The Walk to Work

One of the perks of walking to work is the chance to take different routes depending on the circumstances or my mood.

There is the fast route - the one I take when I need to get in early and don't want to dawdle. There's the cafe route - the one I take when the urge for coffee is too much to resist. There's the circuitous route - the one I take when the morning is too perfect to be spent inside and I want to postpone the inevitable.

And then there's the route I've been taking for the last two weeks: the scenic route. Contrary to the leisure the name implies, it's the second quickest way to work. It's also a safer, more relaxing option that eliminates the shadier elements of the downtown area (traffic, panhandlers, garbage).

It leads past a cafe and through the university, where I stroll along tree-lined walkways, past lawns and flowerbeds, past a fountain that flows during the spring and summer, and past an ivy-covered tower. If I time it right, the tower's Westminster chimes ring as I'm trekking by.

For fun, I drew a rough map of the routes mentioned. Please note that this map is intended for illustrative purposes only and should not be used as a walking guide or an electrical diagram.