A Little Adventure Close to Home

You do not need a plane ticket to feel like you have been somewhere. A little curiosity turns a familiar place into a new one.

Park the car and walk it. Look up at the buildings, read the plaques, find the oldest shop and step inside. Have a coffee somewhere you have never been.

Local museums, galleries, libraries and historical societies are often free or close to it, and they are rarely crowded. Check the community notice board or your town's website for exhibitions, talks and open days.

We have spent many hours with our family strolling through museums. They hold such rich histories of our area. Sometimes the busyness of life stops us from remembering, and savouring, what our museums, galleries and libraries have to offer.

Choose a theme before you leave: doors, flowers, the colour blue, old signs, shadows. A theme makes you notice things you walk past every day. Your phone camera is all you need.

Ask yourself what you would show a visitor. Then go and see it yourself. Pick up a leaflet at the visitor centre and follow it.

We did this with our children a few times, and it was so much fun. We left the car at home, took the bus downtown, and explored all the areas that were never on our usual routes to activities and business meetings. We were amazed at what our city actually offered. People can live in a city for years and not know what the tourists know.

Farmers' markets in summer, a pick-your-own farm in autumn, a winter walk with a flask of something warm, spring blossoms in a park.

We have many markets here in the summer, and it is a wonderful time to see what local artisans produce and to support them. If you are lucky enough to live somewhere with strong seasons, a stroll through a favourite spot looks different every time: fresh spring flowers, the lush greenery of summer, the reds, oranges, yellows and browns of autumn, and eventually the pure white of a winter wonderland.

I have always loved a picnic, and we have had them in every season, even on the boat. Half the fun is preparing the food. The other half is enjoying it in a relaxed setting, savouring it along with what nature has given us. It is an experience worth having.

Choose one idea and put it in your calendar for this week, with a time. Invite someone, or go on your own. Both count as an adventure.