When planning and preparing a future trip to Torres del Paine in Chili, I realized I’d rather spend some time in the mountains or head over to Antarctica than spend time in Santiago de Chile. After my Iceland trip and spending time in Reykjavik, I’d rather have spent some more time in the Icelandic mountains than in Reykjavik. My wife and I were discussing the types of trips we would like to make in the coming years. Some nice long holidays with the kids. Some weekends in the woods together. I’d like to do some nice long multi-day hikes (also read why). No word about city trips.
And then we realized. I realized. We’re over city trips. I’m over city trips.
City trips
I’ve made plenty of city trips (I even have a special category on this blog). And cities are usually a great way to create beautiful memories. Finding that one hidden restaurant, having the chef order for you, randomly bumping into people you have an amazing evening with.
But …
But I realized that in this stage of my life, these are not the memories I’m looking for.
I’m looking for quality time and memories with my friends and family. I’m looking for time to relax and reflect.
And city trips aren’t necessarily the best place for that. They can be, but they don’t have to be.
My wife and I decided that city trips were not the best place for us to make memories. Early on in our relationship, we would spend every weekend in a different city. But now, we’re just looking for quiet time together, long walks in the woods or on the beach, wine, good food. City trips aren’t the best destination anymore.
Over the years, I have learned that hiking makes me instantly disconnect from my work. Instead of thinking about work, I’m focussing on the question if I have enough water. Rather than Facebooking, I’m figuring out what food to eat best. Cities tend to have the opposite effect for me – I get distracted, get work inspiration from things I see and stay in my normal routine – pretty much exactly what I wasn’t looking for. Nature has become a balance to my city life.
And maybe part of it is in the fact that I already spend a lot of time during the week in different cities for work. I don’t need yet another hotel or Airbnb in yet another city.
It might change. It might not.
But for now, we’re over city trips. I’m over city trips.
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