5 Great experiences & reasons to love rainy days

There are days when we look up at the sky to see black clouds hovering and feel the dread of the awaiting downpour that will impact on our activities...

There are days when we peer out the window to see the splash of rain drops, hear the fall of water hitting the ground and feel desire and longing for the sun and the things we could do...

And there are also days when we miss the warning signs, get caught in rain and feel the drench of annoyance and frustration of our misfortune.

While for many, these are not great or enjoyable experiences, all experiences are exactly what you make of them so why not allow yourself to even enjoy what what you would have previously dreaded? As a heat-seeker who does not enjoy the cold myself, I am not one to easily enjoy the cold and damp that often comes with with rain. Yet I do enjoy myself very much in the rain:

1) Try enjoying the pouring rain whilst being in water - When you're already wet, there is nothing more than rain can do to make your experience less enjoyable. Why not try enjoying the natural massage of the rain water whilst watching your kids will love splash around. Perhaps my most enjoyable experiences of being water in the pouring rain was when I took shelter under rock cliffs of a natural spring near Sienna, Italy during a sudden downpour.

2) When a planned hike goes wrong with unexpected unbearable downpour, you don't need to let that stop you....

(i) Go there anyway and explore the surrounding areas and enjoy other indoor activities. That's what I did when the plans had to be averted on arrival to Brecon Beacons in Wales - With my friends I explored the surrounding small towns, ventured into a nice local pub and enjoyed a nice Sunday roast with a refreshing pint.

(ii) Bring Wellie boots with you always, just in case, and enjoy hiking and squelching in the mud when the rain comes. Your children are sure to love it and let's be honest, we all love to have an excuse as adults to behave like children to have some fun! If you're going to get wet, get wet in style!

(iii) Stay in and stock up with films, snacks and a comfy duvet or be a bit more adventurous and drive to the cinema for a 3D film. Even if you aren't a film lover, there is sure to be some out there you would enjoy, and if not, just choose good company!

3) Go camping when rain is ahead! So camping can be fun when the sun is out and there are many activities you can do, but it can be more fun to be camping when it's raining than being a home! Bring your thermos, a good book, some in door games, a torch and some good company. It was only recently that my plans for watching the Perseids meteor shower was halted with looming clouds clouds followed by rain but laying in my tent in the New Forest, I was able to enjoy the comfort and warmth of my partner whilst reading, play a furious and entertaining game of scrabble and enjoyed listening to the pitter patter of rain above my head on the tent whilst in the safety of my sleeping bag, dry in the tent

4) Visit museums. It is the best time to do so when it rains because when the sun comes out, you'll want to be outside and not miss it! Try some interactive museums like the Science or Natural History Museums, motor/plane/war museums or chocolate/culinary/cocktail museums. Take advantage of free museums, free admission days and coupons or vouchers. I enjoy museums even more knowing it didn't cost me much to have a great experience. Do your research!

Galleries of Justice, Nottingham, U.K.

Electric Ladyland, Amsterdam, Netherlands

5) Enjoy the sports made for rainy weather. Football and rugby only gets more fun in the rain and rain could just make water polo or swimming even more exciting. Otherwise, why not try some new indoor sports like table tennis, pool or indoor golf

Make rain an enjoyable experience for you...your experience is your choice

The Traveler and the monk

Our attitudes and outlooks on life can determine and change the experiences we have. Consider this traveler's experience with the monk...

One day a traveler was walking along a road on his journey from one village to another. As he walked he noticed a monk tending the ground in the fields beside the road. The monk said “Good day” to the traveler, and the traveler nodded to the monk. The traveler then turned to the monk and said, “Excuse me, do you mind if I ask you a question?”

“Not at all,” replied the monk.

“I am traveling from the village in the mountains to the village in the valley, and I was wondering if you knew what it is like in the village in the valley?”

“Tell me,” said the monk, “what was your experience of the village in the mountains?”

“Dreadful,” replied the traveler. “To be honest I am glad to be away from there. I found the people most un-welcoming. When I first arrived I was greeted coldly. I was never made to feel part of the village no matter how hard I tried. The villagers keep very much to themselves, they don’t take kindly to strangers. So tell me, what can I expect in the village in the valley?”

“I am sorry to tell you,” said the monk, “but I think your experience will be much the same there.”

The traveler hung his head despondently and walked on.

A few months later another traveler was journeying down the same road, and he also came upon the monk.

“Good day,” said the traveler.

“Good day,” said the monk.

“How are you?” asked the traveler.

“I’m well,” replied the monk. “Where are you going?”

“I’m going to the village in the valley,” replied the traveler. “Do you know what it is like?”

“I do,” replied the monk. “But first tell me—where have you come from?”

“I’ve come from the village in the mountains.”

“And how was that?”

“It was a wonderful experience. I would have stayed if I could, but I am committed to traveling on. I felt as though I was a member of the family in the village. The elders gave me much advice, the children laughed and joked with me, and people were generally kind and generous. I am sad to have left there. It will always hold special memories for me. And what of the village in the valley?” he asked again.

“I think you will find it much the same,” replied the monk. “Good day to you.”

“Good day and thank you,” the traveler replied, smiled and journeyed on.

Are we in control of our thoughts and behaviour?

Consciousness can be described as our awareness of our internal and external environment around us, gained from monitoring our environment. Freud believed that the mind is divided into the conscious and unconscious, like an iceberg with the conscious mind being only the tip of the iceberg at the surface, and the majority lying in the unconscious mind under the surface.

He believed that the unconscious mind contained thoughts and impulses that cannot be accessed in the conscious mind that can influence our actions even when we are not aware of it. Indeed it we have mental processes that operate without us being consciously aware. 


One example would be the activities that we perform so often that it becomes habitual and automatic, and no longer requires conscious attention. Driving is one of these activities that many of us will be able to relate to. While learning to drive a car requires attention to the different actions, when the responses become learned and habitual, we no longer need conscious control and can focus attention on other actions, such as carrying a conversation.


A second example would be Freudian slips that are mistakes or substitution of words that are contrary to the speaker's conscious intention, suggested to be the expressions of repressed wishes and thoughts of the unconscious mind.


A third, perhaps more interesting example would be individuals with visual conditions. While individuals with the inverted spectrum, a colour-blind condition will have an entirely different experience when they see red, seeing it instead as green, they would still report it as red, the same as others. Studies have also shown that individuals with a scotoma, an inability to see a particular spot, will still be able to reach out to a stick within the blindspot with its orientation changed, even though they should not have seen the stick's orientation.


So it could be fair to say that to an extent, we can't help thinking some of the negative thoughts and worries that lie in the back of our minds and surface in potentially threatening situations.

However, even unconscious mental processes can be influenced by conscious actions. Studies have shown that the form of thinking we do in our dreams can be influenced - individuals wearing red goggles for several hours before sleeping will report having red tinted visual dreamworlds and overt predream suggestions of desired personality characteristics will cause individuals to report dreams with contents of the intended traits recognisable.


Meditation and hypnosis have also shown to be effective methods of achieving an altered state of consciousness with the former being beneficial for losing self-awareness and gaining a sense of being in a wider consciousness, and the latter involving reduction in conscious planning and the relinquishing of control to the hypnotist. 


Neuro Linguistic Programming is one effective method that has proven to be effective working with the unconscious mind to reduce and change some of the undesired patterns of thoughts that affect our behaviours and language in negative ways. It is not therapy but simply tested exercises that allows you to reach into the unconscious beliefs, attitudes and values that influence your behaviour negatively and become more consciously aware of how these impact you, so you have more control over what you previously did not.


With the CCC Travel NLP Coaching, you could, for example, reduce your negative thoughts and habits to increase your positivity, confidence and engage in more productive behaviour. Don't miss out on your free consultation.