ALL ABOUT HELEN
Welcome to this site! Hi, my name is Helen Avaient and I am an over 50-year-old mature age solo traveller. Also known as an adventurer, an explorer, a globetrotter, a jet-setter, a tourist, a voyager, as well as brave or crazy.
From the age of 15 when I made my first plane flight from Melbourne to Sydney, the travel bug bit hard. Travelling throughout the years with my growing family, and then with friends was wonderful. However, when I was of a “mature age” and was traveling by myself, people would exclaim in surprise, “You are travelling on your own?? How brave of you!”
Being brave never occurred to me, but travelling alone, I did realise that there is a difference in going it solo and being in your mature years.
Not feeling particularly brave, but instead proud and adventurous, I wanted to share my experiences with others. To encourage travellers to step off on an adventure by themselves, inspire them to visit destinations I have been, and to share travel hints and tips. The articles are also helpful to those traveling with others as well, if you chose to.
Visiting over 30 countries, I love it when someone offers a suggestion to a new destination. If I am not travelling, or writing about travelling, I am dreaming about it.
The experiences, stories and photographs on here are my own, unless noted. I love meeting new people, photography, visiting both popular tourist spots and those out of the way places, good coffee, taking cooking classes, walking and hiking, reading books, watching Science Fiction movies and TV, and country music festivals. I like to eat authentic food in foreign countries, especially great pizza and lasagne, although I did draw the line at fried tarantula in a Cambodian market.
Giving up my “day job” with a secure income, yet only weekends and four weeks a year of holiday time to travel, was wonderful and scary. Getting on a plane with less than 50lb (22kgs) for a four-month journey was downright exhilarating and worrying. Yet, every time I shut my front door and begin a new journey, I smile EVERY fantastic time! This was not a common facial feature when I left for that “day job”.
Whether you have a day or a year to travel, or somewhere in between, and wish to expand your pleasure and love of the wonders of this world, please share my adventures on here, and feel free to let me know any suggestions you have.