I've Gone on Holiday By Myself
It's been amazing, except for the sexism
Hello from beautiful St. Lucia, where I’ve been since Thursday. It’s my first solo beach vacation ever. I booked the trip back in February after I stumbled across an amazing Travelzoo deal. I knew I had 12 days without my kids over spring break, and I decided to treat myself to a mini-vacation during part of it. I’m here for four nights.
It’s been such a beautiful experience. In advance of the trip, I worried that I’d be bored going to the beach by myself, or feel uncomfortable. So far, I’ve felt anything but.
Yes, I’ve been sitting around bodies of water reading a lot, but that’s been quite welcome. And I’ve met and had fun with some lovely humans. I’m actually one of the few Americans at my resort — I’ve met mostly Brits and Canadians, and a few other Europeans. Everyone has been very nice to me, despite my nationality, which has been a little surprising (I admit I’ve said “I’m sorry… I didn’t vote for him” more than once).
What I’ve been loving most about traveling alone is that I have nobody’s moods or expectations to manage but my own. Yesterday, for instance, my lunch very took a long time. I thought about how hard that would have been had I been traveling with my kids — I’d have spent the hour managing their moods and hunger and worrying about how much longer they could take. But traveling alone, I realized I could choose how to react and that my mood was the only thing I had to deal with. So I chose to order a pina colada, read my thriller and enjoy the experience.
Traveling alone has made me reflect on how much of my life has been spent outside of myself, thinking and worrying about other people.