Prior to leaving for a 5-month semester in Monterrey, Mexico, people thought I was crazy. “Mexico is so dangerous”, “They’ll kidnap you”, “Don’t go out by yourself”, “Don’t walk alone when it’s dark”, “Don’t go to Chiapas, it’s dangerous”, “Don’t go to Mexico DF, you’ll get mugged” and the list goes on and on and on. And of course, I still went to Mexico. Not only did I go, but I traveled all around Mexico, I walked by myself at night and as you can see, I returned home safe and sound- and with lots of great Mexican memories!

Then prior to leaving on my 3-week trip to Brazil, I went through it again: “You’ll get kidnapped”, “They’ll remove your organs”, “You’ll get lost and get stuck somewhere”…  And after many attempts of people trying to discourage me from traveling by myself in Brazil, not only did I go, but I survived. And guess what? I had the time of my life! And looking forward to traveling by myself again this winter.

For all fellow women traveling in South America, it’s all about using your common sense. Whatever rules apply to the boys, apply to the girls. If you don’t wear jewelry, don’t flash your camera, don’t get drunk and act stupid and overall don’t look too much like a tourist, you’ll be more than fine. Whether you’re a man or a woman, you should avoid walking alone in dodgy looking areas or alleys. Follow your instinct, it’s normally right!

Do always be aware of your surroundings. You’re more likely to be followed than a man. Always be on guard when walking around a city or town. If you plan to go out drinking, do make sure you’re not going back to your hostel by yourself. Take the precautions to avoid getting yourself into trouble. The obvious: don’t accept a ride, an offer or anything from a stanger. If you haven’t known the person for more than 5 minutes, you may be taking a big risk.

Do have fun and enjoy! You’ll meet tons of other fellow travelers. People who haven’t traveled much tend to be paranoid about places like South America. It’s really not as dangerous as everyone makes it appear to be. Obviously some countries in South America are unstable and unfortunately have their economic and political problems but most places are safe for tourists to travel to.

No Compromising Necessary

You can do whatever you want, when you want and where you want! You don’t have to compromise with your friend’s wishes. If you get fed up of being in a city, you can simply head towards the next city. You can pick and choose where you want to travel to and what you want to do at each place. You will definetely meet people along the way in hostels and your flexibility will bring you wherever they are going. It’s a great feeling!

Learning About Yourself

You’re probably telling yourself, “I already know myself”. But truth of the matter is that most people think they know themselves but don’t. How many of you do activities alone? Ever been to the movies alone? Ever been skiing alone? Ever been to a restaurant alone? The answer is no for the majority of you. That would be because most people are afraid of being alone. This being said, the best way to know yourself is to actually spend time with YOU! What better way to spend time with yourself on vacation?

Overcoming Your Fears

Traveling alone involves overcoming personal fears you may have. When you’re traveling with a friend, you will naturally feel more comfortable than if you were traveling alone. Take the opportunity to surpass those fears of yours!

Meeting More People

You will without a doubt meet way more people than if you were traveling with a friend. When traveling solo, you don’t have a choice but to make that extra effort to meet people whereas when you travel with friends, you’re not really looking to meet a bunch of new friends because you already have company. When alone, you will talk to people you normally don’t talk to. You will go out with people who are probably not your type of crowd. But you know what? You learn to appreciate diversity and it obviously expands your horizons, your knowledge about different people and cultures. The best part of it all is having friends all over the world to visit.

Mingling with Locals

Let’s face it. You are way more flexible when traveling alone. Locals notice solo travelers and it’s not unusual to have more opportunities to spend time with locals. Getting away from tourists is never a bad thing! And spending time with locals allows you to really experience the culture and learn about the people of that region. On a personal note, I’ve had such an opportunity in the Amazon. Most solo backpackers I met also had similar experiences.

So what’s stopping you from traveling alone? Be aware of your fears and just take the jump… book your next trip alone! And don’t worry, it will be a FUN trip. You shouldn’t worry about being alone because you most probably won’t be spending much time alone. Hostels are the best place to stay to meet other backpackers (or semi-backpackers).

I must admit that it’s been a little culture shock since my arrival from the Amazon where I was constantly surrounding by people and nature. As we all know, traveling alone definitely has its ups and downs. The ups is that I am free to do whatever I want and when I want! The down side is that I need to be extra careful being a solo woman backpacker in a large South American city.  I avoid taking buses alone so let’s just say I need to budget taxis everywhere I go. And those days where you don’t meet anyone interesting only means you’ll have to be independent enough to turn it into a good day on your own! This being said, it can get scary at times… scary in terms of the people you are surrounded by but also not knowing when you’ll be talking to someone next!  I am however meeting interesting people: Bruno & Ingrid who are locals and who have been wonderful at bringing me around the city, the 5 Brazilian girls I met yesterday from Punta Alegre and everyone I met this afternoon on the tour

As soon as I arrived to Manaus, I instantly became friends with Nash (English), Eric (Swiss) and Hernan (Colombian). Stepping foot in a hostel was relieving and I truly believe I was born to do this! Sharing stories with backpackers must be the best part of it all. We all have a story to tell since most of us have travelled in various parts of the world. I’m actually looking forward to meeting up with Nash and Eric in Rio. I was invited  at a local’s house for dinner on my first night in Manaus and obviously, I couldn’t refuse such an offer. It was great to mingle with locals. The next day, off I was to the Amazon with Gero Tours. The next 5 days were filled with excitement and great company. We went piranha fishing, visited a village, watched the dolphins, trekked in the jungle, slept in the jungle and  ate great meals! I met a British couple (Ben and Claire), a British family (Jeff, Sally and Nick), an Aussie solo backpacker (Emma) and a couple living in Switzerland (Blair and Jackie). We spent a great week mingling and talking about the most random topics. The guides were very knowledgeable (thank you Matias and Hendrick) about the area and taught us so much about the Amazon. I will go into more detail about the tour, tour operators and guides when I have more time to write. But overall, this last week has been an unforgettable experience. I’m flying to Rio tonight! Let’s see how my next week will turn out to be!

Itinerary:

1^st week: Jungle Tour in the Amazon, trekking, living with a tribe, camping, wildlife

2^nd week: Rio de Janeiro, sight-seeing, hand-gliding, nightlife

3^rd week: Bahia, beach, beach, beach! Surfing, Sand-surfing (if possible) and just chilling!

Although going on some Brazilian expedition sounds fun and only fun, there is some preparation involved. First off, Canadians need a tourist visa to enter the country. The cost is CDN $91. I have to admit that the process of obtaining one wasn’t too brutal. The next step is taking an appointment at the Travel Clinic to receive two shots: Yellow fever and Typhoid fever shots. Total cost of my visit was CDN $150. These vaccines are mandatory when going to the Amazon. You’ll need to provide an International Certificate proving that you received the yellow fever shot to enter the country. Although I don’t normally plan my tours prior to arriving in a country, I decided to select a tour operator for my adventure in the Brazilian Amazon. The main reason is because it’s an expensive tour and I want to make sure I’ll get my money’s worth. I want my experience to be maximized at its fullest potential! The second reason is that I want to be safe, regardless of the craziness involved in this adventure. More info to come on the tour operator after my trip.

I currently have my visa and vaccines. As I’m getting closer to the date, I’m starting to get nervous. I’ve never been to Brazil, I don’t speak Portuguese, I’m landing directly in the jungle and I won’t have access to a telephone for 6 days. Did I mention that I’ll be alone? It’s scary, yet exciting! I can’t wait to meet random people to share stories them, learn about a new culture, eat and obviously, explore!

Other than a high-level plan of where I’ll be for 3 weeks, I haven’t planned anything else. I don’t know when I’ll be flying out of Manaus or where I’ll be staying in Rio and Bahia.  I’m thinking of winging it once I’m there so I can save some $$ on flights… let the wind take me away!