A 24-year-old woman planned to spend a 7-week getaway in Europe by herself. 17 days in, she’s wondering if she should just "go home"
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():format(jpeg)/woman-in-seville-spain-021025-1-52707f2f9a8d4262b99919b6ed372214.jpg "Woman seen from behnind, admiring Plaza de Espana, Seville, Andalucia, Spain.")
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Woman seen from behind in Seville, Spain (stock image)One woman's decision to travel Europe solo for 7 weeks seems to have backfired as she's second-guessing her ability to make it the entire time.
In a discussion on Reddit's r/SoloTravel forum a user named trapvalleycherries expressed her distress about making good use of all the time she afforded herself abroad.
Titling the post, “I can’t stop crying,” the user shares how her vacation went stale after having the flu for 4 days. Although she mentioned “feel(ing) better physically,” the user was adamant that things outside of her physical health are not well.
Vacationing Seville Spain, the woman wrote that while she has gone out to see the touristic sights of the area, it’s “all the same” compared to the other cities she has traveled in.
“Each day is crowded streets, the same European buildings, buy, buy, buy, shopping and big cities that all feel identical,” the woman noted in her post.
She then highlighted that she had a “good time before getting sick,” but shared that losing her voice from the illness prevented her from talking much to anyone.
"When I do, I just break down and cry to them,” she added.
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Woman in Seville, Spain (stock image)The woman shared that she has tried doing “non-touristy things,” listing that she has made sure to practice yoga, go to the gym and take "nights to watch Netflix,” but all to no avail.
“The tears won’t stop. I am sick of wandering around and just existing rather than enjoying myself no matter how much I try," she wrote.
Not scheduled to leave until March 12, the user is conflicted about whether or not she should return home early.
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The user highlighted that while money isn’t an issue, she is dealing with conflicting beliefs of whether she will “regret it” if she leaves – while also worrying that she’ll “regret staying and being so sad.”
She explained that she knows the responsibility of making the decision is her own to make, but still “can’t tell” if she’s “just giving up when things are hard” or if she’s “being too hard” on herself by attempting to curate the perfect trip.
“I guess I don’t even know what I truly want right now, so I guess it’s between being sad in Europe or sad at home,” she wrote.
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Passports stacked on top of each other (stock image)Commenters showed empathy toward the user’s situation, expressing the normality of the woman’s feelings and offering advice.
“This isn't uncommon. You're processing emotions,” one user wrote.
“If I were you, I would do myself a favor and travel off the beaten path. If you're tired of the same stuff, you should go somewhere that doesn't look like the places that are depressing you. They're out there, and they're not far away,” another user shared.
Agreeing with the aforementioned commenter's suggestion, a different user added, “Staying in the major cities can get repetitive and it feels like the only thing to do is spend money. Go stay somewhere with more nature or in a smaller town/village!”
Other users weighed in with a more nonchalant mindset.
“It happens that sometimes trips are just ‘blah’ for whatever reason,” one user wrote. “Accept that. It's not a bad thing, it just happens. It won't happen every time. Remember to be kind to you.”
One Redditor expressed the value of enjoying time on the trip, sharing, “You’re only going to be able to travel like that some countably small number of times in your life. Segregate the negative emotions you’re having into a “for later” part of your mind and reinvest in your experience now.”
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