1. Ignore all those “big box” homogeneous business hotels perched on a strip of fast moving freeway close to the airport.
2. Find a quiet bed and breakfast or old restored inn in a quiet neighbourhood with lots of green space and plenty of character homes.
3. It’s preferable if your B&B host is named James and he’s one of the most pleasant individuals you’ve ever met.
4. It’s even more preferable if James remembers you from the last visit and he prepares tea for your breakfast before you even ask. He might even throw a little coconut in your french toast because he remembers that you liked it last time he made it that way.
5. Avoid the temptation to turn on the TV. In some B&Bs they might help with that by not even providing TVs.
6. Wander. All over the place. Wander with a heavy dose of “wonder”. Up and down quaint streets with interesting shops, through parks with flowering bushes, through art galleries and book stores, and down back alleys with brick walls lined with ivy.
7. If it’s summer time, and your B&B has a luscious romantic garden, enjoy it. Soak in the scent of lilacs.
8. Take pictures of leaves. Let the colours work magic in your heart.
8. Read good books – preferably the kinds of books that will cause a shift somewhere deep inside you.
9. Write. Poems, journal entries, blog posts. Just write. Anything.
10. Eat good, wholesome food. Sushi, Thai… whatever your heart desires. Find a local hole-in-the wall with lots of character and cooks and servers that will delight in pleasing you.
11. Do lots of people-watching – on the subway, in the market, at the art galleries. Enjoy the beauty and diversity of the people you encounter.
12. Find water. Rivers, lakes, streams, fountains. Sit by it and let it replenish your spirit.