Traveling alone is really great. You get to do what you want when you want, you meet lots of new people, and you are guaranteed to learn about yourself.
There is one downside I've stumbled across however... How do you get that perfect shot of yourself doing something awesome?!
Ah what a blunder. I've struggled with this time and time again and decided since I haven't written a karatwomeydiaries lately this would be a good return. And obviously we don't need pictures of ourselves doing everything... that's what snapchat is for amiright?! *Sorry to my friends on snapchat.* But there are those times when you're like "aw man I wanna get a picture of this!" and then you remember that you're all alone... That's a #karatwomeydiaries right there in itself!
Anyways here we go.
Last summer I was driving across Canada to move my stuff back from Kamloops to Winnipeg. I stopped in Calgary to visit the lovely Julia and the next day was heading to Saskatoon to see Rachel. I had been enjoying my drive (way too much probably) while singing the whole way to pass the time. I honestly felt like I might lose my voice at one point so I had to take it down a notch.
Anyways from Calgary it was only a small detour to swing by Drumheller to see the dinosaurs. I had never been and since I'm still obsessed with The Land Before Time I figured I should check it out. I really wanted to get a picture of me running away from a dinosaur statue - holding onto my new straw hat (that I was way too proud of) as if it were blowing off because I was running sooo fast. The only problem was how to get the picture... But I thought I'd figure that out once I got there.
I was running behind the schedule I'd made in my mind (probably because I can't do math or tell time and I didn't account for time changes) so I gave myself limited time when I arrived. I also didn't go into the museums.. Although it would've been preeeeetty cool if I ran away from the skeleton of a t-Rex... I'm just sayin.
But I found the huge statues outside in the field and figured that was the next best thing. I parked my car and wandered alone to look at these dinos. I was immediately hit with some pros and cons.
The Pros:
- lots of people around meant I could easily get someone to take a picture of me
- 99% of these people were seniors... Being surrounded by other gmas is always great
The Cons:
- lots of people around means more people to watch me run away from a plastic dinosaur (100% judgement)
- old people probably don't know how to use an iPhone or camera
- I don't know how to casually start running from a fake dinosaur but I don't want to explain my thought process/photo goals to anyone
- the area in front of these dinosaurs had constant traffic... There was no way to get this picture discreetly and be on my way
- as I stood there contemplating my dilemma the seniors piled into their bus and I was left all alone
- it was windy and my hat kept blowing away (now I'm actually running for my life to catch my hat with these dino statues in the background... Basically the action shot I wanted but with no camera to capture me).
After a long time standing there and pretending to fix my hair or my hat and look like I was running (without moving) and many failed attempts of timed pictures from the ground in front of me I caved and asked someone. This man was there with his two sons, probably like 5 and 8 years old, and he got some pics of them with the dinosaur. I lingered on the sidelines and realized I'd been standing there for 30 minutes now and it was time to get back on the road. Right before the man and kids started to walk away I asked if he could take a quick picture of me and he said sure. After he took a couple I explained that I wanted one with me running away and I tried to act like I wasn't crazy. He clicked a bunch of times and then I said thanks and bought myself a well deserved iced-capp before hitting the road again. I ended up with a pretty funny picture and good story, but I feel like it would've been a lot more fun if I had someone there with me.
Then there was the night in Sanur, Bali. I decided to walk down the beach to see the sunset. It was so beautiful and I felt content sitting there even though I was surrounded by a bunch of couples and a British family. The family had two cute kids that were playing in the rocks and saying adorable things like "let's go this way!" or "look a rock!". (Ok, so I realize that doesn't seem adorable but picture a cute British kid saying it and I bet you can't help but smile!) I also started thinking of the "ouch Charlie" video and laughing to myself, which is probably why anytime the kids got close to me the mom would call them back... Cross her off the list of people to ask to snap a picture of me later. The local couple seemed to be giving me dirty looks and the other couple didn't seem any friendlier so I was in trouble.
Eventually this local man showed up with his plump wiener dog. He was watching his equally plump son attempt to boogey board.
So I did what every dog person would do... Strike up a conversation with the stranger by asking about his dog. He didn't really understand what I was saying, telling me his dog was 1 year old (even though it had to be in its middle to later years). After we talked a bit I asked if he would mind taking a picture of me and he said sure. Perfect! I handed him my phone and in return he handed me Bruno's leash... So that is why I now have pictures of me in my fun Balinese outfit with Bruno the wiener dog.
So from all this I've learnt two things:
1) Sometimes you just gotta have no shame and ask a stranger to take a picture for you. After all, you aren't going to see them again and who cares if they go home and tell their friends about the weirdo they met earlier.
2) Sometimes it's nice to have a friend with you to share in these moments... Whether you're checking out something cool or watching a sunset, good companions are always welcome.. But if you don't have anyone with you to enjoy in these moments you can always tell them about it later anyway.
And when in doubt, post it on your blog and share it that way!
There is one downside I've stumbled across however... How do you get that perfect shot of yourself doing something awesome?!
Ah what a blunder. I've struggled with this time and time again and decided since I haven't written a karatwomeydiaries lately this would be a good return. And obviously we don't need pictures of ourselves doing everything... that's what snapchat is for amiright?! *Sorry to my friends on snapchat.* But there are those times when you're like "aw man I wanna get a picture of this!" and then you remember that you're all alone... That's a #karatwomeydiaries right there in itself!
Anyways here we go.
Last summer I was driving across Canada to move my stuff back from Kamloops to Winnipeg. I stopped in Calgary to visit the lovely Julia and the next day was heading to Saskatoon to see Rachel. I had been enjoying my drive (way too much probably) while singing the whole way to pass the time. I honestly felt like I might lose my voice at one point so I had to take it down a notch.
Anyways from Calgary it was only a small detour to swing by Drumheller to see the dinosaurs. I had never been and since I'm still obsessed with The Land Before Time I figured I should check it out. I really wanted to get a picture of me running away from a dinosaur statue - holding onto my new straw hat (that I was way too proud of) as if it were blowing off because I was running sooo fast. The only problem was how to get the picture... But I thought I'd figure that out once I got there.
I was running behind the schedule I'd made in my mind (probably because I can't do math or tell time and I didn't account for time changes) so I gave myself limited time when I arrived. I also didn't go into the museums.. Although it would've been preeeeetty cool if I ran away from the skeleton of a t-Rex... I'm just sayin.
But I found the huge statues outside in the field and figured that was the next best thing. I parked my car and wandered alone to look at these dinos. I was immediately hit with some pros and cons.
The Pros:
- lots of people around meant I could easily get someone to take a picture of me
- 99% of these people were seniors... Being surrounded by other gmas is always great
The Cons:
- lots of people around means more people to watch me run away from a plastic dinosaur (100% judgement)
- old people probably don't know how to use an iPhone or camera
- I don't know how to casually start running from a fake dinosaur but I don't want to explain my thought process/photo goals to anyone
- the area in front of these dinosaurs had constant traffic... There was no way to get this picture discreetly and be on my way
- as I stood there contemplating my dilemma the seniors piled into their bus and I was left all alone
- it was windy and my hat kept blowing away (now I'm actually running for my life to catch my hat with these dino statues in the background... Basically the action shot I wanted but with no camera to capture me).
After a long time standing there and pretending to fix my hair or my hat and look like I was running (without moving) and many failed attempts of timed pictures from the ground in front of me I caved and asked someone. This man was there with his two sons, probably like 5 and 8 years old, and he got some pics of them with the dinosaur. I lingered on the sidelines and realized I'd been standing there for 30 minutes now and it was time to get back on the road. Right before the man and kids started to walk away I asked if he could take a quick picture of me and he said sure. After he took a couple I explained that I wanted one with me running away and I tried to act like I wasn't crazy. He clicked a bunch of times and then I said thanks and bought myself a well deserved iced-capp before hitting the road again. I ended up with a pretty funny picture and good story, but I feel like it would've been a lot more fun if I had someone there with me.
Then there was the night in Sanur, Bali. I decided to walk down the beach to see the sunset. It was so beautiful and I felt content sitting there even though I was surrounded by a bunch of couples and a British family. The family had two cute kids that were playing in the rocks and saying adorable things like "let's go this way!" or "look a rock!". (Ok, so I realize that doesn't seem adorable but picture a cute British kid saying it and I bet you can't help but smile!) I also started thinking of the "ouch Charlie" video and laughing to myself, which is probably why anytime the kids got close to me the mom would call them back... Cross her off the list of people to ask to snap a picture of me later. The local couple seemed to be giving me dirty looks and the other couple didn't seem any friendlier so I was in trouble.
Eventually this local man showed up with his plump wiener dog. He was watching his equally plump son attempt to boogey board.
So I did what every dog person would do... Strike up a conversation with the stranger by asking about his dog. He didn't really understand what I was saying, telling me his dog was 1 year old (even though it had to be in its middle to later years). After we talked a bit I asked if he would mind taking a picture of me and he said sure. Perfect! I handed him my phone and in return he handed me Bruno's leash... So that is why I now have pictures of me in my fun Balinese outfit with Bruno the wiener dog.
So from all this I've learnt two things:
1) Sometimes you just gotta have no shame and ask a stranger to take a picture for you. After all, you aren't going to see them again and who cares if they go home and tell their friends about the weirdo they met earlier.
2) Sometimes it's nice to have a friend with you to share in these moments... Whether you're checking out something cool or watching a sunset, good companions are always welcome.. But if you don't have anyone with you to enjoy in these moments you can always tell them about it later anyway.
And when in doubt, post it on your blog and share it that way!