Auntie, this man is upsetting me/ making me uncomfortable / winding me up etc etc

Aha thanks!!

I have been alone twice this year and I have just turned 19 last week, and Im going back next month, but i was staying with my boyfriend and he met me at the airport, and we didnt part at all in the time i was there, so I only travelled alone, people say Im crazy to go alone, but it doesnt bother me, as long as you have got a strong head and can look after yourself in your own country it is not different any where else. There are always people to help you wherever, and especially turkey as the majority of people ive met there are very helpful. good luck x

It seems to me that the hardest part in traveling alone in Turkey is to find your way around and get whatever you need (buying a bus ticket, booking hotel, asking directions...etc) without speaking enough Turkish. I wonder how people manage..
I had a huge problem to just buy a ticket to another city from Istanbul! or to understand where the bus is leaving from... etc. Turkish buses are the most irregular and confusing thing ever. I've been to couple other countries and it wasn't hard to figure out how the buses work, but in Turkey... it was a nightmare.
From my experience people are very helpful and friendly, sometimes TOO friendly. It didn't feel unsafe to me to travel alone, it was harder to let the male "helpers" know that you're not interested in visiting them or seeing them again and to politely ask them to leave you alone (pretending like you don't speak any Turkish is slightly helpful in some of those cases).

I must say that for me it is a big difference between travelling TO a country and have someone to pick you up (what can be dangerous about that?) and travelling THROUGH a country alone.

In this situation some daring but more a good preparation will take most difficulties away. Read before you go, search on the internet for connections, routes, hotels, things to do etc. and make sure you have a good travel book with you.

I love the Lonely Planet because they are critical, they give prices so you know about what to expect, they give loads of general information (about transport, hotel types, tourist traps, dangers, embassies, health, sights, language, history etc) and their guides also cover the less touristic parts.

Rough Guide is good as well but doesn't state prices. And if you don't speak a word of the language there is a little (cheap, I think 7 US$) book called 'Point It' you can use, full of pictures of almost anything you can think of.

Marionin, thats a good one, I'll remember that phrase definitely I suppose it all boils down to whether I believe and have the confidence that I will make this trip or not. I guess I should stop worrying about other people opinions. Trudy, I'm awed. You really can travel!

The most important part of travelling alone, is be preared, do your research, look positive, even if you are unsure where you are going. Enjoy the experience!