It is a full moon.
Her brother is basking in the moonlight, relaxed on the river in a small boat. But she struggles to get a glimpse of the moon from her balcony.
This story resonates with the life of many women in Bangladesh. There are so many women whose hearts go out into the blue, through the woods and over the mountains, while turning the pages of adventure novels. However, in reality, many of them do not even get permission to go join study tours.
Women cannot travel alone, it is not safe out there, women are not built to be globetrotters – these are the longstanding patriarchal mindsets plaguing society in Bangladesh right now. But a number of women have set out to defy these outdated paradigms. .
There are some Bangladeshi women who refuse to confine their life in the narrow alleys of their town. They rather explore the world as solo travelers.
Nazia Shoronee is an engineer. Her passion for travel started since she was a child. Locating new places on the atlas where she had never been was her favorite game. Unlike many other women in Bangladesh, her quest for visiting new places would not be limited to the atlas.
Nazia pointed out that many parents do not allow their daughters to travel with her friends, let alone travelling solo. Some parents suggest their daughter wait till they get married and travel with their husband.
Nazia thinks people in Bangladesh have too many negative ideas about women travelling alone. This is why many women do not have the courage to travel solo.
"All you have to do is take a step forward. And the parents need to realize that they should not do anything to break their daughter's confidence. Women too need to learn to protect themselves when they travel alone," said Nazia.
Journalist Quazi Shahreen Haq never misses a chance to travel. Be it travelling solo or with her friends, travelling always rejuvenates her.
Shahreen had to stand up for herself in the beginning when people made negative comments about her road trips.
She thinks some people will always try to impede women's right to free movement but women have to fight and own their rights.
Is safety just a women's issue? Is the society still rigid towards opinionated women who want to travel alone?
"I don't understand why there is so much fuss about safety. Men and women both need to be alert about safety when they travel to a new place. Parents bar girls from travelling alone but they don't make it an issue when it comes to a boy," said Shahreen.
Ashita Sultana Chowdhury has visited 13 countries including the United States, Italy, Sweden, Nepal, Denmark, and Malaysia.
Paragliding, hiking, trekking- Ashita is all for these sort of adventures. However, she never forgets to ensure her security.
Ashita recommends keeping emergency contact details in the bag, checking information about hotels over phone before booking, thoroughly checking the hired guide's previous records, providing updates to friends and family at home, and learning as much as possible about the place before starting the road trip.
Travelling is not just a pleasure time for Nazia. She believes spending time amid nature could bring positive changes in life.
Nazia shared an anecdote with Prothom Alo.
"I met an Austrian single mother when I travelled to India's Guwahati. I went to see the world's only living root bridge after five hours of trekking. It was in a time when I was going through a rough phase in my life. I rediscovered myself in that journey," said Nazia.
Sportsperson Zobera Rahman Linu is passionate about travelling. She suggests that women need to be confident about traveling solo. A teenager might not get permission to travel alone but Linu does not see any problems about an adult women travelling alone.
Solo female travelers in Bangladesh are breaking rules and paving the way for all aspiring female globetrotters, who hope that their wanderlust won't be limited to just books, TV shows, movies, and the internet alone.