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Solo
traveling.... Fortunately, we are all different people. It's
a good thing that we are not all full timers -- or solo travelers.
Diversity is great.
Perhaps my personality has always been pretty much a loner. That may be congenital, but more likely it was the way I grew up. On the farm with no neighbors with young children, I went on my own journeys. Remember this was before TV. I would go off to the nearby forests or rivers and would explore the natural world. Once I had the freedom of a car in my late teen years, I found that I wanted to do something different than the crowd once in awhile -- not the same old things every weekend. So I started going my own way. In college, my social life was minimal since I worked my way through college. That probably was a good start in feeling good about being a loner. Just so you don't misunderstand, I am not a misanthrope. I had a twenty year marriage, a ten year relationship and lots of people interaction at my employment. I have lived alone for almost fifteen years. I have taken many solo vacations over the past ten years including seven weeks in Australia. Bottom line... it is easy for me.
Lonely times
.... Sure. There are times that I get lonely and long for some human interaction. ...
That happens after a few days of an especially busy social
calendar. Being lonely would happen even if I had retired to the
bricks and mortar home in Denver and not living on the road full time.
Since I do not
search out the single full timers, I don't find them. I know they are
out there. They have organizations and maintain web sites and
arrange caravan travel. I have run into a few singles now and then --
usually older than me and most times had lost a spouse.
Most full timers are couples, but I have found that they accept me easily and readily. In my travels, I have gotten to know many couples and have hiked with them and enjoyed their company -- as much as I hope they enjoyed mine.
Filling the
days.... I find the full timing to be a blast. Each day is a new
day. I know that I will not be able to do everything there is to do --
and as a result, I don't even try.
When I park in one place for several days, weeks or even two months, I have always found something to do. When I am parked for an extended period, I plan ahead (unusual for me) so I have "one" thing to do every day. That way there is always something to look forward to and it seems like I am really busy. Those single items may be sight seeing, hiking, neighborhood walk, shopping day, a library visit or laundry. I also schedule days where nothing is planned. When I was working, I had worked five days a week and took weekends off. Need to follow the same habits in retirement -- take days off. That is also due to my experience on extended vacations. On any extended vacation, I had always planned "days off" every five to seven days. I needed that to maintain my interest in the vacation. Don't forget ... enjoying life is a matter of balance.
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