Solo adventure

As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, I travel a LOT.  Often at the butt crack of dawn, or overnight, or whenever I need to get on a flight to make it to the next gig.  I have platinum status on multiple airlines, which should give you an idea of how much of my time is spent on the road.

Very occasionally I’ve been lucky enough to take someone with me on my journey, particularly if it’s a longer jaunt, and to a desirable locale.  Husband Paul spent two weeks with me on a Japan tour a few years back.

And my dear friend Lilly accompanied me on a memorable trip to Prague to premier a Frank Zappa show.

But for a vast majority of the time I’m alone.  I still struggle a little with the amount of solitary time in my life, but as I can’t afford to have an assistant in tow (this is kind of a pipe dream of mine, btw), I’m a bit resigned to the reality of being a busy musician.

That being said, over the years I’ve become a huge proponent of the solo adventure.  I usually don’t have much time at all in the cities I visit as they’re crammed with rehearsals and media commitments and concerts and receptions.  But if I have a half day or even a few hours off, I set myself a goal to see as much as I can, to experience a city in my own way.

It can be as simple as a pre-dawn walk in Copenhagen to watch the sunrise over Nyhavn.

Or an epic 3-hour window in Lisbon where I walked miles and miles and miles over this gorgeous city.

Or it can be a bit more focused.  On an afternoon off in Kuala Lumpur I decided to temple-hop, without doing too much research or overthinking things.  It’s amazing the little corners of a city you can discover.

In Dublin I spent the couple of hours between rehearsals looking for the most amusingly named pub.

It’s a choose-your-own-adventure mentality.  Sometimes I just want to see a major sight I haven’t encountered before.

Often I can combine my love for running with my desire to discover.  Mt. Royal in Montreal, with its endless running paths, was absolutely glorious.

But I have to say, my favorite solo adventure was in Brisbane, Australia.  I arrived after 20 hours of travel in the early morning on a day during which a typhoon was slated to hit in the late afternoon.  I’d arrived a day before the first rehearsal, and knew that, typhoon or not, this would be the only time I would have to do anything in Brisbane.

I’d researched the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and decided that I MUST GO.  When I arrived at my hotel at 8:30 am I called to make sure they were open – they would be, from 10 am to 2 pm.  So after a quick breakfast, and after that sleepless and endless flight, jet lagged out of my brain, I went on my little solo adventure.

Her name was Utopia.  Usually they let you hold the koala for 30 seconds, long enough for a photo, but this girl turned slowly to me and touched my nose, looking into my eyes all along.  This was such unusual behavior that they let me hold her a few minutes, until this wondrous little creature was finished gazing into my soul (and that’s certainly what it felt like!).

It was magical.

I find sometimes that when I’m alone, I’m more likely to encounter and discover and interact more…honestly, I suppose, because I’m not concerned whether a travel companion is interested in whatever I’m doing as I am.  It’s a bit of healthy selfishness that I’ve embraced.

So for those of you fellow solo travelers, never let up an opportunity to see the world through your own eyes.  There are moments of wonder everywhere.