Is it just mine or is your Instagram too flooded with #SoloTravel #Yolo ?
November 2021: After having travelled widely with my family, relatives, and friends all this while, this was the first solo trip of my life! I had travelled alone multiple times but it was the first time I was planning a trip right from scratch, literally from crafting the itinerary to deciding on the dates and choosing hotels. Liberating? Hell Yeah!
I was elated. A break from the mundane lockdown life, this was my chance at staying where I had always wanted, eat what my heart craved and sleep or roam as and when I pleased.
Bags packed and flew into Rajasthan for a friend’s wedding. I had given myself a strict budget to follow through. A glimpse of the freedom of a solo trip begins right from day 1. Making a choice of how to reach the venue, which was 2.5 hours away from the airport. I had booked train tickets in advance, however, decided to catch the bus on a whim and so I did! Had there been someone tagging along, I doubt I could have broken the order. Happy me, because freedom! ❤
Only after I got on the bus, squeezed in a seat between the driver and the gear, surrounded by a dozen of sweaty people around, is when I realized, I probably made a mistake. Whom could I have blamed but myself? Nevertheless, there was a glim on my face all through the journey as my excitement knew no bounds!
After innumerable pushes and nudges and leg twisting, I reached Ajmer on time. Since it was the final destination, the passengers evacuated immediately. Now my haversack was buried under some random passenger’s seat and with no one around, I got a bit tense and wary. That’s when the conductor showed up with my bag from nowhere and offered me to get a seat on another bus that would take me to the wedding venue. Won’t deny, that I was cautious and oh so sceptical, but thankfully he was genuine and kind. He instructed the driver and warned him not to take any money from him. Indeed, some strangers will go out of their way to make you comfortable.
So yes, a lesson learnt there: Solo Travel seems all hunky-dory, and yes it is to some extent but you cannot enjoy music when you travel alone. Your earphones will be down for most of the time and your phone will keep beeping at every turn because you perpetually have an eye stuck on the navigation app.
Anyway, the festivities were over and on my way back, I chose to stick to my original plan of boarding a train. Ah here comes another scary (now funny) incident.
So I reached the Ajmer station on time and waited for my train to arrive. Of course, my eyes were glued to the platform indicator all the time.
I can constantly hear the announcement – Udaipur to Jaipur train, train no. 02991 (the one I’m supposed to be boarding) is arriving shortly. Relieved.
2 mins before the ETA, suddenly the standard announcement stops and the indicator says Train no. 02990 is arriving. My blood ran cold! In India, a change in the last digit means, the train is taking the reverse route.
The train arrives. Suddenly there is chaos, people running helter-skelter cause the compartments have shifted. I asked a few passengers and they said the train number changes sometimes but it’s the same one. Not kidding, the next 45 mins until the next station arrived, my heart kept skipping a few beats.
Anyway, I reach Jaipur and by then I am used to the sudden panic attacks. It has suddenly dawned on me that what’s the worst that could have happened, had I missed the train or got on the wrong one? I would have landed at some other place and taken another train back to Jaipur. Nothing worrisome right?
It is after this enlightenment, that things start to change. Either the trip gets better or I become bolder!
I check in the hostel. Wait, what? I stayed at a hostel! Indeed it was always a dream come true! I always wanted to challenge myself in different conditions and this was a test I passed with flying colours!
The hostel, Go Stops Jaipur, thankfully matches the google images. I checked in the girls dorm and was given a bunk to myself. That’s it. A bed, a plug point, a night lamp and a locker. But boy, it was so adventurous!
I tried a bit of small talk with the girls but they kinda seemed to be in their own space so I stormed out to grab a bite. I was waiting for my sandwich in the common area when a young guy shows up and starts chatting generally. He sounded familiar and we got talking. We spoke on a range of topics right from our careers to hometowns and made it a point to catch up in an hour at the same spot. I freshened up and we left for sightseeing. It was his third time here, so advised me what the must visits, must eats and must dos are in Jaipur. It was as if I had reconnected with an old friend.
It is only when you travel solo, that you mingle with people from different walks of life, different cultures, and different social backgrounds. Their vocabulary, and their thinking patterns are unique. You realise you live in your sweet bubble but the actual world out there is huge!
Back to the hostel, he was tired and hence dozed off. But I was excited like a baby. I was exploring the hostel and entered the gaming zone. Here there are 7-8 complete strangers mingling, playing pool, playing Jenga, some simply smoking. I asked the Jenga guys if I could join them – call it an ice breaker maybe? But right from then, we all got talking. We, a bunch of 9 strangers spent the entire night up to the wee hours of the morning – chatting, playing, watching a movie, and driving around the city! It was again as if I was meeting a bunch of school friends after long summer vacation! My heart was overjoyed! I could be who I am, and voice my opinions without the pressure of being judged and it was an amazing experience getting acquainted with people from different socio-economic backgrounds!
We decided to catch up the next morning for breakfast and again the warmth and camaraderie felt seamless!
The night before I left, the four of us drove far from the city to catch a glimpse of the Amer fort at night. It was magnificent! Grabbed a tea at four and drove back 85 km to the hostel! It’s a night etched in my heart forever!
I left the hostel with a heavy heart. I knew this was probably the last time I was seeing them all together, I knew I’d see some of them on their visits to Mumbai, but this place and the car had already felt like I left a piece of mine there.
That’s one more thing I learned from my stay at the hostel. Friendships made at hostels are only limited to the trip. I mean, I still am in touch with most of the group members but the reality at a hostel is, that some people will keep dropping out while some people will keep adding to your group.
So the question here is will I travel solo ever again? A Whopping YES!
Will I travel only solo ever again? NO!
While solo travel does have a lot of pros, I did miss travelling with my near dear ones. While I have my petty excuses like I hardly have any photos from the trip, there were a few major hiccups when I wished someone would take care of me as I panicked at the station, I wished someone was with me when I first felt neglected at the hostel. But eventually, my first solo trip was a success and I definitely look forward to many, many such more trips!
If you enjoyed my post, do check out the stories from my Instagram highlight ‘Rajasthan 2021‘ and relieve the fun ❤
Have you ever been on a solo trip? If yes how was it? If not, would you go on one?
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