Lost and Found

The best things in life come when you least expect them…

I think the saying that the best things in life come when you least expect them rings quite true. In every facet of our lives we have had very pleasant surprises that were completely unexpected, which is also why they are so special. And travel is no different. Although guides are great for finding restaurants and bars or hidden spots, it is also worthwhile to get immersed in a place by walking aimlessly and using an explorer mentality.

In Amsterdam recently something occurred to me. While leaving a bar, I made a left turn instead of right one on the way back to my apartment. I walked about 10 minutes before realizing that I did not recognize anything (it was nighttime afterall). I wanted to go toward the center from the Binnenstad district, close to Dam Square, but instead I had gone the opposite direction. As a result, I discovered the beautiful Grachtengordel district, with its quiet canals and gorgeous homes along on its banks. I ended up amusing myself by walking up and down the streets and discovered what is now consider my favorite place in a city I had visited many times before.

Interestingly, something similar happened to me in Paris. Travelling with one of my friends who had little knowledge of languages, we got in a taxi and he told the driver, ” À la cathédral!” We thought we’d end up at Notre Dame, but the driver thought (at least that’s what I think he thought) that he could make a few more euros by taking us to the other ´cathedral´ of the city, the Sacré Coeur. At the age of 17, it was one of our first trips and we did not know much about Paris. The taxi driver dropped us at the stairs of the basilica that afternoon, so we climbed up to see the work of stunning architecture that we had not planned to visit in our 2-day trip to Paris and discovered an entire neighborhood, one that I now have to visit every time I am in Paris: Montmartre. Its cobblestone streets and quiet squares with terraces, where I like to enjoy a delicious noisette, are undoubtedly the best in Paris. And when the sun goes down, the bars there have the perfect ambience and I like them much better than those in the Marais or the Latin Quarter. I would likely have visited the area on a later trip, but the surprise discovery that day was the best €20 I have spent in my entire life.

Foto: MrJamesAckerley

Venice is another city full of surprises around every corner. Its canal-lined streets are both picturesque and full of mystery. If you leave the tourist centers of San Polo and San Marco, the streets are not as well marked. Walking through the maze of streets you’ll find the city’s gems in neighborhoods like the Dorsoduro, Castello or Canareggio . Wandering around Venice is an adventure in itself, and you’ll likely find some small neighborhood bacari where white-haired Venetians drink and play dominoes. Visiting the Palazzo Ducale is worth the €16, but meandering about the maze of Cannaregio and discovering an authentic Venetian bacari by chance is quite simply priceless.

Remember: You’ll find something without looking.