At 11.15pm after dropping another solo traveler at the bus stop, I wondered if it was too late in the night to be driving around in this city which I wasn’t used to. It was raining, not too hard, but enough to force everyone to find shade majorly in anticipation that it will get harder in no time.
Last 3 days had been tremendous fun. For the first time in my life, after talking about it for years, I decided to take a solo trip. Pretty standard procedure – book a hostel, figure out the way to get there and back, find things to do and places to see. For me, attending that pottery class was my only aim. Get there, attend the class and the rest will figure itself out. Me being me, of course I had a list of things to do ready but they were a backup. I went with the flexibility of being around uncertain circumstances.
Fortunate was I to have found good and friendly people throughout. My bla bla rider from Bangalore to Mysore was a really friendly and accommodating guy. We chatted about Bangalore, Mysore, his life and childhood, his work, my work, development of the cities, food, etc.
Upon reaching the hostel, I met other solo travelers really quick and easy. We all decided to hang out together and see how things pan out. Turns out, they were flexible too.
What followed next 3 days were roaming around, eating a lot and different food, accommodating everyone’s desires to either be a part of it or letting them go alone and promising to meet after to chill together. In between this, I did what I had come here for – my pottery. Made some amazing friends there too. Spent all day with them, discussing about our love for trying something new, how it started and how we want it to be a part of our lives in future.
Conversations went so smoothly, I never felt like a stranger at all. I hoped others didn’t feel that too being around me. It was so easy to just walk up to someone and say hi. Start a conversation and then move on. I had forgotten how to do all this in these last years.
There were moments when I felt I should have spoken to people, tried to make conversations, but I chose to just relax because I didn’t want to spend my energy on it. While that may be okay, I think I also had a slight fear of not knowing what to talk about. So that’s something I think I still need to work on. Probably also find a way to stay energetic. I tire easy.
Anyway, so as I stood at the bus stop, I realized I was finally alone on my first solo trip. The friends I had made had all left and whatever I were to do next would be just me. By myself. So I got out, sat on my scooty and started driving in the rain. I feared slipping or hurting myself – and then I thought if that happens, I’ll learn how to deal with that too. But I will probably not get this chance of driving alone at night in the rain with no one to turn to if I struggle. Mind you, I wasn’t being casual from a safety perspective. I ensured I was driving at the right speed, staying on the main road where there were people and police around.
And so I did. I ran solo. It was one of the simplest and most empowering things I had done – which made me feel so alive.
When I reached back at the hostel, while trying to run inside, some people were sitting in the common area singing songs and jamming. I was abruptly stopped by a person and asked to sing as a toll tax. To which, my instant reply was – you start playing and I’ll start singing. And then, I sang. The song that they started humming, I started singing. Without the fear of being judged. Without the fear of singing bad. I barely sang with my college friends when they used to sit and jam. I used to just sit and enjoy. Probably because I didn’t feel like it, I felt I didn’t sing well. Who knows.
It's easier to be yourself in front of strangers. It’s easier to do embarrassing things in front of strangers. It’s easier to be a “Yes” person in front of strangers. It’s easier to not worry about the next day in front of strangers. I don’t think people realize the importance of strangers in their lives until they go on a solo trip.
I think I would love to continue this, make it an annual thing. It’s good to do something you love alone and be yourself. Just yourself. Do things that you wouldn’t do maybe otherwise.
Next time for my trip, with the places to go to, I’ll have a list ready of the things I usually say no to or never get a chance to say no to too. Those will be on the priority list of “yes” things then.
