Crossing Borders Alone: The Surprising Safety of Southeast Asia

Hey! Hope you didn’t forget about me.

While in Vietnam, unfortunately, I did not have access to my blog due to my hosting platform being blocked by the internet there. Initially, I was scared that I had lost access when the URL indicated I was blocked, but a quick Reddit search helped me determine that my platform has issues with Vietnam for reasons unknown.

Anyway, all is good now, and I am back!

So much has happened since my last post. For starters, I’m now in Cambodia. Just 48 hours ago, I actually walked across the border from Vietnam… kind of crazy, right?

I decided to take a bus from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh as it was significantly cheaper than flying. I think I saved well over $100, and here, $100USD can last me a week if I wanted it to.

A few friends saw my Instagram Story highlighting my walk across the border and called me insane, but it was a very easy process, and I always felt safe, even though I really had no idea what was going on.

I’ll touch on more of my journey and everything I did in Vietnam in future posts, but for this diary entry, I wanted to discuss the topic of safety.

So far, in my 35 days of travel and 18+ cities I’ve explored, the feeling of “unsafe” hasn’t once crossed my mind. I’ve been to 4 different countries and explored the lands of 4 different prominent religions, including a Muslim country which I’ve been ingrained to be wary of. But even in Indonesia, I never felt my physical safety was in question.

It’s mind-boggling to me how, even walking alone on the nighttime streets of mega cities like Ho Chi Minh, I feel safer here than I do in my own country, America.

When I used to live in Los Angeles, I wouldn’t dare to walk the streets at night alone, even in my nicer city of Marina Del Rey in fear of being mugged, robbed, beaten, or worse. In Scottsdale, I also refrain from walking alone at night. I don’t trust it! The thought of assault, physical and/or sexual, is always on my mind in any major city in America.

Here, my biggest fear is having my phone snatched, a very common issue I’m frequently warned about by locals. But when you think about it, a stolen phone isn’t really dangerous. Sure, it’s inconvenient and likely expensive, but it’s not like I have to worry about my physical safety.

Of course, I’m not a careless solo traveler. Even though I’m very clearly white, I don’t have “TOURIST” tattoo’d on my forehead.

I have an AirTag on my body at all times that’s connected to my father’s phone back in the States although I’m not sure what that’ll do for me besides provide my family and me a bit of peace of mind.

I don’t walk around holding my phone out for directions and if I need to look I step off the street a few paces.

I never sift through my money or purse on the streets.

At night, I carry a lighter in my hand just in case a situation arises, and I have to defend myself – they make an excellent weapon. Grab me and BURN!

I don’t advertise that I’m traveling alone, I don’t tell people where I am staying, and I make sure to secure my hotel room door.

To take further precautions, it’s not like I’m wandering down dark alleys at night and if there’s an area that looks a bit sketchy, I call a motorbike to take me to where I need to go. I use the app, Grab, the Uber app here, and it feels very safe because my ride is tracked and I’m allowed to report issues and share my location if I need to.

I’m smart about my travel, I use common sense, and most importantly, I carry myself with confidence.

Confidence is key! Even in situations where I don’t feel the most confident, I always act as though I am. Fake it till you make it, right?

Confidence has allowed me to embark on this magical journey across the world and throw myself into situations I know nothing about. It’s helped me conquer tasks like crossing the insane streets of Hanoi, finding the internet, and a way to get to my hotel when I can’t speak the language or have no idea where to go.

I am solution-oriented. I am consistently evaluating my surroundings and analyzing the best plan of action. Even though I am constantly pushing myself out of my comfort zone, my ability to think on my feet has gotten me so far. I trust myself to find my way, and it’s been an amazing journey so far.

Before I came on this trip, everyone was telling me, “Be safe,” “You shouldn’t go alone,” “Have fun getting kidnapped,” etc.

I think most of that was said out of ignorance. It was said because those people have not traveled and aren’t fully confident in themselves, so how could they comprehend the confidence and level of trust and awareness that I have in myself and my surroundings?

It was said because the unknown is scary. We are taught that the unknown is dangerous.

But when you trust yourself and get out there, you’ll quickly learn that the unknown really isn’t scary at all.

Horrible things can happen to anyone, anywhere, anytime.

I will always be cautious and aware of my surroundings.

The simple fact is that I feel safer alone here than I do in my own country. How messed up is that?

At least here, I’m not worried about visiting a movie theater and having it shot up. I’m not worried about being physically assaulted.

I’m sure not everyone agrees with this post as they may have had a personal experience while traveling in this region of the world where something awful happened.

But awful things happen in America too. They happen far too often.

If you’re still worried about me, don’t be.

I am a confident and capable woman.

I’m doing more than fine.

I’m truly living.