Why I Prefer to Travel Alone

I’ve recently graduated with my Bachelor’s Degree; and in the months leading up to graduation, I decided that I would be taking a break from travel. The idea was to save money for the expenses that come with beginning a career. Fast forward to five months post-graduation, I’m still job hunting while doing odd jobs and freelance work on the side. It’s been a stressful season in my life and I’ve desperately been missing adventure.

Then I found a flight to Switzerland at an unbeatable price three weeks ago. When I have a little free time or just need to de-stress, I like to mess around on SkyScanner and try to get an idea of travel trends. It’s my favorite casual past time. It was on a lazy Saturday morning that I found what I did not know I needed, a round trip flight from San Francisco to Zürich for only $300. So, I sat there, drinking my coffee, almost shell-shocked at the find. I did all I could to talk myself out of booking it, feeling that it would be irresponsible; but there was no reason I could think of not to go.

So, here I sit, at a café in Switzerland, drinking coffee and writing this blog — basking in the joy of another adventure. My heart has longed for such adventure, for new lands and worlds unknown to me, to see the world as others see it and as it is. And as I lay in transit, my soul was at rest in its rightful place of buzzing jubilation. It exists to exist in motion. I feel that I was made to know the world, and spending so much time feeling stagnant has left me in desire of purpose. Now that I am once again moving, all feels right once more. I saw true darkness as I flew over northern Canada, the only light in sight being the ones blinking out at the end of our wings. I watched the sunrise from above the clouds as I flew over Iceland. The clouds beneath me ebbed and flowed as if they were their own sea. They were almost indistinguishable from the Atlantic itself. It was as if peace itself was speaking to me, telling me to watch, to abandon all distractions and just notice the world around me – and so, I did. I saw the curve of the earth. I experienced the glory of our planet, seemingly existing both in it and outside it. Flying leaves you in a void, in an in-between place, where you exist without time or location. This place, this in-between place, is where I feel most at home in this body I was given, this vessel I use to explore the earth. It is when my body is used for its intended purpose that I feel most at peace – in moments where to an outsider, peace would seem to not exist.

Right now, I do not have motivation to do much more than I am doing in this present moment, sitting in a café window seat overlooking a collection of beautiful buildings with a coffee and a delicious breakfast. At times, I might feel guilty about this. Though I must be fair to myself. To sit and relax and decompress is something I’ve desperately needed and the reason I came. I needed to spend some time with myself, to come and be alone.When I travel, I sometimes feel pressure to have a grand adventure, but often what I enjoy the most is sitting and watching and thinking. I like to see new things and experience the world; but I like to do it silently and alone. It is as if in those moments, the Spirit of the World is gently grasping me in its hands and saying, “Look, Daughter of the Earth, Child of God, see all that you have before you and know it, for you are a part of a grand existence.”

So I seek to know it. There are many things I do not know; but when I am in an unfamiliar place, in my state of quiet reflection, what I learn with my five senses is all I need to know.