Learn each city that you visit.

Learn its culture, its geography, its features. Learn its language, its foods, its art. Learn its history, its position in today's world. Learn the fauna and the flora.

Do not become an expert in it. Just learn the basics.

Do not wander through each city blindly without attention. Pay attention to the names of places, put mental effort to associate them with what you see. Remember the plazas, the buildings, the streets -- the ones that strike you, that form a distinct image in your head.

I love to travel this way. It is a new experiment, since admittedly I used to travel fairly blindly, leaving remembrance of names, places, and histories to chance. I no longer want to leave memory to chance, especially not for the places I visit.

Learning the names of features of a given place -- whether places, foods, or cultural norms -- allows us to connect more deeply with the place. It becomes part of us. We can share it with others. We can speak with knowledge and curiosity to the locals.

This is not an easy task -- though not particularly hard either. It requires curiosity, attention, note-taking, and study.

I first experimented with this study of cities on my first visit to Peru. I took note of the names and altitudes of the mountains, of the cities by the mountains, of the elevation of cities like Cusco, of the names of temples and sacred sites like Qurikancha and Saqsaywaman, of the names of deities, the mythology of the three worlds, the animals they are associated with, the names of notable sites in Cusco like the Plaza de Armas, and certain words in Quechua that struck me. I also took note of different archaeological features of the Incan empire and names of certain Incan leaders. I sourced much of this from tours and conversations.

And then I actually studied them with flashcards via Anki. Without the repeated exposure, I would certainly have forgotten. But now, I find opportunities to share some of the beautiful things I've learned, to weave facts into storytelling, to share useful information with would-be travelers. This kind of study-travel has been very rewarding.

I am now in Spain and plan to approach things similarly. I was last in Andalusia 15 years ago -- and there is so much that I've forgotten, to my regret. This new approach excites me -- it helps me feel like I am making each place a part of me, something that I can then share with everyone I meet.

I encourage you to try this kind of travel. Try paying special attention to where you go and the names of places. Write them down somewhere. Observe how this added attention shifts your relationship with the place. Watch how you connect more deeply with wherever you go.