On TikTok, there are countless stories of chance encounters and unexpected adventures. One woman says these are more likely to happen if you trust your gut.
In a viral video, Morgan Gust (@morgangust), 23, captured the essence of this spontaneity by describing how her first night out on a solo trip to Ireland turned out: dancing in lively pubs all night and having the time of her life. Since it was posted six days ago, the video has received over 2.2 million views, 243,000 likes and over 900 comments.
"POV: you listened to your gut and booked the solo trip to Ireland and end up dancing in the pubs at 2am with a French man on your first night," Gust captioned the video.
Gust told Newsweek that her adventure began three weeks ago when, bored on a Saturday night at home, she found herself browsing flights to Europe. With no specific destination in mind, she stumbled upon a flight to Dublin departing in just two weeks. Encouraged by the responses to a TikTok video she posted asking about traveling to Ireland, Gust took a leap of faith and booked the ticket.
"So many of the comments told me I should go, and many women said they met their future husbands on their solo trips to Ireland," she said. "So, I thought, 'Huh okay, why not?! Maybe I'll meet my husband while I'm at it!' ... I didn't know why or for what reason, but I just knew it was a trip I needed to take."
It was Gust's first international trip.
Arriving in Dublin on her first night, exhausted from a red-eye flight and running on little sleep, Gust said she met up with a friend she met on TikTok, and someone she met in her hostel, and together they explored the city and its nighttime pub scene. This, she said, is when her famous video was filmed.
"I was absolutely exhausted, but I was having fun, so I pushed through," she said. "We ended up on the dance floor singing and dancing with everyone else, and that's when I started dancing with the French man! He spoke minimal English and I don't speak any French, but that didn't matter because we were just smiling and laughing and dancing together."
Gust said the two exchanged names, but it went no further—it was "just a fun connection on a night out."
@morgangust this is your sign to take that solo trip🤠✨ #solotravel #sololeveling #traveltok #irelandtiktok #solotravelwoman #dublintiktok #irelandtiktok #templebardublin
♬ original sound - Stan :) - Stan :)
The Importance of Trusting Intuition
Gust said that the trip, ultimately, was a testament to her relationship with herself.
"At the end of the day, my relationship with myself means more than any other in my life," she said. "When I am inspired and my cup is full, I am able to give so much more to others and put myself out there in ways I never would have in the past."
She said the two girls she met on her first day in Ireland will be lifelong connections, and credits TikTok for connecting her with so many people and giving her the push she needed to book the ticket. Now, Gust is inspiring others on the same platform with her act of self-trust.
She said she is thrilled she trusted her gut and booked the tickets, and that after all is said and done, she realized something she couldn't have known before she left.
"When I posted that video the next day, all I could think about was how I was right where I was supposed to be. There was a reason I needed to come to Ireland, and it wasn't the reason I might've first thought," she said. "It wasn't to meet my husband. It was to push myself out of my comfort zone."
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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