> I moved away from my hometown a few years back, but last time I went up and visited it, I just went walking. I've driven through it/around it/in it thousands of times, but this time, I slowed things down and just explored, looking at random houses and feeling trees and grass. It was the most pleasant thing I've done in a long time.
I think this is a beautiful idea. It doesn't need to be limited to vacations, either; since about 5 years ago, I've been working on transitioning to an appreciation of this sort of thing. I now walk wherever I can (rough guideline: If it's within 4 miles, and I don't have anything heavy to carry, I'll walk there regularly; if it's within 10 miles, I'll walk there occasionally), and I try to take the train when I travel rather than flying. They're both great ways to get in touch with the terrain, as you mention; I had a colleague in Vancouver tell me that I knew my way around better after a few days than he did after staying there for weeks.
I think this is a beautiful idea. It doesn't need to be limited to vacations, either; since about 5 years ago, I've been working on transitioning to an appreciation of this sort of thing. I now walk wherever I can (rough guideline: If it's within 4 miles, and I don't have anything heavy to carry, I'll walk there regularly; if it's within 10 miles, I'll walk there occasionally), and I try to take the train when I travel rather than flying. They're both great ways to get in touch with the terrain, as you mention; I had a colleague in Vancouver tell me that I knew my way around better after a few days than he did after staying there for weeks.