After the Divorce, Taking a Trip

    Experiencing a divorce can leave you with a feeling of rejection and failure. It could easily reduce your self-confidence level, plus add a tremendous amount of stress in your life. One way some people opt to deal with these negative feelings and emotions is to participate in an adventure-oriented getaway in an effort to “reinvent” and challenge themselves, while at the same time, discovering a new perspective on life.

This type of vacation provides an opportunity to visit an exotic destination; take yourself entirely out of your familiar surroundings; experience a new and foreign culture; plus rebuild your confidence by successfully participating in activities that you wouldn’t typically consider trying in your everyday life. Travel is also a great way to meet new people.

An adventure-oriented vacation offers a different travel experience than staying at a luxury resort, visiting a destination spa, or basking in the sun on a tropical beach. By experiencing another culture firsthand, it’s easier to reevaluate the positive aspects of your own life and fix whatever continues to hold you back.

Everyone defines “adventure travel” differently. While this type of vacation could involve participating in potentially dangerous activities, such as mountain climbing, skydiving, heli-skiing or scuba diving in shark infested waters, the adventure-oriented getaway you participate in doesn’t have include anything dangerous whatsoever. Instead, it could focus more on allowing you to have totally new, but safe experiences that are only slightly out of your comfort zone.

 “A common misconception is that adventure travel is only for young people. Often, it’s the unknown that can frighten people. We have very experienced tour guides and well planned itineraries. Statistically speaking, getting in your car and driving through Manhattan is more dangerous than anything we do on our trips,” explained Greg Murtagh, president of ElderTreks , a company that offers seven to 22-day, guided adventure tours for travelers over the age of 55, to places like Alaska, Brazil, China, India, Cuba, Africa and Egypt.

Solo Travel Network (800-557-1757 / www.cstn.org) also offers exotic, guided, adventure-oriented tours to exciting destinations, like Brazil, Egypt, Belize, Hawaii, Costa Rica, Bali, Spain and New Zealand, but caters to single travelers of all ages. If you don’t want to participate in an organized tour with a group of fellow travelers and be accompanied by a guide, another option is to plan your own exotic getaway, and then push yourself to experience new and adventurous activities.


PARTICIPATE IN A VOLUNTEER TOURISM PROGRAM

Volunteer tourism that takes place in a third-world country, for example, can also be a personally rewarding and confidence boosting experience. “International volunteering attracts a lot of different people, from different places in their lives, and with different perspectives on what they’re looking for. People who love to travel, but who want to do something different and be more than a tourist, can benefit from international volunteering. It’s a beautiful, heart-warming and inspiring experience,” stated Kam Santos, a spokesperson for Cross-Cultural Solutions, which has worked with more than 4,000 volunteers to date.

“What we offer isn’t tourism, as in taking a traditional vacation. We provide a real cultural immersion that allows participants to see into the daily lives of people in a community within one of the 12 countries we currently operate it,” added Santos. “A typically day involves at least five hours of volunteering, plus scheduled cultural activities, language lessons, group meals and free time to explore. We believe that anyone who has a desire to volunteer can make a difference.”

During what is typically a two to four week trip, volunteers can expect to work at childcare centers, schools, orphanages, health clinics, hospitals, homes for the elderly, and with other local community organizations. After an experience like this, it’s impossible not to return home with a newfound sense of accomplishment, confidence and a totally new perspective on your own life.  


TRY RE-DISCOVERING THE AMAZON              

There are thousands of destinations around the world that potentially offer single travelers from the U.S. a once-in-a-lifetime adventure travel experience. One such place is Peru, from where you can take a multi-day riverboat cruise along the Amazon and hike through the tropical rainforest.