Ticket for one, please.

"We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open." - Jawaharlal Nehru

Traveling is a passion of mine. I think I caught this passion from my dad who loved to take us on vacations since I was a little kid. And I'm so glad he did. I don’t just enjoy traveling because it allows me to escape from the stresses of daily life. I love it because allows me to step out of my comfort zone and completely immerse myself in a new environment/culture/world.  Over time, traveling has become a kind of a meditative experience for me because it’s the one time I’m able to truly just live in the moment and feel joy, peace, freedom, and excitement all at the same time.

I also love traveling alone and that's what this post is really about. While traveling with friends and family is fun and unique in its own way, exploring a city by yourself is a completely different and liberating experience. And I realized this (as I do every time I find myself in a new city) when I was in San Francisco this past week for a conference. 

The first half of the week was occupied by seminars and conference events and I had very little time to see the city. However, as things started to die down, I decided to venture out and do some exploring on my own. The concept of just walking around a city on your own might sound a little boring, or even lonely, but it's actually quite the opposite. It's quite a common misconception that traveling alone means you're lonely. On the contrary, I was able to appreciate little things that often go unnoticed when I'm distracted by conversations with friends. I was able to connect and talk to random people precisely because I had no one else to talk to. But, more on that later.

The first day I ventured out into the city was amazing. I had just taken the cable car to Lombard St (the crookedest street in the world), soaked in the breathtaking views, laughed at the poor cars attempting to go down the hill, and happily conversed with a couple of foreigners visiting from Slovakia. So far, it had been a pretty good day. The next stop was the Golden Gate Bridge. I had read a decent amount about the bridge and the nerd in me was pretty fascinated by the architecture and beauty of it. Of course, I had no idea how to actually get to the bridge so I ended up walking for about 2 miles before arriving at a bus stop where I could catch a bus to the bridge. Getting lost, by the way, is one of the best things about traveling alone. If I had been with friends, I’m pretty sure someone would have hailed a cab a long time ago and I would have been at the bridge about an hour and a half before I actually got there. But walking around aimlessly allowed me to just soak in the sights and sounds of the city in a way that riding around in a cab just doesn’t do. 

Finally, with the help of many kind souls, I made it to the bridge. My plan was to walk across it but it was just so mesmerizingly beautiful, I decided to sit down and admire it for a little while instead (after taking about 1261826 pictures of it first).

There was a man sitting next to me. He must have been in his late 40s/early 50s and he had just biked across the bridge and back. He started telling me about his life; he was a war veteran from somewhere in the Northeast and had moved around a lot while being in the army. I shared bits and pieces of my life as well. We talked about a wide variety of things: his experience with having seen someone jump off the bridge, his trip to Austin many years ago when you had to be part of a club to drink alcohol, my trip to the Himalayas, what I wanted to do with my PhD etc. etc.) It was fascinating and exciting to be having such conversations with a complete stranger and we ended up talking for over 30 minutes.

Starting the walk across the bridge

I then started the 3.5 mile hike across the bridge and back. Because of my obsession with the bridge, I must have stopped at least ten times to investigate the 3-feet thick cables and soak in the gorgeous view. It all sounds rather weird (who the hell stares at a cable for 5 minutes?) but this is exactly why being alone was a huge asset. I was able to spend time doing what I wanted without feeling like I was wasting someone else’s time. I was alone. I was free.

There are numerous such instances that happened during this trip that made me truly appreciate the joy of traveling alone. Like catching this beautiful sunset that I accidentally stumbled upon while walking along Fisherman's Wharf one day. Or conversing with a 75 year old Australian chemical physicist about finite coal particles.

But, traveling alone isn’t just about being able to do what you want when you want to. It’s not only about not having to match your schedules and interests with another person’s. It’s not even about being independent. It’s about giving yourself an opportunity to truly leave behind your old world and getting lost in a new one. Traveling alone allows you to discover a city in its purest form. It allows you to discover people in an uninhibited way. It allows you to discover cultures without any barriers. But most of all, it allows you to discover yourself. So next time you're giving up on a vacation because all your friends and family are busy, think again. You might just find a new way of seeing the world.