NomadHer is happy to share a new series featuring NomadHers and their own travel stories through personal blog posts. All posts have been edited for grammar and clarity while making sure to retain the true voices and stories of our writers. We’d like to extend a special thank you to all of our writers and to our community!
Whenever I travel, I wonder, ‘What do local women think about travelers, especially women traveling alone?’ I want to know if they feel the same desire to explore the world and how possible that dream is for them. Sometimes it is not only about money problems, it could be many reasons, like family, culture, or religion. Everyone has a different life path, some need to stay at home with their family, while others are busy with studies or work. Life is a paint palette of different colors which represent our lives, since everyone is painting their own life story.
To understand those different colors I decided to combine two of my favorite things to do while traveling to Cambodia: talking with locals and drinking good coffee. I wanted to see through the eyes of local women: I wanted to see how local women see us. I love talking to locals to learn more about their own personal views as well as learning their deep knowledge of their city and useful safety tips.
This will be the first of many blogs about women I meet while traveling, starting in Siem Reap, where I talked with two kind women to hear their stories. I began with simple questions like: Have you ever traveled alone to a new city or country? If so, what is one important safety tip you would share? I also wanted to know what they really think about the solo travel trend—how do you feel when you see other women traveling alone, and is that a dream you want to follow too? Additionally, I asked about their daily life: do you usually feel safe and comfortable moving around your own city or country alone? But before sharing their stories, I want to tell you how I met them.
Both cafes I visited have a very bohemian vibe that invites you to sit and relax. So, while I was enjoying my favorite espresso-based coffee, a flat white. I normally like to see how they work. A dance where they move around preparing a cup of coffee, the smell floating in the air. This smell made me curious to find out what grain variety they used and if they roast the grains themselves. So I approached them, and I asked if they could take a moment to chat with me. Despite their nervousness with their English level and my own worries of bothering them, they were so kind that they stopped and talked to me for a few minutes.
Vannsa (វណ្ណសា), Sister Strey Cafe
Vannsa is an 18-year-old who moved from a countryside village to Siem Reap to work in a coffee shop while studying English to become a teacher.
When we talked about traveling alone, she said she hasn’t been to another city or country yet. She is still young so I think the idea of traveling alone makes her a bit nervous, especially when arriving in a new city and finding her way to the hotel at night. Which is a completely normal feeling, we all feel that when we arrive somewhere new. On the other hand, she said she feels completely safe walking the streets of Siem Reap, which actually made me feel more confident during my stay.
Feeling unsure when arriving in a new city is part of the travel process. As a solo female traveler, I can heavily relate to Vannsa’s initial nervousness about navigating an unfamiliar place, especially at night.
It’s happened to me several times that I arrive at night or too early in the morning in a new city. In BoliviaI traveled by bus from Cochabamba to Uyuni and I arrived at about 4 a.m., without a hotel booked. It was the first time I had ever done something like that, but I found out due to exchange rates, it was better to pay with cash rather than card.
After doing some preliminary research, I discovered that it was not very safe to walk alone while it was still dark,so I decided to wait. Luckily for me, there was a tent just outside of the bus station, selling buñuelos and coffee. There were a few locals there, struggling with the cold weather just like me and waiting for the first morning bus. I started talking to them, asking if it was safe for me to walk alone to find a hostel. They were so nice and told me to wait till sunrise, in the meantime, we chatted and had a good time. This time I didn’t take a taxi, because I didn’t even have a hostel. But I followed my instincts, and everything was fine.
Over time, we learn to trust our instincts and develop strategies for choosing safer options. Fear or instinct serves as protection, keeping us alert and helping both newcomers and seasoned travelers to find our way and reach our destinations safely.
When I asked Vannsa where she’d go if she could travel alone, she said 'Switzerland' with the biggest smile. I was honestly surprised! I expected her to pick a neighboring country like Thailand or Vietnam, but she’s thinking big. I can tell just by looking in her eyes —she has a truly brave spirit!
If she ever makes it to Switzerland, I know she’ll be just fine. Even though it’s been about ten years since I visited, I remember it being very safe. The only real downside is how expensive it can be! Plus, if you don't go in the summer, the weather can be a bit surprising—it gets cold and dark early—but I guess that’s just part of the magic of that place.
Vannsa was a bit shy, so I took a photo of the peaceful view while drinking my coffee instead.
Nicky (Nich-នីច), Brother Bong Cafe
Like Vannsa, she works in one of my favorite cafes now in Siem Reap. While I was drinking a delicious coffee and enjoying a lemon cake, I looked for my next victim hehe.
Nicky is also a lovely woman who has already lived experience as a solo traveler. She enjoyed the beautiful and chaotic city of Bangkok.
Like many women, she also felt a bit intimidated walking on the streets alone. She felt the staring of men and even from other women. This was something that I probably hadn’t noticed: women staring at me as a foreigner. It has happened to me only in South Korea, because the elders most of the time stare, but not in countries like Thailand. Maybe because of my Latin vibe and golden, dark, and Aztec skin colors, I look a bit more like a local. :P
She also enjoyed traveling with her friends, but she definitely felt like it was a very different experience when she did it alone. She felt a lot more freedom to plan the trip the way she wanted, being independent and finding her way around. Moreover, she also enjoyed listening more deeply to her own thoughts, learning who she is while facing unfamiliar situations in different environments. After that, she mentioned she wants to do it again and again. Alone or with friends, they are just different kinds of trips; both ways are so much fun.
Facing new challenges releases so much adrenaline that it makes you want more and more. Am I crazy to think that way, or do you also feel it?
Once we started talking about safety, I asked her if she could give me any tips to move around this country or any other country that she has learned. One of those tips was when you're arriving at an unknown destination, or it is too late at night, and you need to book a taxi. It is always better to book a taxi using an app.
Grab, for example, offers great safety features. Once when I booked transportation with this app to go to the airport, the driver took a different route than planned. The app immediately sent me a pop-up with 2 buttons, “I am ok” and “Call the police”. I waited a couple of minutes and asked the driver why he took another route. It was a bit stressful, since I think the driver didn’t speak any English, so we used messages through the app, even though we were in the same car. He said he wanted to take a different route because of heavy traffic, so a few minutes later he went back to the planned route, and I clicked the “I am ok” button and nothing happened. This kind of feeling of being protected is what Nicky was talking about. I think this was a great tip!
Nicky’s beautiful smile
Final thoughts
Sometimes, the biggest challenge we must overcome before traveling is our own fear. However, after doing some research about Siem Reap and Cambodia in general, I realized there are still bigger barriers than financial situations. Social and cultural barriers —such as family expectations and traditional gender roles—can also significantly limit women's opportunities for independent travel. I am glad these obstacles did not directly affect the two women I interviewed.
Whatever our circumstances, we should cherish the freedom we have to travel and keep inspiring other women to chase their own adventures. There’s so much we can learn from one another. In the end, what connects us is far greater than what divides us.
Wicker lamps dancing in the wind above the Siem Reap river.
