First solo trip pointers
27/F from India here. I did my first solo trip from Netherlands during my Christmas break (I'm studying here) to Berlin, Prague and Budapest for two weeks. I know everyone does these posts but maybe this might help someone who reads it, so here it goes:
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Give yourself time to adjust in every new place you go to, specially the public transport system and currency. Being an Indian who didn't know any of the common European languages, it was slightly difficult to feel comfortable with new cities as a solo traveller but it got easier as I understood each city- this forum's advice to spend atleast 4 days in each city was useful.
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Try not to complaint about how the people don't smile or are unfriendly, it'll just bring your energy levels down for no reason. It may not be in their culture to do so- this was something new to me and I stopped trying to make sense of it. You'll usually find help if you remember to ask for it. I was forced to face my fear of being alone when I was wandering around a nearly shutdown Berlin during Christmas days but it got livelier by the end of the trip. (A note to myself for planning the next trip better) I suppose the time of year and the season make a difference to your experience too.
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If you are traveling solo, choose your hostel well. The crowd at the hostel and the activities organised by them are a great addition to the trip. I personally had a kickass time at Sir Toby's Hostel in Prague.
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Go on walking tours and pub crawls (either or both, however it suits you.) It'll give you an overview of the city on the first day along with interesting recommendations. I met some amazing people during these tours, with whom I went on to spend the rest of my time in each city and am still in touch with. You'll get comfortable in your skin and more confident as the time passes by.
In my case, one of these friends I made on a walking tour in Berlin helped me out of a sticky spot: My purse which contained my bank cards, all ID cards plus passport got stolen on my last day in Berlin. I called up the people I knew, most had left the city except one and this guy helped me out with filing the police report and with extra cash to continue the trip. I could still do online transfers but without any cards my trip was pretty much doomed. Interestingly enough, the Flixbus officials allowed me to travel on basis of the passport photocopies and the airline never asked me for the passport. (I did have an emergency letter from the embassy and soft copies of all documents on my phone/google drive - the latter was a saviour)
Which brings me to the next point: 4. Never ever put all your bank cards and identification in a single place. I usually keep it separate but on that last day I put it all together and as Murphy's law goes- it got stolen/lost. Keep emergency cash and cards at separate places. Back-up softcopies of EVERY ID, Insurance papers and bank cards you have on cloud and in phone. If possible, send a copy of those plus your travel itinerary to a person you trust before you leave.
Lesson learnt the hard way but I'm glad I could complete my first solo trip with interesting experiences, after it came close to being abandoned. That's all.
Na zdravie! Here's to being less foolish and more alert on the future trips. Wish you all a happy new year! :)
Submitted January 08, 2019 at 02:31PM by cestlavie_91 http://bit.ly/2FfSptv
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