Traveling By Yourself Can be a Good Thing

I'm in Bangkok with 12 other people who I have the opportunity to travel with everyday. As fun as it is to travel with others, sometimes it is kind of nice just to be able to travel by myself places. With the risk of giving my mother a heart attack, I have to say I have really enjoyed going around Bangkok by myself some days. I end up seeing more and at my own pace, as well as a few other advantages here and there. I don't think that being by myself would work everywhere, but so far, here in Bangkok, it has worked rather well.

So here are a few advantages I have noticed about travelling around by myself:

People say "hi" more.


This one has fascinated me the most. I have now met someone who studied in America for some time and worked at the Kennedy Space Center. I met a couple where the guy was from Brazil and working in Taiwan. He had to take a leave due to his Visa restrictions so him and his Taiwanese girlfriend were exploring Southeast Asia for a few months. People at restaurants are more willing to talk to me for a second, ask me where I am from and what I am doing. In fact, I don't see a way to meet people at all unless it is just you and maybe one other person travelling. I feel as though once you are in a group of three or more (even two), it can be intimidating.

I get to see more.


Everyday when I go out by myself, I have a general plan, I know where I want to end up each day and how to get to each place. For example, my plan for one day was to take the BTS (Skytrain) to Siam Square to have a look around at the malls, then walk to Lumphini Park. I could have taken the BTS from Siam to Lumphini, but I figured it was close enough and I might as well see the sites on the way.

The blue represents the path I walked.

On my walk to Lumphini, I ended up seeing Thai children singing and dancing for National Milk Day and a mini parade for National Donut Day.

Neither of these things were anything that I planned to see, but because I was travelling by myself, I was easily able to explore the area on the way to Lumphini Park.

I get to go at my own pace.

This really goes with the above. Because I get to go at my own pace, I get to see more, or at least see more of what I want to see. It is kind of like going to a museum. Museums are strangely usually viewed as group activities, but you never want to spend too much time at one place in case the other person doesn't want to, and sometimes you barely get to see something that you want to look at.

But beyond that, going at my own pace means being able to sit down whenever I want to and pulling out my book, or sitting and simply watching people for a little bit. I only argue with myself when trying to figure out where I want to eat, etc.

It can be almost meditative sometimes.

Walking around a museum, a park, or even down a busy street by yourself in an unfamiliar area is oddly relaxing. Part of the stress of being "lost" or taking too much times comes from travelling with others. It's completely okay if I stop to look at something for a little while, or even get lost in thought. I notice more around me, and stop worrying about interactions with others.

Overall...

Traveling with others definitely has its benefits with comradeship, but if you get the chance, go out by yourself sometimes and see the world rather than experiencing it with others.