Traveling is exciting, but it can come with a variety of dramas that will turn a fun trip into a not-so-fun experience if in the company of others.
Whether it’s a glamorous weekend to somewhere I haven’t been or hanging out for three months (the length of many tourist visas) in somewhat less than salubrious accommodation in any one country, when I get to hang out with locals in a corner café taking photographs of the passing parade, climbing too many steps to reach a temple at the top of a staircase, or riding on the back of a motorbike with a knowledgeable tour guide into the countryside or national parks, traveling by yourself means your time is your own to spend hours doing whatever you want.
I prefer to travel solo or with one of my daughters, who has travel habits exactly like mine. I cringe when a friend will say, ‘Can I come with you?’ It’s a big fat ‘no’ as I don’t want to navigate someone else’s shopping, eating, or toilet proclivities, but ‘no’ is said with many excuses of polite reasons as to why their joining me is not possible. A good day-to-day friend can quickly become a tantrum-throwing Jekyll-and-Hyde personality when traveling. I do soften the blow with the promise of bringing back a fridge magnet for them!
I am not alone in my preference for solo travel—so what are my pet peeves that probably apply to many more intrepid solitary souls who relish their own company when abroad?
- People at home expecting daily photographs and messages—a quick mass message or photo occasionally will probably be the only indicator of proof of life.
- Destination group celebrations—solo travelers don’t want to play nicely with a group for the lead-up days to the main event, or to travel in a huddle of people all having their own agendas. Solo travelers are more likely to arrive at the destination on the day of the celebration and leave the next day, with or without a nasty hangover, foregoing the sometimes sassy dissection of who wore or said what.
- Pushing in front in a queue (security, cafes, and tourist sights)—when you get into a line with a single person in front of you, and once near the front, a family horde descends to join that person. You are now at least number twenty in the queue.
- Unruly children—you don’t have any with you, so you don’t want to put up with other people’s children’s dramas, tantrums, eardrum-destroying screeching, back-of-plane-seat kicking, and sticky pudgy fingers. Or the horror of a child’s head glaring at you over the back of their plane seat like a murderous child from Stephen King’s 1984 movie ‘Children of the Corn’. Throw into this peeve the child running wild through an art gallery or museum, disturbing the serene ambiance with their constant loud chatter and the sound of running feet, and you have set the scene to check your children, as in Fred Walton’s horror movie ‘When a Stranger Calls’.
- The need for other people to talk to you—they’re probably just being friendly, but a smile would be more than enough. When a solo traveler wishes to talk with other humans, a friendly, rowdy bar/restaurant is usually nearby to test their vocal cords. Solo travelers like not having to indulge in useless chit-chat and will head to a quiet bar/restaurant to sit with a good book. These establishments should provide a sign saying, ‘Do not disturb; this person wants alone time’.
- Restaurant maître d’s who show horror when a table for ‘one’ is requested—solo travelers’ biggest bitch is being seated by toilets, by the kitchen, or any wonky table outside the main restaurant domain, especially when it’s a fabulous view that drew them to the restaurant in the first place.
- The looks of other travelers, from envy to feeling sorry for you—the look of envy is usually plastered on a harassed and frazzled female juggling flight tickets and passports with three or more kids in tow and a partner that should be included in the kid count. While the ‘feeling sorry for you’ face is a pitying smile on one of a traveling couple as they cling to each other like Siamese twins, reading each other’s thoughts and moving as a single amoeba; they have no idea how to function as a single entity.
- Instagrammers – too busy capturing their own existence in far-flung places that they have flitted through to up the numbers of their country-count in look-at-me moments for the social media world to supposedly adore.
- Not adhering to local cultural traditions—this is like waving a red flag, especially if the transgressor is a fellow countryman—you know the type, wearing a bikini top and sarong to walk pseudo-piously through a temple in a Buddhist country, or a rowdy drunk male thinking it’s funny to climb a sacred monument as a dare. Solo travelers hate having to cringe in shame.
- Impatient people—maybe this should be labeled ‘rude people’. Watching a forlorn-looking foreigner (who doesn’t speak English) at the airport/bus/train check-in desk being berated by an English-speaking person for the late arrival or departure of their transport.
- Seat Jumpers on flights—when a solo traveler books the window seat at the back of the plane on a moderately booked overnight flight in the hope that the two seats beside them will be vacant on takeoff, only to have another person jump from their seat to the aisle seat of their seat row. The solo traveler has politely refrained from spreading out over the three seats before takeoff at the flight attendant's request, but the interloper totally disregards this direction because they want more room from their squished designated seat. There should be a flight rule that if you are the only person booked for your row, you can automatically claim the spare seats beside you.
- Snotty-nosed people without face masks on planes—the last thing a solo traveler wants to be is sick when on a trip. Sitting beside a person on any form of transport where there’s no avenue of escape is being forced to sit in a germy pool of sneezes, wheezes, splutters, and the odd bout of maybe choking on their own snot, giving the inevitable result of getting sick from whatever horror illness you are exposed to. Solo travelers don’t want to waste time finding a local pharmacy, doctor, or hospital. Unless extreme drugs (such as super strong painkillers) are prescribed that they can’t buy at home. These are quickly hidden away for future emergencies.
Not a pet peeve, but a fleeting thought among some solo travelers is dying alone while traveling. This scenario brings a smile to their faces, as it will be their families that have to deal with the authorities and get their body back in one piece, or as ashes in an urn like a trophy of their traveling life. Solo travelers are not into spending hours filling out foreign government forms—we can be a bit selfish!
Gail Palethorpe, a self proclaimed Australian gypsy, is a freelance writer, photographer and eternal traveller. Check out her website Gail Palethorpe Photography and her Shutterstock profile.
