Alternating Travel

[squirmelia]

Alternating Travel was used as a method today to attempt exploration of North Melbourne. After you leave your house, you turn right, and then take the first road on the left, then the first road on the right, and so on.

The first thing I noticed was the smell of blossom before I headed down the first laneway that I found, which had writing that said, "life is here now". I passed a strange looking church, picked up some peeling bark and purple leaves from the ground, and then got stuck in a laneway that had no left turn. I decided to head home, but noticed an old sign painted onto a wall, advertising brandy.

I was almost home again when I heard a guy singing, "I know why." When home, I decided to try again, this time turning left after I had left my house. I found some birds without heads stenciled onto a wall, as well as a few mushrooms, but then found myself stuck down the same laneway again!

I gave up and went to the park, and found the billabong actually had water in it, and many birds were gathered there. (Billabong! Billabong!) I also found trees which were shedding their bark. Some seemed still tangled in the remnants of their bark, but others seemed to have shed it all.

Comments

[lokicarbis.livejournal.com]

Yay! Someone else who's into Experimental Travel :)

[kake]

I did one of those once, and ended up walking around in circles in Bloomsbury. I expect it works better in more griddy places!

[squirmelia.livejournal.com]

It didn't work that well from where I live in North Melbourne - the walks seemed far too short before I ended up stuck in a laneway. In Southampton (http://squirmelia.livejournal.com/95824.html), it somehow led me to the station (and then from the station, back home again!) I did do it in Highgate, but think I ended up on a housing estate, but can't quite remember.

[kake]

I wonder if we can come up with a better algorithm — something that takes the choices at each branch point into account, but in a deterministic way.