3 PLACES IN THE WORLD TO FEEL BIKINI-CONFIDENT

Much has been said about body issues and bikini bodies in the media for years. I, for one, am an advocate of feeling confident in your own skin, no matter what shape, size, weight, and color you have and no matter how many stretch marks, freckles, dark spots, pockmarks, etc. you possess. I'm not saying that the only way to feel body-confident is to wear a skimpy bikini. Different strokes for different folks, I say: we all have that trigger that helps us overcome issues. For my younger self, it was wearing the dreaded bikini.

Let's face it - even though a lot of femmes don't have any qualms with putting on swimmers any time, any day - a lot of women still dread the thought of having to put on a swimsuit whenever they go on a holiday; whether they're going with friends, family, on their own, or with a random group of travelers. I used to be one of those women.

So many excuses have been made before so I wouldn't have to subject myself to judgmental eyes and whispered snickers on travels where swimsuits, sleeveless tops, and shorts were de rigueur. Are they laughing at my stretch marks? Are they whispering about my cellulite? Are they pointing at my flabby belly? How about my thunder thighs?! Maybe this previous insecurity arose from the fact that I come from a culture where weight is a very unhealthy obsession. Every Filipino will attest to the fact that every time they see friends, family, and relatives, the usual conversation starter would be "Uy, tumaba ka!" (You gained weight!). At my lightest, people would say I looked like a drug addict and that I should eat more. When I gained weight, people immediately pounced with their two cents, saying I looked like a "balyena" (whale). It came to a point where I was obsessed with measuring skin folds! It seemed that no matter how much I weighed, people would always have something to say.

So I simply stopped caring about other people's opinions of my body. I sometimes joke with friends that if they ever needed a body-confidence booster, they should visit these places where no one batted an eyelash on what people were wearing, on or off the beach. No one cared if you had washboard abs or a thigh gap. In no particular order:

Beach beauties in all shapes & sizes

1. San Sebastian, Spain This charming coastal town took body confidence to a whole different level! No one even took a second look at the nude gentleman sunning his pintxos-filled belly, and bare genitals in all their glory. Nor of the handful of topless women sprawled on the sand. Spain, at that time (not sure now since this was 4 years ago!), permitted nude sunbathing and swimming so the crowd was unconcerned at sun and ocean worshippers who opted to do so in their birthday suits. The only ones who blushed at the sight of boobs, butts, and private parts were the Asian visitors. ;-)

People are looking at the marine life, not your thighs! :-)

2. Phuket / Krabi / Phi Phi Island, Thailand Whereas you need to cover up when visiting temples, these Southern Thai islands are as anything-goes as they can get for Asian destinations. This was actually the first place that I had to wear a bikini during my first visit there - though it was accidental. I had brought my maillot but stupidly dropped it on the filthy toilet floor at the pier where our speedboat was moored and ready to sail for Phang Nga. The only type of swimsuits the store beside the dock sold were bikinis. So this bikini virgin bought an emerald-green set and the rest is bikini history. Hint: no one trash-talked my thighs nor laughed at my stretchmarks.

The girl from Ipanema was tall, tan, young, lovely and had loads of body confidence!

3. Brazil (Buzios and Rio de Janeiro) I really think that the Brazilians invented self-love and are the pioneers in body confidence. How can I not when ladies passed off dental floss as bikinis and the men wore the skimpiest of bottoms - all with aplomb, I must say! I can only speak for Buzios and Rio as these are the only two beach cities I've been to so far in Brazil, but Brazilians celebrate every inch of their bodies no matter the size, shape, and condition it's in; and any female with more than two tiny fabric strips on their skin while on the beach would be stared at instead. So if you're looking for the perfect place to wear that eensie-weenie, teeny-weeny bikini, try Ipanema, Copacabana, Leblon, or Buzios. Top the visit with a caipirinha or two.

Brazilian not included. ;-)

Beach destinations shouldn’t make one feel conscious about wearing a swimsuit; it's sad that the media helps amplify this myth about the perfect body and we feel pressured to conform to whatever unrealistic body standard is in vogue. This post is obviously just based only on my experiences - it's not an exhaustive list; nor is it meant to be a definitive guide. By all means, wear anything you like, as long as you're comfortable in it and wearing it for yourself, not to conform to some ridiculous societal expectation. This is to make a point on how absurd it was for my younger self to think that other people had a say on my body and how illogical it was for me to be terrorized by a simple swath of fabric. Courage is not about wearing a bikini in public. Courage is all about loving yourself in its entirety. True, traveling exposed me to situations where I learned that there's no shame in wearing swimsuits no matter what size and weight you are, that it's not a big deal, and that there's no "bikini body" - just a body in a bikini. Believe me, people are actually more interested in snorkeling and getting a tan than judging you. And if they do body-shame you, well then, shame ON THEM. While I believe that confidence and self-love should come from embracing your glorious self, imperfections and all, and that you should never, ever let other people control what you think about yourself, should you ever need a jump start on body confidence, perhaps a trip to these locales will do the trick ..... If only to open your eyes to the real world vs. what the media presents to us as "perfect." Or maybe not. Maybe all it takes is looking at yourself in the mirror and liking and accepting everything that you see. :) HAPPY TRAVELS! x

#selfdiscovery #Brazil #listicles #Thailand #Europe