Solo Backpacker's Confession with Accomplished Bucket List Tasks

“He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.” - Muhammad Ali

Solo backpacking is one of the most life-changing experience with definitely have an inspiring outcome. The journey you have will be your own and will depend very much on your motivations.

At first, traveling alone is indeed scary especially if you have tight budget to allot for. Since life without adventure is very boring, I gamble myself for that matter. In fact, I was too hesitant to do it but choice will not become a better decision (good or bad) unless trying it. Furthermore, maturity molds fast as you travel alone due you only depend on instincts and assessments made. On my case, I started this escapade last 2010 and a local online travel forum was my gateway to build that enough confidence. Since then, there was a huge difference who I was and I am very proud of those changes. Most of these are life-changing moment, it's like a light-version of "Into the Wild" movie thing. So my advise, start locally, then observe, contemplate and enjoy however you want it to be. All successful travelers are mostly on solo. Anyone interested in solo backpacking today has to challenge the leap of faith! Life without an adventure is very boring. In order to achieve something really great, you have to work hard for it ...

my highest elevation sightseeing the summit of the world's highest mountain in Winter Nepal (Nov. 2015)

Furthermore, another trait of being a successful solo backpacker is because I am self-confessed introvert. Basically, an introvert is a person who is energized by being alone and whose energy is drained by being around other people. Among the best characteristics I enjoyed about being a lone traveler are; I enjoy solitude, I dislike conflict, free choice of words and I don’t normally like to take the lead, but will step up when no one else will. 

1. it is easy to follow itinerary

2. you will just only mind of yourself on any kind of situation

3. dealing others especially on tight budget is difficult for me to negotiate

4. my type of adventure may not be good for others to handle

5. I love the solitude of being in nature

6. decision-making makes maturity go faster on usual phase

7. you will see on wide perspective that the world has lot of wonders

8. life is very boring without something adventure did in your past

9. it makes you give a lot of enlightenment in dealing personal problems

The feeling of doing it alone has also undesirable effects. Some point on the road, you will need someone to talk about something without an effort to explain further, share the laugh and excitement, showcase how you really feel, someone to take your photo and in case of emergency. In my honest viewpoint, I just want to do Solo Backpacking for the fact that I am just a loner and I am someone who does not dare to ask anything for a travelmate beyond my control. I travel alone because I want to escape the reality for the moment, feel the world as I know it, assess my limits as a person and a soul-searching act.

MY SOLO BACKPACKING TRIPS

COUNT	SEASON	YEAR	FROM	TO	DAYS	DESTINATION
104th	rainy	2022				Siargao Island
103rd	rainy	2022				Palawan 4
102nd	rainy	2022	24-Jun	27-Jun	4	Kalinga - Abra - Baguio City
101st	rainy	2022	20-Apr	26-Apr	6	Tawi-tawi - Sulu - Zamboanga City
100th	summer	2022	25-Mar	30-Mar	6	Mindoro Island
99th	rainy	2022	16-Feb	28-Feb	12	Visayas - Luzon
98th	summer	2021	9-Nov	21-Nov	13	Western Mindanao
97th	rainy	2021	4-May	15-Jun	22	Ecuador 2
96th	summer	2021	8-May	24-May	16	United States 3
95th	rainy	2021	4-Feb	8-May	93	South America
94th	rainy	2021	27-Dec	4-Feb	40	Central America
93rd	summer	2020	27-Nov	27-Dec	30	Mexico
92nd	autumn	2020	16-Oct	24-Oct	9	Ukraine
91st	summer	2020	7-Oct	15-Oct	9	Haiti - Dominican Republic
90th	winter	2020	23-Feb	29-Feb	6	United States 2
89th	summer	2020	14-Feb	22-Feb	8	Uruguay - Chile
88th	rainy	2020	10-Jan	11-Jan	2	Comoros
87th	summer	2019	11-Oct	12-Oct	2	Afghanistan
86th	summer	2019	6-Sep	7-Sep	2	Azerbaijan
85th	summer	2019	22-Nov	30-Nov	9	Antarctica
84th	winter	2019	15-Nov	2-Dec	9	Argentina
83rd	summer	2019	1-Nov	2-Nov	2	Bhutan
82nd	summer	2019	25-Oct	26-Oct	2	Bangladesh
81st	summer	2019	30-Aug	31-Aug	2	Cape Verde
80th	summer	2019	23-Aug	24-Aug	2	Djibouti
79th	summer	2019	26-Jul	27-Jul	2	Pakistan
78th	summer	2019	11-Jul	16-Jul	6	United States 1
77th	summer	2019	5-Jul	10-Jul	6	Turkmenistan - Kazakhstan
76th	summer	2019	25-Jun	29-Jun	5	Western Africa 1
75th	summer	2019	7-Jun	8-Jun	2	Mozambique
74th	summer	2019	31-May	1-Jun	2	Uzbekistan
73rd	summer	2019	25-Jan	30-Jan	6	Samoa - Cairns - Papua New Guinea
72nd	rainy	2019	11-Jan	12-Jan	2	Madagascar
71st	winter	2019	4-Jan	5-Jan	2	Tunisia
70th	summer	2018	26-Dec	28-Dec	3	Zimbabwe - Zambia
69th	winter	2018	14-Dec	14-Dec	1	Qatar
68th	summer	2018	4-Dec	8-Dec	5	Fiji - Vanuatu
67th	winter	2018	16-Nov	18-Nov	3	Ethiopia
66th	rainy	2018	9-Nov	10-Nov	2	Mauritius
65th	rainy	2018	2-Nov	3-Nov	2	Seychelles
64th	rainy	2018	8-Oct	13-Oct	5	Brazil
63rd	summer	2018	21-Sep	22-Sep	2	Cyprus - Bahrain
62nd	summer	2018	13-Sep	16-Sep	3	Monaco - Albania - Macedonia - Kosovo
61st	summer	2018	7-Sep	8-Sep	2	Malta - San Marino
60th	summer	2018	31-Aug	1-Sep	2	Bosnia & Herzergovina - Montenegro
59th	summer	2018	12-Jun	16-Jun	5	North Korea
58th	winter	2018	8-Jun	11-Jun	4	Australia (1st)
57th	spring	2018	20-Apr	25-Apr	5	Kyrgyzstan - Tajikistan
56th	summer	2018	6-Feb	10-Feb	4	South Africa (Cape Town)
55th	rainy	2017	3-Dec	7-Dec	4	Timor Leste (East Timor)
54th	rainy	2017	21-Sep	23-Sep	2	Phuket, Thailand
53rd	summer	2017	25-Aug	5-Sep	11	Russia
52nd	summer	2017	23-Jun	27-Jun	4	Uganda - Rwanda
51st	winter	2017	17-Mar	18-Mar	2	Jebel Shams, Oman
50th	winter	2017	8-Feb	8-Feb	1	Jebel Jais, Ras Al Khaimah, UAE
49th	rainy	2016	06-Jun	13-Jun	7	Panay Island
48th	summer	2016	7-May	7-May	1	Mt. Balagbag, Rizal
47th	winter	2016	17-Feb	20-Feb	3	Brunei
46th	winter	2016	23-Nov	16-Feb	86	Nepal
45th	winter	2015	19-Nov	23-Nov	5	Malaysia (3rd)
44th	winter	2015	8-Nov	14-Nov	7	Iran
43rd	summer	2015	10-Jun	2-Jul	23	Germany - Liechtenstein - Slovenia - Croatia - Serbia - Bulgaria - Romania - Hungary - Slovakia - Poland - Lithuania - Estonia - Latvia - Denmark
42nd	summer	2015	11-Mar	11-Mar	1	Minalungao National Park
41st	winter	2015	20-Feb	26-Feb	7	Mainland China (2nd)
40th	winter	2015	15-Feb	19-Feb	4	Mongolia
39th	winter	2014	10-Dec	13-Dec	3	Gibraltar
38th	winter	2014	5-Dec	10-Dec	5	United Kingdom (3rd)
37th	autumn	2014	3-Oct	6-Oct	3	United Kingdom (2nd)
36th	rainy	2014	7-Aug	13-Aug	6	Mt. Fuji (3,776masl), Japan (2nd)
35th	rainy	2014	2-Aug	5-Aug	3	Bali, Indonesia
34th	winter	2014	14-Jul	21-Jul	8	Mt. Kilimanjaro (5,895masl), Tanzania
33rd	winter	2014	11-Jul	13-Jul	3	Masai Mara Safari, Kenya
32nd	summer	2014	7-Jul	10-Jul	4	Turkey
31st	summer	2014	3-Jul	6-Jul	4	Morocco
30th	summer	2014	27-Jun	3-Jul	6	United Kingdom (1st)
29th	summer	2014	25-Feb	1-Mar	4	Sri Lanka - Maldives
28th	summer	2014	2-Feb	7-Feb	4	Myanmar
27th	winter	2014	27-Jan	1-Feb	4	Republic of Georgia
26th	winter	2013	2-Nov	10-Nov	7	Israel
25th	autumn	2013	10-Oct	2-Nov	23	France - Switzerland - Luxembourg - Belgium - Netherlands - Germany - Czech Republic - Austria - Italy - Vatican
24th	summer	2013	28-May	4-Jun	7	Japan (1st)
23rd	summer	2013	24-May	28-May	3	Mt. Kinabalu (4,092masl), Malaysia
22nd	winter	2013	21-Feb	24-Feb	3	Armenia
21st	winter	2013	24-Jan	1-Feb	7	Mainland China(1st)
20th	winter	2012	25-Oct	30-Oct	5	Egypt
19th	rainy	2012	4-Aug	9-Aug	5	Eastern Mindanao
18th	summer	2012	15-Jun	17-Jun	3	Lebanon
17th	summer	2012	17-May	19-May	2	India
16th	summer	2012	12-Apr	14-Apr	2	United Arab Emirates
15th	rainy	2011	23-Dec	26-Dec	2	Boracay Island
14th	rainy	2011	19-Dec	19-Dec	1	Quirino - Isabela
13th	winter	2011	4-Dec	7-Dec	3	Hongkong - Macau (1st)
12th	rainy	2011	24-Sep	25-Sep	2	Iloilo - Dumaguete - Cebu
11th	rainy	2011	24-Aug	1-Sep	7	Vietnam - Cambodia - Laos
10th	rainy	2011	13-Aug	15-Aug	3	Dipolog - Dapitan - Pagadian
9th	summer	2011	4-Feb	7-Feb	3	Camiguin - Cagayan deo Oro - Bukidnon
8th	rainy	2011	19-Jan	22-Jan	2	Singapore - Malaysia
7th	rainy	2011	31-Dec	1-Jan	2	Puerto Galera, Misamis Occidental
6th	rainy	2010	26-Nov	28-Nov	3	Zamboanga City - Basilan
5th	rainy	2010	11-Nov	14-Nov	3	Tacloban-Sogod-Calbiga-Ormoc
4th	rainy	2010	2-Oct	4-Oct	3	Ozamiz - Iligan City
3rd	rainy	2010	4-Jun	8-Jun	3	Thailand
2nd	rainy	2010	18-Feb	20-Feb	2	Cagayan Province
1st	rainy	2009	31-Dec	31-Dec	1	Cavinti, Laguna

“The one who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The one who walks alone is likely to find himself in places no one has ever been before.” - Albert Einstein

My Top Nine Travels of 2019

Quest to visit the Seven Continents was Accomplished (2010-2019)

Bucket list is a list of things to do before you die and comes from the term "kicked the bucket". It is also a number of experiences or achievements that a person hopes to have or accomplish during their lifetime. The best way to create a list is to research other awesome lists to generate better ideas.

SOME ACCOMPLISHED BUCKET LIST TRAVELS

* visited the Chile's westernmost part, the Easter Island (Rapa Nui)
* visited winter Afghanistan on self-guided solo trip
* visited the Seventh Continent Antarctica that completed my Seven Continents
* Hiked the Argentine Patagonia's famous route of Laguna Torre and Laguna delos Tres (2019)
* Hiked the 3,050masl signature landmark Tiger's Nest of Bhutan (2019)

* Adventured the 1st snorkeling above the Seven Nature Wonder of Great Barrier Reef, Australia (2019)

* Experienced white-water rafting along the Seven Nature Wonder of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (2018)

* 6 consecutive week-end madness in Southern Europe maximizing the 2-months visa (2018)

* Traveled with my mother on her 1st Euro tour, cross-border and night bus tour in Spain (2018)

* Entered as a solo tourist to the one of the most isolated countries in the world, North Korea (2018)

* Joy-ride the Trans-Siberia, longest train ride in the world passing through 7 time zones in Russia (2017)

* Savaged myself on a 22-hour brutal extended day-hike in range traverse of Mt. Mariveles, Philippines (2016)

* Visited Babuyan Group of Islands, Philippines with an average of 5-hour wavy boat ride (2016)

* Hiked the 3 Himalayas famous trekking routes on self-guided basis; Everest Base Camp (5,550masl), Annapurna Circuit (5,416masl) and Lantang Valley (4,4473masl) of Nepal (2016).

* Adventured the Persian Gulf cruise from Kuwait going to Islamic Republic of Iran (2015)

* Revisited Europe for the 3rd time in  Summer Central, South to North for 14 countries (2015)

* Experienced hottest temperature of 51'C in Kuwait (2012) and coldest temperature of -23'C in Mongolia (2015)

* Traveled with my mother in Japan, on her 1st winter trip (2015)

* Visited the 61 out of 81 complete province of the Philippines (2014)

* Up-close to Official New Seven Wonders of the World such as Taj Mahal in India (2012), Great Wall of China (2013), Roman Colosseum in Italy (2013), Petra Archeological Park in Jordan (2014)

* Up-close to Ancient Aliens alleged evidence such as Kaymakli underground city(Turkey), Stonehenge(United Kingdom), Pyramids of Giza(Egypt), Baalbek ruins(Lebanon) and Angkor Wat(Cambodia)

* Up-close to controversial places in Dan Brown novels such as in Paris and London of "Davinci Code", Rome and Vatican in "Angels & Demons" and Florence, Venice and Istanbul in "Inferno" (2014)

* Bullet train ride and self-guided solo night trek to Mt. Fuji (3,776masl), Japan (2014)

* White water rafting and tubing to wild river of Bali, Indonesia (2014)

* Mt. Kilimanjaro (5,895masl) hike along the beautiful Machame route in Tanzania (2014)

* Safari Adventure and Camping in Masai Mara Reserve, Kenya (2014)

* Parachute gliding and Balloon flight high above in Turkey (2014)

* Camel back-ride and Berber Camping to Sahara Desert in Morocco (2014)

* London West-End nights and biking to Stonehenge in England, United Kingdom (2014)

* E-bike escapade in Bagan Archeological Park of Myanmar(2014)

* Lost in translation hitch-hiked ride for three times in Republic of Georgia (2014)

* visited the most sacred and controversial place in Christianity in Bethlehem, Palestine (2014)

* confronted the strictest airport immigration in the world and Dead Sea floating in Promise Land of Israel (2013)

* Went-up to the most sacred viewing deck in the world of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican (2013)

* Biking to the Neuschwanstein Castle, the signature landmark of Germany (2013)

* Sightseeing the majestic Swiss Alps on 3,000ft Mt. Pilatus viewing deck of Switzerland (2013) 

* Central Europe train ride from Central to Southern Europe (2013)

* Mt. Kinabalu's 4,092masl summit trek in Malaysia (2013)

* 4 hours before flight departure spontaneous ticket to Armenia (2013)

* Budget family get-away in Hongkong and Macau (2013)

* Chilling, snowy and slippery walked on the Great Wall of China(2013)

* Self-guided solo travel to the early civilization ruins of Egypt (2012)

* Public transportation challenge to the architectural wonders of Lebanon (2012)

* Incredible 33-hours golden triangle tour in India (2012)

* Reached the highest viewing deck in the world in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (2012)

* Challenged the solo travel experience and red sand quad-biking in Saudi Arabia (2011)

* Indochina cross-border bus trips in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos (2011)

* Visited the five palaces and DMZ border in South Korea (2011) 

* 2-days amazing race trip to the major tourist spots of Malaysia and Singapore (2011)

* 1st international backpack adventure in Thailand (2010)