Solo Trip to Singapore While Pregnant (Secretly)
I always thought my first solo trip would be back in 2011, when I planned a getaway to Siargao, but that never happened. I even wrote about the failure of my journey here: Mactan: Almost Siargao. Fast-forward to 2023, and I finally made it happen: my first solo trip to Singapore while pregnant. Yes, secretly pregnant! It may have taken over a decade, but this unexpected adventure—free flights, a surprise reunion, and a tiny human growing inside me—was worth the wait.
This trip was totally unexpected. I won round-trip flights and hotel accommodation at a media event hosted by Cebu Pacific and the Singapore Tourism Board. So, buntis-me said yes to a free international trip. Who wouldn’t? What I didn’t expect was that this solo trip to Singapore while pregnant would turn out to be one of my most memorable travels yet.
Initially, I intended to bring my Brompton and even meet up with Nica, who was SG-based then. But I ended up ditching those plans because of my condition. Slowing down felt right, and my gut (and maybe my hormones) told me to take it easy.
One cool thing that happened was that I saw Facebook posts from Marco (The Pinoy Traveler) and realized he was also in Singapore at the time. We’ve known each other since the early days of our travel blogging community, Pinoy Travel Bloggers, which I think was around as early as 2011 (or even earlier). I’ll save that whole story for a separate blog post. 😉 After a few quick messages, we met and spent an entire day exploring Sentosa together.
It was a spontaneous decision, and we didn’t really plan it. So, in true travel fashion, we ended up boarding the wrong bus going to Sentosa from Fort Canning. Dahil nagdadaldalan kami, we didn’t realize it until we were halfway through the ride and noticed our supposed destination was no longer showing up among the stops. To make things more interesting, we didn’t have internet. No Google Maps. No instant research. Just two Tita travel bloggers low-key panicking like first-timers. 😂 Little mishaps like this are what make a trip memorable. Agree?
Another twist to the timing is that this solo trip happened just a few days before our annual family school break trip. And would you believe it, Singapore was part of the itinerary (along with Bangkok and Phuket). So, this spontaneous solo adventure actually doubled as an ocular for our next destination.
Looking back, it’s wild to think my first real solo trip, while pregnant, happened in a foreign country, running on instinct, and konting swerte. I also thought I needed this trip to feel free one last time before the morning sickness, the sleepless nights, and all the things I’d have to put on hold because of my pregnancy. It turned out to be short but sweet; the kind of pause you don’t realize you’re craving until you’re already in it.
And that tiny human in my belly? We named her Indra Marin, and she’s now 1.5 years old and giving me a run for my money.
Life has a way of giving us stories we didn’t plan for. Minsan libre ka, minsan buntis ka. 😂 Pero ayun. Instant kuwento. And those are usually the best ones. This solo trip to Singapore while I’m secretly pregnant may have been unexpected, but it’s definitely one for the books.
Thanks for reading. 😊
