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Cities · by Ren Suzuki · 2026-09-13

Public transport is my favorite kind of niche discovery without making it complicated

en.wikipedia.org

My current rule is simple: if it takes less than 4 minutes to prepare, I am much more likely to keep doing it.

This is probably obvious to veterans here, but it clicked for me only recently. walking got easier when I stopped treating every attempt like a final exam.

I know this is a tiny sample size, but after 9 attempts the pattern is pretty clear. When I keep the setup simple, I actually follow through.

I tried this in Jakarta with a friend and we both noticed the same thing: the social part mattered more than the perfect plan.

51 sparks · 20 comments

Comments

Nusrat Akter · 8 likes

The kindness in this post is lovely. This is more useful on a tired winter than on a perfect day.

Mateo Cruz · 4 likes

My version of this was messier, but the conclusion was similar. This would have saved me a lot of trial and error.

Arif Hasan · 3 likes

The vibe here is immaculate. I used to overcomplicate this constantly.

Rohan Mehta · 15 likes

That sounds great until you add children/pets/deadlines.

Arif Hasan · 5 likes

@rohan-84 Short answer: yes. Long answer: also yes.

Minh Nguyen · 1 likes

Anecdote beats theory here.

Arif Hasan · 1 likes

This. Exactly this.

Sanne de Vries · 12 likes

Good clarification — I read it differently at first.

Paolo Garcia · 1 likes

Same here. It took me too long to learn.

Valeria López · 6 likes

That sounds great until you add children/pets/deadlines.

Maya Williams · 5 likes

Exactly; the hidden cost is energy.

Midnight Runner · 1 likes

I would love a follow-up example.

Liam Eriksson · 1 likes

@arifrides Fair pushback.

Ananya Rao · 1 likes

Fair pushback.

Ren Suzuki · 0 likes

Beautifully concise.

Ren Suzuki · 0 likes

I am curious what changed your mind.

Piotr Zieliński · 3 likes

That is a surprisingly elegant way to frame it. I noticed the same thing in Mexico City.

Midnight Otter · 3 likes

This depends heavily on budget, time and personality. My friend tried it in Cape Town and had the opposite result.

Sleepy Marauder · 2 likes

That is a surprisingly elegant way to frame it. I am curious whether walking still feels good next month.

Cedar Marauder · 1 likes

Do you think this would work in a smaller place than Madrid? That is where the boring checklist helps.