Solo Travel - Three Months in Asia

I started traveling solo at the beginning of 2018, my first destination was Australia for a few weeks. After that trip, I found myself in the same year flying to Bali, Canada and Iceland. I became addicted to not knowing what was to be discovered after I stepped foot off the plane, but in the end it became more about the thrill of discovering more about myself.

I decided later in the year of 2018 that I would no longer personally photograph weddings in the winter (luckily I do have some awesome associate photographers helping out while I am away). That meant taking time off from Jan - May. After very little research I decided I would head to Asia for my longest solo adventure yet. I booked my flight only a week out from actually leaving, put my apartment belongings in storage and filled a 40L backpack with two swimsuits, five shirts, two shorts, my camera and a laptop. I decided The Philippines looked pretty damn cool and thought I should spend a month there and then a month in Vietnam and then a month in Thailand. And then after Asia why not pop on over to Europe for a month and a half and see what that place is all about. I booked nothing except my first hostel in The Philippines.

The Philippines

The Philippines consists of over 7,000 islands! I spent most my time on the islands of Palawan, Boracay and Siargao. My favorite was Palawan because of the remote city of El Nido was unlike anything I have ever visited. That is where my journey began. I got off the plane and took a questionable tuk tuk 40 minutes to my first hostel on a beach in the middle of nowhere. No Wifi and a lot of memories and friends to be made.

While in The Philippines I rode my first scooter by myself, fought a fire that started in the night club I was in, four hours later the fire was out and no one got severely hurt, caught horrible food poisoning that put me in the “hospital” which was a one room office on the island of Siargao, met up with my best friend Chantalle in Boracay, sang Amy Winehouse’s version of “Valerie” nearly everyday (The Filipino people love that song!), zip-lined from one island to another island, many boat rides island hopping and too many bathrooms that still have me wondering how I had the courage to use them.

Here are a collection of my memories, mostly photos from my DSLR and some from my iPhone <3

Vietnam

Oh Vietnam. My flight landed in Ho Chi Minh two hours before the start of Tết, which is the Vietnamese New Year. It lasts over a week and starts off with streets full of people on their scooters (8 million scooters in that city!) enjoying the fireworks. It was incredible the energy I felt and the perfect way to start the most adventurous country I had ever been to.

While in Vietnam I visited some of my favorite and cheapest hostels (sometimes $5 per night), traveled all the way from the south to the north of Vietnam (by plane, bus, night bus, scooter, boat, junk boat), got in a scooter accident and luckily only hurt my ankle and knee, drank THE BEST coffee including egg coffee, wow! Met my now boyfriend Max in the mountains of Dalat and traveled with him for some time, got an infection in my accident wounds and went to the hospital and it costed me a whopping $40, visited many temples, “snuck” into an abandoned waterpark (okay we paid the guard 20 cents), had custom clothes made in Hoi An, walked the beautiful caves of Phong Nha and visited the Củ Chi Tunnels where I learned about the Vietnam war and went on an all day solo scooter ride over a mountain pass from one city to the next. There is so much to see and do in Vietnam, still to this day it is the most adventurous month of my life.

Thailand

Save the best for last. Thailand is the most livable of the three countries I visited. I would hands down live in Thailand and maybe one day I will. I fell in love with Koh Phangan, an island full of rose quartz and the crazy full moon party. I spent two weeks exploring that island and enjoyed the BEST yoga retreat where I met life long friends who filled my heart with joy. I was also lucky enough to meet up with my friends from Arizona and we visited an ethical elephant sanctuary (no elephant riding), the Phi Phi islands and the famous Koh San Road.

I was also introduced to a Northern Thailand dish called Khao Soi and it is one of tastiest dishes on the plant. I would fly back to Chang Mai/Pai just to taste it again. The food markets in Thailand are so delicious and cheap and can be found everywhere. The Thai people are kind, their beaches are beautiful and overall it is just a magical place that you must visit. And no Thailand trip is complete without a toasty from Seven Eleven 1-2 times a day and shopping for knock offs from all your favorite brands.