Solo travel
At the age of 23 I have now traveled to international countries such as Spain, Colombia, Guatemala, Latvia, and Norway on my own; in addition to several places throughout the United States. These experiences, especially ones in Spanish speaking countries, have given me so much insight on what it is like to travel alone. I have found it to be the most rewarding and confidence-boosting activity I have ever experienced. That is due to the fact that everything I do, every choice I make, is my own. There is no one to blame, I am the one responsible for the things that turn out great, and I am forced to find my own solutions or back up plans. This has given me great confidence that I am capable and that I can do whatever makes me happy in the moment.
Witnessed this sunset on a solo trip to Ibiza, Spain. (No filter)
One of the times I felt like nothing other then a complete bad-ass (excuse my french) was when I traveled to Lanzarote, Spain which is one of the Canary Islands. For this trip, I decided to rent a furgoneta (camper/transit van in Spanish) in order to have a vehicle and somewhere to sleep all in one. Camper vans are actually very popular on the island and after some research I was confident that it was the best choice for my time on the tiny island. I was picked up by the owner from the airport in the van, and was taken to their home base where she went inside and left me with the keys. Now, I am very familiar with driving a manual transmission, my boyfriend at the time had a manual VW golf what I drove regularly. When she gave me the keys I thought oh great, its only 4 gears how hard could it be? Yeah, not the case. I drove this van through circle after circle (a popular road feature throughout Spain) and nearly cried as I tried to force this 30 year old transmission into the correct gear. I drove about 20 minutes and made a video on my camera explaining how difficult it was to drive this van, then took a deep breath and decided that I needed to slow down and shift it nice and smooth. From that moment on, I could have driven that van into the warm Spanish sunset and spent the rest of my life there, just me and that van. That night I slept by the beach and woke up to the salty air and soft sunrise over the cliffs. The feeling of satisfaction after completing that weekend trip in Lanzarote will remain with me forever. I didn’t have anyone to help me, I had the absolute time of my life doing exactly what I wanted when I wanted, and I overcame something quite challenging all on my own.
Me with a semi concerned face after the first drive.
Another equally valuable reason to travel alone is the language practice you become exposed to. One key example for this was my trip to Medellín, Colombia for 5 days just before I moved out to Cody this summer. Upon arrival I was forced to figure out my way to the city. I elected for an Uber, my driver was a younger Colombian man whom I conversed with in Spanish for my 45 minute drive to my airbnb. For the next 5 days I went out and explored ordered food, asked people questions, and did a little partying at night where I made some new friends. All this was done on my own, with my own language skills and people skills. After two days of talking and getting my footing in the city, I was comfortable enough to have full conversations about nearly anything. Immersion is the second most important aspect of language learning, after self determination in my opinion. Trips like Colombia and Guatemala (where I had a similar language experience) have led me to creating my travel business based on language practice and cultural immersion. I truly believe language is the bridge between cultures, the understanding of other peoples lives allows us to have new perspectives on the world. I believe we all should realize that and travel, because for me it is the most valuable thing in life.
New friends in Medellín :)