Sunshine Blogger Award 2018 - First Milestone for Wander Bird

Yippee! I just got the much needed motivation to keep flying and reaching new heights!!

I feel ecstatic to announce that Wander Bird got nominated for the “Sunshine Blogger Award 2018”. What a day to cherish!

It was a usual Monday morning and I was busy checking my emails and listing down my tasks for the day. Then suddenly, I got my most exciting notification of recent times on Facebook. My blog had been selected for the Sunshine Blogger Award 2018 by Traveleidoscope – one of my favourite travel blogs. This blog is authored by Tina Will, and undoubtedly, one of the most fascinating travel blogs I’ve come across in my journey of travel blogging.

Within a second, a zillion thoughts crossed my mind and almost created a cacophony of sorts inside my head. That first trigger which made me take the first step to channelise my passion into a profession – that first word of advice from my husband to follow my heart – that incessant encouragement from a childhood friend, whenever I lost motivation – that relentless support from friends who always assured me of my potential and pushed me towards writing – those late-night phases of website designing – publishing that first blog post —> All these memories over the past few months, started flashing right in front of my eyes!

Today, it seems as if all these efforts have been worth it. A heartfelt thanks to Tina Will, for the nomination!

About the Sunshine Blogger Award

The Sunshine Blogger Award is awarded by bloggers to new bloggers to recognise their achievements and offer support. It feels so nice to be a part of such a supportive community!

RULES

Thank the blogger who nominated you in the blog post and link back to their blog.
Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you.
Nominate 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions.
List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog.

Questions from Traveleidoscope to Wander Bird

I was asked to answer the following 11 questions from Traveleidoscope, as part of the selection process for this prestigious award :

1. What have you learned about yourself from traveling?

I never realised until recently that travelling and writing are the two major passions of my life. Because of my constant travelling, I have learnt that I am an ardent nature-lover, a keen observer and love to pen down my thoughts into words. Travelling was my first catalyst for travel blogging.

2. What’s the best travel advice you’ve received?

“Before any aerial adventure trips, do not forget to empty your bladders before you start. Because, there’s no other option in air.”

Read more about my helicopter ride in Austin, when I actually got this hilarious yet helpful advice.

3. What’s the travel advice you always give?

Try and be spontaneous in your journeys. Whenever you go with the flow without any planning, you’ll definitely create a memory for a lifetime!

4. What’s your travel style – are you active and adventure driven or do you prefer to kick back and relax on your travels?

I’m an extremely moody traveller and enjoy both active and laid-back travel. For example, my last trip was to a placid lake on a chilly winter day. And now, my next trip is going to be an adventure-driven one!

5. What movie, book or television show describes your travel style?

There can be a long list of such movies and books actually! Right now, I suddenly got a flash of an Indian movie called “Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara” (meaning : LIFE doesn’t happen twice). Yes, that movie’s a clear favourite and suits my travel style!

6. What are three things that you take on all your travels and why?

Wallet, phone with charger and moist facial wipes – These are the 3 must-haves in my bag anytime. I can feel fresh (moist wipes), connected (phone with charger) and survivable (wallet) in all my journeys with just these 3 things.

7. What’s the best travel deal you ever scored?

I’m yet to experience an amazing travel deal to share with my audience. Mostly, my travel deals are just about average and budget-friendly.

8. How do you learn about a culture that you’ll be visiting – read up before hand or get the feel for it once you arrive?

I generally have a tendency to get the feel for it once I arrive, and then try to read about it to correlate. I communicate more with the locals, which gives me offbeat experiences in my travel destinations.

9. What’s your biggest travel mess up?

I was so overwhelmed with my trip to Himachal Pradesh in India, that I missed my flight back home from Delhi. I’d booked my tickets months earlier and somehow, wrongly assumed that my return flight was on 15th. It was actually on 14th morning and I realised the goof-up only after the flight departure on 14th noon. Then, I had to rush for availability of train tickets, so that I could join back work on time from Monday.
Lesson for me – I always double-check my ticket dates now, before starting on any journey.

10. Are you an adventurous foodie? What’s the most unusual thing you’ve eaten and name something you won’t eat.

I used to believe that I’m an adventurous foodie, but not until I met more adventurous fellow travellers and bloggers. I’m still excited though, about trying new dishes and tend to put a spoonful of it inside my mouth just out of curiosity.

One thing I would never eat again is – Durian fruit. When I was in Singapore, even the buses had a sign-board stating that ‘Durians are not allowed inside buses.” This made me quite curious about this fruit. Why would a fruit not be allowed inside buses and trains? I tried tasting it and will never forget that fetid smell of the fruit all my life! Unbearable smell for me! I won’t be able to muster courage to taste that ever again.

11. Name the top 5 places on your bucket list that you haven’t been to yet.

Italy, New Zealand, Morocco, Greece, Switzerland

Questions from Wander Bird to its Top 11 nominees

What inspired you to decide the name of your blog? Explain the significance of your blog name.
When did you start travel blogging? Describe your journey so far.
Which is your most favourite place that you visited so far and why?
Apart from blogging, what are your other interests and hobbies?
Which is your most preferred social media platform to engage with fellow bloggers and why?
Which is the most vivid memory of all your journeys so far?
What would you categorise yourself as – travel writer, blogger or influencer?
Describe your ideal outfit for a road trip. What would you prefer the most and why?
What are the top 5 travel destinations on your bucket list and why?
What would you prefer best – reading books or watching movies? Write about your favourite book/movie and mention why it’s your favourite.
What is your long-term goal for your blog?

Wander Bird’s Nominees for this Award

Be Marie Korea – Marie is a Belgian content creator and designer based in Seoul. She reviews travel destinations across the Korean Peninsula.

Hall Around The World – Kirstie Hall is from Carolina, who moved to South Korea to become an ESL Teacher. In the process, she fell in love with Asia and started her travel blog which provides honest stories and reviews that are actually helpful to readers. According to her – “A photoshopped picture of a pretty girl in a sundress at Angkor Wat may be worth a few hundred likes on Instagram, but it doesn’t prepare you for Cambodia at all.”

Dagniee – Daniele Antoniol is a traveller and a self taught photographer from Italy, who usually travels with his girlfriend, Alessandra, and their little dog, Charlie, a very cute Beagle.

Born To Wanderlust – Bruno Coelho is a 32 year old Portuguese digital nomad / freelancer, currently residing in Porto (PT). He provides services in the areas of translation, photography, software and tourism.

My Soul Travels – Pujarini Mitra is an entrepreneur, with a corporate experience of 9 years and a travel experience of exploring 10 countries. She has been traveling with her husband and recently, they are exploring the world with their toddler.

Doc Diva Traveller – Dr.Mandira Adhikari is a doctor & Yoga expert by profession and a traveller & writer by passion. She started her blog in 2013 to document her passion for travelling.

Backpack Becki – Becki is a Bristolian who quit her regular life about 4 years ago in search of a more exciting and fulfilling lifestyle, which led her to travel to 45 countries so far.

Traveling Ken – Ken Adkins is a travel blogger, who was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. He quit his job in 2016 after working in the I.T. field for 8 years, and has been exploring places for about 2 years now.

Wandering Lauren – Lauren Bensadoun is currently based out of Toronto, Canada and uses her blog to share travel tips, give destination recommendations and share all her travel adventures.

Veni Vidi Amo – Carmen is a 30 year old enthusiastic travel blogger, originally from Romania. She has her first trip to Austria in 2008 and there has been no stopping for her ever since.

Wild ‘n’ Free Diary – This one is a very interesting blog, authored by high-school sweethearts – one is a passionate photographer and a visual artist, and the other one is a culinary enthusiast and a writer. Follow them in the realization of their romantically infused contract and you’ll be inspired for your next romantic getaway.