Superwoman of April 2017: Katrin Praseli

I was blog walking at an Indonesian blogger named Guratan Kaki when I found a post about the fearless Indonesian women who likes to travel solo. Katrin Praseli was one of the brave ladies who went to Nepal by herself. And I thought… Geez.. I gotta contact her!

So introducing the Superwoman of April 2017, Katrin Praseli. I am so happy that she would like to share her stories and tips for any solo female traveller wannabe. Hope it can inspire you ladies!

Name: Katrin Praseli

Instagram: @katrinpraseli

Website/Blog: –

Nationality: Indonesian

Residence: Sydney, Australia

Occupation: Language Tutor 🙂

What inspired you to travel solo for the first time?

I just wanted to go visit my friends. Had I gone with a boyfriend or with a friend, I wouldn’t have free accommodation. Simple as that.

Tell us about the first time you travelled alone. Where did you go and what did you do?

I went to Malaysia and Thailand. I went to the closest country and I saw a lot of my friends in KL, Penang, and Bangkok. So, it wasn’t really travelling all by myself because I was with people 50 percent at a time, but I was still new to travelling on my own, so I didn’t want to be too hasty and ended up regretting it if I didn’t have a good time (now I highly doubt it, but at the time, I had my doubts)

So what are the love/hate things you experienced travelling alone?

I love that I can experience the world through me, not through anyone else. Along the way you realise something about yourself, you realise that there are more valuable things in life than just getting the next pay check. I realise how blessed and how fortunate and most importantly you learn something new about yourself every time you travel.

There’s nothing I really hate about traveling alone, but, one thing that I will need to get used to is to be more vigilant. I mean, you have to be vigilant in any situation and any where, not just when you’re traveling, but when you are traveling you need to be extra careful, extra vigilant and I don’t like that… I am a clumsy person in general, so, to have to pay attention to my belongings (passport, etc) stresses me out quite a bit!

Who’s your travel inspiration? 

All my fellow solo travellers and adventurers. Iyos, he has his own blog guratankaki.com , we went to Uni together for 4 years and he is one of my inspiration. I want to be more bold like him.

What is your favorite websites and travel apps do you often use? 

I usually use trip advisor and XE currency haha (to check if I want to buy souvenirs). I don’t really use apps or even do any research. Just pack my bags and go 🙂

What is your favorite country so far? Any recommendation for female solo traveler?

Nepal. Because of these 2 things:

The people and of course…Everest Base Camp.

The people are very friendly. This is saying a lot because I’m an Indonesian and I think we are the friendliest people. BUT people in Nepal, man… they don’t chase tourists! If you don’t want to buy anything, they will leave you alone. They won’t ask over and over and over again. Very good for solo travellers.

For first time traveler, you have to know what you like, do you like big cities? do you like nature? beaches? mountains? Once you’ve figured it out, then you can make a decision. For example, if you like cities, Osaka, and Tokyo Japan would be my recommendation. It was so easy to get around there and the food is just amazing. Just know what you want to see, so that you can get the most out of your trip.

What are some important things you bring when travelling solo? (Beside money and passport?)

If you are going on a hiking trip, sunblock is very important, but in general I always bring water! Drink plenty of water on the way to your destination, while in you’re there. Stay hydrated. It is easy to forget to drink water when sightseeing and trying new cool stuff, but always bring a bottle of water in your backpack 🙂

Everyone has their quiry thing when they travel. I love doing temple hunting and visiting museums. So what’s yours?

Making new friends. Not really quirky but its the thing I love to do most…On my way to the Everest Basecamp, I’ve met amazing people along the way. Most of them are solo travellers like myself. They were amazing. When I think about the trip, I don’t think I remembered what the Basecamp looked like (I mean of course I do), I remembered meeting Becky, the long distance truck driver from London, I remembered Sujesh, an Indian doctor from South Africa, who in the middle of the night the day before we reached base camp, woke me up because he was out of oxygen, and I didn’t know what to do as I wasn’t the doctor! But he was fine and we reached the base camp at the same time the next day. I remembered meeting a nice couple from Washington, Seattle, NOT DC Washington, who sold their house to travel around the world for 1.5 years, Cindy, who has the best job in the world, she’s a travel writer. She got paid to travel! Those are the things I remembered and will always treasure and I can’t wait to make some more.

Share your tips for any first time solo traveller?

Just do it! You have got nothing to lose.

It depends on you, really. For me, I travel for myself and myself only, so I don’t care about visiting those recommended attractions that people listed on Facebook, etc. In saying that, there is nothing wrong in doing extensive research, maybe I’m just lazy!

BUT…Always make sure that you purchase Travel Insurance. I normally use Travel Insurance Direct. Its like 100 something dollars extra, but, if something (knock on wood) did happen and you have to go to a hospital, you’ll be glad you have it.

What’s your favorite travel quote that’s best describe you?

“We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us” – Anonymous .

I actually heard it on my way to Japan in an inflight commercial for some hotel. But, it’s fitting 🙂

Katrin is a twenty something woman who has a passion for … travel, makeup, and languages. She has been teaching in Australia for almost four years basically right after she graduated from her Master Degree in 2012. Through her job, she managed to find some time to travel. Katrin usually travels 2-3 times per year. Last year was the most she’s ever traveled, 5 times (3 international travel and 2 domestic travel-around Australia). Katrin hopes to inspire young women out there who would love to travel by themselves. Hopefully through her stories, more women would be more keen to explore the world and see the world through a different perspective, because that’s what travelling is all about. 

© 2017 Writing & Images copyright of Marina Utami.