Today I’d like to explore the theme of travelling while remaining in the same country, the same city and even the same neighbourhood. After all, to me, travelling is not so much about the destination, it is very much about the mindset.

Here’s a quick background story: I recently moved back to Paris, my hometown, after living abroad for almost 5 years. Although I still managed to visit frequently, this place changed but not as much as I did. I have grown and changed throughout those years. Coming back felt super exciting at first. It was a big change compared to the cities I had been living in and the Olympics made the atmosphere even more exciting. But after mid-August, once the energy faded out, it was a little challenging for me to find fun activities to do. I felt like I was always going to the same places. What I was missing was the feeling of novelty.

To me, travelling is more about changing your lens

In January, I became very serious about photography. After exploring the themes of composition and storytelling, the challenge was to find places that could inspire me to take pictures. At this point, it was really difficult for me to go the parks in my neighbourhood and to be intentional and pay attention to details. What I am writing might sound crazy when you think of the amount of people who pay thousands of euros to come to Paris, take wonderful pictures and enjoy sitting at cafés. Just look at the line in front of Notre-Dame or the Eiffel Tower!

The thing is that when you’ve lived in a place for so long, you just go on auto-mode most of the time. You either go to the same places or just walk to your destination without taking the time to look and pay attention. Sometimes, you really need something to make you see or pay attention to details again. And that’s exactly what both my photography journey and this little book allowed me to do.

“Jeux de piste et énigmes à Paris”

That is the book I am talking about. In English, it would translate as “Puzzle trails or Treasure hunt in Paris“. I believe this book is made for people who are just like me. For those who have lived in Paris for ages and who need just a little help to change their lenses and take a look closer. The book contains 20 treasure hunts for each arrondissement. The first riddle of each of the 20 trails is arguably the toughest one and indicates where to start, every time it is the name of a metro station. And from there, you need to be observant and notice small details. The fun and tricky part is that you need to get the riddle right to move to the next and there is no room for just guessing, you need to be sure about the answer otherwise it is easy to get lost. Trust me about that!

Rediscovering what I thought I knew

Of course, I started with the neighbourhood I knew the best. Well, strike that. I started with the neighbourhood I thought I knew the best; it took me three attempts (meaning I needed to come back three times to the start the trail) because I just couldn’t solve the very first riddle! I don’t want to spoil anything here but one of the riddles that stuck with me was something along the lines of “Find the highest but not the tallest tree, this will indicate the path you’ll need to follow”. This did not make sense to me at all. But then you look up and start paying attention to details and it all starts to make sense.

Once I finished the first trail, I realised that there were many areas, streets, places and details I never paid attention to. And now, when I walk on those very same streets, my eyes directly go to those details: I cannot “un-see” them anymore. I still haven’t done the 20 treasure hunts but I’ve completed the majority and it has really helped redefine my relationship with Paris and I believe it has somehow prepared me for my next chapter.

A new eye for detail

As I mentioned earlier, I started taking photography seriously last January. I’m still diving into the art of composition and visual language and this book has become a tool to support my growth. When I want to shoot in Paris, I still struggle to just pick up my camera, stroll around and see where my feet lead. I prefer to have a rough idea of my itinerary and see what I can capture along the way. So what I’ve been doing recently is re-exploring the neighbourhoods I have already completed. On my first attempts, it required so much attention, testing and trial that I eventually memorised a large part of the puzzle trails. Now, I just pick an arrondissement and go around, camera in hand and see what I can capture. It is so interesting to remember and see the details mentioned in the riddles and think of ways to capture it.

Now everything merges. Just like in photography, once you see leading lines or frames, you cannot un-see them and you tend to move about and be more careful about the world around you. There are plenty of times when I am walking to an appointment or even sitting in the bus looking around or through the window and think “oh, this would be an interesting picture.”, “oh, this light is interesting.”, “how would I frame this scene?”.

Rethinking travel: all about your mindset?

Coming back to Paris, rediscovering it through photography had me thinking a lot. Of course, I love travelling and connecting with people across cultures. But come to think of it, what I like most is the feeling of novelty it brings. It is great to be faced with something foreign because it piques curiosity. And to be truly honest, it is something you can try to do and incorporate in your day-to-day life by just trying to be more in the moment and pay closer attention.

So I invite you to rethink your idea of travel. What small details or places have you overlooked in your own city or neighbourhood? What’s the feeling you most crave when you travel? Share your thoughts with me, I’d love to hear about how you reconnect with your surroundings.

And if you are based in Paris or thinking of traveling there, you can find the book at La Fnac or at Gibert. If you already have the book or think about buying it, please share your experience in the comment section, I’d be happy to hear your thoughts!