I remember the first time I traveled alone. I was in 10th grade, and I flew to New York to visit my Aunt Nanette and Uncle Alan. I had no escort on the airplane, my parents weren't coming with me, it was just me and my suitcase on a cross-country plane ride for five hours.
And I loved it.
Since then, I've traveled alone quite a bit. I've flown to Maryland, Washington, New York, Florida, Colorado, and Georgia countless times on my own to visit family, go to and from McDaniel, and travel. I've flown a few times in there with other people, but nothing compares to flying alone. I've also taken a train to New York alone a few times, and it's the same concept. I still get the same rush of independence from being alone with my suitcase and my book.
When I travel alone, I don't have to talk to anyone. Doesn't matter if it's 5:30 in the morning or 10:30 at night, if you're traveling with someone, you're expected to make conversation with them. Anyone who knows me knows that I love to talk, but when I don't want to it's usually when I'm traveling. I like to check out and enjoy the ride to the destination. Alone, I have every opportunity to do that.
I'm also a very fast walker. I get to walk as fast as I want, speeding through the terminal to my gate. I don't have to stop and wait for my companion to catch up to me. In the same vein, I don't have to run to keep up with people who have long legs. Another thing about me that is no secret at all is that I have very short legs and people who walk fast and have long legs are the bane of my existence because I just can't keep up. Traveling without them eliminates this problem nicely.
Other benefits include choosing the restaurant that I grab a meal at, always getting the aisle seat, not worrying about having to follow anyone's schedule but your own, and just being able to have your headphones in 100% of the time.
Traveling alone has become such a part of my identity at this point that when I travel with others it seems almost counterintuitive. Since that first time I flew alone, I've traveled with at least one other person only eight times, and three of them have been one-way trips for me. It's become a habit to be alone, in an airport, surrounded by strangers with one thing in common: we are all trying to get from point A to point B. Whether it's for a vacation, a visit with friends or family, a job interview, or any multitude of reasons, I have never felt bad about traveling alone. Because even if I'm alone, I'm not lonely. I have a zillion of my closest friends around, all doing the same thing I am.
