Companions forum

hi hippy,

sign up for a tour or a day trip like snorkelling. these trips put you in a ready-made group where it is easy to meet people and start up a conversation.

i've always thought single females had the advantage meeting people, because they are usually welcomed by other single females, single males, and couples. you can always ask to join people at a restaurant or at the beach. they may say no, but so what? odds are you can meet a few nice people just be saying hello that way.

finally, i've done a lot of travelling by myself and have come to enjoy it. i like the 100% flexibility of coming and going wherever and whenever i want. when i travel by myself, i take postcards with me to restaurants and spend the time between ordering and food arriving to write to my friends back home about what i did that day. it makes me feel like i am sharing the experience with others.

i hope that helps. best wishes.

One of the guys on this forum (altmtl, I think?) started up a Facebook page for travellers in the SEA region. Maybe put a post on there and see if anyone is around that you can meet up with for a drink or meal.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/SEASIA2012/

Actually - just having a look, someone has just posted to see if anyone else is in Krabi on 16-18 December. Maybe that's a good start.

Like exacto, I find I really enjoy my travelling time alone, but yes, it can be lonely at times. I'm not a natural conversation-starter with people that I don't know, so I understand the difficulty.

Some suggestions:
- In a crowded restaurant or table at a market, if there are spare seats on a table, ask if you can join them.
- Join a organised tour as mentioned by exacto. I still keep in touch with a girl I met on a snorkel tour in Railey 4 years ago.
- Go to a small cafe/restaurant run be ex-pats during a quiet time (not a busy lunch hour). If they're not busy, and are fairly socialable, you may find that they are quite happy to chew the fat with you for awhile. And they might have some ideas on where else you can go. (I say ex-pat as opposed to locals because sometimes you just want to have an easy conversation with someone that can relate to you)
- Google to see if there are any ex-pat clubs/groups in the area.
- Contrary to my comment above about meeting up with ex-pats, start up a conversation with some locals. Often it's hard to get past the 'where are you from? Are you married? Do you have kids? Where are you going?' questions - but sometimes they can take you on a unexpected journey. Some of my favourite moments are in SEA are random conversations that I've had with locals that turn into little mini-adventures. I also still keep in touch with a few Indonesians that I met in Lembongan and Bali 4 years ago.

Good luck!

altmtl- i am experiencing just that! Thanks for the advice to you other guys, you really have helped me in a time of need. I am now staying in a western friendly guesthouse/hostel place which has completely removed me from my isolation predicament, which tbh, was getting quite scary and i was experiencing doubts about my every move to the point that it just felt safer both physically and psychology to stay im my room. Now that the day has suddenly opened opportunities before my eyes, I feel comletely different and once again ready to take on the world! Exacto's suggestion of joining a local tour was invaluable, as i would not even have considered the idea of a tour (not being tourist snobby, just used to finding my own way around)! Thanks for you help guys, i couldn't appreciate it more

Signing up for a group event is a good idea. Also you might just go to a bar... that is a place where people naturally go to socialize and alcohol has been a known social lubricant for thousands of years - I mean we're not going to reinvent the wheel here.

Thanks guys for all your help. I'm going on a day sea kayaking group tomorrow. Maybe I'll meet people, maybe not but at least I've gathered the courage and confidence to get out and explore this beautiful country! Your advice has been fantastic