Top 10 Tricks to Exploring a New City

As a travel nurse, you often move into a new city - one you may have visited, but do not know that much about. Or you may have chosen to try out a city you've never been to. Either way, here are the top 10 tips and tricks to make sure that you get the most out of your assignment and your traveling experience.

1) Look up the Top Tourist Attractions
While this may seem a bit obvious, it's important to not overlook this - it will ensure you know why it is that people visit the city, what's known about it, and figure out which of those things you'd like to make sure you do. Which brings us to our next tip:

2) Make a Bucket List
Making a bucket list for your assignment combining the different elements of "touristy" things you would like to do with the "local" side of things - restaurants, museums, parks, hikes, or other things that you'd like to try before you leave.
(BONUS TIP: You can create a traditional list that has all of the different things on it and check it off as you go, or you could make it a little more spontaneous by putting each activity on a small piece of paper in a literal bucket - whatever you pull out is what you're doing that day!)

3) Drive to the Hospital
Finding the hospital you'll be working at for your first day and timing yourself is one of the best things you can do to prepare for work.  It ensures that the morning of your orientation, you're not getting yourself lost (or not giving yourself enough time to get there).  You'll feel much more relaxed the morning-of.

4) Meet Your Neighbors
By meeting your neighbors and talking to the locals, you can ask them what their favorite spots in the city are, or get an idea of how bad traffic gets at what time of the day, or just make a new friend to go to get coffee with.  There are so many advantages to talking to the locals so make sure you put this on your to-do list for the first week.

5) Locate the Grocery Store/Gas Station/Etc.
Applications like "AroundMe" and "Local" can help you navigate the city when you first arrive in order to figure out the places you'll need to frequent.

6) Figure out the Events Taking Place Locally
One way to do this is to sign up for Groupon or LivingSocial in your new city.  These resources have deals for some of the biggest events going on locally.  You could also try reading the local paper or going to a coffee shop and seeing what posters and things are advertised - going to events you're interested in will help you quickly find friends interested in the same things.

7) Wander - Get Yourself Lost
Getting yourself lost and figuring out your way back is one of the quickest ways to orient yourself to your new city.  You'll be able to see things that are off the beaten path, probably the places the locals hangout most.  I challenge you to do this for at least an hour before GPS'ing yourself back home.

8) Go to the Surrounding Cities
If you're stationed in a big city - make sure you visit the littler towns on the outskirts of the city.  This will give you more of an insight into the culture and how the locals actually live.  Especially in cities like Las Vegas, almost all of the locals live outside the busy downtown area - don't leave without seeing this.

9) Try Something New Each Week
By trying a new bar, restaurant, hike, coffee shop, have a picnic, etc. you'll get an expedited view of the whole city, while still giving you the other 6 days a week to become a "regular" at your favorite place.

10) Put a Map on your Wall
This is my favorite tip - put a map on your wall in your new apartment and put a colored pin on each place you have been to.  Put a white pin on the places you'd still like to go.  As you explore, your map becomes more and more colorful - the feeling of switching the pins is a mini sense of accomplishment every time!
(BONUS TIP: If you can find a black and white map, sort of like a coloring book page, color in each place you go, bringing the map to life! I did this in England and the map was vibrant with color and an excellent souvenir by the time I moved home!)

11) Find the Farmer's Market(s)
While this isn't an official tip to explore the city - I would argue that nothing will orient you more to the local culture than the farmer's market.  Filled with local foods, farmers, culture, music, and people, the farmer's market will give you a well-rounded perspective of a city in 2 hours or less.

About the Author: In entire my life, I've moved 11 different times - almost every single one to a completely strange city.  In my adult life, I've moved on my own to college in downtown San Diego, Oxford, England and Florence, Italy (to name just the most extreme) and have used these tricks in my own life to feel truly oriented and connected to my new city. 

If you have any tips for travelers you've come across, help another nurse out and please leave them in the comments!