Why One Became A Solo Woman Mortal Traveler
Posted: 09/10/2014 | September 10th, 2014
Last month, I announced I’d live on bringing monthly columnists to this website. On the instant Wed of the month, Kristin Addis from Be My Travel Muse volition live on hither to give yous slap-up tips together with advice on solo woman mortal travel. Her column starts this month. Let’s acquire to know her!
I sat on the beach inwards Cambodia, amazed that a white sand beach thence pristine yet existed inwards the world. There were no towering resorts or people alongside fancy drinks alongside umbrellas walking by. It was virtually empty. This was my instant calendar week traveling alone. I bought my one-way ticket to Southeast Asia, and, sitting on this beach, I knew I made the correct decision.
I never did a lot of traveling when I was younger together with surely had never backpacked alone — or, really, at all. Four years earlier, I’d lived inwards Taiwan equally a linguistic communication educatee for 8 months. After coming habitation together with getting a full-time project similar I idea I was supposed to, I couldn’t milkshake my wishing to supply to Asia. In those days of longing, I never imagined I’d eventually accept off on an open-ended trip that I’m yet on 2 years later.
So why did I quit my project to go the world?
Even though I was professionally successful, I wasn’t happy. My cubicle felt restrictive. The project paid well, but I works life that the coin wasn’t plenty to justify spending my twenties supporting someone else’s dream. I felt similar something was missing. I needed adventure, together with I couldn’t milkshake my wishing to acquire dorsum to Asia. But I wasn’t sure how to function inwards happen.
I spent years yearning for freedom, heavy alongside interrogation into far-off places that seemed thence removed from whatever reality I could imagine for myself. I scoured the Internet for some sort of inspiration. Was it possible to go long-term without a trust fund? Could women actually travel solitary safely? I knew nobody else who could but quit his or her life together with bring together me, thence the only means was to become it alone.
The to a greater extent than I read online, the to a greater extent than I realized it was possible together with the to a greater extent than the dream became a permanent resident inwards my mind. The wishing became thence huge, it was oft the only affair I could mean value about. Quitting my project together with selling all of my materials was precisely what I needed to create to acquire dorsum to Asia, thence I hatched a programme together with followed it.
The thoughts inwards my caput echoed my friends’ concerns. Am I crazy to live on venturing off alone? I wondered. Will I shoot myself inwards the pes financially together with professionally? Will it live on safe? Will I live on lonely all the time? Will I cause got regrets?
But I knew that the biggest regret of all would cause got been to rest inwards a province of affairs I wasn’t happy with: a footing of fancy cars, high rent, together with designer clothes that somehow never managed to convey me the joy I’d been promised.
I didn’t believe inwards the “American dream” anymore. I didn’t wishing a mortgage, a white lookout adult man fence, 2.5 children, together with a truthful cat named Fluffy. In August 2012, I listed everything I owned on Craigslist together with sold it off inwards the bridge of 1 week, together with then promptly ended my lease together with moved out of my apartment. In September, shaking inwards my shoes, I boarded the airplane to Bangkok, without thence much equally a room booked when I landed.
Sitting on that beach inwards Cambodia, it felt similar I had reached the pot of gilded at the destination of the rainbow. What had I been thence afraid of? It all turned out to live on simple, safe, together with easy.
I’ve traveled solo through every province inwards Southeast Asia spell falling inwards dearest alongside the civilization together with food. I’ve hung out of doors of trains chugging past cascading rice paddies inwards Sri Lanka, dived alongside whale sharks inwards the Maldives, trekked over 100 miles inwards Nepal spell carrying all of my ain gear, together with hitchhiked solitary through China.
These experiences helped me figure out how to honor the less-visited places, how to acquire invited into people’s homes inwards monastic enjoin to sense the truthful local culture, together with how to delve deeper into each identify without relying on a guidebook. As a solo traveler, these opportunities are oft plentiful for me. People wishing to accept solo travelers in, there’s to a greater extent than room for one, together with it tin displace all live on experienced individually, providing an amazing learning sense nearly the world.
The beauty of traveling solo, peculiarly equally a female, has besides taught me thence much nearly myself. It’s made me to a greater extent than independent, stronger, together with to a greater extent than resilient. I’ve encountered thence many amazing women out at that topographic point doing the rattling same thing, some of whom are equally immature equally xviii or nineteen years old.
I’ve received countless emails from girls inwards similar situations, those who wishing to acquire out behind a conventional life to reckon the world. I ever say them that if it’s inwards their heart, they cause got to create it.
In my monthly column, yous tin displace await to reckon to a greater extent than posts on precisely how to create that — how to seem together with acquire over fear, how to inform together with quell the hesitations of your friends together with family, how to destination your lease together with sell your stuff, what to pack, how to rest safe, how to honor deeper cultural experiences, together with much more. I’ll exhibit yous that it’s easier than yous mean value to go around the footing equally a woman.
Traveling long-term absolutely requires a boundary of faith, but alongside the correct preparation, it doesn’t cause got to live on a scary one.
Kristin Addis is a solo woman mortal go adept who inspires women to go the footing inwards an authentic together with adventurous way. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 onetime investment banker who sold all of her holding together with left California inwards 2012, Kristin has solo traveled the footing for over 4 years, roofing every continent (except for Antarctica, but it’s on her list). There’s almost zilch she won’t assay together with almost nowhere she won’t explore. You tin displace honor to a greater extent than of her musings at Be My Travel Muse or on Instagram together with Facebook.
Conquering Mountains: The Guide to Solo Female Travel
For a consummate A-to-Z conduct on solo woman mortal travel, banking concern tally out Kristin’s novel book, Conquering Mountains. Besides discussing many of the practical tips of preparing together with planning your trip, the mass addresses the fears, safety, together with emotional concerns women cause got nearly traveling alone. It features over 20 interviews alongside other woman mortal go writers together with travelers. Click hither to acquire to a greater extent than nearly the book, how it tin displace assist you, together with yous tin displace showtime reading it today!
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