A New Zealand woman has spoken out after a terrifying moment during her travels went viral.
Molly, known online as molsgonewild, sent a shiver down many women’s spines over the weekend when she revealed an unsettling encounter with a local man during her solo trip through Sri Lanka.
“I debated sharing this – but this is the reality of solo travel as a woman,” she told her Instagram followers.
“During my solo tuk-tuk road trip across Sri Lanka, a man asked me for sex and exposed himself. It was one of those moments that rattles you, even when you think you’re ready for anything.”
Her video, now shared widely across social media, shows Molly sitting in her vehicle when a man who initially appears harmless approaches her—before the situation quickly turns uncomfortable.
Travel influencer Molly shared a video of herself being sexually harassed during a solo trip in Sri Lanka.
“Have sex?” the man asked.
“Definitely not, no,” Molly replied, trying to stay polite.
He then exposed himself while repeatedly asking, “please?”
Molly quickly drove away, stunned, asking herself, “What just happened?”
The man approached her vehicle unexpectedly and then exposed himself.
Now, Molly has spoken out to news.com.au, admitting that she was in shock at the time and struggled to process what was happening.
“He approached me and seemed nice enough, just like every other Sri Lankan I had met… I didn’t expect anything like that to happen,” she said.
Despite the incident, Molly emphasized that sexual harassment isn’t limited to foreign countries.
“I’ve been sexually harassed in New Zealand,” she said.
“It’s not a fear confined to travel. It can happen at home or anywhere in the world.”
Reflecting on the harsh reality many women face, Molly shared the precautions she takes while traveling alone.
“I exercise extra caution as a woman traveling solo. I think you’d be foolish not to,” she said.
“I always carry a pocket knife and stay very aware of my surroundings. Unfortunately, this is the reality for women.”
She added, “I’m always quietly suspicious of my interactions with men. Even though many are kind, there’s always that thought in the back of your mind: ‘Does he want something else from me?’”
In a follow-up video, Molly told her followers she had received an overwhelming number of comments in response to her clip.
Molly said she decided to share the video to highlight the “reality of solo travel as a woman” to her audience.
“There was a lot of victim-blaming—people saying, ‘That’s what you get’ for traveling alone as a female,” she explained.
She also revealed that some women criticized her, claiming she had “no survival skills.”
“Women should be able to travel solo. We are not the problem,” Molly said.
“It’s the men who don’t know how to behave correctly.”
After leaving Sri Lanka, Molly filed a report with the Tourism Police Department, who responded promptly.
“They were searching for the man two days later, and within five days, he had been arrested,” she said. The man is now facing court.
Despite the traumatic experience, Molly emphasized that it does not define solo travel for women.
“I’ve been to so many countries that people label as unsafe, and all I’ve experienced is kindness from locals,” she said.
