Solo travel with children - bad idea?

I've traveled outside the U.S. approximately 5,229 hours in my life. Of these hours, about half were solo, without parents or partners. Even the travel I have done with my partner has been as the leader, the one in charge.

In all my experience of traveling by myself in Latin America, I've had two guidielines for my safety: 1. Be as inconspicuous as possible. 2. Don't carry anything obviously valuable with you. These two rules have helped ensure my safety traveling alone in Brazil and Colombia.

The first rule must be understood in context. I have pale, freckled skin, blue eyes, straight long blonde hair, a combination that is guaranteed to stand out in countries where the majority has brown skin, brown eyes and brown hair. Even so, I blend as much as possible with the other young, single female backpack travellers and am often able to convince Brazilians and Colombians(due to a near-native accent)that I am Brazilian.

Following the second guideline is really a no-brainer. I don't wear jewelry or watches, carry a small point and shoot camera that fits in my small purse slung diagonally across my chest, and my hand is on said purse at all times. When going alone to the beach, I don't even carry a purse, just a towel to sit on or sometimes nothing at all. The one time I have had something stolen was when I broke this rule and wore a necklace that looked like gold (but wasn't) and was reading the newspaper while walking down a crowded street. The necklace must have looked valuable so some guy ripped it off my neck as I was walking in broad daylight in Bogota. Enh, said with a shrug, I should have known better was my attitude when it happened.

I write all this to say that I'm a pretty confident traveller. I'm not easily frightened of trying new things or making new trips. If I had had unlimited funds as a teen and young adult (am I really past this label already??), I would have travelled the world over by now, I'm sure.

However, now I am scared. In July I will be embarking on a journey which inherently flaunts both of my safety guidelines. I will be solo adult traveling to Brazil with the two most precious people in my life, my two daughters, ages five and two. As any mother knows, my children are indescribably valuable to me which breaks rule number two. And just to be truthful, it is difficult to be inconspicuous with my little girls in the U.S. where blond and light-eyed children are commonly seen, I can't imagine even attempting inconspicuous in Brazil.

to be continued...