Sunshine Blogger Award

Few months ago, Jenny from Explore, Adventure, Discover nominated me for Sunshine Blogger award. I know I am terribly late at this but thank you Jenny for nominating me, once again. Head over to Jenny’s blog for her fun travel and adventure articles on many places she’s been to. Her blog, tips and ideas she shares about the destinations are all certainly inspiring to me.

What is Sunshine Blogger Award?

Sunshine blogger award is given out by bloggers to fellow bloggers who blog about positive, happy and inspiring content. I think this concept is also a great way of discovering other positive blogs.

If my nominees want to accept the award, I encourage you to read and follow the rules below:

•Thank the person who nominated you in a blog post and link back to their blog.

•Answer the eleven questions sent by the person who nominated you.

•Nominate eleven blogs to receive the award and write them eleven new questions.

•List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or your blog.

Here are my answers to the eleven questions that Jenny asked:

• When did you start blogging and why?

I first started blogging in 2011 when I moved from Nepal to Finland. It served like a journal for myself as a way of documenting my feelings. I started the current blog as a travel and culture themed blog with an intention to share my stories as I started traveling more within Europe. I love blogging, connecting with other bloggers, reading fantastic content and learning so much about a variety of topics from the process.

• What is the most inspirational book you have read?  Why?

Reading is something that I do very sporadically. So I have not read that much to pick out something really inspirational. But something that I read recently which really touched by heart was “A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Afghan-American writer Khaled Hosseini. It is a novel about two women in conservative Afghan society, their struggles and how their lives coincide. It really opened up my perspective on the Afghan society and culture, and especially the regular Afghani women.

• What is the biggest thing you have done outside your comfort zone?  How did it go?

The biggest thing I have ever done outside my comfort zone was definitely moving abroad at a young age by myself. Back then I was just very excited to be a student in a far-away Nordic country, but as the years passed by I’ve started to understand the feelings of homesickness and loneliness that come along with the excitement of living abroad long-term. Despite it being challenging at times, it has shaped me tremendously and my outlook on life in a short span of time.

• Name a few favorite places you have travelled.

Oh wow it will be difficult to name just a few! I think I am biased toward places near sea/ocean: my favorite ones are Tangalle (Sri Lanka), Istanbul (Turkey), Crete(Greece), Porto(Portugal), Malta and Prague (Czechia). These were the places that absolutely mesmerized me and all of them are my favorite places I’ve been to due to various reasons and circumstances in addition to their beauties.

• If you were to spend the rest of your life on a desert island, what three things would you take with you and why?

I love this question! I had never thought about it before. I would take a handy book like something with tips on survival in wilderness for example, a tool of some sort like a Swiss knife and a lighter.

• What is your favorite way to spend the weekend?

It really depends. Sometimes you’ll find me away on a trip for the weekend but most of the times, my favorite way to spend the weekend is by relaxing. I like slow weekends that start with late mornings and big breakfasts.  I like cleaning/tidying up the apartment, trying out new recipes, taking a stroll in the park if weather permits and reading/watching books/movies/documentaries/TV shows.

• How have your goals and dreams changed in the last ten years?

Yes they’ve changed definitely to an extent! I was always a dreamy teenager but from what I remember most of my dreams were about traveling, seeing the world and learning about different cultures, which I am actively doing today. I had variety of career aspirations in the last 10 years, but now I am a software developer (since just last year!), and it is very nice too.

• If you were a child again, what would you tell your adult self?

I think I wouldn’t tell much, may be something simple like ‘just relax and enjoy your childhood to the fullest because most of your life you’ll be an adult anyway! ‘ I like life’s surprises so I wouldn’t want to spoil it for my child self!

• What is your favorite food?

Fried noodles are my all-time favorite food! I just love, love, love all kinds of Asian noodles, and cannot live without them.

• How has blogging surprised you?

Blogging has surprised me in the sense that I feel connected to many bloggers that I follow. I like having this virtual friendship and sharing my experiences with them! Blogging can get pretty addictive.

• How do you think the blogging industry will have changed in ten years time?

More and more people are pursuing blogging as full-time careers as the world becomes more interconnected than ever. I think blogging industry might replace the traditional magazines and newspapers as more people will have access to the internet. Blogging full-time might also be a more attractive option for people who do not like 9-5 desk jobs!

My 11 questions to the nominees are:

1. What is the one place that you keep going back to?
2. What joys does blogging bring you?
3. What is your favorite international food?
4. What food do you like the best from your country?
5. Name three reasons why I should visit your country.
6. What are some of the best travel-themed books you’ve read?
7. If you could change your gender for one day, what would you do?
8. Have you ever lived abroad? If yes, what places?
9. How many languages do you speak? What are they?
10. Name some of the outdoor activities that you enjoy doing.
11. What are the most overrated places you’ve been to?

Most of my nominee blogs are travel-themed, so be sure to check them out as they’re full of great content! I would like to nominate the following wonderful blogs, some of which I’ve discovered just recently:

1. Michaela from This FP Planet 
2. Jessica from le trouvaille
3. Diya from Diyalogues
4. California Globetrotter
5. Vy from VYLYST 
6. Len from Journeys of Len
7. Mansi and Ambuj from Traveltellers
8. Tay from Tay On The Move 
9. The Snow Melts Somewhere
10. Maja from Maja Travelling
11. Sudhir from Travel Stories from India 

I hope the nominees have fun answering the questions. Have a great day, everyone!