Okay, why do people travel solo? Are they lonely? Do they not have friends? Don't they get bored? Ah, cmon, they're just trying to be cool. Ah, big deal, I can travel solo too, it's just that my parents are super strict (or I can travel solo too, but I prefer company). They're extroverted; my introverted self can never tolerate having people around me so I would not even know how to make friends there...and blah blah. There have been various negative and positive notions around travelling solo. What matters is, what you feel about it, and if you too have negative or scared emotions, then read this post; would love to have a change of mind for you!
Travelling solo is the best solution if you want to go out, find yourself, get some fresh air, learn a new culture in a totally different city, embrace the uniqueness that various cultures have to offer, document your experiences which you wouldn't have been able to if you had a company, and millions of other reasons. Most people choose solo trips because their friends have better things to do with the money they earn or because they can't squeeze in a couple of days for travel every year. A few go on their first solo trip to mend their broken heart because the new environment, the kind of experiences they encounter leave behind life lessons and self-actualisation.
MY FIRST SOLO TRIP
I went on a 40-day solo trip around India for the same reason. To find myself, to fix my broken heart, and get a reality check. I realised a lot of things and I would pen them down in my journal. I would scribble, so as to say. Right from my physical appearance to who I was before the relationship began and why it was a must to reconnect with that self. How suffocated I felt in a small room in Delhi which had no ventilation. My yearning to be happy again. My struggle to find that person I saw in the mirror. Being there for myself when I felt shattered. Telling myself it's gonna be okay.
The 40-day solo trip taught me many things that when I returned, I wasn't the same person anymore. My perspectives had changed, my outlook on things that I hated had changed. The kind of safe bubble I was in burst apart, widening my horizons on choices and preferences. I started realising my worth, I understood terms such as 'never settle for less' and 'you deserve the best'. I realised in the end, we've all that we have. I realised how few friends and family are there for you in your bad times and how you can never let them go. Most importantly, it's like I had received a permanent solution for a heartbreak –– go on a long, wholesome solo trip.
So, why do I say you should take that solo trip? Here's why ––
WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE THAT SOLO TRIP
CONFIDENCE & TRUST IN ONESELF
Travelling solo boosts your confidence. It gives you enough guts to speak to people, make new friends, deal with locals, deal with problematic people and so on. And once you're back from your trip, your confidence increases manifold. You start believing in yourself even more and you have thoughts such as, "If I could travel all by myself for so many days and face so many challenges on my trip, yet came out safe and sound, I know whatever I'm facing right now is a piece of cake."
It also increases self-trust. You realise you've all that you got in that situation so you start trusting yourself and believing yourself even more. If you're stuck in a situation alone, you know, you cannot rely on anyone but you. So whether it is running from a bus at 1:00 am to pee in a secluded place or coming back alone in a taxi at night in a different city. You learn the amazing power you have and start relying on yourself.
DECISION-MAKING ABILITY
What do I do? Shall I pick a female dorm or go with a mixed dorm? Can I trust this auto driver? It's about two hours before it gets completely dark, so should I climb this peak that throws out a beautiful lake view or do I skip it and head back to the hotel before it is dark? Your decision-making ability improvises with each decision you make. Sometimes you come out safe, sometimes you don't. But it's either a "Thank God, I went with this option" or an "I totally regret it; I hope I get to the hotel safe" moments for you. One thing is for sure, you would never repeat the same mistake. Next time you would know to return to the hotel before it gets dark than climb a hopeless peak alone.
STREET SMARTNESS
Your travel pants become mini bags as you stash in money, cards, hotel key, camera, mobile phone, wrappers, lip balm, hair tie, museum tickets, bus tickets, and so on. You start understanding the locals better and with that, you know when a local is fooling you/charging you more. You can survive on a sleeper coach, you can survive empty stomachs, you become a pro-packer, you learn to safeguard your expensive things.
INDEPENDENCE
I remember when I first mentioned a 40-day solo trip at home, I had just announced it. I did not seek permission. I simply said I was going come what may. I needed this trip. Since that day, my parents started trusting me more. They started trusting my abilities to stay safe and take care of myself. My dependence on friends, partner, family or any human for that matter ended right there. I no longer begged people to join me on a trip. I just asked once –– if they tagged along, good for me.
Solo travelling makes you independent as you're out there, booking train tickets, choosing which accommodation is safest, what to do, whom to trust, and dozens of things involved. It makes you independent as you just pick dates, choose a place, start planning and booking, pack bags, and head off.
Read: How I Plan My Solo Trips
APPRECIATING YOUR OWN COMPANY
People tell me they can never imagine travelling solo as they would surely be bored. I've never been bored on a solo trip because there's just so much to do. If you're lucky enough to find good people in the hostel, you'll be occupied throughout your stay, so much that you won't find time to call back at home. And if even if you're alone, you would be busy planning for the next day, collecting all the pictures, videos, and experiences from the day, talking to homies, freshening up, packing bags, picking outfits, ordering meals, jotting down what you learnt throughout the day, or if you're feeling lonely, then crying your heart out, that you won't actually find time to be bored.
And even if you think you would be bored, then a solo trip will help you appreciate your own company. Sometimes it would mean staring at the snow-capped mountains from your window, appreciating your imperfect body as you shower, writing down thoughts or while listening to music. Slowly, you'll start appreciating your own company.
LIFE LESSONS
Life lessons? You'll come back a monk. You'll be this know-it-all person that emits light, radiance, and positivity with a soft smile. A person who is much calmer with a lot of patience. A person whose tolerance has increased, a person who can adjust in any situation, a person who no longer needs the most luxurious things. Why? Because you've learnt a lot. You've had multiple realisations about the universe, about how things work, about your own self.
Travelling solo for fun will have you bring back memories but when you travel for a purpose, you'll come with life lessons. And you'll never be the same person again. Mark my words.
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