SOLO TRIP for 8 days! [Article 1: The planning & Problems]

I am married yet I was able to go on a solo trip. It was my first solo trip ever. I wanted to know if I can interact with strangers and connect with them or do I enjoy connecting with people who I already know for years or do I love being alone. I explored a lot that I have summarized in the series of articles along with my itinerary. I call it “SOLO TRIP for 8 days!” In every article, I have expressed my problems, planning, learnings, and so on in a funny way. #Solo #funny #trip #Vacations

The background:

I had recently relocated to another city due to career progression. Since my sister was also working in the same city, I had to shift with the entire family. The pre-planning, the planning, the execution, the management… urgh! I feel exhausted even when I recall the process. I needed a break from the tiring routine. So, I thought about places that flashed in my mind and places that I thought to visit. I thought of visiting Thailand at first all alone for five days but the flight tickets were too high as it was a year-end plan. If I had preferred to walk, it would have taken more than a month to reach. Anyway, I was excited and equally scared. I saw videos of people getting robbed even though I had not much cash in the bank or jewelry on me. (Pun intended). I discussed it with my wife and the reaction was as expected. “Really? ALONE?” (Shortened it due to word limit ;)) Then I thought of visiting Nepal but that didn’t work either. With every denial, my determination was getting stronger. I looked at the India map and did an online search for “Places to visit on a SOLO trip”. A few places I didn’t like and a few places I couldn’t go for undisclosed reasons. I narrowed to two options; Seven sister states or Uttarakhand. My wife suggested Uttarakhand and I liked it somehow. Since I practice meditation and yoga, visiting Rishikesh was on my list anyway.

The planning & Problems:

I drew the Uttarakhand map on a white paper (Thanks to my school who taught me how to draw) and drew small circles of famous tourist places located as shown online. Then I connected the dots and noted the distance and time to reach. After I finished, it was clear to me that I cannot cover everything in 8 days. I did what most people do; I picked the most visited places by tourists (As per my research). The list had the following:

• Jim corbett National Park

• Nainital (Local tourist Attractions)

• Rishikesh

• Haridwar

• Mussoorie

• Dehradun

• Rudraprayag

I downloaded apps that I had uninstalled earlier to check on flight tickets and hotels. It wasn’t any cheaper but I really wanted to go. I booked cheaper flight tickets that were scheduled at early hours. It was really a bad idea that I realized later. I booked hotels from where I could walk to the nearest tourist destinations yet I hired a bike later as I was unsure about the people I would meet in the dormitory system. I wondered what if they robbed me while I was asleep? I mean, it’s still risky for a man you know!

Since I had a return flight from Dehradun I decided to start from the other end; Nainital. After all the preplanning and problems, finally the tickets were booked that made a dent in my pocket. After I saw the messages that said “Rs. **** amount debited from your account…” I thought of canceling it but none were refundable. Cheaper things usually are risky. The night before, my wife reminded me several times (I lost count after 7 as I was sleepy) to pick up her calls and call her back often. I agreed wholeheartedly. I closed my eyes for a good sleep, opening my wings to fly the next day early morning!

Article two will be out soon. Please like and share this article. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it.