The first time we visit a city, it’s all about stress. We don’t want to miss anything, so we build a horrifyingly busy agenda for every day. The result is not the happiest; we enda up missing many of the places we wanted to see, and in many cases we take longer than planned to arrive anywhere. Since we’re unfamiliar with the local public tranportation, we might even end up lost and desoriented at some corner.

The first time we visit a city we’re just there. Period. To know a place is rather a task we can do when we visit the city on a second chance (or third or fourth). By that time, our hurry might probably be gone, and our knowledge of the environment might have improved, particularly in the management of time and local transportation. Then, we can relax, stop obsessing over maps, and finally dedicate to enjoy the trip.

A good part of the vertigo for knowing cities is due to our way of travelling. For example, latin american backpackers usually dedicate few days to every city and move around them in public transportation, which is cheaper, but also harder to use for the just arrived. This vertigo is the one travel guides foresee. For instance, Lonely Planet has begun to make small titles on big cities, stating what places to visit if you have one, three or five days to spend in that location.

Time and, of course, money is what we’re always short on. The combination “little time + little cash” is the most dreadful when travelling. If we were in a hurry and had more money, we’d take taxis to go anywhere and period. Or if we bought a tour package, they’d drive us everywhere. But since most of us are not members of the wealthy people club, we have to struggle with time only with our maps and our willingness to get anywhere in town, on board of a local bus.

The first time we’re in a city we realize what we really should have done to know it. And the second visit is the opportunity to carry on with these plans. To return is to know the place in a more detailed way, not just having been there.