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Brain feeling blah? Exercise it.
On New Year's Eve I spent an hour or so engaged in the board game Battle of the Sexes with friends. I think that was the name of it. We were on vacation at their house in Ottawa, Ohio. A few hours before the game, the female half of this couple took me on a drive through town to show me where the water line was when the town flooded this summer. Their basement family room was royally trashed by water.
Thanksgiving weekend, I spent an hour or so playing some other brain engaging activity with my husband's family in Hinckley, Ohio (It's where the buzzards come to roost each spring.) It was a short vacation; we didn't stay overnight, but the trip involved 5 hours of driving, so I call that getting away. I can't remember the name of Thanksgiving's game, but I do remember it involved drawing, acting and trivia.
According to a post at Intelligent Traveler, this game playing is part of a travel trend. Wow! I would have done a better job and won if I knew I was cutting edge. Since playing games gives your brain a workout AND helps you relax, people in the hotel business are wooing guests by providing game playing and brain exercise options.
Some, like Hyatt Resorts are providing board games for guests to use. Seminars, workshops and classes on how to get your brain on fire with vim and vigor while you're on break from the rest of your life are also in the mix. Westin Hotels have brain exercises they hand out to their guests.
When I stayed at the Westin in Taipei, I was so thrilled with the bedding and the bathtub since it was such a contrast to the funky, odd, kind of uncomfortable apartment we lived in Hsinchu with its hard as a rock mattress, tub that you really couldn't sit in, and hot water that barely lasted through one shower , much less two, that brain food would have been a distraction from the luxury.
After reading about this game trend, it occurred to me that southeastern Kentucky is way ahead. One of the regular activities at the Buckhorn Lake State Park resort is playing Bingo. That's a game I can win. The last time I stayed there, I left with a ceramic mug.
Filed under: Arts and Culture, Learning, Taiwan, Hotels and Accommodations
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Marilyn Terrell Jan 10th 2008 9:13AM
Yeah, the Westin Taipei is pretty fabulous, I wouldn't have bothered with a brain game there either, and I nearly fell asleep in the bathtub. I think a better place for brain games would be in airports while you're waiting. If you're in an airport like Tampa with free wireless, you can play this online memory game from National Geographic's recent story about how memory works: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2007-11/memory/memory-game.html
Harriet Vines, Ph.D. Jan 11th 2008 11:11AM
Games and computer programs don't appeal to everyone. My recent book, "Age Smart - How to Age Well, Stay Fit and Be Happy," addresses the total package required for successful living - nutrition, physical and mental fitness, social interaction and positive psychology (happiness).
Mental Fitness Workouts contain exercises for strengthening mental acuity which leads to a more satisfying life. You can control the way you live if you put your mind to it.
"Age Smart" is available at bookstores, Amazon and www.agesmart.us