The sun rises. However, you don't feel like waking up just yet so you sleep a little longer. You don't feel any guilt because this is your trip and there is no one to chastize you for not getting out of bed. Eventually you rise unhurriedly and have a long shower and slowly get dressed. You go out for breakfast and order whatever you would like to eat - you finally get to indulge that secret desire to consume a bowl of noodles for breakfast (ok, actually, you have no choice because you are in Asia and that's all they have for breakfast... but thats another story). Then you set out for your day - what are you going to do? It's all up to you.

Traveling solo is a world apart from traveling with others. The independence is unlimited. You can choose what you want to do, when you want to do it, and where you want to go. There is no one to negotiate with, no one to listen to complain, nothing at all but you and your ideas of what you want your trip to be like. It is freedom in every nuance of the word.

However, solo travel isn't always striding happily down your own path without a care in the world. Like all other things, it has its highs and its lows. Sometimes it can involve breaking down in tears on the side of a curb because you can't find anyone who speaks your language to help you. But these, like all things in life, are experiences in themselves. And without the bad parts, the good ones wouldn't be as good.

Having recently returned from traveling by myself through Indonesia, India and China, I felt that I would write a little bit about what I feel are the best parts and the worst parts of solo travel. Maybe I can encourage somebody who would like to strike out on their own but is too afraid. Traveling by oneself isn't impossible, and somtimes it can be downright amazing!

First, the positive side of solo travel:

1. Complete Independence Like I said before, traveling solo is freedom plain and simple. However, it is independence in both the good and the bad. Independence to do what you like, but also forced independence to deal with all problems that come your way. There is no one there to hold your hand when you are blue. No one to share your miseries with or to help you work out how to resolve a crisis. Everything that happens, every situation and every bump, has to be dealt with on your own. This can be both exhilariating and terrifying. I also believe it makes you a stronger person once you learn that you can deal with life's hardest problems, and deal with them completely on your own.

2. Meeting People While you may not have one person (or a group of friends) to share every moment with and every experience with, this does not mean that solo travel is completely by yourself. One of the best parts of traveling solo is having the ability to meet all kinds of people you would never have even noticed had you been traveling in a group. Locals are more likely to approach a single traveler by themselves than they are a pack of foreigners. You get to strike up conversations, make new friends, and learn so much more about the culture of the place you are visiting when you travel by yourself. And not just locals either, when you travel by yourself you get the chance to meet other travelers and even join up with them for a bit. This way you can experience the best part of both worlds - doing whatever you want but also meeting up with like-minded people whom you can share experiences with, if only for a little while.

The negatives to solo travel:

1. Loneliness Plain and simple, when you are always by yourself you will feel lonely at times. When you order your meal from a small restaurant only to have it arrive and be a family-sized bowl, you will undoubtably experience pangs of unhappiness. However, I believe that these are fleeting moments. Sitting by yourself in a romantic restaurant overlooking a stunning sunset with happy couples drinking and laughing around you is not one of the best moments of traveling solo. But, it also gives you time for reflection and soaking up the vibe of a place that you would miss while happily chatting away with your partner.

2. Costs While traveling with others, many costs can be shared between the group. Costs for taxis, for two-bed rooms, for guides - these can all be split to significantly lower the costs of travel. However, when traveling solo none of these are possible. When you get your room and it has two beds, like many hotels do in Asia, it is very rare that the hotel will lower the price if there is only one person.

Having said these general points on the pluses and minuses of solo travel, I think it is fair to say that the pluses outweigh the costs. I think both types of travel have their place, but I also believe that solo travel should not be written off as being too scary or too difficult. It is a feeling unlike any you can imagine to be on a rickety crowded bus bumping along a windy dirt road destined to a place you have never heard of before with only yourself to rely on. This is what I love about travel.