I’ve learned so much traveling alone. And while it’s difficult to condense years of travel into a few lines, there’s a recurring phenomenon every time I cross a new border: my sense of truth is shaken.
The first time I left Venezuela, I went to the United States. I left alone, but someone was waiting for me. During my time there, I was always accompanied. My “bubble” remained intact because the environment adapted to what I already knew.
The real test came in Paris.
From Judgement to Observation
When I arrived in France, my mind operated under a rigid rule: “People here don’t know how to do things.” In my mind, the “right” way was what I had learned in Venezuela; everything else was a design flaw or a logical error. That was my mental framework.
It took me time (and a lot of observation) to realize that my “truths” were just customs. A simple (and perhaps funny) example was bathroom design. In France, they usually separate the toilet from the shower (les toilettes and la salle de bain). At first, I thought it was absurd. In my world, the toilet and shower went together. Period.
But then I started comparing: Venezuela or France? Which is more efficient? Is there really a right way? The answer was both uncomfortable and liberating:
Neither. They are just different paths to achieve the same goal. One wasn’t better than the other; they were different adaptations to the world.
That was the moment my personal bubble began to crack.
Bursting Bubbles
From that moment on, my perspective changed. Each new destination ceased to be a place for judgment and became a place for observation. An opportunity to “burst bubbles.”
Sometimes, comparison isn’t neutral. Sometimes, you discover that another world’s style suits you better than your own. Sticking with the bathroom theme: I discovered that I much prefer the Indian system, with its water hose, something that didn’t exist in either Venezuela or France (the worlds I knew).
Each new place has been like integrating a new criterion into my operating system. A constant reminder that, however certain I am about something, there’s always another perspective, and the software can be updated.
The Science of Uncertainty
I like to think of this like science: what’s an absolute law today, changes tomorrow because a new study has come out. My mind isn’t exempt from that rule. A whole lifetime isn’t enough to know all the variables and arrive at a “correct answer” about how to live.
However, exploring contrasting perspectives and lifestyles has helped me improve my perception and, above all, make better decisions about what’s efficient and preferable for me.
It’s not about copying everything we see. It’s about choosing wisely.
The relief of being “Extraterrestrial”
Traveling alone has ultimately been a process of discovering my own identity.
Although I have a strong sense of belonging to my country, when I lived there I felt like an alien. Many things didn’t fit, especially the way life was approached. Traveling gave me the greatest relief my soul has ever felt: discovering that I wasn’t crazy, I was simply in the wrong environment. My “truths” weren’t wrong, they just needed a different landscape to flourish.
Traveling alone taught me to question my certainties.
To make my mind more flexible.
To choose consciously.
And perhaps most importantly:
It taught me that my identity isn’t fixed in one place.
It’s constantly evolving.
And for you, what’s that foreign ‘custom’ that at first seemed crazy to you but is now part of your life? Tell me your story of a burst bubble below.
