"100 lessons I learnt solo travelling as a student"

America Lee Yan Yi Start Date: Nov 21, 2017 - End Date: Dec 10, 2017
  • Turkey
  • Egypt
  • India
  • Hong Kong

My Travel Story

by: America Lee Yan Yi Start Date: Nov 21, 2017 - End Date: Dec 10, 2017
Once I stepped out from the immigration center in the local airport on 4th of June 2017, that was the time I knew my journey has begun and everything will change.

Like most millennials, traveling abroad is something accessible and it is something I have always wanted to do after watching all these beautiful places on the media, either from a movie scene or somewhere on my Facebook's news feed. I remembered during my high school years, I just got very excited when people told me they had seen Eiffel Tower during school holidays because I have always thought the idea of seeing the tower in real life is something out of reach and impossible, since I come from a middle class family in a small residential area. Being a university student, I got stressed out from time to time and one of the ways I released stress was to do some random travel plans for a city and pretended I'm going to the city for the next few weeks. Little did I know, this effort had lead me to planning and researching for 2 years, and now, I'm finally seeing the world myself as a sole traveller.

From time to time, I would bump into people from different walks of life no matter where I go. Every time when I initiate a conversation, it usually starts with the same ice breaking statements like where I came from and what I am doing. I remembered there was this one time when I hitchhiked to Greenville, North Carolina, a lady, who picked me up, asked me a simple question that was still stuck in my brain till now. She asked : "Isn't it scary to travel the world by yourself?" Without hesitation, I answered: "Hell ya." I took a deep breathe and tears swelled up in my eyes. I had a sudden realisation about how far I have come and I couldn't imagine this is what I'm doing now; standing on the side road, sticking my thumb up and waiting for a ride. 5 years ago, I don't think I would have the courage to get out of my house and have lunch in a restaurant by myself when my parents were at work, even though it was just a short walking distance.

So why do I do it? Well, because I am still very young and youth is the greatest asset that does not come with a price. I just left school after a lifetime of studies and how would I know about the real world and everything it has to offer? I wish to see the Eiffel Tower that I thought I will never see. I want to meet new people that are different and I want to explore and learn things beyond my horizon. Every city I go to is a new classroom as I have to figure out how everything works on my own, from the language they speak, the accessibility of public transportation to the place I stay in. Of course, you could depend on money to solve your problems quickly, but when you are a student with a limited budget, you will have to solve the problems in the most cost-effecient ways, knowing that it is comfort that you are willing to sacrifice along the journey.

Most of all, I want to prove to people that we don't have to be rich to travel the world; you don't have to come from a developed country to travel the world, you don't have to be physically and mentally strong to travel the world because I don't lift too, bro! I get homesick every, single, day. I want to write a book about "100 lessons I learnt while traveling solo as a student" and present it as a report card to show my parents and teachers as I strongly believe that if I travel, I can learn far more useful lessons and hard earned values than scoring 100% in assignments and exam papers.
What makes me ask you for funding is because I don't want to give up just yet. The money you give me will help me stretch further to places in Middle East and India where I will explore the history and culture of the cities. If you support what I'm doing, please make a donation. If you don't, just walk away swiftly like how you passed a lone artist on the street, because I am just like any other artists who sells his/her passion without a price. Thank You.
  • Turkey
  • Egypt
  • India
  • Hong Kong