Let’s face it, when you travel you are far removed from what you would otherwise do when you take a break from work: no more watering the plants or procrastinating through doing the dishes or hanging up the laundry. I don’t have to go shopping and when I’m travelling for work I usually end up being busy during the day and my only free time is after the shops are closed already.
Still, it affects the bit of routine that I hang on to. So what is that routine? I have found that it’s important for me to meditate regularly and I do it on a daily basis. Since meditation comes in many forms for me, that could be a silent sitting meditation or an active one, a walking meditation or something repetitive like singing a mantra or some formalised kind of dancing. Most of these can be done in any environment, but some are limited by the available space, and hotel rooms tend to be cramped. Anyway, some kind of meditation is usually possible – I just have to juggle my options a bit. I try to practice yoga as often as possible, and that is where I fail on travels: I often simply cannot find the space to do it and have yet to discover a way to replace this part of my routine with something more ‘portable’. On the other hand, I find that I am more present when practicing yoga or meditation because there is so much less to distract me from it. There is freedom and calm in a space that you don’t have to maintain, without much chance of surprise phone calls or invitations to pop over to friends for the evening. I call that a definitive plus point. I’m not much of a gym bunny, but I understand that most of my gym friends have no trouble finding some reasonable replacement for their regular gym wherever they are travelling. I’m wondering if such a thing couldn’t be possible for yoga or group meditation? I’m not sorry to do these things on my own, but some of you may prefer doing this in groups. And I’m with you on the energetic front and the shared experience. Maybe this is something to consider for the future? Travelling yogis, what do you do for the shared experience? I used to sink into brainless oblivion in the past whenever I was travelling, spending the evenings in a hotel room and basically slipping into a rather vegetative state. For the last couple of years, that has changed: I’m much more conscious of my own mental and spiritual needs and practice both meditation and yoga in ways that the space allows. Mental wellness is your most valuable friend! Make sure to keep it safe.
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September 2021
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