29.1o.2o18 • solo travelling

hi guys !! as you may already know i am travelling through portugal at the moment .. on my very own. it`s actually the first time of a real solo travel for me. in the last year i travelled a lot but always with my boyfriend by my side. in fact i never did a journey longer than one week alone !! so now after one week of solo travelling i would like to resume my experiences & to share my thoughts with you. is there any kind of travelling better or worse .. a do & don`t .. i don`t think so. both kinds of travelling have its advantages .. let me tell you about my experiences !!
about travelling together: i loved travelling as a couple !! you can share all the beautiful moments & spend so much time together having fun. you can split tasks .. so one part books the hostels for example & the other one checks the bus connections. you can go out in the evening without having any conserns about getting robbed AND you have someone to have a nice dinner with !! but even if you have to go through bad times a person by your side is so helpful. in south america for example i felt really sick after our first long bus ride & without the help of my boyfriend i might never made it to the hostel or even through the following days. all in one it is always easier to share responsibility than having to carry all on your own !!
about solo travelling: let me tell you .. it is way more exhausting & totally different to travelling together !! at first i thought i wouldn`t like it at all but then it got better every day & now i`m pretty into it. you get to know so many new people from all over the world & everyone has to tell stories & share experiences !! furthermore you are more open & try out new things. you get spontaneous & confident. for me personally there was a huge difference between travelling together & doing it on my own. i ate much healthier for example, planned the day on my own, returned to hostel when i wanted & went out with other guys from the hostel. things i might not have done that way if i wouldn`t have been on my own. solo travelling is hard at the beginning but then it gets better every day & i guess in the end you will love it !!anyway i would like to give you some recommendations about how to solo travel .. just to not feel completely lost at the beginning:
1. join group tours: 
i started every day in a new city with the local free walking tour. this is a city tour together with others which starts at 11 am & lasts about 2 1/2 hours. you get to know the history & some special places of the city & the best thing: it is only based on donations at the end of the tour .. means you can give as much as you like to the tour guide !! for me this was the perfect way to start exploring the city & often i even came into conversation with the one or the other guy.
2. book the right hostel: there are special backpacker hostels which offer a fancy program for solo travellers. one of my fav hostels so far: `One Catedral Hostel´ which can be found in Sevilla, Barcelona, Madrid & Prague !! we did a special city tour every afternoon, had dinner together every evening & even went out together. furthermore the atmosphere was super relaxed & familiar. even if i slept in a dorm what is mostly not the best way to get sleep it was super calm in the bedrooms & everyone took care of each other. i just loved this feeling of being part of a community even if you knew each other just for one hour !!
anyway: try to enjoy the time on your own .. there has not to be someone around you all the time. make the little moments special & see yourself as the best person you could travel with !!