Düsseldorf, Meitheamh 2019
“Ní Saoirse go Saoirse na mBan”
Lá Idirnáisúinta na mBan shona daoibh!
As today is international women’s day, I felt it was a perfect opportunity to talk about my experiences travelling Europe alone as a young woman. When I tell people that I am going on a trip alone, or have done so in the past, I am always met with worried faces and attempted discouragement. Whilst I completely accept and acknowledge the dangers out there for us women, I am often left thinking of the above quote, “There is no freedom without the freedom of women.”
The first trip I took completely alone was during my backpacking trip in the summer of 2019. My friends had to return to Ireland early, and I was left to complete the adventure solo. I only had two stops left on my list; Cologne and Dusseldorf. I had only ever flown to Britain and Australia on my own before, and was shaking with fear at the thought of travelling Western Europe on my own as a small blonde woman, as I was always pumped full of horror stories and awful statistics of what happens to women abroad. However, I already paid for the trip, I needed to go to Dusseldorf for a course, and I couldn’t rely on others for the rest of my life, so I braved it.
I flew from Madrid to Cologne, and really threw myself into the deep-end when it came to trying to overcome fears left over from these awful stories. My flight landed very late at night, and I had to make my way to the city by train on my own in the dark. Before leaving, I had read online to always steer clear of train stations at night, for it is common throughout Europe to get mugged or assaulted in some stations at night, but I had no choice. I soon learned that Cologne was a pretty safe city, and I encountered no problems or strange people on my journey. My AirBnB host also agreed to meet me at the train station and walk me to the apartment, as I was too scared to walk alone in the dark.
I quickly came to discover how liberating solo travelling is. I woke up the next morning, planned everything that I wanted to do and see within the city, didn’t have to consult anyone or take their wants into consideration and managed to tailor an entire city break to myself. I took my time getting ready, and treated myself to a bath before a day of exploration. I was terrified walking around a strange city by myself, but I was slowly growing to love being in the company of my own thoughts. Everything was on my own terms, and I loved that. (Make sure to follow this blog to hear more about this city break!)
I only spent two nights in Cologne before heading to Dusseldorf for a language course in Heinrich Heine University. During this time, I did make life-long friends and memories I will cherish for a life time, however I did also experience some scary things and dodgy characters. One of which was actually my house-mate, who constantly pestered me to sleep with him and even went as far as shouting in my face in public when I rejected him a fourth time.
In Germany, a very common form of student accommodation is something called ‘Wohnung-Gemeinschaft’ or home-sharing. Basically, you write in a facebook group for your area, and find someone with a spare room in their apartment to sub-let from. Looking back on my experience now, I probably would have been financially and mentally better off to have just stayed in a hostel for the month, and would strongly advise people to get to know the person they are renting from before they agree to anything, or send any payments. If you can live in a house with more than one other person, even better.
A few weeks after returning from Germany, I moved to Gran Canaria to start my first semester of my year abroad. I knew no one when I first arrived, my flight landed after dark and after my experience in Germany, I was terrified of walking to my accommodation alone – so I rang my aunt on the way to have some company. I stayed in a hostel for the first two weeks, for my apartment wasn’t available yet, and I actually ended up not wanting to leave the hostel in the end. I had made such wonderful friends there! There was always something fun to do, someone to talk to, and it was super close to the university. Now that I have spent a lot of time there, I would recommend the Canary Islands to any woman that wishes to travel alone.
Whilst living in Gran Canaria, I took myself off to one of the smaller islands, La Palma. None of my friends had the same days off as me, and I didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity of seeing all the islands before leaving, so I just booked it and went. I loved every second of this trip, and it was here that my confidence in travelling alone really grew. I did everything alone. Wandered the cities, went on a hike, I even took myself off to the botanical gardens for a quiet lunch and then found a beautiful beach to watch the waves and read on. Learning to love my own company is the most valuable thing this trip taught me. I learnt so much about myself, and feel like I started to discover more about my purpose and what path I want my life to take. My soul was ignited.
Now, I have travelled to Malta, Austria, Switzerland, and other parts of Germany on my own. I live in a tiny alpine town teaching English, I live alone and often take myself off to different places or walks. I’m my own best friend, and I no longer feel that I can’t do something without a companion. I wouldn’t have this freedom, love, or respect for myself and my own company if I had allowed horror stories and other people to rule my life.
Being a young woman is incredibly terrifying. However, the world can’t change if we don’t force it to. I urge every young woman reading this to click off of the scary Daily Mail article about the girl that was abducted on holiday, and book a ticket to a city they’ve always wanted to see. The reality of travelling will surprise you.
Yes, there are some twisted people out there and bad things can happen, but those people exist in your home town, and those things can happen anywhere. Don’t allow yourself to become a prisoner due to these minority cases. Allow your eyes to be opened and your world to expand.
Loving and nurturing people far outweigh and are more numerous than the evil. You’ll find them wherever you go.
You’ll never know true freedom until you spread your wings.
Grá mór,
is mise,
Sam
Cumha 