Solo Travel Tales: Me, My Spivo and the World

Natasha contacted us at Spivo with an excited attitude looking to try out a Spivo Stick for her upcoming Travels. A Spivo was sent off the next day to accompany her on this upcoming adventure. Natasha is "dedicated to the conservation and study of our oceans". She was collecting data and working throughout this worldly journey. She came back with a few new perspectives and shared them with us. Check it out...

Traveling alone can be one of the most eye-opening experiences one could have. Having the chance to experience events, and fully immersing yourself is quite special, even if you have a phone at all times. Along the way, you will meet people that were previously strangers sitting next to you and will later be known as friends, and possibly long-lasting ones. But, once you’ve traveled through all these places, it is nice to look back on these memories and look back on the path you’ve traveled, literally…

I was lucky enough to contact Spivo before my journey, and became a proud owner of this handy device, especially for a marine biology student solo-traveler. Now, while I rest at home-base, I can look back at some of the most memorable moments in my life (so far…) while I plan for the next.

As I sit editing videos, I look back on my adventures within the last seven months and reflect on all that I experienced. Collecting pictures, friends, data for research, videos, and memories throughout Southeast Asia, Australia and the Pacific Islands. 

Looking back I remember the moments when my friend and I bathed elephants in Thailand with the new phase of eco-tourism. I saw the powerful jaws of wild Komodo Dragons in the Komodo national parks. I feel the rush of jumping off to a 134 meter fall into the Nevis in Queenstown, NZ. And swimming with 20 graceful sharks in Haleiwa, Hawaii alongside One Ocean Diving. My Spivo was there to capture all my special moments while I was alone, and all the moments when I was sharing them with the people who became my lifelong friends. 

During my journey, my Spivo served as a method of collecting beautiful memories that I will cherish, but it also served as a method to spreading messages about our natural world. Looking back I remember memories such as in Thailand, where I dove beautiful reefs in the islands of Phi Phi…only to share this memory with at least 200 other divers. Or when I cruised the islands of Komodo in Indonesia but saw large traces of plastic everywhere I walked and swam. Each of these memories was tainted with the trail of unwanted crumbs humans left behind. On the other hand, I also saw the potential humans have to clean those unwanted crumbs.

It has become a common perception that large amounts of tourism take away from the authentic experience one can experience while traveling. And even though that can be true in a lot of places, I believe that traveling and sharing your stories is a healthy beginning of gaining a worldly view and a great time to learn and correct habits to more eco-friendly solutions.

One of the most common landscapes I saw was the forest of selfie sticks raised to the sky and aimed at couples, families, and people like me traveling alone. But, after the first wave of embarrassment crossed my mind, I remembered how happy and proud I was of being at that place at that specific moment. And all the people taking pictures were all trying to convey the same idea, of being happy and proud of where they stand.

These devices, selfie sticks, aid in sharing beautiful pictures with your friends and loved ones in the hopes of getting them out of a routine and into a spontaneous journey. So even though it might get crowded in beautiful scenic areas, don’t forget to try and make the best of it. At this time, I also recommend to lend a helping hand and teach lessons whenever it’s needed because maybe not everyone is willing to listen but a lot may be willing to learn.

 Be happy with where you are, and if not, plan for a temporary or permanent change. Be comfortable with sharing stories and pictures since they are great ways of inspiring other people to get up and out to experience the world for themselves. My Spivo helped me create all these memories that I can play over-and-over again, and hopefully, these can inspire you. Share your journey, and if you don’t want to share them with the public, enjoy them yourself as a simple reminder of the special path you’ve created. 

-Natasha Hinojosa (@thetravelingbiologist)