it just lathers on how fragile any sense of a woman's personal safety really is

Thanks for this post. I can entirely relate to what you said. There have definitely been places I wanted to travel in the U.S. but I didn't think it would be safe to go on my own. My tastes are kinda offbeat, so I also haven't been able to convince pals to accompany me. I haven't had anything bad happen yet (knock on wood), but I think I also really circumscribe my itinerary, so maybe I avoid those experiences that might be more different--but also more enriching. (I've never read Notes from a Small Island, been to England, nor seen Wolf Creek, so please feel free to ignore my comment if it's irrelevant.)

I was talking with my friend yesterday and she had just met a fellow from South Korea, new within the month to the U.S. The fellow mentioned how he didn't feel safe walking around alone at night and he hadn't ever had this feeling in his life back at home. I did try to feel sympathetic, but I was thinking, "I'm sorry to hear that you don't feel safe walking around alone at night, but hey, welcome to lots of people's everyday existence!"