Why I Fell Out Of Love With London – And What Changed.

At the beginning of the summer of 2022, I fell out of love with London.

I had become disillusioned with the place that at first had brought me so much exhilaration. I found that The City was no longer exciting me or bringing me joy. And significantly, I began to notice that my passion for being outdoors felt suppressed and claustrophobic.

I started to think to myself  ‘I am someone who enjoys adventures, mountains, the coast… what the hell am I doing in London?”

The 2022 record-breaking temperatures experienced in Londo, coupled with the cost of living crisis, made living here start to feel like a prison.  

Perhaps you felt the same?  

There are many reasons why a city so big can make you feel so boxed in. 

However, as is often the way, the solution was not going to miraculously present itself without any effort on my part. It is far easier to be passive and allow the negative outlook to engulf us. To let the flow drag us down the river. In many situations, it takes an active effort to swim against the tide. To change your mindset. To look for the silver lining.

Once I had experienced that snap in mindset shift, I began to realise the value of what London could offer me.

London may not be where I want to spend the rest of my life, however, I’ve learnt to make the City work for me as an adventurous, curious and open-minded person. I’ll begin to explain in this post how you can achieve just that.

What Does it Mean To Live Adventurously?

The thing that I’d like to express through this blog is not just records of hikes, tales of travels and stories of adventures. I want to discuss the mindset, philosophy and flame that burns to drive the engine of adventure.

Being adventurous is more than reading maps, counting kilometres and camping in the rain. 

It’s about the cocktail of curiosity, romanticism, imagination and inspiration which buzzes around your head when you get hooked on a new idea. It’s about new experiences, different outlooks and deeper introspection. It is all these things and more that I hope to embody within this blog. 

For me, this is AdventureConscious.

For a while, I thought that the only place for me to experience all those feelings was in the outdoors and the wilderness. However, I’ve found it is possible to embed them into my routine here in London, and it can be for you too.

Whilst I discuss this topic from the perspective of London, I hope that the philosophies and ideas can inspire anyone anywhere in the world!

Are You Wondering If There’s Something More You Could Be Doing?

The reason you may be reading this is that the title resonated with you. Perhaps you are beginning to notice a monotony in general life. Maybe you often find yourself wondering if there’s something more than going to the same pub every week and carrying on with the same old routine?

With work responsibilities, social commitments and constant notifications demanding your attention at all times it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. When this feeling takes hold it’s natural to just try to keep your head above the water and not rock the boat too much.

Often this means hiding away like a hermit and avoiding anything that isn’t absolutely necessary.

However, personally, I’ve found that it’s exactly during the overwhelming periods that it’s most beneficial to me to try something new and exciting. Otherwise, I find it hard to break out of the rut and the mindless routine.

If any of this resonates with you then know you aren’t alone.

I hope this blog and others in this series can provide you with some inspiration to find more excitement in your life. 

Why Is It Important To Do New And Exciting Things? 

One of life’s most cruel tricks is that as we get older time seems to pass by quicker and quicker. My childhood summers felt like an eternity filled with endless possibilities and new adventures. 

As an adult, a summer can feel like it can be missed in a blink of an eye.

Not only does time represent a smaller and smaller fraction of your existence as you get older, but life has a double-edged sword effect by having far less free time as an adult. Commitments and responsibilities can feel overwhelming and it’s easy to find no time for the new and exciting.

However, these reasons are exactly why we should do more unique novel and exciting things!  

Take time each day to reflect and take in your state of mind, current situation and life around you.

Life moves fast. blink and you will miss it.

How To Break Out Of The Rut.

I had found that my state of constant business had left me in a boring unchanging routine. I pushed this blame onto the city I was living in. However, I realised that it was within my capabilities to make my environment exciting again.

What did I Do To Change My Mindset?

Firstly I tried to reflect more on my environment and search for opportunities. Like a photographer who finds beauty through a lens to which others are blind, I found that it took conscious effort to re-find the excitement in my surroundings.

Secondly, I started making a long list of all the opportunities that London had to offer. Whilst my initial thought process was that there existed no opportunities for the adventurous soul in London, I soon found that my list of experiences was more than I could achieve in several years!

With this newfound excitement, I have set off on a mission to find and experience as much as I can of London’s unique adventure side and share my experiences with the readers of this blog.

I’ve started to collate some ideas for things to do in London. I will be sharing them in my next post so make sure to follow on Instagram for regular updates!

Disclaimer: These are my own personal experiences and insights. I hope they can help others positively modify their outlook. However, I appreciate that in some cases a simple mindset shift may not help fix the place you live if the reasons for dislike are far deeper routed.