Travel has changed me to an extent that life seems more stress-free today (in the sense I have learn’t a little better to deal with stress). At one point I tookΒ everything and anythingΒ as a struggle β from the rude conversations of people, family and relationship problems, and the daily tussleΒ between a full-time job and a Masters Program. It was after my return fromΒ a vacation to Malaysia and Egypt in 2010 that I yearned to go back; to explore more, to indulge in a conversation with the locals, to experience the hotΒ and cold; basically I knew I wanted to conquer the world and I would rather have a mundane day in another city than mine.
ItΒ was a major decision to leave Abu Dhabi after spending over 25 years in the city, but the most I was looking forward to was a βchangeβ. A change that would help me be a better person and a better daughter to my lovely parents, a change that called out my inner hopes to be anΒ understanding wife. But most importantly I was looking forward to marry somebody who had a similar passion as me β Travel β my only fairy tale wish.Β Its been a year and a half since this change and I have alreadyΒ added 11 countries in my list.
All being said and done, there was one problem β funding my own travels and a job that was flexible enough to let me travel. I started taking the blog more seriously with the intention of connecting the unknown dots to Travel and Art. I carried a pocket diary since theΒ first time I traveled out of Abu Dhabi, I wrote and sketched secretly – just because I was not open about it friends of family. Effectively, on my first trip to India and Malaysia, I found so much to draw from the things I observed, the food I ate, and the architecture of random buildings that amused me. It wasnβt until recently I found that what I was doing all along was an βartβ by itself. Travel illustrations were already making a big mark in another world. Since I was just a newbie in the blogging industry at that point of time, I lost my chances of fine tuning the art of travel illustrations by learning from other experts.
Over the years, I had worked on many oil paintings out of which I listed one painting on Etsy, just few months back. But you see, the problem here is I did not know how to promote my art, from my Etsy shopΒ apart from my social medias which are good in numbers in terms of followers but lacks in heavy interaction. However, this has not stopped me from polishing my art skills in various other genres. My travel drawingΒ which was once just pencil sketches are now more lively and colorful.
After a year of serious work on my blog, I couldnβt be more happier than to start earning out of travel writing for various renownedΒ travel websites; that came about in the mid 2014 (a fruitful year in this case). Because of this very reason, 2015Β seems like a bright year for more travels and more work with my first approved sponsored stay in Bhutan this March. While I have figured many ways to meet the odds, a major task is to take the time for on-location sketches, say in a crowded market in Vietnam, especially when you have a travel partner; you donβt want him to be bored. Do you?
Two hard disks loaded with videos documented from places calls out for some love everyday, so with a few extra hours, these travel documentaries or trailers β complete with illustrations and writings should suffice the meaning of travel at a whole new level.
In the travel blogging world, there is a misconception theΒ higher your followers, the better youβre doing. Increasing followers were least of my concerns but thinking of a concept for my next interesting content or an illustration was something I did focus on. That said, genuine readersΒ are the ones who like to interact with you on your Twitter or Facebook page, while others do not reciprocate even if your post linger across their news feed a million times.
With very little blog traffic initially, youβll tend to lose interest, especiallyΒ when youβre surrounded by people who are bound and determined toΒ criticize your work instead of encouraging you to do a better job. A way toΒ remainΒ motivated is to remember the only person who can help is you.
Do you agree? What are your opinions on telling a travel story through illustrations? Is it fun or boring? Share your comments below.
Like you say, travel blogging can be a painstaking job but I’ve never had a more rewarding one. Nice to hear your story.
Any tips on how to get traffic?
It’s true that “Travel is the only thing you buy, that makes you richer”. every trip i have taken has strengthened this fact.
Wishing you all the best for 2015…and hope your career as a travel blogger flourishes. Thanks for stopping by my blog.
This is an inspiring post! We can all learn a lot from you. Thanks for being a long time supporter of my blog also.
Very wise words – and wishing you all the best for this year too
Thanks Sarah. Wish you all the best:)
I really enjoyed hearing a bit of your story and journey here. Thanks for the like!
Thanks Stacey
Thanks Stacey:) I’m glad you liked it.
It was great to read your story. I love bloggings capacity to connect with such talented and diverse people. Th A nks for liking my post
What a lovely surprise to get your mail this morning and read about your travel life. Best of luck!
Thanks so much Jenny π
Interesting story. I live in Qatar and am struggling to find magazines to buy any of my travel articles. Any suggestions or contacts I might pursue?
Thanks for liking my recent post. Great to meet you virtually through this story. Look forward to staying in touch and reading more of your stories and seeing your art. Love the “Abstract Buddha” piece!
Thank you very much:)
Wow!! I envy your life, seriously! I have not had courage to travel alone but I guess I have to find a way out π
Thanks for visiting my blog. I don’t travel any more, but I can do so by following your lovely blog. Cheers π Irina
Irina, thank you very much for stopping by:)
My pleasure. π
I thought this was really inspiring. I’m glad I was able to find your blog. Thanks for the encouragement! π
Thank you for stopping by Nicole π
I’m so glad you stopped by my blog as it led me to yours! Love this post, I can relate to loving travel, have not been to that many countries yet though! Thanks for sharing your story, congrats on doing what you love π