Well people have been asking me now about travelling on my own and what it`s like and also just travelling in general really so here`s something that i wrote a few days ago in BA about travelling alone. Oh it`s definitely a good thing to bring a journal with you so that you can write stuff down as you go. I`ve noticed a lot of people do this too...not many have theirs on the internet but hey maybe I`m just a nerd! So here goes!!

In one, no.. in many ways travelling alone is great! I mean, I spoke to a lot of people before I left Ireland, some had traveled with friends and on their own too!! and they all said that they had the best time on their own so that helped to calm me down a bit before I left! They said that seeing as I made friends easily I`d be fine! and you know what I have to agree!! Every day I meet people new and learn something new too! For instance, I met a really nice guy from Trinidad the other night and he put on some of his CD`s in the hostel. This was music from Trinidad and Tobago and I just loved it!! "yeah mon!" eheheheee So now I sooo wanna go there and check it out for myself!! I`ve been infected with this travel bug now and I just cant stop!

OK back to being alone, no come to think of it you`re never alone! unless you want to be! All you have to do is turn up at a busy hostel on your own and if you can find a TV room, garden or breakfast room there are usually people hanging out there!! If you can simply say "Hi can I join you?" or "my name is Aisling, whats yours?" then after that it`s like yeah where are you going to or coming from etc..etc..etc.. and straight away everyone, absolutely Everyone is willing to share their stories, advice, comments on where to go and what to do!! Oh and be prepared to answer questions on where you`ve been too!! But you`ll find that helping people with what you know is just as satisfying as finding out where to go from them!

At first I was like 2oh do you mind telling me about this place and that place", but then the more I travelled i realised that Everyone does it!! So it`s not a problem to anyone! It`s all very friendly and relaxed. Then usually later in the evening if people are heading out for drinks or dinner somewhere you can join them too!! There`s usually no problems cos thats how everyone travels!! You just hook up with a few people for a day or night or so and then move on your seperate ways after a couple of days and maybe even meet up again somwhere else!! I even had to refuse two seperate groups of people in BA who were trying to convince me to come out with them one night!! These are people that I could barely remember their names and they`re like "come on!" lets go out for drinks here and dancing here!! ehheheee

I just needed a night in that night for a change! So I will say that for the most part people are great! But being a girl on your own you do need to be careful though, I will say! I`ve had a few little things happen to me and people around me but not enough to upset me in any way! For instance while in BA last week I was sitting in the window of a restaurant and when I looked up after eating someone had spat on the window. Now thankfully I didn`t see who it was or when it happened but I presume it was because I`m a forign girl in their country and maybe cos I have money (compared to them!) I don`t know!! Then on another occasion I was walking with two girls and a man threw tomato at Jen (a girl I was walking with) and we dont know why! But it`s possible that he though we were american as they`re not too hot in Argentina at the moment!

You know I`m glad though that I came to Argentina and Chile first because I`ve heard some stories about Peru and Equador and I can see now being in Peru that it is a lot poorer. But people I`ve talked to have been robbed, mugged, spat at etc..And there`s one thing for sure is that I stand out!! I can`t blend in anywhere, especially with these freckles!! so if it`s going to happen it`ll probably happen to me! So I`m kinda expecting something to happen at some stage! I think if im prepared for it then it wont be as big a shock if it does happen??!!? It`s a weird way of thinking but I think it`s good adn then if nothing happens then great!! hehee

But good funny things have happened too, like when I was sitting in a park in BA a young boy came up to me and asked me why I had freckles and what they were!! I tried to explain that this was normal in Ireland, like he ever heard of Ireland!! He just looked at his evenly tanned arm and looked at mine in amazement...But then he pulled up his shirt and showed me his one freckle on his chest that he was very proud of!! heheeee it was quite funny!

But that`s not unusual here! Everyone looks at me here and stares!! But I dont mind it at all! Even when a cute policeman calls me a "pretty lady" heheeee ...See you just take the good with the bad and put it all down to experience! I can definitely say that I`m learning a lot from travelling, from other cultures and other backpackers! and maybe I can help other people out too and share something about my experiences!! I never realised I`d be doing that when I traveled, I just thought it`d be cool to find out about other cultures but in actaul fact people are learning about me and Ireland too!! So it`s a good trade!

So I`d say if you have any plans to travel alone ...DO!!! at least try it! you know it`s not the end of the world if you dont like it you can go back to your home and fit back into the rat race easily enough i`d say! I don`t know if I`ll ever be able to just fit back in though, not now, not after where i`ve been, what i`ve done and seen! And this is only the beginning!! heheheeee ;-) As Mariano from BA would say "keep on rockin`in the free world!!" heheeee