Serendipity Travels
Give this a try. Wherever you're traveling next – whether it be Paris or Portland, Brussels or Boston, Tokyo or Tallahassee – search "offbeat" or "lesser-known attractions" before visiting your destination of choice. I can't recommend doing this enough.
1) It's how I found my very favorite place to visit that I otherwise never would've heard of. 2) The roads less traveled, the uncommon locales typically aren't so touristy. They're relatively undiscovered – and what a thrill and rarity that is – to uncover something wonderful and unusual before the masses do. 3) It is the coolest feeling to pluck a place out of the internet that you didn't even know existed, set your mind to find it, maybe even struggle a bit to find it, and then BOOM – out of the blue – actually see it in person. It's a truly surreal experience. An immense sense of pride, achievement, and self-satisfaction courses through you. You're smiling from ear to ear. So delighted and proud that you went after something and found it. It's like giving yourself a gift, but a gift you have to go on a scavenger hunt to find. Makes it even more special when you finally find it. Kind of like finding the man of your dreams...it's even more special when he finally appears after half a lifetime of sifting through the duds. And maybe along your way to finding that quirky place you're so pumped to discover, you'll spot some kind of sign that rings true to you and only you. Maybe you'll walk past a café that's playing your favorite song of all time, or perhaps the street that leads you to your offbeat destination has the same name as the one you grew up on. I'd be willing to bet you'll find something that reminds you that you're in the right place at the right time. Exactly where you're supposed to be.
When I was 22 and wandering the streets of Paris on a solo adventure, in search of a hidden gem called Galerie Vivienne, the bus I ended up taking to get there was #29 – my lucky number, the day I was born, the age I am today. And right where I exited the bus, I found a building called The Hartford. A comforting reminder of the home I'd graduated from approximately 12 months prior to my Parisian exploration. And all in all, a euphoric experience when I finally found that magical little place.
On my 28th birthday, I flew to Phoenix, picked up a rental car and drove down to my beloved Bisbee. Along the way, I passed an exit on I-10 for Sunshine Boulevard at the exact moment I was blasting Sunshine Daydream by the Grateful Dead. And later on down the road, just as I was jamming to Jet by Wings, I spotted a sign for McCartney Road. Another reminder that I was right where I belonged at that point in time.
Serendipity is a beautiful, magical thing. And I just know I'll find it wherever I go.