How often do you look at a photo on Instagram of a dreamy location somewhere far away, wishing you were there? And then there are photos of travelers who seem to tick off every place on your bucket list, while you’re sitting at work wondering how they do it! How does one become a fulltime nomad? Is it as romantic as it appears? In this new series called The Vagabonds, we speak with our favorite travel addicts to know more about what got them traveling, what goes into being a year-round wanderer, and lot more so that you can find inspiration in their journeys to step out and fulfill your travel goals.
Hiking an active volcano in Bali. Trekking Mt. Le Pouce on an empty stomach. Being hounded by Bolivian pelicans. Getting bitten by a Balinese monkey. Holding a Bahamian jellyfish in her palms. These sound like the adventures of a National Geographic travel show host. Except they aren’t. These are the enthralling adventures and misadventures of a young Yoga teacher from India, Namita Kulkarni! Her travel stories are engaging, hilarious, thought-provoking, informative, and oh-so-wanderlusty. Read on to know how she got started, what she’s up to and lots more.
What made you start your own travel blog?
After two long-awaited solo trips to Mauritius and Bali in 2014, I had a ton of new experiences and excitement to share. I could’ve talked anyone’s ears off with stories from my ten weeks of travel. A blog seemed a more civilized and efficient way of channeling that energy.
What is the first trip you remember taking and how old were you?
I think it was a trip to Delhi. I don’t remember how old I was but I was young enough to be super fascinated with the plastic cutlery onboard.
If you had to visit a place again, which one would you choose?
Pretty much all the places I’ve been to. Especially Slovenia, Italy and Bolivia.
Have you been to a place which turned out to be totally different than how you imagined? If so, how was it different?
Mauritius was quite the surprise. I had imagined it to be all about beaches, but its mountains were what blew me away. I saw way more mountains than beaches in my 6 weeks there and hiking there is one of my fondest memories.
Is there a place you’ve been to that left you feeling underwhelmed and why?
Venice with all its insane crowds wasn’t as fun an experience as I had hoped it to be. Too many tourists spoil the destination.
Which country stands high on your bucket list at the moment?
Greenland
Tell us something unexpected but wonderful that happened to you while travelling?
Three years ago, I landed at La Paz, Bolivia around 7 p.m., knowing no one in the country. And the elderly man whose job it was to stamp my visa-on-arrival at the airport was simply in no mood to acknowledge me. The second he opened my passport and read out my nationality, he went ‘Indian?! No visa!’, slamming shut my passport and shoving it aside. Looking at me like I was way too unexpected a visitor who had no business being there. The way one might look at a zoo animal on the loose. I had all the necessary paperwork and documents, a US visa stamp, a yellow-fever vaccination, even an email from the Bolivian Embassy in India confirming that I would get my visa on arrival in Bolivia. Summoning all the basic Spanish I knew back then, I asked him to help me. The broken Spanish made him consider the idea that he could actually care about this fellow human here, so he assigned someone to help me. A long line and 50 USD later I was back at the counter with this guy. Twenty questions followed and I seemed to still not be making the cut. Then came the clincher – ‘What is your occupation?’ ‘Yoga teacher’ I said. Somehow this caused in him such an explosion of pure joy, he even busted out some karate chops from inside his cubicle. ‘JOGAA!’ he shouted as he held his hands in a chop mid-air for me to appreciate. ‘Exacto!!’ I agreed vehemently, assuring him that was exactly what I do for a living back home. The next second came the much-awaited stamp on my passport, and I walked out thanking Yoga for its far-reaching unexpected benefits!
You’ve had some rather envious adventures (and even misadventures). What was getting lost with a dead cellphone on a Thai island like and how did you make it back?
I lost my way after spending all day on an island (Koh Samed) in Thailand. Where I’d reached, nobody cared about a lost tourist. It was a semi-rural and completely crazy part of Thailand. A cacophony of Thai fishermen lugging their long day’s haul is not exactly tourist-friendly, as I found out. It was getting dark, my phone was long dead and the boats had called it a day. Being stuck in the middle of nowhere all night didn’t sound good. Rifling through my bag out of sheer hope for nothing in particular – I found a tattered picture of the pier I should’ve been at. And that picture, in all its torn black-and-white glory, spoke a thousand words to the twenty-third Thai woman I’d tried speaking to that evening. To my relief, a look of recognition swept over her face. She threw a few multiple-choice questions at me in Thai, but the even-more-lost-and-clueless-tourist look on my face made her stop mid-question. Pointing to a lone rickety scooter and its not-so-rickety rider who had just then materialized from the ether, she assertively gave him directions to that pier. It was my best bet and I was going to trust my way out of this. No questions asked (not that they’d have understood anyway), I got on that apology of a scooter in my excessively cheerful summer dress, thanking her as we wobbled away defying every law of physics. That night, having somehow caught a ride back into Bangkok, I dozed off seconds after my head hit the bed, highly exhausted and equally grateful.
When unexpected misadventures happen, how do you keep your cool and not let anxiety take over?
With every misadventure, one gets a little more practiced at staying calm and clear-headed under pressure. It helps if you can remind yourself that the only way you’re going to find a solution is by keeping your wits about you and not by spinning into an anxious downward spiral. I guess being a Yoga practitioner also comes in handy here, as Yoga is a way of consciously manipulating one’s nervous system. There are simple breathing practices that activate your body’s relaxation response in the parasympathetic nervous system. Being able to control your thoughts and not let your thoughts control you is a skill that meditation gives you. Well-developed emotional and attitudinal muscles are a must to get yourself out of trouble when you are far away from anything familiar and on your own.
How has travel changed you as a person?
So many ways. It has expanded my sense of possibilities and continues to, every single time. It has taught me to trust myself and others. It has made me more confident than I ever thought I could be. And perhaps more than anything, it has taught me the value of home and familiarity. Being an alien in far off lands has taught me the value of being a local in my own city.
Travel has shown me that people within the same race/gender/nationality can be vastly more different from each other than people from different races/genders/nationalities. So, boxing people into these broad categories no longer makes sense to me.
And getting steeped in a culture alien to you makes you look at life from a whole new vantage point. Where your name is a funny sound, your appearance outlandish and your food habits downright weird (I’m a vegetarian who gets a lot of unsolicited sympathy), you are less likely to presume things and more willing to learn. And to feel like a whole new version of you that you wouldn’t have imagined otherwise.
What do you think are the reasons for your success as a travel blogger that keeps your followers hooked?
I guess I do have a not-so-common niche going on, with the combination of travel and Yoga. That and the fact that I engage with people who comment or write in. I’ve noticed that as long you’re excited about what you’re doing, that will translate into your work and will attract more people to it. When absolute strangers write in saying something I wrote helped them make a big decision or do something they always wanted to, that is one of the most fulfilling moments one can have as a blogger.
What are some of the mistakes you’ve learnt from (while travelling and /or in your journey as a blogger)?
I changed the name of my blog about a year after I started blogging. I never really enjoyed the old name (Hues & Views), and the new name (Radically Ever After) was so much more ‘me.’ Things would’ve been a little more convenient if I had thought of the new name back when I began blogging. In general, I wish I’d had less perfectionism and more fun all through. That goes for more than just blogging ????
How do you prepare for a trip?
Daydreaming about it, looking up wikitravel, picking up a smattering of the local language and gauging how I can make the most of my time and money there. Looking up the vegan/vegetarian food/drink recommendations from people who live there or have visited recently and making sure I have travel insurance.
What is the one thing that you find most annoying or frustrating (or both!) about planning a trip?
Packing. All my multiple personalities show up in that space between an empty backpack and a packed one. There’s the control freak that wants to carry everything from a nail cutter to a nuclear bomb shelter, and there’s the free spirit that insists on carrying only the bare minimum essentials. Throw in a hygiene maniac and a disaster-imaginer and it’s a racquet inside my brain. On my next trip, I plan to not check in any bags so let’s see how that pans out!
What is the one innovation in the trip planning / travel industry you’d like to see or have been waiting for to help you plan easily?
Would be nice if they invented an app for teleporting. But I’m told that’s asking for a bit much. For trip planning, the internet seems to have left no stone unturned, as you can access every kind of information online these days. In India I’d like to see more women-only transport services. I’ve been in taxis in small towns at wee hours after overnight bus rides in North India and though I was (fortunately) safe, I would’ve been more relaxed if my drivers were woman.
How much time do you spend on planning a trip? Do you plan out all details or are you a spontaneous traveler? Why?
I usually book my international flights a few months in advance to snag the best deals. I manage to strike a good balance between planning every detail and throwing caution to the wind. I research enough to be well-prepared in case there’s trouble, and I leave enough wiggle room to be flexible with my plans if a whim strikes. I lean more toward spontaneity than planning.
Do you have a good travel planning tip you would like to share with us?
Pack light and research enough to make the most of your time and money. Don’t be a perfectionist, it only holds you back.
What determines your next destination – your mood, time of year, company or something else?
It’s a different draw each time.
What is your favorite mode of transport (plane/train/boat/car) and why?
Walking is my favorite mode of transport. Beats everything else, as long you have a relaxed sense of time and legs that can walk forever.
Where do you get your travel inspiration from – books, magazines, blogs, travel shows, travelogues, social media or somewhere else?
All of the above and more than anything else, conversations with fellow travelers get me going.
What are your suggestions to newbies who are looking at building a career in travel blogging?
Do it because you love it and have a deep excitement about it. Blogging for any other reason could easily lead to frustration.
Finally, some rapid-fire questions –
Favorite airline? Singapore Airlines
Favorite country? Italy
Favorite city? Cittiglio, Italy
Favorite beach? Impossible Beach, Bali
Favorite food? Babycorn and pepper
Favorite language? Hindi
And one last question, what’s your next travel destination? If you haven’t planned one yet, where would you like to go next?
I’m planning a few Yoga retreats, but it’s too early to talk about them. Stay tuned to my blog, Radically Ever After, for details.
Follow Namita’s adventures on – Website, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter
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Tags: Interview Travel Bloggers Travel Inspiration
