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Comment by kokanator | Hacker News Reader

This seems similar to the difference between hiking ( trailing walking ) and off trail trekking. The later is more of an overland pursuit where any number of surprises await from geological formations to stands of vegetation to a vast array of creatures.

It is the unknown just around the bend of the ravine, or inside the stand of trees, or over the next ridge that causes me to disappear into a more natural world as often as possible.

Wouldn't you say the flâneur has very strong parallels to the wandering and discovering our ancestors made?

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Not really similar. The point of flâner is to let your mind go free, it is a relaxing experience that I could only compare to a massage. You just let everything go and just wander around, get lost in your thoughts, sometimes an external element cat he's your senses but it is purely curiosity and not really focus demanding. You are not exploring. You could do it in an IKEA for all that matters.

Going off trail trekking requires attention and focus, even if not constant. You can't just look at the sky and think about nothing if you risk fouling your ankle at every step or fall into a hole!

Off trail trekking is maybe more similar to coding something completely new. It's exciting, you experiment with different things, read bit here and there, and very satisfying, but also tiring. If I go flâner I will be less tired when I end than when I start.

Yeah, agree; I find it very interesting how the article keeps coming back to the point that this should be done _in the cities_, that even a relaxing hike through nature just ... would be something entirely different. They even have the quote contrasting London to "the country".

I found it very French, centered on the contact with the city, the people, the architecture; in contrast with the very common practice in Switzerland (where I live) of taking any chance you get to _go out_ from the city into the mountains/nature. I think you'd be hard pressed to find a Swiss who would consider walking in the city instead of out in nature. So, yeah, very interesting cultural contrast.

Agreed.

It is perhaps necessary to be completely comfortable with the surroundings. To those who have not found complete comfort with nature and would be concerned about things like twisting an ankle ( as if you couldn't do that on a curb or broken sidewalk ) it may be difficult to enter this mindless state in nature.

What is very odd about the absolute focus on _in the cities_ is if you were to switch that with _in the desert_ or _in the hills_ or _on the mountain_ the feelings the article is describing are very similar to the sense I have when I have actually left it behind and am now 'lost' if you will in my surroundings.

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