Next month I’ll be traveling to a city I’ve always wanted to see – San Francisco. By a fluke glitch that came out of nowhere, I currently have a paid-for hotel stay in the city for two nights.
The glitch? My boyfriend and I broke up.
Now, I either forfeit my non-refundable hotel or I make the best of it and travel alone. It’s cool. I can travel by myself, won’t be the first time – sadly, it probably won’t be the last either.
Wanderlust, as a single person, can really blow chunks.
Reading all these travel blogs lately I see women travelers exploring the world solo. They show great shots of them prancing down the Golden Gate Bridge with their Instagram-bought-and-paid-for sponsored outfits and wonder – who took that photo?
Maybe she set up her phone on a crowded bridge and threw caution to the wind as she twirled hundreds of feet away with not a care that her $700 iPhone life and some connection to this world just chilled on its own. Unsupervised.
I’m just not buying what they’re selling.
Well, maybe I am but only just a little.
So, I can do it too. As a grown woman and an experienced traveler, this should be a very relaxing trip. Filled with art museums and fun adventures.
But I’m admittedly a little perplexed by one particular bucket item:
How the hell am I going to eat Dim Sum by myself?
Picturing myself walking into a Chinese restaurant, requesting Dim Sum for one makes my heart sink. Who goes to a hyper-social gathering by themselves? Like going alone to prom. Dinner at a nice restaurant, and arriving at the dance wearing a beautiful dress in an empty hummer limo? Honestly, it’s hard to flex when you’re the only one looking.
Then I think, I’m a strong, independent, Millennial woman. I can do meals alone, it’ll be a life experience. I’ve got this! Right?
But really, how does this actually work? I sit at a table FULL of food. Nibble until I’m full, sitting straight-backed avoiding my phone so as to look purposefully alone, and then take 75% of it home in a doggie bag? Feels weird.
Maybe I’ll do some stomach exercises. Power eat some lettuce to expand my eating power? That’s what those hot dog eaters do.
Honestly, sometimes, it sucks to be lonely. We’ve all felt it and we all quickly forget it once we don’t have to feel it anymore. This trip, though, feels intensely so. That is to say, I think the wandering soul heals from simply getting out of town? Here’s hoping the fun and excitement of new experiences overwhelm that feeling and confirm that theory.
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