Look out the bathroom window

This is actually a tip someone gave me before I left for Nepal: make sure you look out the outhouse window.

This led to a photo series my 7-year-old son is most excited about: the 10 most pretty potty-views of Nepal.😝

As well as an aha moment for me: finding beauty in unexpected places is an important source of daily wonder for me.

Rediscovering daily wonder

It’s so easy to get caught up in life’s busyness. It’s overconsumption.

Prioritizing happiness feels like it should be a good thing. Who doesn’t want to live a happier life, right?

But sometimes the things we think will make us happy, aren’t. Too much pleasure—whether from something as benign as over-indulging in romantic novels (like Anne Lembke talks about in Dopamine Nation) or something we’re perniciously rewarded for like overworking—throws off the delicate neurochemical balance between pain and pleasure that keeps us from living a balanced, thriving life.

This makes us, counterintuitively, LESS happy and more likely to disconnect from the things that could actually make us feel better and more connected in our lives. One of those things: experiences of daily wonder.

I’ve written about the science of awe - before, but I want to share that travel can be a doorway to reconnecting with both daily wonder, and the things that really matter to you.

It was for me, at least.

A personal example of the daily wonders of travel

I've always loved to travel. Maybe it was living abroad as a child. Maybe it was my dad's influence.

Maybe it's innate - to me? Being human?

Exploring and experiencing the sights, sounds, smells, tastes of somewhere new & exotic is not only a great way to expand your horizons, but also a great way to reconnect with daily experiences of wonder and awe, because we’re constantly seeing the world through new, open eyes.

It’s not that we can’t do this at home, it’s just the nature of being in one place for a long time that we get…used to things and then stop noticing or seeing things that are right in front of us.

I found that our days in the middle of the trek fell into a wonderful rhythm...that I was unintentionally experiencing daily awe and wonder in a way that not only reinvigorated me... but inspired me to bring it home.
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Here's what it looks like for me:

5 am: Sunrise hike to a stupidly beautiful spot that takes my breath away (first, from hiking at altitude, then from views). Watch the sunlight filter through swirling snowdrifts, surrounded 360 by ethereal beauty.

7:30 am: Savour a hot mug of steaming, spiced and sweet masala chair, alongside Gorung bread – a pillowy-soft, puffy fried bread, served with local honey and eggs.

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8 am: Start a hike that passes through a constantly evolving, captivating scenery:

• Lush, terraced gardens overlooking deep valleys,
• Bamboo forests carpeted in flowering green and white plants interspersed with towering 50-foot rhododendron TREES with red flowers and thick, twisted branches that look out of a fairy tale
• Canyons carved out of sheer, silver rock cliffs,
• Steep ridges with alpine scrubs growing between the rocks and little caves, providing shelter from the wind.
• Constantly being surrounded by the soundscapes of changing birdsong, at all times of day.

2 PM Arriving at our teahouse within minutes of the biggest downpour of the day.

5 pm: Skies clear, and get a sense of where we're at now. At our highest elevation, we gasp as the massive peaks materialize through

the shifting clouds, then a rainbow, then a herd of furry yaks, bells tingling, starts sauntering across the windswept ridge.

5:30 pm: Devour another HEARTY home-cooked dinner, usually dal bhat for me, a Nepali staple that is always satisfyingly filling and spicy, followed by lots of laughs and cards.

8pm: Go to bed. I feel like I went back in time in some of these teahouses, but I loved every minute of it!

Bringing wonder home

Okay so what's it like trying to reintegrate all that adventurous rhythm into my actual daily life with 3 kids, a husband, dog, running a business and lots of chores (Oh the never-ending cleaning of the kitchen🥵) ???

I think this is where intention, reflection, and community are so, so important.

Because a trip like this can EASILY become just a fading memory of a great vacation.

For me, I wanted this to be more - to be a chance to reconnect with inspiration and intuition. And getting totally out of my regular routine and responsibilities, traveling intentionally, was a powerful way to do that.

My takeaways?

There's not one way to live a "good" life.

Money matters to me less than I thought it does.

Regularly asking myself what reciprocity looks like for me in different situations, does.

I can actually lean into enjoying things that are painful at first, and it's something I want to keep practicing.

Remembering how my energy has a ripple effect on those around me, so take care of it.

Stay playful

Don't forget to Treat Yo'self to a good massage afterwards... 🤗💆🏼‍♀️

Warmly, Allie

P.S. If you are in need of an adventure, a shakeup, or an excuse for a journey - shoot me an email.