Follow Amarins on her solo journey through South-East Asia and Australia

On October 12, 2022, I departed from Amsterdam, with Bali as my first destination. I had 25 wonderful days here and then boarded the plane again on November 8 to fly to the main destination of my trip: Australia. I've been in Australia for 3 months now as part of a working holiday programme, and in one month I'll leave Australia behind to go on an adventure in Malaysia and Borneo! The plan is to travel around there for 3 weeks, then travel around Thailand for another 3 weeks and then fly back to the Netherlands after all that great trip.

Ooh, this is a tough question since there were so many highlights. Since I am a huge animal lover, all the incredible experiences where I could see special animals in the wild were definitely highlights! For example, I saw and swam with dolphins in the wild in Lovina in Bali and saw kangaroos, walibis, koalas and crocodiles in the wild in Australia! Also snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef was an unforgettable experience with all the beautiful colorful fish and coral around me. I also especially enjoyed all the cool experiences you share with all the wonderful people you meet when you travel. For example, I cruised Nusa Penida on scooters with the funniest Canadian boy band ever, I met my dear friend Inge in Sydney with whom I decided to travel the East Coast of Australia and with whom I shared so many unforgettable moments and I now meet more nice people because of my work in the hostel with whom I can laugh and sometimes cry when necessary.

I can't pinpoint one reason that made me decide to travel alone, it was mainly a combination of several elements. Partly it's a practical choice as before I left I had recently graduated and wanted to do a gap year, something many people around me couldn't do because of work or study. Having said that, I must admit that even if one of my girlfriends could have done it, I probably would have preferred to go on this adventure alone. I think a big part of why I wanted to do this was because I want to enjoy more and live more. I went through quite a difficult period in which I had an eating disorder and was therefore quite hard on myself and my world seemed to get smaller and smaller due to all the obstacles I imposed on myself. Fortunately, things have been going very well for some time now and that period has taught me a lot afterwards. It made me realize that you can't just take it for granted that you will always be fine and that you should enjoy life as much as possible and do what makes you really happy :). In addition, I have the best and most travel-loving sister in the world who has inspired me with her own 14 month world tour and has always encouraged me to travel solo if I ever wanted to.

Despite the considerable rollercoaster of emotions in which I went from super excited to panic to sadness to excited again, my journey went completely smoothly. I'm personally not a fan of flying that far alone, mainly because of that emotional rollercoaster you really have to ride alone, but as long as you think about the destination and all the adventures you're going to have there, you'll be fine.

To be honest everything is going better than expected haha! Before I started traveling I had many doubts about whether I would be able to do this on my own. I thought that maybe I would feel alone or miss home too much or that I would find it difficult to decide and arrange everything on my own, but no, I enjoy every moment and despite some small bumps in the road , it's all going so well and I'm enjoying it immensely!

After a month of constant traveling, discovering new places, meeting new people, always being on and all the stimuli that come with it, I was pretty broken. I think I underestimated that traveling, something that is so incredibly fun and addictive at first, can also be really tiring and that it is extremely important to also take moments of rest where possible. Those first moments when I decided to take more rest I felt very restless and felt wrong as I was on the other side of the world and wanted to see and do everything this place has to offer. But slowly but surely I started to appreciate those moments of nothing and to see that they are necessary to recharge your battery for other moments.

No never! So bizarre to think that in these four months I have never felt unsafe in unknown places with unknown people, while at home in Rotterdam I often feel unsafe in the evening or night.

I think it mainly depends on what you need. If you want to be alone, that is perfectly possible, and people will leave you alone and in your worth. I myself find it much more pleasant to be with people, at the necessary me-time moments where I recharge my social battery. Since there are so many people traveling alone, everyone is kind of in the same boat, which immediately creates a bond and makes social contact very easy! Everyone is out to have a good time and get everything out of it. Plans together are therefore made easy, there is always someone who wants to do the same as you.

Easier said than done, but just do it! Try to rationalize to yourself what you are afraid of and you will soon find that it is not necessary. Of course, something can always go wrong, but that is also possible in the Netherlands. Also keep in mind that there is no right or wrong in travelling, sure it's super cool that some people stay away for a year, see twenty countries and still don't suffer from homesickness or get tired of travelling. But if you feel the need to go home after two months, that is no less good and that is also possible. Try to think of all the cool things you're going to experience and think how a shame it would be if you didn't take the chance and regret it later!

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