Recently, I had the opportunity to travel to Swansea, Wales, and do a house sit for a dog and two cats. The house was close to many trails, beaches, and mountains – perfect for getting out and exploring nature.
While I had a great week and explored some trails near the house, I’m calling it “unconventional,” as it turned out very different than I had expected.
I had planned this week to be a complete detox from social media and real life. I was planning to take care of a dog and two cats, get out into nature, and do nothing but write.
I would be off my phone, delete social media, and only check messages once a day.
Some of that happened, but it did not go to plan from day one. I still had a great week, though, and I’m here to tell you all about it.
But first, I’ll let you in on a little something. Did you know that you can get free accommodation and cheap travel using these tricks?
How Did I Get FREE Accommodation and Plan This Trip?
I booked this stay through Trusted House Sitters. They are an amazing platform that is essentially a travel “swap.”
House sitters can apply to any sit in the world and stay there for free. All they need to do is look after the house and pets.
Home and pet owners have a sitter stay in their house while on vacation. This swap gives them peace of mind that their pets are being cared for while they’re away.
I’ve used Trusted House Sitters many times in London, Paris, and now Swansea. It has saved me SO MUCH on accommodation that it’s well worth the membership fee.
If you use my link, you get 25% off the membership fee.
I took the coach from London Victoria to Swansea Bus Station, which took just over four hours to get there and about five hours to return.
I booked through Trainline, the best train and coach booking service in my opinion. This return journey cost me just under £20.
If you’re traveling abroad and don’t have data roaming with your phone plan, I highly recommend Airalo, where you can buy an eSIM for over 200 countries worldwide.
My Expectations and Predictions for This Week
I decided to leave London for a week before traveling to Italy and ultimately moving out of London. I had just quit my job and had a week before my Italy trip.
I decided to look at potential house sits outside of London, but in the United Kingdom, as I wanted to explore more of the country.
I use Trusted House Sitters, where you can get free accommodation anywhere in the world, and all you need to do is take care of pets.
I found this sit for five days in Swansea, Wales, which I felt would be the perfect escape from the city.
My intentions for this week were:
- No social media, except for creating and posting TikToks and Instagram Reels to my travel account.
- Enjoy nature and the pets, and take long walks and hikes every day.
- Journal twice daily.
- Write, write, write! I wanted to write at least three blog posts and come up with ideas for Reels and TikToks.
I wanted to have a total “reset,” in a sense. I predicted I would feel calmer and have much more time to myself, especially without social media.
That was all well-intentioned, but I think I put too much pressure on myself to have this “perfect” week.
In reality, I did write a few posts and go on long walks, but not as much as I had hoped. I mostly relaxed and enjoyed my time there, which was much needed.
My Week in Swansea, Wales
This week was a WEEK. It really tested me.
Let me start by saying that this week did not go as I had hoped, but I still had a good time. This trip taught me that things will not always go according to plan—but more on that later.
Going into this, I knew the dog I was taking care of would be big. He’s a two-year-old Weimaraner, about 105 lbs—almost the same weight as me.
He was big and strong and didn’t like to listen to the rules. Pairing a strong dog who still acts like a puppy with someone as small as me (think 5 feet!) will end in disaster.
Side note: Let’s call the dog B.
Day One
Our very first walk did not go smoothly. In fact, it went so bad that I ended up calling the emergency vet.
B never seemed to run out of energy. He’s a big dog, and his bark is much bigger than his bite. He’s very friendly and only wants to play when he sees other dogs.
Ten minutes into our first walk – keep in mind that he was pulling me the entire way, and I was struggling – he saw a French bulldog across the street and ran towards him.
He pulled the lead out of my hands and ran straight to the other dog. The Frenchie got scared and bit his ear, and B bit the Frenchie.
The other dog’s owners tried to pry open his mouth and get him away from B, but the Frenchie kept hold and did not let go for what felt like an agonizing amount of time.
B was crying while the other dog was growling. It was like a scene straight out of a movie.
Eventually, the dogs separated, but B’s ear was bloody, and he had a bite mark on the top of his head near his ear. The owners and I exchanged information and parted ways to assess the damage and clean up our dogs.
B’s owner was on a flight at the time of the incident and didn’t land until a few hours later. I didn’t know how bad the damage was and whether I should take him to the emergency vet, which would’ve cost a fortune.
I called Trusted House Sitters’ 24-hour vet advice hotline (thank goodness for this!) and got advice on how to stop the bleeding and what to do next.
When B’s owner landed, I called and showed him B’s injuries. He reassured me that B would be just fine and that this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.
When the incident happened, I stayed calm, knowing everything would be alright. But deep down, I was panicking.
Day Two
On the second day, I felt so much better. I was less anxious, less stressed, and more confident with B. I owe this to two things:
One—I learned from the previous day and knew what to expect with B. I now knew his strength and what to expect from our walks.
Two—Using the lead properly and feeling more in control while walking B. It turns out that there was a special way to use the lead, which goes over his neck and mouth so that he can’t pull as hard.
B and the two cats (who were so adorable and didn’t cause any trouble!) kept waking me up throughout the night, as they all slept on the bed with me.
One thing I loved doing was going to sleep early and waking up early so we could have a nice early morning walk, one in the afternoon, and one in the early evening just before sunset.
B and I attempted to hike to the top of a mountain, but we only got halfway there because he was pulling like crazy and trying to take the lead off multiple times.
He’s a difficult dog to walk, so I didn’t take him all the way up without knowing the route and exactly how far it was.
I was disappointed that we didn’t get to go on proper hikes during my time in Swansea, but I don’t think we could have because I couldn’t handle B’s constant pulling.
And yes, maybe this is partially my fault for taking on more than I could handle with this large dog.
Because of all the nonsense with B and not being able to walk him properly, it was tough. These few days really tested me, and I found myself counting down the days until I returned to London.
But then I thought to myself—no. I had looked forward to this sit for so long, and here I am. I told myself I was going to enjoy it no matter what. I would take it slow, be more patient with B, and see what happens.
Although walking B wasn’t easy, I knew it would get better. I learned when he would try to pull, if he would try to run toward another dog, and how to stop him.
Day Three
The third day was slightly easier. We went on some long walks, and I did a lot of what I went there to do – write.
I wrote and published a blog post and created and uploaded content for my travel socials.
B and I walked up a trail that I thought would take us to a mountain, but it only took us to a blocked-off private farm where we couldn’t go any farther.
That walk was only about 30 minutes, which was quite disappointing. But then again, he’s quite a big dog who’s difficult to walk, and I wasn’t going to beat myself up about it.
Day Four
This was my last full day in Swansea. I kept going back and forth about attempting to hike up that mountain with B again, but ultimately, I decided against it.
B is a very strong dog. Walking him felt like fighting a battle every time.
Instead of hiking up the mountain, we went on a long walk around the area in the morning and an hour-long walk through some forest trails in the afternoon.
I was bummed I didn’t get to explore more of the area, but this entire trip made me realize one thing:
Plans always change. You cannot plan for things to go a certain way and expect them to go perfectly every time.
This week has truly tested me. It took me about three days to become confident in walking B. Even then, he pulled on the lead every time, and it felt like he was walking me.
It’s a simple fact – he’s the same weight as me, and when a dog of that size pulls on the lead, he will inevitably pull me along.
Besides testing me, this week was great. I was alone in the house with only the animals and my own company, but it’s been a great experience. I had much-needed time off and rest from work and the city.
My Biggest Takeaways From This Trip
These are the biggest (and somewhat unexpected) takeaways from this week.
Not Everything Will Go To Plan
Before getting there, I had unrealistically planned this entire trip. I thought I would get to the sit, easily walk B three times a day, go hiking in nature, and write. I had no idea that B would be difficult to walk and be so needy that he couldn’t even leave me alone while I was on the toilet!
Initially, I was very frustrated that things weren’t going to plan. But that first night, I changed my mindset into a more accepting, positive one. I told myself that I’m here for this week, there’s no changing things, and it’s all about your mindset.
Things got better after I changed my mindset (and used the lead properly!). B didn’t immediately start cooperating, and the walks weren’t going super smoothly yet, but I learned that your mindset is everything.
I walked him as best as possible, wrote whenever I felt like it, and enjoyed nature. What more could I ask for?
Sometimes, All You Need Is a Change of Scenery
A change of scenery will not solve all your problems, but sometimes it’s a good idea to go somewhere new and clear your head.
Changing my routine, exercising more, and being in nature did wonders for me.
I woke up early, went on three walks daily, and cooked healthy meals. I’ll admit I was not doing any of those things back home.
Be Patient
B really tested my patience. I couldn’t walk him how I wanted, I couldn’t go on long hikes with him, and he got on my nerves often.
I had to remind myself that he’s just a dog who knows no better. He’s not trying to annoy me or make my life difficult.
When he annoyed me on our walks by pulling too much or trying to lunge at other dogs, I dealt with it as best as possible and reminded myself to stay patient instead of getting angry.
Live in the Moment
Before doing the house sit, I had planned to film a video for YouTube and get some amazing clips I could use for Instagram and TikTok.
However, I did not capture that much content due to everything that happened with the dog and my need to be more alert on each walk. I only got a few videos, and none were that spectacular.
I had envisioned myself on top of mountains, walking beautiful trails, and strolling along beaches while capturing it all.
But I was not able to.
Instead, I decided to let go of all I had envisioned and live in the moment. There will always be another mountain to climb and another beach to walk along.
Sometimes you don’t need to capture everything. Just live in the moment.
So, to finish off this post, I’ll discuss my main takeaway: not everything will go to plan, and that’s okay.
When traveling—especially solo—you need to be prepared for the unexpected. It can turn out even better than you would have thought.
Check out one of my latest posts to read about some more of the greatest lessons I’ve learned from solo travel.
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