Going it alone: 7 tips for successful solo travel
一個人也開心：獨自旅行的七個小貼士
"To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world." ”So wrote the great travel writer Freya Stark in her 1932 book "Baghdad Sketches." It’s been my motto traveling solo through 30 countries in 21 years.
“在一個陌生的小城獨自醒來，是這個世界上最美好的感覺之一。著名的旅行作家芙蕾雅·斯塔克在她1932年所寫的書《巴格達草繪》中寫下了這句感言。這是我21年來踏遍30個國家獨自旅行的格言。
I took my first trip alone, to Greece, at 22. I remember walking to the beach, Nirvana’s "Nevermind" blaring in my headphones, and realizing: no one knows where the hell I am. I’ve been chasing that euphoric feeling ever since.
22歲的時候，我第一次單獨旅行，去希臘。我記得自己走在去海灘的路上，耳機里震響著涅槃樂隊的“別介意”，然后意識到：沒人知道我到底身在何處。從那之后，我一直在追尋這種旅行的愉悅感。
Yet many people who might like to travel alone never do. They fear getting lonely or being bored. They worry about danger. Succumb to these fears, however, and you’ll miss out on one of the most addictive travel experiences around.
然而，很多人可能喜歡獨自旅行的人，卻從未這樣做過。他們害怕只剩自己一個人，害怕無聊。他們擔心遇到危險。盡管向這些恐懼屈服吧。但你同時也會錯過一種最讓人沉迷的旅行經歷。
These seven tips will prepare you for a solo adventure.
以下的七個小貼士會給你的獨自冒險帶來幫助。
1. Learn to like your traveling companion: You
1. 學會喜歡你的旅行伴侶：你自己
"But I’ll be lonely!" It’s perhaps the most common cry from people who’ve never traveled alone. "No: You won’t," writes Andrew O’Hagan in a New York Times blog. "My solo travels in Paris have brought many perfect hours of being alone but not a moment of loneliness," he writes.
“可我會感到孤零零的!“ 這也許是從未獨自旅行過的人們最常喊叫的話 。“不，你不會。” 安德魯·奧哈根在一個紐約時報的博客中寫道。“在巴黎的獨自旅行，帶給了我許多完美的獨處時光，卻沒有哪怕一瞬間的孤獨感，”他寫道。
"People who depend on other people are often in hiding from themselves." Traveling alone brings you face to face with yourself -- with your failings and your strengths. But that confrontation is inevitable in life -- don’t put it off. You may even find you love what you see -- and go away with yourself every time.
“依賴他人的人們通常都在躲避他們自己。” 獨自旅行帶給你面對自己的機會-面對你的缺點和優點。但這種面對是生活中不可避免的-不要拖延。你甚至可能發現你喜歡看到的你自己——之后每次都和自己一起出行。
2. Revel in your selfishness
2. 為你的自私狂歡吧(想干嘛就干嘛)
Having no one but yourself to decide what to do each day is a rare luxury. Imagine: no one to sneer if you want to find the local art house cinema and watch old black-and-white movies all day. No one to sigh over your love of tractor museums. No one to gripe when you whip through a gallery in 30 minutes instead of taking the tour.
沒有別人的干涉，只有自己決定每天做什么事情，這可是難得的奢侈噢。想象一下：沒人會笑你想要找個當地的藝術小屋電影院，看老掉牙的黑白電影看上一整天。沒人會對你對拖拉機博物館的狂熱無奈嘆氣。沒人會抱怨你飛快地在30分鐘內逛完畫廊，而不慢慢游覽。
"Never will you feel guilty for missing that train from Florence to Rome ... never will you have to apologize to anyone for sleeping in late at your hostel," expands Katka Lapelosa on the Matador Network travel site. "You don’t have anyone else’s feelings to take into consideration, and that is sometimes the most encouraging reason to travel alone."
“你再也不會為錯過從佛羅倫薩到羅馬的火車而心存愧疚…再也不用為在旅社睡過時間去向任何人道歉，”卡特卡·拉派勞薩在Matador Network的旅行網站上就這點繼續擴展道。“你不用去考慮其他人的感受，這有時也是獨自旅行最鼓舞人心的理由。”
3. Lose the invisible "Helpless Rube" sign
3. 丟掉看不見的“無助的鄉巴佬”標志
Nothing says "clueless" like standing on a street corner with a huge map and terrified expression. The key to traveling solo is looking confident, even if you don’t always feel it.
拿著一張大地圖，滿臉畏懼的表情站在街角，是“沒見過世面”最明顯的特征了。獨自旅行的關鍵是要看起來自信，即使你不總是有自信的感覺。
The U.S. Peace Corps has this advice for travelers: "Walk confidently ... and wear sunglasses if you need to walk with your head held high." More specifically: when traveling alone, always go into a shop or doorway to consult a map. Work out where you need to be and then stride off confidently.
美國和平對給旅行者以下建議：“自信地走路…如果你需要高昂著頭走路，可以戴上太陽鏡。” 再具體點講：一個人旅行時，總可以走去商店或者別人家門口咨詢關于地圖的問題。找到你要去的地方，然后自信地大步前進!
