Travelling Without Moving

It’s so tempting to keep throwing it back to sunnier times and keep counting down the days until we can travel again, but the mind is a powerful thing. Read on for Charisse Kenion’s guide to finding escapism in the here and now.

The other day I was talking to a friend and we were musing over the things we’d love to do once lockdown is over. Our first thought was to do all the things we love, that were on our doorstep; trips to the Victoria & Albert Museum, long, boozy lunches at Sketch… But once we’d got past our favourite pastimes, we of course started thinking about holidays.

I watched my friend’s body language change as she started to describe her dream destination, or rather, her dream feeling. Her shoulders dropped and she had the most chilled-out smile on her face, as she described that feeling when you’ve been lying out in the sun for the day. She described the warmth on her skin, the heaviness in her limbs, the smell of her coconut body lotion and the walk back to the hotel room where the air conditioning would greet her with a blast of coolness. She mentioned that feeling of just having to nod to a member of staff and moments later a delicious drink or snack appearing at her side.

For a moment she swept me right away with her, and it got me thinking: instead of revisiting old destinations in my memories, surely it would make more sense for me to start envisioning the places I’m yet to see?

Active Lockdown

I started to think about how lockdown has encouraged so many of us to learn new things; we’ve challenged ourselves to learn Italian, to crochet crop tops for beaches we’re not quite sure when we’re going to be able to visit and we’ve started painting seascapes in weekly online art classes. We’ve managed to keep ourselves as busy and distracted as possible, but lately, some of us just want to slow down. And slowing down is the perfect way to really start focusing on what you wish you to see next.

It can be as simple as picking a place and thinking about what you can see, smell and hear. For instance, are you someone who likes to smell floral fragrances as you walk down the street, or do you prefer the buzz of a nighttime food market?

Do you envision yourself lying back on a sun lounger and finally reading Queenie or are you looking forward to dusty, aching calves after hiking for 12 hours?

If you can’t describe the smells or what you want to see, ask yourself which words you would use to describe your approach to travel: would you use words such as ‘wanderlust’ and ‘whimsical’ (apparently a search term that has surged by 13,572%!) or would you say’ informative’ and ‘active’?

Make It A Habit

Don’t deny yourself the space and time to daydream about where you’d like to go. In fact, think about making it a daily thing, because what we think about the most, undoubtedly becomes the thing we encounter even more of. Think about it: when you think about bills piling up, what seems to happen? You notice more bills and outgoings! I’m not telling you to bury your head in the sand; I’m telling you to imagine that sand is part of a beautiful, sun-soaked beach somewhere far, far away from here…

Quick Tips For Instant Escape

#1 Manifest
Find a quiet spot, get comfy and breathe. Now you’re primed for a daydreaming session and no dream is too big to visualise.

#2 Pin it

Pinterest has seen a huge resurgence since lockdown began and it makes total sense. Create as many vision boards as you like to manifest the things you really want to see in 2021.

#3 Take a (virtual) drive

I’m obsessed with the Drive & Listen app. Simply pick a city and a radio station you like and ‘drive’ around – from the comfort of your laptop. Check it out here