My Staycation is Unlocking a World of Wonder

by Julia Phillips Smith

Earlier in the summer I wrote about the 100-day A For Adventure challenge my husband and I have taken on:

Day 7 -- A For Adventure -- 93 days to go

This is a loose challenge which can be adapted by whomever is taking part, in order to fit the adventures into one's life. Basically, it's a call to get outside and get some fresh air. Ideally, the adventures will be part of an active lifestyle -- the originators of the challenge are definitely outdoors people who kayak, hike up remote hills and follow streams deep into the woods.

Because my husband and I are keeping all of our adventures to walks, we've added another element to our challenge -- we're going on 100 different walks in 100 different places.

Since we're spreading our challenge over the course of a year (our challenge began on June 1st) we're already noticing that taking part in A For Adventure has made the past ten weeks feel like we're on a permanent staycation.

In seventeen adventures so far, we've gone to an outdoor art fair at a winery, watched international dances at a multicultural festival and took in a swing-music big band at the jazz festival.

We've strolled along two Atlantic ocean beaches and four waterfront wharf areas, we've walked beside three freshwater lakes and four ponds. We've taken two urban walks in different city neighborhoods, explored a farm museum and a Victorian-era city garden.

For my husband, who is a Come-From-Away, all of this novelty feels the same as if we had traveled somewhere for a vacation. For me, the biggest excitement is getting out of the car and walking up to so many places that I've driven past, time after time over the years.

Just having time to savour these places instead of glancing at them briefly for mere moments from the car helps to really connect with so many areas with which I'd already felt familiar. Approaching them from a slower, up-close-and-personal perspective makes my city and surrounding areas feel fresh and new.

In turn, all of this exploring is rejuvenating. We didn't need boarding passes or currency exchanges in order to reap all of the benefits of a vacation.

We did have to stick to our challenge pledge to keep heading out for our twice-a-week adventure. This is far more outside time than we've ever spent before, and often we're battling fatigue from day job schedules.

Yet we're both enjoying our adventures so much, as well as the weekly quest for a new place to explore. For my husband, being able to spend time with me that's not talking to the back of my head as I sit at the computer is a refreshing change.

If you've ever considered trading in your travel plans for a staycation, I'd definitely give it a whirl. It turns the commonplace into the extraordinary.

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Have you traveled this year? Or have you explored your own backyard, as we've done?

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Photo by Helen Tansey