Walking the Streets and Weaving Thoughts: The Smartphone as a New Companion for 'Flânerie'

Recently, I have made it a daily routine to walk on my own two feet to get to know my local area. Since starting this habit, I have keenly realized how much I truly detested crowded modes of transportation. Trains and buses heading into the city center are always overflowing with people regardless of the time, wearing down my nerves. The time spent distancing myself from that hustle and bustle, treading the local streets step by step, has come to mean more to me than just getting from one place to another.

In this activity of walking, the smartphone has become an indispensable 'companion.' However, it is by no means a tool for killing time in a boring train car. My smartphone has transformed into an active interface for recording fragments of the city and deepening my thoughts.

First, the camera function acts as an 'eye for recording.' I do not consider things like 'Instagrammability' at all. I capture things that catch my eye on street corners—such as mysterious alleyways, abandoned signs, or poorly maintained, overgrown plants—recording the resources and issues of the city just as they are. When I look back at them later, new ideas about the state of the community sometimes suddenly emerge from those fragmented images.

Another role is that of a 'place for dialogue' using memo apps and generative AI. Just as the Peripatetic school once engaged in discussions while walking, the physical rhythm of movement activates thought. I step to the side of the road to carve questions that cross my mind into notes, and sometimes I throw them to the generative AI. Dialogue with AI expands my self-centered thoughts into multifaceted discussions. Because of that absorption, my steps often come to a halt, and the walk transforms into a 'journey of contemplation.'

After returning home, I look back at the accumulated photos, notes, and dialogue logs with the AI, and organize them into a Google Doc. Through this series of processes, the scenery and questions captured in fragments while walking crystallize into a single systematic reflection.

In the past, the smartphone while commuting was a tool for 'passive escape' to distract from the discomfort of crowds. But now, for me, the smartphone is a companion for 'active exploration' to observe the city, externalize thoughts, and encounter a new self. I continue to walk on my own feet and think with my own head. By my side, this small terminal of intelligence is always there.