Solo travel is on the horizon!
Fingers crossed, 2024 is the year of my first solo trip
I have had the privilege to travel to many places across the U.S., the Caribbean, Europe, and Africa. I’ve seen killer whales and glaciers in Alaska. Spent a layover in Seattle, with just enough time to experience vertigo while visiting the Space Needle. The top of the Eiffel Tower on two separate trips, including one where myself and fellow classmates had to switch to the stairs halfway down because the elevator was out of order (our legs were like rubber by the time we made it to the street). Snorkeled in Maui. Trinidad and Tobago twice. The door of no return in Ghana. And too many visits to count to see Mickey Mouse in Florida. All great experiences, for different reasons. What do these trips have in common? They were all taken with family or were part of a school trip.
I’m still chasing the elusive solo trip. It’s an experience I think I need for my personal growth.
Why?
Get out of my comfort zone: I’ve leaned heavily into working remotely. I know I don’t need to leave the state to branch out, but there are so many places I want to see. Sydney, Australia. Cape Town, South Africa. Auckland, New Zealand. Yellowstone National Park. Albuquerque, New Mexico. Those are just a few places on my travel bucket list. It would be good to see the world outside of my personal bubble.
Meet new people: The number of people I call friends is very small. And working from home isn’t that conducive to meeting new people. I’m also a bit introverted. Occasionally I take a chance, sometimes I attend the social events at my apartment building – at one such event, I found out about a weekly yoga class taught by a former resident. If I hadn’t gone, I wouldn’t have known I like yoga.
Tackling my aversion to eating alone in public: Sure, I can probably eat in my hotel room during a trip, but that seems counterproductive. So many of the places I want to go have great food, I can’t experience them if I stay in my room.
Tired of dreaming about travel: Dreams will never come to fruition if I don’t take steps to make it happen.
What Next?
What steps can I take to get closer to that first trip? Research, research, research. Find the safest and best places to eat, sleep, and visit. I have a Google reminder coming up on my calendar to renew my passport. I don’t see myself going outside the U.S. anytime soon, but these days it can take months to renew a passport. I’ve even signed up as a rewards member for the hotel I want to stay at in Las Vegas. Start putting money aside for my first trip – the toughest of the steps. I’m sure there will be more steps, but these are the ones that come to mind.
By the end of the year, I hope I’m recapping my first trip to Vegas. In the years to come (many years), I hope to visit so many places. Livingston, Montana. Monaco. Egypt. Whistler, British Columbia. Majorca. Ireland. What’s on your travel bucket list?
Upcoming posts
Thursday: Recaps for episodes seventeen and eighteen of Lost