“If it excites you and scares you at the same time then it might be a good thing to do” (anon), this quote definitely reflects how I think and after a pretty intense 9 months starting from Jan 2018 I decided that I was going to go travelling.

Travelling isn’t alien to me… I’ve travelled to 29 countries (and passed through/stopped off at a lot more countries than that), but I’ve only really been on one trip – Berlin 2016 where I travelled completely by myself (my 2014 journey across Europe doesn’t count as it was a coach trip with 25+ other people and some of my trips in 2015 and 2016 where I travelled with friends but ended up staying in the destination longer than them. I’m lucky to have generous annual leave!

So, I decided to chuck caution to the wind and go somewhere far away – I really love South East Asia and it was a toss-up between Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia. Indonesia won as I had wanted to visit the Gili Islands for ages!!! I did my research and settled on the Islands of Java (Jakarta and Yogyakarta), Bali (Seminyak, Canggu, Ubud, Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan) and Lombok (Gili Air and Gili T).

I remember leaving Glasgow airport and taking my flights to Jakarta via Dubai with not one ounce of fear, ready for the adventure that lay ahead for me, ready to tackle this solo traveling adventure – after all I’d survived the craziness of Bangkok, KL, Accra and Tirana!

I made it to Jakarta’s international airport and met my taxi driver who was a lovely jovial woman- and that’s when I heard the stand out saying from my holiday, ”you are/are you travelling alone???” Now my taxi driver was really interested in the fact I was travelling alone and why I picked Jakarta as essentially Jakarta isn’t really seen as a holiday destination. She then (in a very friendly way) told me not to go out alone, to watch myself, to only use taxis that the hotel sort out/Grab/Go Jek…..suddenly my excitement and confidence ebbed away……oh no, I thought….what have I done? I was so far from home and I felt overwhelmed and a bit anxious…what was I going to do?

I’d planned to spend the evening in my hotel (Hotel Kosenda) as they had an amazing restaurant and rooftop bar that was visited by people that weren’t staying at the hotel (plus I don’t sleep on planes, so I was shattered) …. so, I dusted myself off and had some cocktails in the rooftop bar, where I was greeted by more “you are travelling alone?” and the loveliest staff and amazing cocktails.

And the next day I gave myself a good talking too… I spent all lot of time being excited about this trip so there was no way I was going waste it by being afraid to go out, so I put my big girl pants on and went out an explored Jakarta.

Over the following 4 weeks I visited some amazing places – Yogyakarta (where I had my breath taken away by Borobudur), Bali where I partied in Seminyak and Canggu and learned a little more about Balinese culture in Ubud, Nusa Lembongan (my favourite place of the whole trip, I think I left my heart there), Gili Air (where the earth literally moved), Gili Trawangan (where one night of partying almost broke me) and Nusa Ceningan (no words can describe how amazing the scenery is there).

It wasn’t all great – there are things that I am aware of and have experienced travelling as a black woman. However, I came across a whole new level of racism that I have not experienced when I’ve travelled and that I’ve not experienced at home. The Indonesian people are lovely and so friendly, and I didn’t experience any racism/ill feeling from them, unfortunately it was from other holiday makers.

I will be honest it was hard experiencing what I experienced – there was no one to talk to and people who haven’t really experienced racism tell you to rise above it, to not let what the racists have said get you down and while they are trying to be nice, it doesn’t take away the pain and hurt that you experience, as essentially someone has a problem with the fact that I exist in the black skin that I am im, that I love and would never change. It did impact me and I physically left Canngu and Ubud because of it (disclaimer – I would go back to these places but I would definitely visit when it’s off season) as hearing the bile that was directed at me really does a number on how you feel especially when you are trying your hardest not to react and not get angry.

What I will say is that I met some of the most amazing people from the US, UK, NZ, South Africa and Australia. It’s those great experiences, amazing places and awesome people that made this holiday (despite the horrible times and they were really horrible) so worthwhile. I learned so much from this experience and I have a new level of confidence, grit and strength that I would never have got if I did not do this trip.

If you are thinking about travelling solo then I would totally advise you to do it, it’s one of the best things I’ve ever done. It will really test what you are made of but I really pushed myself and tested my limits – I went to a NYE and NYD music festival by myself and didn’t stay by myself for very long, pushed myself to go out at night and made friends with some great people and even went to a karaoke bar (and totally rocked Sia- Titanium) and a club solo on my last full night in Indonesia.

Indonesia Solo Travel Travel backpackerlife backpacking bali beach beachlife beachphotography blackgirlstravel blackgirlstraveltoo blacktraveljourney bliss borobudur femaletravel happy happyplace ilovetravel Indonesia lembongan mahanapoint melanintravel mobilephotography mobiletravelphotography nusaceningan peaceful sandsunsea solotravel solowomentravel Travel travelinspo traveller travelphotography travelstories travelwriting wanderlust wonderfulindonesia yogya