I must be getting up there...

In addition to the alarm in people's reaction to my going to CR alone (see Going Solo post) there have also been a number of responses along the lines of..."Ahh, you're going to Costa Rica by yourself? You're must be going to find a husband!" While I'll be the first to admit the idea of meeting a fellow adventurer on the travel circuit has crossed my mind I definitely don't have a "find a husband" agenda going. However the fact that many people (my good friends) seem to think I should have an agenda makes me realize I have crossed over into the very marriageable age bracket (I'm 26). Pretty much all of my closest friends are married, engaged or on the brink of engagement and apparently they mostly want the same for me. I guess this is a natural response however it makes me ponder the real difference between being in a relationship (for the purposes of this comparison we'll say a very happy, healthy passionate one) or being single but having an adventurous life. Granted there are physical and emotional highs that you can experience in a relationship that aren't there when you are single but there are also highs associated with freedom and independence that feed the spirit as well. I remember when I was studying in Holland and I took the train to Paris for a weeks visit alone. I stepped off the train in the Paris Nord station and there were all these couples embracing and kissing. I smiled indulgently at them but I felt this huge surge of adrenalin that made me feel as though I was walking on air because I was experiencing something I had dreamed about my whole life. Paris was a destination that was my dream and the elation I experienced upon arriving was intense. I have never felt so free in my life as I did walking into Paris on my own with my backpack on. In Paris that week I met other travelers and had a blast with them, two of whom I'm still in contact with. I'm sure traveling with your SO can be great too but I want to have that solitary spiritual adventure again and this is I think something that my friends may not have experienced before. This is what may lead them to think I must be going in search of a husband. Although I do intend to marry and procreate someday I hope it doesn't happen too soon (you can't really control timing if someone comes along you can't live without). I have a few more destinations in mind that I'd like to see and hopefully experience that intense level of freedom again.