This past weekend I visited my friend in New York City. It was an absolutely wonderful weekend other than the extremely hot and humid weather that we ran into. One of my absolute favorite things to do when traveling is walking around with no particular agenda or place to see. Kind of a random exploring of the city to get the feel of it. I’ve been to NYC many times and I’m quite familiar with it, but I still enjoy this process of aimlessly walking around.

I also enjoy taking public transit as opposed to cabs. It’s kind of a double bonus. I save some money and I get to travel with the locals and see parts of the city I don’t normally see. We flew into LaGuardia, and as some of you may know, it’s not exactly convenient taking public transit into Manhattan from this airport. This didn’t deter me. I was able to find the correct bus, which took my wife and I down some very beautiful streets in Queens that were full of bustling people going about their daily activities. Yes, I did just use Queens and beautiful in the same sentence. From there we hopped on the E train, which took us to SoHo, where my friend works.

Before I digress too far, it might be beneficial to explain where I am going with all of this. I was reminded once again this past weekend why I like traveling so much. It’s because I’m so completely mindful and in the moment while traveling.

Natural Mindfulness

I would say that the large majority of the time when we travel we are in an extremely mindful state. Some of this is out of complete necessity. For example, we might arrive in a city for the first time and have no clue as to where we are. In order to orient ourselves, we become mindful of our surroundings. What are some of the landmarks nearby? What direction am I walking? What neighborhood or area am I in?

Another large portion of being mindful comes simply from the ‘newness’ and ‘uniqueness’ of the place we’re in. While walking through the West Village I was keenly aware of the narrowness of the streets, all of the cafes and restaurants with people sitting outside enjoying a coffee or lunch and the beautiful, old buildings. It kind of reminded me of walking around in the Latin Quarter in Paris. I had the pleasure of enjoying an unobstructed and amazing view of the majority of Manhattan from a bar at the Standard Hotel. I was struck by and aware of just how many people and buildings are packed onto the small island that’s roughly 13 miles long and 2 miles wide.

For me, this increased state of mindfulness is one of the main reasons that I enjoy traveling so much. Whenever I travel, I am more often than not completely ‘there’ with whatever experience is going on. I’m appreciative of the new smells, sights, sounds and sensations. This state of complete presence can bring about a sense of great equanimity and peace.

Having said the above, I think at times there can be a certain addiction and attachment that comes from this increased mindfulness when traveling. I don’t mean this to be preachy or condescending, but rather to point out that we should be aware of this. Heck, I noticed it myself when I got back from New York City. I was already thinking about where I could go next for a short trip. I found myself at work thinking about the fun things I did over the weekend instead of being present where I actually was. This points out how easy it is for us to get caught up in memories, stories and projections created in our mind instead of really being here in the moment.

The question then becomes, ‘how do we bring this mindful state into our everyday lives?’

Ways to Bring Mindfulness Into Our Everyday Lives

Here are a couple of suggestions that will help you be more mindful in your everyday life:

• Mindful Walking: I wrote a post a few months back that really got to the essence of this. So many of us are stuck in our heads on our way to work or while we run errands. Start to become more mindful of your walking. Notice your surroundings. Although we may travel the same routes everyday, in reality, they are always different. The breeze and weather are different, the colors are different, the sounds are different. Become aware of this.
• Mindful Standing: Lately, I’ve been practicing the Mountain Pose (Tadasana) while I wait for the train. This is not only an excellent activity to do for improving my posture, but it also allows me to be more mindful of where I’m at. Instead of looking at my watch, e-mailing or thinking about work, I can really take stock of where I’m at and how I’m feeling.
• Mindful Eating: Take the time to truly eat your food instead of rushing through it to get to the next thing. Smell your food. Really taste it. What is the texture? How does it feel in your mouth? Where does your food come from? Did a waiter/waitress serve it to you? Did you buy it at the grocery store and then prepare it? Notice how many people are involved in getting you the food that you eat.

What other ways do you try to stay mindful in your everyday life? I’d love to know.