Solo Travel : Discover who you really are!

From "Prachi! Why do you travel alone? Are you going alone?" (with a pitiful expression) to "Prachi! You truly make me want to travel alone, dude ", I believe that I have made substantial progress. I began travelling alone not with the intention of inspiring others or winning the admiration of my peers, who had once felt sorry for me but to get over my fear, to feel independent, and most importantly, to begin my journey of self-love. Okay, you could be curious "Wait! What is the relationship between solo travel and self-love? Are they even connected?". It's a good question, and if I hadn't gone on solo trips, I'm sure I would have felt the same. But believe me when I say that travelling alone is simply another expression of self-love.

Traveling alone not only helped me feel better about myself, but it also showed me that I can enjoy my own company. And when I say that I couldn't have predicted the latter to be true, believe me. Why so!? Well, those who know me well understand how much of a people person I am. This for sure, is a positive habit, we are all considered to be social animals , even the most reclusive introverts enjoy interacting with at least one other person. But then there's the adage, "Excess of anything is bad," and I now believe that before my solo trip, I had a certain reliance on other people for my enjoyment. Maybe I had the idea that having a social circle is essential to happiness. Even though I now laugh it off and politely decline when people inquire me whether I ever feel lonely when travelling alone, I still vividly recall the time when I had the same perspective on solo travel.

Fortunately, my first journey alone altered this notion .My first trip was to Connaught Place, also known as Rajiv Chowk.  And do you know what the highlight of this trip was? I went to McDonald's by myself and ordered an entire meal for myself. "Wait, what? What about it is so unexpected? Prachi, it stands to us that you might have gone to McDonald's alone as you were travelling alone ". It is, indeed pretty obvious, yet people! It wasn't as simple as it seemed! It was quite difficult to sit by myself in a fully full restaurant where almost everyone was chatting, having fun, and taking pictures with friends. I started to miss my loved ones. There was nobody I could have talked to about my anxieties with, ordered food with, taken pictures with, or otherwise created memories with. I missed all of my loved ones, and specially my elder brother as most of the times he accompanies me.

I was about to get into the vicious web of anxiety but all of a sudden a thought struck me. I realized that I was there on my own, all alone! There was no one, literally no one to judge me. This was the perfect moment where I could reconnect with myself and find my purpose. It gave me a space to think and channelize my thoughts. Few minutes down the lane and I could sense a feeling of contentment and clarity. Because, why not? And believe me when I claim that the Prachi who entered the metro to Hauz Khas was a different woman than the one who boarded the metro to Rajiv Chowk. I experienced a sense of accomplishment and tranquilly the entire time I was travelling to home. Earlier, I was very underconfident, but now, I have started to value myself more which is the very first step towards Self-Love.

I continued to travel alone after having such a wonderful experience. I am really pleased of myself for having visited Safdarjung's Tomb, Qutub Minar, and Red Fort on my own thus far. I push myself outside of my comfort zone every time I choose to travel alone and that's what keeps me going.

I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to embark on a solo trip at least once in their lives. You'll thank me, I promise, and you'll come back with some new insights on life you never imagined you'd do. :)