Bally Bhamra, now 74, began travelling the world alone after retiring at 60, following a 40-year career in payroll. She started with a hiking trip in Nepal to prove that senior citizens can still have adventures.
Each winter, Bhamra leaves her home in Berkshire, UK, to explore different parts of the world. She recently returned from nine months in southern Africa and Madagascar, and last month headed to southeast Asia. She avoids hotels, instead staying with local families she meets through Sikh temples or the Host a Sister network.
In Namibia, she stayed in a settlement without gas, running water, or toilets. In Malawi, she washed in a river, and in Mozambique, she travelled for two days in a basic wooden boat. 'You're challenging yourself mentally,' she says.
Bhamra, originally from Malaysia, moved to London in the 1970s with her husband. They have three children and three grandchildren. She says travelling alone brings freedom: 'You eat what you want, go where you want. I can walk 15km or hitchhike on a truck.'
She believes women should not be housebound: 'If a man can do something, why can't we?' Despite initial challenges settling in the UK in the 1970s, she feels safe travelling alone, noting that her home in Berkshire has been burgled several times, but she has never experienced theft abroad.
