I guess I secretly loved traveling way before I even knew I did. Whenever the summer vacation came, the first thing that would cross my mind was that I wanted to travel ANYWHERE. Even though my first time to travel overseas was when I was just 3-years-old, I didn’t get to travel a lot in my teenage years. I went to London; twice, Madrid, and even Istanbul, as a kid, but I had to wait till I was 19 to start discovering my true passion, travel.

Trigger #1

It all started when I decided to take a leap of faith and travel solo for the very first time. One day, I woke up determined enough to do it; and with my family’s blessing, of course, I booked a flight ticket, made hotel reservations, and took off to a Nubian village in Aswan. Everyone thought I was crazy to travel alone, especially when I mentioned my travel destination. My friends weren’t the traveling type and they were never serious about planning a trip with me. So, I thought to myself that this shouldn’t stop me from doing it anyway.

I headed to Gharb Seheil Island in Nubia, a small Nubian village in the ancient city of Aswan, Egypt. The whole idea of traveling solo for a girl who hasn’t traveled in a long time, and to a small village, was quite intimidating. However, I managed to get through it, even though I got extremely sick during the entire trip. I couldn’t enjoy my trip as much as I wanted because I was physically consumed, but for a first-timer, it was not bad at all.

The kind-hearted Nubians and their beautiful culture and land made it up for me. I even felt like I had to do this again. What’s most important is that I learned a lot of lessons that I’ll talk to you about in details in other posts. In addition to that, for the first time ever, I stepped out of my comfort zone, but this was just the beginning.

Trigger #2

The second turning point happened only less than a year later when I went to France for Erasmus. This was definitely one of my greatest life experiences that had a major role in shaping the person that I am today. If I felt intimidated before Nubia, then I was definitely scared to death before Rennes, the city where I stayed. I acted all cool and excited about it; I’ve always been dreaming about living on my own, but deep down inside, I knew I was freaking out.

For someone coming from the MENA region; a region with a very family-oriented and family-dependent culture, it was not easy. Even though I had a strong, independent kind of personality, the whole idea sounded more like a challenge. However, I accepted that challenge, and believe it or not, I even impressed myself big time. I had to cook, do chores, go grocery shopping, open a bank account on my own, and live in a country with a language that I’m not very fluent in. I also had to establish a brand new social life so I wouldn’t be bored to death. To be honest, it wasn’t easy in the beginning; it wasn’t easy at all. I remember having a hard time adapting, but as soon as I did, I was having the time of my life.

Skipping all the not-so-boring details about my life there, there was one aspect that changed my life and made me fall in love with traveling even more. It was the extreme ease of traveling within Europe. The free movement allowed within the continent made everything feel more accessible; there was no need for a visa in most countries, there were endless options of transportation, and hostels were everywhere. This helped me explore more, and of course, it made me become obsessed with traveling, especially on my own.

On a side note, getting over my travel bug when I came back to Egypt was not easy at all. In fact, it was too depressing to handle and overcome. This was what lead to my third, and final, turning point that got me to where I am right now.

Trigger #3

It took me months to overcome my post-travel syndrome, and to be honest, I’d be lying to you if I said that I got over it completely. I don’t really think one can get over his/her travel bug. There’s only one thing to do from my point of view, which is to travel more and satisfy your need. At the time, I couldn’t travel overseas. However, I could still travel solo. That’s when I decided I should explore my own country for a change, especially because it has so much to offer. And this was when I decided to go to Sinai; now my ultimate favorite travel destination.

I went to Dahab and Saint Catherine in South Sinai, and there, I fell in love. I fell in love with a land that I felt like calling home. It’s hard to explain how or why it happened, it’s something you could only sense if you visited. All I can say is that there’s some weird and powerful energy in its air. It’s calming, soul-cleansing, and relaxing, but also feels magnetic in the sense that it draws you back to it. The moment when I first felt this energy was the exact same one when I knew that this was my calling; I wanted to travel full-time.

I enjoyed doing this, and most importantly, I felt alive doing it. Then I thought to myself, how can I do this as much as I can with adult life waiting to hit me hard in the face the moment I graduate? Since I hated routine and desk jobs and loved projects, I knew it was possible. When I thought about the things I loved doing the most; photography/videography, writing, and of course, traveling, it all made sense. A travel blogger – that’s what I wanted to become when I grow up. It just took me 21 years to figure it out, and the rest is history. And this is, ladies and gentlemen, how Curls en Route came to life.

I’ll make sure to dedicate some of my future posts to the travel destinations and the experiences I previously mentioned. All I hope is to either sound beneficial or at least inspire you in a way or another. Or even better, maybe I could help you take the step and push you towards solo traveling because it’s really worth it!

Happy travels!

Love,
Nadine AKA Curls en Route

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