A Sola Backpacker - Part III

Many female travelers (to be) have addressed me with these questions: How did you manage? How did you convince your parents about traveling (alone or with others)? I guess I got lucky.

My father has a very different up-bringing method, unlike other family members. During my teens, I had total freedom or rather freedom-like freedom; i.e. I was given the illusion that I had the reins of my life between my hands. I was free to go out and do activities as long as my parents are informed of such. I grew up responsible for my behaviors, my surroundings, and my choices. I feared that if ever screw things up, I’d lose that freedom (-like). I had to behave. I did screw up a couple of times, surely, but my parents’ trust in me never faded; I never had to restore it.

As I said, I got lucky. In order to pursue my studies, I had to relocate in a 250km far away from hometown city. My parents encouraged me to go, and so I acquire full powers over my freedom. However before the relocation, I used to go on summer camps as an instructor; that too helped me and shaped who I am now.

What to do with your parents? All I can say is: make your parents trust you; trust is gained, not given; show them you are a responsible grown-up and that you can take care of yourself;

Doesn’t work? Try to volunteer to carry some domestic tasks to show you can handle responsibility, like paying the bills, requesting official documents, doing grocery shopping;

Doesn’t work? Try to hang out with a grown-up relative in whom your parents trust, that person will back you up in case you need some back-up to go on a trip;

Doesn’t work? Visit relatives in other cities on your own;

Doesn’t work? Participate in activities that would open up your fam mind, such as voluntary work, school/university extra activities,.. (two birds, one stone ;));

Doesn’t work? Take part-time jobs and pay for organized trips or weekend trips to nearby places like Ifrane, Chaouen..etc;

Doesn’t work? Nag until they beg to be your trip partner, make one of your siblings go with or understand that you need travelling because it makes you happy and more optimistic;

Doesn’t work? Wait till you grow a bit older, enough to handle your life, then travel as much as you can :D