I love traveling. I enjoy walking into a brand new place, asking locals for their recommendations, and just exploring. This past week, a friend and I decided to go up to Toronto for the night. We drove up one day, spent the night, explored in the morning, and left in the afternoon. It was extremely tiring, especially being lost in a car for three hours right outside the city, but overall invigorating. I’m usually a planner person, I like to have a well-thought out itinerary. This time, we booked a place to sleep and that was it. Sure we had a few places we wanted to see, but we wanted to play it by ear. That night we stopped at a few bars, walking around downtown until we were too cold. We ate at random restaurants that we spotted off the street. The next day we drove around the city for a few hours, trying to see every inch possible before heading home.
I think everyone should try traveling with no plans at least once in their life. We had no set time to arrive in Canada, and no set time to leave. What did I learn from doing this? To begin, it truly felt relaxing. Have you ever been on a trip that was so jam packed with things to do that if felt stressful? I know I have, and it really ruins the fun. Going with no plans allowed us to just explore, stop where we wanted to stop, and spend as much time as we wanted to where we wanted to. It was truly a carefree trip. My friend and I drove around the city all morning until we found a district of stores we wanted to stop in. I met some local beekeepers and was able to make a pit stop to visit their hives.
Secondly, I learned a little about myself and the things I care to visit. Walking down the street we saw a store dedicated to honey bees, naturally I had to stop in (in case you do not know, bees are my favorite insect). I ended up networking myself with some Canadian beekeepers and potential graduate schools. When driving around we found Dundas Square, and I was so amazed that my friend drove through it multiple times for me. I never realized how important those things were to me, but coming from a small town the entire city atmosphere encapsulated me (cliche I know). I live in a place that requires me to go the next town over if I want entertainment or to go grocery shopping, but in Toronto it was all right there. I was able to walk around and see all sorts of things. I stopped in places I didn’t even know I wanted to visit.
If you ever get the chance, whether it be across the globe or an hour away from home, visit without a plan. Book some places to sleep and just go. Walk around. Stop in the weirdest store you can find. Freak out over the simplest things, do things you would never imagine. You won’t regret it.
