Why Italy? Why solo?

For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Madeleine and I’m a 20 year old student from Melbourne. In 5 days time, I’ll be in Rome for my first solo adventure and I just wanted to use this blog to share my experiences, thoughts and feelings about this adventure with my friends and family. Firstly, I chose to call this blog ‘Attraversiamo’ which means ‘Let’s Cross Over’ in Italian. I heard it in my favourite book/movie Eat, Pray, Love, which inspired me to travel solo and go to Italy. This phrase reminds me that you should live your life to its fullest, without barriers or regrets. This trip to Italy is just the beginning of my independence and self-fulfilment.

One of the first questions I have been asked about my month long adventure to Italy, was why Italy? For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to go to Italy. Initially, it was the food and culture which I experienced on Italian day in primary school. In all seriousness, who wouldn’t want to eat pizza, pasta and gelato all day long?! As I got older, it was Italy’s ancient history and its ruins. The ruins of the Colosseum and the Roman Forum, Roman emperors, Gladiator fights, the eruption of Mt Vesuvius and the destruction of Pompeii in 79 AD and Renaissance period interested me and seemed so exciting. I always knew that I wanted to go to Italy, I just never knew when I would go.

The next question they ask, is why solo? Many of my family and friends are concerned – telling me that I’ll get lonely, become homesick or that it is unsafe for a young girl, who doesn’t speak the language, to travel alone. Whilst these things might be true, there are a few things I want to clear up. A few countries in the world are completely unsafe for all travellers – not just solo travellers. Any country with established tourism is likely to be safe for solo travellers. For females all across the world, there is always a risk, whether they are at home or travelling abroad, people just need to exercise precaution and have their wits about them. Safety shouldn’t stop solo travellers, people should just act with caution. This trip will be one of the most empowering experiences of my life. I am pushing myself out of my comfort zone, flying to the other side of the world to a foreign country. For a quiet, shy and introverted person, I am hoping that this experience will teach me to be more independent.

‘The woman who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The woman who walks alone is likely to find herself in places no one has ever been before‘ – Einstein

Thank you for reading my first post and I hope I can share the rest of my journey with you! xxx