Can you find 'home' in a place that you've only ever visited as someone's kid? Devika Parmar grew up Gujarathi American, her whole relationship to India mediated through her parents and grandparents - never quite her own. After she lost both grandparents in the same year, she booked three weeks in India alone. Then, the fear she'd prepared for - being a woman alone - found her anyway, and she had to decide whether to go home early or stay and finish what she came to do. 

Follow Devika on Instagram at @devikaparmar and see her art at www.devikaparmar.com

Follow @solita_travels for bonus content and subscribe on Substack for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode.

Can you find 'home' in a place that you've only ever visited as someone's kid? Devika Parmar grew up Gujarathi American, her whole relationship to India mediated through her parents and grandparents - never quite her own. After she lost both grandparents in the same year, she booked three weeks in India alone. Then, the fear she'd prepared for - being a woman alone - found her anyway, and she had to decide whether to go home early or stay and finish what she came to do.&nbsp;
Follow Devika on Instagram at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/devikaparmar/">@devikaparmar</a> and see her art at <a href="https://www.devikaparmar.com">www.devikaparmar.com</a>
Follow <a href="https://www.instagram.com/solita_travels/">@solita_travels</a> for bonus content and subscribe on <a href="https://substack.com/@solitatravels%20/%20https://www.instagram.com/solita_travels/">Substack</a> for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode.

Record-numbers of women are traveling alone. But what are the real stories beyond the highlight reel, the "Bali will heal you" fantasies and the doom warnings from your uncle? 

Hosted by solo traveler and award-winning writer Julie Piñero, Solita explores the messier side to solo travel. What happens when your Paris fling takes you somewhere the rom-coms wouldn’t dare? When your trip to honor your grandparents means facing your worst fear alone? When you say ‘yes’ and it surprises even you? 

Solita is Spanish for ‘a female alone’, but it drips with pity. This show takes that word back. Solitude - especially on the road - may be a time to follow a curiosity nobody shares, change your mind and push your limits. 

Each week, Julie and a guest unpack one solo trip and what it reveals about safety, sex, money, heritage, loneliness, identity and other nuances that make solo travel more approachable, less fantasy. Because the world isn’t always your oyster. That’s exactly what makes the story worth telling.

Record-numbers of women are traveling alone. But what are the real stories beyond the highlight reel, the "Bali will heal you" fantasies and the doom warnings from your uncle?&nbsp;
Hosted by solo traveler and award-winning writer Julie Pi&ntilde;ero, Solita explores the messier side to solo travel. What happens when your Paris fling takes you somewhere the rom-coms wouldn&rsquo;t dare? When your trip to honor your grandparents means facing your worst fear alone? When you say &lsquo;yes&rsquo; and it surprises even you?&nbsp;
Solita is Spanish for &lsquo;a female alone&rsquo;, but it drips with pity. This show takes that word back. Solitude - especially on the road - may be a time to follow a curiosity nobody shares, change your mind and push your limits.&nbsp;
Each week, Julie and a guest unpack one solo trip and what it reveals about safety, sex, money, heritage, loneliness, identity and other nuances that make solo travel more approachable, less fantasy. Because the world isn&rsquo;t always your oyster. That&rsquo;s exactly what makes the story worth telling.

Solita

Going Home to a Place Where You've Never Lived

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/f8a74392-260a-4886-8b16-b4c501115862/transcript

Who do you become when, for a few hours, you’re just a seat number... and you meet someone? Three women report back. Hannah Roodman found romance in a 6am Delta flight, thanks to a clementine and a really good playlist. Nava Kavelin learned (the hard way) what happens when your crush can't handle turbulence. And when Ali Levin got stranded at the airport hotel, she found her very first one night stand with a person who's job... is to stay hidden.

Hannah Roodman produced the documentary "Yo (Love is a Rebellious Bird)", now screening at film festivals across the world. 

Nava Kavelin is the co-host, producer and creator of Podcrushed and Co-author of Crushmore: Essays on Love, Loss and Coming-of-Age.

Ali Levin is a Teaching Artist at Co_Lab Theater, co-hosting and performing in the 2026 CO_LABaret at the Laurie Beechman Theater on October 20th. Find tickets here, and support Co_Lab Theater here.

Follow Solita on Instagram and Tiktok for bonus content and subscribe on Substack for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode. 

Who do you become when, for a few hours, you&rsquo;re just a seat number... and you meet someone? Three women report back. Hannah Roodman found romance in a 6am Delta flight, thanks to a clementine and a really good playlist. Nava Kavelin learned (the hard way) what happens when your crush can't handle turbulence. And when Ali Levin got stranded at the airport hotel, she found her very first one night stand with a person who's job... is to stay hidden.
Hannah Roodman produced the documentary "<a href="https://www.theyofilm.org/">Yo (Love is a Rebellious Bird)</a>", now screening at film festivals across the world.&nbsp;
Nava Kavelin is the co-host, producer and creator of <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/podcrushed/id1622070205">Podcrushed</a> and Co-author of <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Crushmore/Penn-Badgley/9781668077993">Crushmore: Essays on Love, Loss and Coming-of-Age.</a>
Ali Levin is a Teaching Artist at Co_Lab Theater, co-hosting and performing in the 2026 CO_LABaret at the Laurie Beechman Theater on October 20th. Find tickets <a href="https://thebeechman.com/events/lbt25-colabaretvvjmgs7">here</a>, and support Co_Lab Theater <a href="https://secure.colabtheatergroup.com/forms/21">here</a>.
Follow <a href="https://www.instagram.com/solita_travels/">Solita</a> on Instagram and <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@solita_travels">Tiktok</a> for bonus content and subscribe on <a href="https://solitaaa.substack.com/">Substack</a> for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode.&nbsp;

When Flights are a Portal to a Bolder Universe of Romance

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/e23304b1-f511-4925-81df-b4e5010baa6c/transcript

How do you get into the most exclusive nightclub in the world, alone? Novelist Upasna Barath spent two months in Rome and Berlin to finish her second book and ended up in line at Berghain, the club with the hardest door in nightlife. Upasna swears this trip made her into a "type-b person", making the case that a dance floor full of strangers who will never know your name might be the most honest place to find out how to let go.

For more on Upasna, read her book Comedic Timing, her Substack Lifeline and visit her website for updates on her upcoming releases!

Follow Solita on Instagram and Tiktok for bonus content and subscribe on Substack for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode. 

How do you get into the most exclusive nightclub in the world, alone? Novelist Upasna Barath spent two months in Rome and Berlin to finish her second book and ended up in line at Berghain, the club with the hardest door in nightlife. Upasna swears this trip made her into a "type-b person", making the case that a dance floor full of strangers who will never know your name might be the most honest place to find out how to let go.
For more on Upasna, read her book <a href="https://831stories.com/products/comedic-timing-by-upasna-barath">Comedic Timing</a>, her Substack <a href="https://lifelineforyou.substack.com/">Lifeline</a> and visit her <a href="https://www.upasnabarath.com/">website</a> for updates on her upcoming releases!
Follow Solita on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/solita_travels/">Instagram</a> and <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@solita_travels">Tiktok</a> for bonus content and subscribe on <a href="https://solitaaa.substack.com/">Substack</a> for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode.&nbsp;

How to Go Clubbing Alone

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/f586e0b9-f80c-48dd-8b9e-b4e100e0ef06/transcript

Can you ever un-hear the voice you only find when you're traveling alone? Nikki Vargas, founder of Unearth Women and Associate Editorial Director at Travel + Leisure, found hers in Iguazu National Park, days before she canceled her wedding. Years later, she took that same willingness-to-listen back to Colombia, a country she'd always felt "not Colombian enough" for, to report on the FARC peace treaty and on the aunt whose death no one ever explained to her. 

To hear more of Nikki's adventures in travel, read her book "Call You When I Land". Follow Nikki's work on Travel + Leisure's Substack, "The Fast Track", as well as her own personal Substack, "Wanderess". For updates on her forthcoming book and novel, follow her on Instagram.

Follow Solita on Instagram and Tiktok for bonus content and subscribe on Substack for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode. 

Can you ever un-hear the voice you only find when you're traveling alone? Nikki Vargas, founder of Unearth Women and Associate Editorial Director at Travel + Leisure, found hers in Iguazu National Park, days before she canceled her wedding. Years later, she took that same willingness-to-listen back to Colombia, a country she'd always felt "not Colombian enough" for, to report on the FARC peace treaty and on the aunt whose death no one ever explained to her.&nbsp;
To hear more of Nikki's adventures in travel, read her book "<a href="https://www.nikkivargas.com/call-you-when-i-land.html">Call You When I Land</a>". Follow Nikki's work on Travel + Leisure's Substack, "<a href="https://travelandleisure.substack.com/">The Fast Track</a>", as well as her own personal Substack, "<a href="https://substack.com/@nikkivargas">Wanderess</a>". For updates on her forthcoming book and novel, follow her on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/niknakvargas/">Instagram</a>.
Follow Solita on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/solita_travels/">Instagram</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/solita_travels/">Tiktok</a> for bonus content and subscribe on <a href="https://substack.com/@solitatravels">Substack</a> for Julie's big 3 takeaways from each episode.&nbsp;

An Unsolved Murder, a Canceled Wedding and the Truth You Can’t Un-Hear

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/2c4e837a-6cf0-4083-8602-b4da0154fe8a/transcript

Going Home to a Place Where You've Never Lived

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