck something to focus on - are you a window person? How about bricks? I find myself happiest when wandering through residential neighborhoods, but perhaps for you it's all about the eateries of cafes...pay attention to the menus, or the awnings, or the waitresses at each restaurant or bar. If you still find it's too structure-less, slow down rather than speeding up.
3) People watch. What are the people doing in this city that you didn't notice before? The Dutch love their thick-cut french fries with mayonnaise; they dip the fries in the mayo using a tiny, adorable little fork. This can be as beautiful as a piece of famous art in an expensive museum if you pay attention to it. Children are particularly fun to watch - find a park and muse over how simple swings and slides can bring joy to a child in any cultural context.
4) Ask questions. Yes, people may respond rudely - they are probably in a hurry and don't have time to talk, so ask someone else. Paul and I had an interesting discussion with an Egyptian falafel-vendor about whether or not Morocco could provide falafel as good as southern Spain. We asked a friendly-looking local where the best Indonesian restaurant could be found, and he told us, "Well, you have to get out of the city center in order to find the best food." This strategy works best, of course, in countries where the majority speak english, but if not, try your hand at the language where you find yourself.
5) Go with your intuition. While I was wandered through the town of Utrecht today, I started following where I thought the light was hitting buildings in the most beautiful way. Turning around a narrow corner, just past a tree-lined canal, I looked up to see a rainbow. At the same time, if you start feeling uncomfortable or unsafe in a neighborhood, turn around (it's also good to get a feeling for local transport - if you've wandered too far into a bad place, the bus, tram or subway are all good options, or even a cab).
6) If you've chosen a particular destination, remember that getting there can be the best part. Yesterday, Paul and I had a whole afternoon/evening to kill before I left for Wageningen (and he had another night to kill before a 4 am train to Eindhoven). We looked at our City Spy map and saw a windmill..."Hey Paul," I said. "You're in holland - you should see a windmill." He smiled, shrugged, and we set off on a winding path in the windmill's general direction. We found ourself in Amsterdam's Chinatown district, which prompted a long discussion about the various Asian foods we'd eat upon arriving home in December. As the windmill became visible, we got into a whole inside-joke routine, saying, "To the windmill" much like Batman would say, "To the batmobile!" At one point, Paul made the incredibly astute analogy that: Windmill is to awesomeness as getting kicked in the balls is to suckiness. By the time we got to the windmill, we were tired from carrying our backpacks. Paul wished it was made from brickes and not thatching. We sat down for long enough for paul to roll a cigarette and me to eat some chocolate, took a picture, and headed back again. Getting there really is often the best part.
7) Make the best of an accidental or errant wander, but accept your limitations. I met up with a few girls from Canada and the US in Brussels and we set off for the small town of Gent in the wrong train (still not sure how that happened). We tried to take it lightly and amused ourselves by taking pictures on the nondescript town where we found ourselves, making wax sculptures out of the cheese-wrapping, and listening to a train-ful of middle eastern women singing, but by the time we got back to Brussels it was dark and we couldn't find our way back to the hostel and it was not fun. That's just one of those, "Oh well" experiences. Sometimes you discover gems through accidental wanderings, but at other times it's futile...don't give up, just see your experience for what it is and resolve to have a heartier wander next time.
By no means should you give up on the idea of wandering due to your lack of proximity to a famous European city. Wandering can be just as meaningful in your own street. Do you know what kind of doorknob your neighbor has, of have you stopped to ponder the artwork visible through the front entryway? Do you know how many baskets the kid up the street can make in a row if he thinks no one's watching? Have you stopped to chat with the vegetable-man at your local grocery store, or stopped to count how many varieties of tomato are sold in each aisle? Discoveries abound in every town, even where there is "nothing to do." The world is full of visual wonders, so go forth and wander! | posted by Cheryl, 11/17/2005 10:19:00 AM
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