Your bit on the side
More of Barca and solo travel tips
Turns out I had more to say. I usually do. After all, Drafting is a continuous process. I mean that both in the literal sense of the word and also the very essence of this aptly named (if I do say so myself) Substack.
Do the Cha Cha Slide and reverse, reverse back to my last post here if you haven’t read it yet.
I ended things by sneaking in a little mention of therapy and strengthening my safety nets. Something I was hoping for and later glad the Barcelona trip delivered on. I didn’t want to admit it to myself at the time, but I also knew there was another reason I was wishing things would be a roaring success. More recently it’s felt important to lean into spending time alone because I know that sometimes you might not get a choice. It’s been a part of my own grieving process after losing my dad nine months ago and an essential step towards knowing that journeying through life after loss is going to be okay. Wow, grief and therapy in one post - you’ve really hit the jackpot!
People have asked what I did on my trip and I really didn’t do much else other than be on my own in a foreign land. I walked, read, wrote and ate. Arguably not all that exciting. But what I gained was an invaluable achievement in feeling strong, brave and proud of myself.
sums it up beautifully in her ‘An Air Conditioned Nirvana' newsletter from“I think holidays, perfect holidays, are a mix of the mundane and the magical.”
Amen to that.
Lots of people have asked about travelling solo so wanted to do a short and sweet round-up for you of the planning behind my trip to Barcelona.
I definitely wasn’t starting from scratch. Navigating the ol’ Big Smoke since I moved here for uni at 18 paved the way for years of confidence building in a sprawling and busy city on common home ground. You can start here first and get to grips with a city close to home. In the last 6 months is when I’ve really upped by my game with lone activities. I booked a hotel in London for my birthday, and then another a few months later just because. I had dinner on my own, went to the cinema and for walks. It’s been a series of smaller steadier steps before deciding to go abroad and for longer than one night.
Barcelona is a city I knew well. It was my third time visiting and I spent a whole month there nearly a year ago. It felt familiar. I stayed in a hotel. It felt like the right type of accommodation to feel safe in and picked an area I liked.
We live surrounded by technology; use it. I know there’s an allure to go off grid and spend less time on your phone when you go on holiday and I completely agree with this most of the time. But you don’t need to put any extra pressure on yourself by going completely cold turkey on human connection with an added digital detox.
Google stuff. What type of area do you want to stay in? Is it close to the places you want to visit? Is English widely spoken? Although I very much think that trying to at least attempt speaking some of the native language goes a long way. The fact English is so widely spoken is a privilege, so make a bit of effort.
City Mapper, Uber and bolt all worked in Barcelona. My top 3 apps in London for getting around so that made everything easier. Don’t forget you can always share your location with friends and text people when you’re on your way back home the same as you would normally do.
Why not phone or FaceTime a friend while you’re at lunch? I often get so caught up in life I mean to get back to people and then I blink and it’s been weeks. There’s perhaps no better time to reply to the texts you’ve been meaning to get round to and of course, make everyone jealous of you.
Anything else you’re unsure of or would add when it comes to solo travel?
* Illustration - Andrea De Santis.