How many of us are there?

In the last decade, Auckland's single household population has remained stable at around 20% of all households. An additonal 5% of all households are made up of non-family members. Single parent households and one person households are predicted to increase. In every statistic, more than half of us are women.

Over many years of travel, I've discovered some cities are great for single women while others leave a lot to be desired. I remember Sydney as one of the best, where waiters happily greeted me with "would you like some company or have you got a book?", when I wanted to dine alone. Equally, I'll never forget being kept standing in a suburban London restaurant for over 20 minutes, only to be told there were no tables available for a "single diner"!

Auckland is a terrifically cosmopolitan place. I know, I was born and raised here. Growing up we knew the world was ours. Our confidence was limitless. Maybe it was because we generally operated in crowds. Maybe it was because we were high on adolescent hormones. Maybe it was because our frontal lobes were not yet developed. Regardless, we came and went all over the city as we pleased without much hesitation.

Now in my 40's, single and having returned to my home town, increasingly my social life has been taking place on the virtual plane; email, phones and Skype. My friends of old have scattered to every corner of the earth. Some have young children. Some live hours away from my side of Auckland. Some are in complicated relationships (with people and / or work). We have different resources (time and money), different interests, different priorities. All well and good in my opinion - we've lived up to the promise of our youth and the world has indeed been ours.

However I'm not prepared to settle solely for a virtual existence. I love catching up with my friends but I'm not prepared to always wait until they can play. So I've decided not to limit my fun for lack of company.

So what is Auckland really like for a woman on her own? I’m determined to find out. I love this town and I know there’ll be lots of great stories. Consider this blog your guide, fellow singletons. Tell me if there’s a place you want me to check out. Tell us all about your experiences out and about on your own. Alone for me has never meant lonely, and I'm not about to let that change now. So to the thousands of like-minds out there, join in!