When visiting my Mom in Mexico a couple of years ago, we heard of a woman in San Miguel de Allende who custom designed and handmade the ultimate walking shoe. I just had to get a pair, not because I have a shoe fetish (which I do), but because I love to walk.
I walk everywhere: the grocery store, gym, laundromat, butcher, bakers, bar, cafe. etc... Now granted, most of these stops are within a 10 block radius of our flat. However, the gym is a half-hour walk in each direction. I don't have to walk--there is public transportation doorstep to doorstep--but I prefer to use my foot-mobile.
When people find out that I walk this distance at least 4 times a week, they want to know why. They question if it is part of my exercise program--no that is the 10 k morning run. They worry that I haven't figured out the tram system--I have a tram pass. They think I am just crazy.
I repeatedly find myself explaining my love of walking. I can spend hours on end wandering streets and neighborhoods. Just ask some of my past visitors. They may even confess to having done some walking training before coming down under.
What is my passion about walking? When was the last time that you: heard the shriek of a cockatoo or the coo of a morning dove, felt the warmth of the sun on your hair or a breeze on your face, smelled the winter rain or a garden of springtime roses, saw the naked branches of a jacaranda or a cat lounging in the sun, or even tasted a fresh picked grapefruit. For me a walk is much more than transportation. It is my connection with mother nature and the world around me. It is the vehicle that allows me to discover the world--one step at a time.
Do you like to walk?
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This is the first country I've lived in out of the past few (countries and years) where I've actually had transportation. In the UK, New Zealand, and for a portion of my time here, I got very used to walking everywhere...for day trips out in NZ where there was no easy transport to, doing our grocery shops, etc. Love the shoes by the way:) I'm a big advocate of comfortable shoes, that keep your feet healthy and gorgeous even when the shoes are off.
ReplyDeleteThese shoes are gorgeous! My mother-in-law loves to walk. She's notorious for talking unsuspecting visitors on marathon walks around the city. I love it to. Good exercise and you see so much more!
ReplyDeleteSuzer, we have been carless--by choice :)-- for the last 2 years. We rent one as needed. Even if I had a car, I wouldn't use it, I find driving too stressful.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the shoe compliments, I even found a shawl made out of the same material! They really are comfortable.