How brave!

To whoever I say I'm off to travel alone, this is the first phrase I hear.

Courage is the virtue that overcomes fear. Why are people so afraid of traveling alone? And why do they admire so much those who take a chance and leave followed only by their backpacks come from?

This was my companion.

Often the difficulty with languages ​​paralyzes people. In other cases the problem is shyness - the challenge of communicating with strangers, even though you speak the same language. Sometimes you're just worried that something might go wrong - missing a flight, being robbed, having an accident, running out of cash - and there'll be no one around to assist you.

But i think deep down people fear loneliness.

You.

We learn from an early age that loneliness is a bad thing. We learn that it belongs to the eccentric, to the introverted, to the anti-social. So we run away from it at all costs. Even locked in a room with anyone else, we seek distractions to conceal our solitude - the internet speaks for itself. Being alone with our own thoughts can be tedious - when we don't know what to think of - or painful - when we don't want to face our monsters.

Traveling alone is seeing your purest and trueliest essence thrown in your face, uncensored. Your way of reacting and dealing with each situation is personal and nontransferable. The energy that comes from your eyes will define how - and if - people approach you. You'll spend long periods without internet and cell phone signal, and when you finish your book or yout tablet battery runs out, you will be forced to think to pass the time. Reflection is inevitable, as well as the growth that accompanies it.

Those who travel alone unveil not only the world, but above all themselves. Going out and living extreme situations, they turn inwards and learn more than any school could teach.

This is the best school.

Lone backpackers are sociable - they may not have been born this way, but they learned it not to become hermits.

They're insatiable - they know that it's not the world that changes, but themselves, and they quench their thirst for novelty everyday simply by changing their perspective.

They're less judgmental - they learn that different is only this, neither better nor worse; and, most of the times, this role will be theirs.

They're smarter - they learn the hard way to deal with so many different troubles and to overcome frustrations.

They're lighter - they understand that happiness lies in the magical moments they built, and not on the things they have.

They're more authentic - they know they don't need to wear masks to be perceived as interesting persons.

They're cool - there's no room in the backpack for the latest trends, so they dress of their personalities.

I travel by myself because what I want the most is to learn how to be this person. But if you don't have a whole month of vacations, don't know other languages or don't have money for a plane ticket, don't worry. A weekend at the beach or in the mountains, just around the corner, is enough to start.

You don't need to go far to find yourself.