I lied.

Or perhaps it was only a little lie — or not telling the whole truth.

Everyone else on our five-day sailing trip around Croatia was travelling as a couple. I was the only solo traveller on the boat.

When we arrived on the island of Vis, we knew we would spend the entire day and night there.

Vis is a large island, and if you want to explore beyond the harbour, you have a few options. You can join a military tour, which did not particularly interest me, or rent a scooter and ride to the other side of the island.

Everyone else in our group had experience riding scooters.

I didn’t.

I had been on scooters many times with Bruno, but I had always been sitting behind him. He was the one riding, navigating and knowing exactly what to do.

And this time, Bruno wasn’t there.

So, I had a decision to make.

Should I stay near the harbour all day while everyone else explored the island?

Or should I rent a scooter too?

The answer seemed obvious.

Of course I was going to rent one.

After everyone left, I walked into a scooter rental shop near the harbour.

The woman behind the counter checked my driving licence and asked me a few questions. Then came the question I had been dreading.

“Yes,” I replied confidently. “Many times. In Asia, Mexico…”

Technically, that was true.

I had been on scooters in all those places.

I simply forgot to mention that I had always been sitting on the back while Bruno did the actual riding.

Perhaps she was asking whether I had been on a scooter before, not whether I had personally ridden one.

At least, that was how I justified it to myself.

She handed me the key, and I tried my best to look as though I knew exactly what I was doing.

I started the scooter, moved forward a little… and the seat came off.

I had to call the rental shop.

They brought me another scooter, but the second one would not start. They tried again and again, but nothing happened.

Was this a sign that I should give up?

Maybe the universe was trying to tell me something.

But, of course, I didn’t give up.

They gave me a third scooter. This one was bright orange, and finally, it worked.

I began slowly, testing the brakes and trying to understand how everything worked without making it too obvious that I was learning as I went.

There were two roads across the island: the old road and the new road.

For reasons I still cannot explain, I chose the new road.

It turned out to be steep, winding and busy with coaches and trucks.

I rode along while sweating from stress. Filming did not even cross my mind. I was completely focused on staying on the road and keeping the scooter under control.

Eventually, I found somewhere safe to stop.

I looked around at the view and thought, “This is actually quite nice.”

Then I continued towards Komiža, on the other side of Vis, where scenes from Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again were filmed.

When I arrived, I discovered another small problem: I did not know how to park the scooter properly.

After several attempts, I somehow managed it.

I walked around Komiža, explored for a while and then began my journey back to our sailing boat. This time, I wisely chose the old road.

At one viewpoint, I met another female solo traveller riding a scooter. She was American, and we offered to take photographs of each other.

We were only together for about 10 or 15 minutes, but we laughed and talked as though we had known each other for years.

That is one of my favourite things about travelling alone. Sometimes you meet someone for only a few minutes, but the connection feels instant.

We said goodbye and continued in opposite directions.

By then, everything felt different.

I was more relaxed. I started enjoying the ride. I stopped to take in the views, passed vineyards and saw horses beside the road. At one point, a rabbit jumped across in front of me.

Then it started raining, adding one final bit of excitement to the journey.

By the time I returned to the boat, I felt proud of myself.

That scooter ride became one of the highlights of my entire sailing trip around Croatia.

Looking back, should I have admitted that I had never ridden a scooter alone?

Probably. It would have been safer to be honest and ask for a proper lesson before setting off.

But I am also glad I didn’t allow my fear to keep me sitting by the harbour all day.

Sometimes courage does not mean that you feel confident or know exactly what you are doing. Sometimes it means you are sweating, slightly terrified and wondering whether the scooter seat is supposed to come off — but you keep going anyway.

That day reminded me why I travel and why I still push myself to try unfamiliar things.

You can watch the full video from my five-day sailing adventure in Croatia here:

Watch my Croatia sailing adventure →

There is much more in the video than my slightly chaotic scooter ride: beautiful islands, life on board, sailing with people I had never met before and the reality of joining the trip as the only solo traveller.

If this video has made you curious about trying a sailing holiday yourself, I have also written a practical guide for first-time sailors, covering what to expect, what to pack and what life on board is really like.

Read my first-timer’s sailing guide →

Mansoureh

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