We had the honour to interview Emilie, the (wonder) woman behind the blog Globe-trottine, to get her insights on solo female travelling. Emilie is a French woman from Poitiers, who has lived in Paris, London and Manila.  

Can you tell me a bit about yourself, when did you start travelling alone? Why? What is your current situation?

I started to travel alone about a decade ago: I was then living and working in Manila, in the Philippines (I lived there for four months). My stay arriving to an end without having had any real time to visit, and since none of my friends or acquaintances were available, I decided in a last-minute decision to go visit an island on my own, even if I was scared to go alone. Like in a movie, I packed my backpack that very morning and took the first plane. And it went really well! I realised I could very well travel alone, even just for a weekend. Today, I only travel in my free time for my pleasure, not for work.

Among the countries you have visited, which one is your favourite?

I fell in love with the Philippines, for the breath-taking landscapes but especially for the people. The Filipinos are extraordinarily kind people. Their warmth towards strangers and foreigners is just incredible. Even among the poor population, who live in slums, people are still welcoming and smiling. My second crush are the British Isles. It is not as far away, not as exotic, but it is a country that touches me since my teenagerhood, where I have always felt good, during every of my trip. I go there at least once a year. One does not think of taking vacations in Great Britain, because it rains, and because London really is the main city, but the entire country deserves to be visited, there are some magnificent places! I really hope Brexit won’t stop me from going there!

Which country or travel experience really surprised you?

Lapland: I went to the north of Finland, where I was for three days, and was expecting large areas of pristine snow but not at all the feeling of freedom I felt. I felt free like I had never felt before, I wanted to run and scream in the middle of nowhere -which would not have bothered anyone, I was only surrounded by snow! This feeling of being in the middle of nowhere, on the other side of the world, and of feeling like in a cocoon, was incredible.

What does travelling alone bring you?

I travel either alone or with my girlfriends. Actually, I recently realised that when I travel with a guy, I put up barriers all on my own. Whenever I travel with a guy (either a friend or boyfriend), I have this tendency to let myself be guided, to let him drive, to let him take the lead and decide where we will stop and thus a tendency to minimize what I want. This is completely stupid! In consequence, because I feel less free, when I come home I feel like I missed out on things, like I didn’t do everything I wanted because I didn’t dare say what I wanted to do or did not enjoy it as much as I could have. This is really a shame that still today we have this conception that, with a guy, it is him who decides, him who is in charge, and him who will take care of potential issues!

Whereas with a girlfriend, I feel a lot more on equal terms. I have less scruples or hesitations to compromise on things or do things each on our own. This sort of conditioning is really weird, especially that in my day to day life I am not shy or holding back with guys! Maybe today’s current 20-year-old women feel this a lot less, or are more aware of it with the actual feminists’ movements?

Has travelling changed your perception of yourself? How?

Yes, completely! I am someone rather scared, I love to stay at home. Often in my circle, whenever I say that I am going abroad alone, people are disturbed, they ask me how I do it, or if I don’t feel lonely. First of all, I am not daring or reckless. I am no more likely to get hit by a car in the streets in Sweden or Canada than I am in Poitiers or Paris! And I travel in western countries, I don’t take any particular risks, it is not like I am trekking in some extreme mountains or like I am exploring the Amazonia jungle!

Second, I don’t get bored or lonely, one meets a lot of people when travelling! Actually, I don’t behave the same way when I travel than in my normal daily life. I am a lot more open, and I trust people a lot more.

You want to meet people so bad when you are abroad, that might be why you are likely to be less wary, you want to know people. This is maybe naive, but these are things you can feel, I don’t trust everyone either obviously. In comparison, back at home I would not take the time to discuss with everyone I cross path with, if someone calls me out, I will just wonder what they want with me and be suspicious. So you actually meet more people when you are abroad!

Do you have an experience or person you met who changed your way of perceiving yourself, or the others, or even the fact of travelling alone?

It is done through a lot of encounters and small experiences. To me, it is always a little challenge to go alone, but less now because I am more used to it and I have built my shell. When I travel alone, I always feel more apprehensive than when I am accompanied, because I wonder if I will meet people, if they will be nice etc. And yes, every time, people see you, they smile, they come talk to you, and when you are having an issue, as it happened to me in Scotland, they come help you. In Scotland, I don’t think I ever walked alone on the side of the road more than 10mn without having someone pulling over and offering me a ride, even if it was not their initial route! It is all of that that makes one think that one can trust people, that if one has a problem, there will always be someone to come and offer a hand.

What would you say to people who say that traveling alone as a woman is dangerous?

That there is no more risk of something happening to us in the streets of Krakow than in the streets of Paris or Glasgow. Obviously, you need common sense, you cannot adventure yourself in places you wouldn’t in your daily life at home. You must trust your instincts: does this feel safe and ok or not? And if you have the slightest doubt, avoid it altogether. One can have troubles, whatever the country, whether one is alone or not, but I think there will always be someone to help. One must be careful of the country one plans to go, look out for signs: there are some countries where travelling alone as a woman is not advised, or not as much as in other countries. One must plan, prepare, one cannot go somewhere without having the slightest idea of what to expect!

How could we change this idea that women shouldn't travel alone, and should go with someone?

I think it is the women especially that we must convince, and not necessarily the men. As I was saying earlier, when I travel with a guy, I tend to put up barriers myself, so I think it is especially something in our own mindset that we need to change. We must not allow ourselves to be polluted by outside opinions, otherwise we end up not allowing ourselves to do certain things, or we limit ourselves. We make the choice to listen to those around us and stay in our little shell and tell ourselves that we cannot do it, or we see the other women around us who have done it and we realize that we are perfectly capable of doing it. Even the ones who are scared or who don’t feel capable of it!

Also, there is no need to leave for the other side of the world to show ourselves we are capable of travelling alone, even taking three days in another city or a neighbour country is enough to see that YES, we can travel alone, we are capable of handling it and actually handling it very well! It is a groundwork, a work of mindset, made by women for themselves and for others.

What is your worst experience? How did you handle it? Did it have an impact on you, your behaviour or your life?

I went for a weekend in the mountains in Philippines, during the monsoon season, and the torrential rains had created landslides. I found myself stuck in a hamlet in the middle of nowhere, the road literally cut and buried under rocks, and I needed to get a bus in the valley to go home and work the next day! But, as it turned out there was always a local coming to my help! We could not communicate together, I not speaking their language and them mine. Still, some locals welcomed me to their house, and went searching for the neighbour who owned a motorcycle, who took me further away until we got stuck by another landslide. Someone else came with a truck and dropped me further away etc…Every time, someone came to my rescue and helped me get closer to the bus stop, which I took in time! So we can get lost, we can have troubles, but there is always someone to help. It really gives faith in humanity. And then, the whole incident didn’t traumatize me, nothing serious happened, and it didn’t change my opinion on travelling alone as getting my bag stolen would have.

What advice and tips would you give women who hesitate to travel alone?

Being a big coward, it reassures me to organise and plan things ahead, but obviously I leave space for the unexpected. I lay the groundwork: I know where my plane lands, where my accommodation is located, which bus to take to get there, and, overall, I try to familiarize myself with the city’s map and to have landmarks. Of course, there are always some failures, you discover a big slope where you were not expecting it! But it buys me time and allows me to feel more at ease when I arrive. I know where I am getting, and I avoid potential issues. Also, I think that to project oneself and to plan helps take the decision to leave.

Your best experience while travelling?

There are so many, that is why one travels and keeps doing it, why one wants to travel! One in particular: last year I went to the Orkney Islands (north of Scotland), and to get there you take the ferry. I met and befriended a woman during the crossing, who spontaneously suggested that she and her husband drop me off directly at my hotel rather than letting me take the shuttle once we would arrive. Afterwards, we kept in touch and I met her and her husband throughout my week there, at the pub or my place. And when my stay came to an end, they both insisted to drop me off at the ferry, even if they had a party planned that same evening! We kept in touch, we send each other gifts at Christmas, and they were supposed to come and visit me this year. It is not always the most obvious or spectacular things that make a trip, but also encounters like these! Not even a day there and I had already made friends!

Do you have a message to women who will read you?

Dare to do it, I am the perfect example! Even being scared, every woman can travel alone! You don’t need to leave for the other side of the globe to prove yourself you can do it. Even if it is not far away and for a short amount of time, go wherever you want, for as long as you want! You will find a freedom that you will never find when travelling with other people. To travel alone is to feel that incredible freedom and to feel exhilarated, when you realise you can do it!