Travelling broadens the mind. It certainly did for Betty Scuttle who decided in 1965 to quit her job as a typist and endeavour to be the first person to traverse Europe by elephant. She wanted a mode of transport slow enough to enable her to really take in the scenery, as well as the accompanying sounds and smells of each region. At the same time as she was formulating her idea, her local zoo closed down, which resulted in the need to locate one of the elephants to a zoo in Milan. Seeing as the slow plodding of a pachyderm was ideally suited to her travel plans, Betty volunteered to deliver ‘Maurice’ to Italy.
Future EU regulations restricted the use of elephants for transportation were not yet in place at this time, and so Betty was able to have a remarkably hassle free journey. Proceeding at a leisurely, elephanty pace, Betty and Maurice made their way through France, eventually crossing the border into Italy in the autumn.
It was upon entering the small, sleepy village of Ventimiglia that the first and last notable incident of the trip occurred. As Betty and Maurice wound their way down the main road, the pair were followed by Serge L’Flore, movie star, playboy, and collector of fine cheese who was also on his way to Milan to pick up a particularly pungent Gorgonzola.
Serge was driving his still brand-new Jaguar E-type, purchasing only two weeks previously with the proceeds of his last film “Le Wombat”. It had rained heavily earlier in the morning, and the brakes in the car were a little water-logged and slow to work. And thus, Serge’s Jaguar very gently tapped into Maurice’s leg. Unbeknown to everyone, a tap on the back of one of Maurice’s back legs was the signal for him to sit down, as trained into him by his former zookeeper. Maurice dutifully sat down right onto the bonnet of Serge’s car.
Betty’s mind may very well have been broadened, but Serge’s car was well and truly flattened. He was left trying to figure out how to explain to his insurance company what had just happened, his dream of picking up odorous cheese in tatters like the Jaguar.
Everyone has heard that travel broadens the mind and helps to spark ideas.
The encounter with new folks, foods, and attractions can really help to stimulate the creative Juices.
But what if we are too busy to hit the road, even for a short while, what would we do instead to venture off to pastures new.
Why does it stimulate the mind?
In this article we’re going to look at three ways to explore new territory and have some fun
in the process.
We’re going to cover:
Different route - take a different route home from the train station
Step into a new place
Try something new
Different route
You don’t have to travel any exotic or far away place to experience something new. It’s likely that there are streets that you are unfamiliar with far closer to home.
The next time you exit the train station, take a different route home from the one you usually take. We are creatures of habit, and of course naturally we gravitate towards taking the shortest route possible. However, the mere act of walking down an unfamiliar street, automatically makes your more alert because you are now in an unfamiliar environment and this naturally makes your sense more heightened. The more alert your senses are, the more likely you are to notice new things. This may not automatically result in you coming up with any new ideas, however the more often you chose yourself to new experiences and novelty, the more likely you are to see new inspiration and to make connections.
Couldn’t I just do this by staying at home and checking out a new website?
That will only engage your vision and hearing, but even so it will be recording of an image or a sounds and not a real thing. There is nothing like an encounter with reality.
Step into a new place
This one can be even more fun to try than the previous one. While you are taking a different route home from the station or from the shops, or wherever it is that you are returning from, you are likely to spot a cafe, restaurant, or shop that you have never spotted before, or at the very least a place that you haven’t been to for a long time.
Whatever the place is, go in and pay it a visit. Again, being in a new place is very stimulating for the senses and likely to trigger new ideas.
Try something new
The final point, and the most enjoyable of all is to try something new for the first time. This works better if it’s a cafe or restaurant, but it could also include buying a small item from a shop that you wouldn’t have previously considered.
So we looked at the following:
taking a different route home
stepping into a new place
trying something new
Have a little fun when you are next out and about, and try one or more of the above.
What’s next?
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