What does travel do to your brain?
Back in April, my partner, Ben, and I were looking at flights to get away. He really wanted to go to Paris, but the stars weren’t aligning. He found a round trip ticket to London for under 500. We looked at each other, and said, “should we go to England for 2 weeks……?!” Keep reading to find out where we went, what we did, and what this did to my brain.
WHERE WE WENT:
Edinburgh
London
Bath
Edinburgh
We flew into London on August 26, and immediately got on the tube to get to King’s Cross. There we boarded a train to Edinburgh. We spent the next 5 days wandering around, eating Indian Food, and seeing some classic sites.
WHAT WE DID:
Explored The Royal Mile area and Leith Walk
Went to Edinburgh Castle
Did a risograph zine workshop at Typewronger Studio
Explored Edinburgh’s underground
Went to the Scottish Highlands
Hiked Arthur’s Seat
London
On August 31, we took the train back to London. There we stayed near Shoreditch and enjoyed the easy access to great food, shopping, and art.
WHAT WE DID:
Went to several street markets including Brick Lane + Columbia Flower Market.
Visited the Tate Modern, National Gallery, and National Portrait Gallery.
Learned about London’s history and architecture on a walking tour
Ate at Borough Market twice… and ate at Dishoom… twice
Had an INCREDIBLE meal at Bubala – an all vegetarian restaurant.
Spent the day in Hackney – exploring art book shops, cafes, and got tattoos.
Went to Sir Ian McKellen’s 500 year old pub
Made badges with Badge Cafe (who previously brought their Badge Making hang to Lot’sa in May!)
Bath
6 days in London is a lot of time. And you could still not see all of London. However, having all this time allowed us to do a day trip to Bath.
WHAT WE DID:
Did a walking tour (they are free every day!)
Went to a spa, took a bath, and had a massage
Visited 3 pubs one of our close friends used to frequent in her youth
WHAT THIS DID TO MY BRAIN:
For me, travel is always a perspective shifter. Even when I travel 1.5 hours away to Southwest Michigan for a long weekend, my perspective shifts. The world feels bigger, roomier, and I can breathe. The monkey on my back retreats for a moment.
Since working for myself, I haven’t left my work for this long, and I was really nervous about leaving clients hanging, leaving the (stupid fucking) algorithm, and leaving my routine. Turns out, if you leave your work for 2 weeks, everything will be fine.
It is a massive privilege to get to travel anywhere, let alone abroad. In the past couple years I’ve had to make some financial sacrifices/adjustments, including traveling much less than I used to. This all made the trip feel that much more special.
Traveling for 12 days with about 6 plans allowed us to explore at a leisurely and inspiring pace. It allowed for spontaneous decision-making and unexpected moments of awe.
My therapist has told me, “one of the only cures for burnout is doing the total opposite.” Traveling creates a world that is totally opposite from the one at home; everything is unfamiliar, the buildings look different, the people speak different, the food is different, your routine is different. This novelty massages and resets my brain. I come home refreshed, inspired, and so grateful for my little life in Chicago.
Thanks for reading about my trip. If you enjoy my newsletter + art, consider sharing it with a friend.