*The above image is taken from http://www.fearnet.com*
Okay, maybe my use of the above picture is “slightly” dramatic for the following story. One of the classic, I guess you can say, “coming of age” experiences of travellers is his or her first stay in a hostel. Hostels can be quite a fun environment to meet likeminded travellers, however, they can also be filled with surprises. Here is a tale of caution for the solo traveller.
When I was working in Spain, the family I was staying with told me I had a week off as they were going on holiday. Where to go? What to see? The options were endless. I excitedly called my friends to commence planning. Sadly, I was disappointed to discover that none of my friends had the time off. What should I do? I was 18 at the time and had never solo travelled before. However, to the chagrin of my parents, the travel bug got the better of me and I booked flights to Dublin and Paris, with plans to meet one of my friends in Barcelona at the end of the week. As I was a “struggling student” so to speak at the time, I decided to stay in hostels. I meticulously planned and researched my hostel choices (or so I thought) and prepared for my trip.
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Dublin was first on the itinerary. I arrived warily at my hostel, and to my relief, I was met with a kind and welcoming hostel staff, and a room full of fellow female travellers who made me feel at ease from the moment I arrived. My entire stay in the hostel in Dublin was wonderful, and I left for Paris emboldened by my experience.
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I arrived in Paris and set off on the metro to my destination station “Place de la Republique.” When I got off the metro, I was struck by how seedy the area looked. I sarted to feel a bit uneasy as I walked towards my hostel. I reached the hostel, and checked in. I found my room, opened the door, and to my surprise and discomfort, walked into a couple fooling around on the bed! I returned to the hostel front desk, and explained that I was 18, travelling alone, extremely uncomfortable by the thought of staying in a room with a couple alone. Furthermore, I thought I booked a room with ONLY female travellers, to which they responded they ONLY offered co-ed rooms! (Oh Paris…) I adamantly maintained that this would not do and that I only wanted to stay in a room with women, and they suggested that I stay in a room that no one was in yet. They explained that someone might come the following night or the one after, and with relief I replied that would be fine as long as they were women.
I reached my new room, and, to my surprise, there was luggage in the room. I went down to the front desk again, and the hostel staff explained to me that sometimes people check out and then leave their things in the room to go sightseeing for the day, and its not supposed to happen, but it does from time to time. I shrugged my shoulders and returned to my room. Exhausted at this point from travelling all morning, I decided to take a quick shower and change into my PJs and read for a bit. All of a sudden, a grown man walked into the room carrying wine and cheese. His eyes appeared to light up when he saw me as he smiled and asked if I liked wine? I mumbled a reply that I was going for a walk and left the room.
At this point, I was exhausted, scared and feeling alone and insecure in my unfamiliar surroundings. All I could thing was that I wanted to hear a familiar voice so I called my father collect from a payphone outside. Now my Dad…is a former superintendent for the RCMP (Canadian National Police force) so evidently his job always left him considering worst case scenarios (think Liam Neeson from Taken). When I heard his voice, I started crying, and choked out the words “Dad…theres this guy in my room…” what my poor Dad was thinking at this point I can only imagine. I finally managed to explain my story to which my father replied, “Okay, well you cant stay there, so just get to a hotel and we will pay for it!” (Thank god for supportive families right?)
I went into the hostel and said I couldn’t stay there as I wiped the tears out of my eyes…and they took pity on me and gave me a free private room with private bathroom for no extra charge!
The moral of this story is? Expect the unexpected while travelling. Looking back on this experience as a seasoned traveller, I’m laughing now. Sometimes, no amount of research can prepare you for what takes place, and its so important (especially as a solo traveller) to maintain your composure and use your judgement and intuition, and be true to yourself about any situation you feel uncomfortable about.
Savoury Travels 