Madam, - I am utterly exasperated at comments made by Sandra O'Connell in the Travel Desk section of your paper on Saturday March 25th. After acknowledging that solo travel can be "empowering", she immediately discounts her opening remark by adding, "after you've done it" - suggesting that it is only after the trauma of travelling alone is over that one can revel in its achievement.
For goodness sake, is she trying to claim that all travellers long constantly for the company and solace of others, and that one is destined to wander about isolated from locals and fellow adventurers? And then we are faced with the image of Ms Deirdre Grant of Driftaway Travel peering miserably into her glass of wine in a Dublin hotel, seemingly incapable of striking out beyond her self-inflicted Pale to enjoy an evening at a cinema, theatre or restaurant.
Having described the trauma and misery of time spent alone, the article adds a comment from Stan Ryan of CIE Tours International, who baldly states that there is "little chance" of a single traveller journeying from Vienna to Istanbul on their own.
Why? Do all people in those regions go about in groups? Is it impossible for a person on their own to board a train or a bus or rent a car? And if such places as these are beyond the possibilities of the solo voyager, what of the countries and continents further away than a four-hour flight, or with radically different cultures? Should one not go forth to explore just because one is not in company?
The world as portrayed in this article is hostile and dangerous. I spent the best part of a month hiking solo in the Apennines in Italy last summer. I did indeed spent much of the time alone, but I also met and engaged with Italians, and had great fun, making an effort to communicate that I might not have made if in a group.
Yes, having to manage all aspects of a journey on one's own is more stressful than having help, and it's handy to be able to leave luggage with a friend and stroll about unencumbered. But going around on one's own, on any journey, to anywhere, is nowhere near as stressful or unpleasant as being in company where one is not included, or made to feel lonely, or left out. - Yours, etc,
MARY C SHEEHAN,
Ballinvarrig,
Castlelyons,
Co Cork