LA Tiktoker on solo trip was called out for exploiting people and experiences. Then she went online and, according to the internet, proved them right

A TikTok creator has found herself the topic of conversation when her video, originally posted on April 25th, was reshared on Reddit’s TikTokCringe subreddit. In the video shared on both platforms, she recounts a conversation she had while solo backpacking. The creator, Nicole Sura, known as @showerbeerr, details a night out with two men she met at a hostel. According to The Daily Dot, Sura called her experience the dark side of travelling as an influencer.

Sura explains that she got talking with two guys at her hostel. “We are not in [Los Angeles] anymore, people. I met these guys at my hostel who seemed really nice and respectful at first, and then we got to talking about work.” She told them she was a content creator, and they were initially curious, asking what that entailed. They grabbed dinner and a few beers together. Things gook a turn when Sura shared she planned to buy Pokémon cards for poor kids.

She said that the men, emboldened by the alcohol, questioned the ethics of her job. “And they were like, oh, like, so you’re gonna exploit them, right? You’re gonna do it for views? Like, you’re gonna. You’re gonna film the whole thing, and you’re gonna put it on your f—ing Instagram and, like, it’s gonna be exploitative.” She asked them if they really thought that was what her work was, “They’re like, yeah. You’re exploiting people. You’re selling them a lie,” she said.

According  to Reddit, she completely missed their point

When the footage was reshared on the r/TikTokCringe subreddit by user u/CaptainCorpsee666, it quickly gained significant traction, racking up over 8,200 upvotes and thousands of comments within a day. The community response has been deeply divided, with many users pointing out the irony of her complaining about being judged for exploiting experiences while simultaneously creating content about the experience. 

One commenter noted, “She’s made being called out and then made a video about being called out.” Others were quick to point out that the men she met were simply voicing a common critique regarding the influencer industry.

After the conversation, Sura confessed, “I didn’t get the Pokemon cards because I felt self conscious. Honestly, I felt like it was a silly idea in the end, and that’s actually so lame.”

 She went on to reflect on the nature of being a creator, stating, “I come from a place where being a content creator is a normal job that people have, and, like, I forget that there’s kind of a stigma around it and I internalised a piece of that stigma.” She framed the experience as a lesson in thickening her skin, though many viewers on Reddit were not buying the narrative.

Interestingly, the comment section on the Reddit thread is filled with people who feel the creator missed the point of the interaction entirely. One user remarked, “The dark side of solo travelling is people exploiting your isolation and taking advantage of you…not criticism.” 

Another person chimed in to say, “So she’s upset they told her the truth?” It seems that for many, the issue isn’t that she was judged for being a woman who travels, but that she was challenged on the performative nature of her content.

Sura concluded her video by saying, “This really exposed the darker side of travelling to new places and meeting people from different cultures. Like, if you’re open and you put your judgement aside, it can be so expansive. But if not, it can sow a lot of doubt.” 

Freddy Fang is one TikToker who would agree with Sura that travelling can be expansive, after a chance encounter with a stranger got him reevaluating what was important and rewarding in life. In the same way, Nicole Doyon’s got an amazing experience when she got stranded after a hurricane, but was able to use her role as an influencer to help rebuild.