For a social media driven platform such as a travel blog, it is often times the priority of the blogger to make things seem as inviting and attractive as possible to the viewer. It’s what gets more attention and appreciation for the blog and the travel destinations themselves. However, this is at the risk of hiding the reality of the situation and creating unrealistic expectations. ImperfectTraveller is an up and coming travel blog that aims to deliver a genuine depiction of travel, showcasing that despite its imperfections, travelling is still amazing.
Gillian Nair, the travel enthusiast who runs ImperfectTraveller, tells us exactly what the idea behind her blog was.
Q: If you were to introduce your blog, how would you describe it? What sets it apart from the rest?
A: Travel blogs are now airbrushed pieces of content that’s just fluffed up and gives you this false sense of advertising. Imperfect Traveller is a travel blog that highlights all the imperfections of travel - without the filters and fluffy language. My pictures, for example, are far from the touched up, perfect pictures you generally see on travel accounts, and my blog posts are evocative and raw; so you would feel like you’re travelling with me, imperfections and all! Besides, when I get old and senile, these blogs will help me remember the happier days of my youth! ha ha.
Q: What kind of content does your blog offer?
A: ImperfectTraveller is a travel blog documenting the journeys I’ve taken as I travel across the world, from personal experiences to travel tips. I’ve introduced a new pillar after the lockdown titled Travel Thoughts, which I hope to expand on to include things like travelling post Covid, or how to travel sustainably, packing essentials etc.
Q: What inspired you to start this?
A: Well, writing has always been second nature to me. And when I realised how much I love to travel, it became one of my favourite things, so it made sense to have a travel blog. It was like fitting a baby’s two-piece jigsaw puzzle together.
Before travelling to a new country, I would always do research by contacting other travel bloggers, as I felt like it was more real than travel operators. I wanted to be one of these travel bloggers that other travellers would find useful when travelling to one of the countries I had visited - Sri Lanka included.
But if I had to pick one main thing that actually pushed me to start a travel blog, was during my first visit to Bali a few years ago. We were unaware of the Uber situation - apparently, they’re not quite welcome and there’s a local taxi mafia out to harass you and Uber drivers. And we got into this scary situation that was like a scene from a horror movie - I could go on about it here - but it’s a bit too long, so if you’re on my blog look for Horror in Bali. This incident in particular was what I wanted other travellers to know about too - information such as this wasn’t public knowledge unfortunately and I hoped my blog would help other travellers too. Which I think it did because it circulated quite a lot on social media and ranked up some decent website visits too.
Q: Which demographic would you say benefits more from your content?
A: I was not targeting a specific demographic as such. I started on the luxury travel segment, but that sort of changed, especially in European countries; where smaller Airbnbs provided accommodation that was in line with a hotel - perhaps more.
I stayed at an Airbnb with a local host who gifted me a bottle of local wine and two homemade pies as I landed - something like that definitely makes your stay more memorable. So, I can’t really pick a certain demographic, but experiential travel is definitely something I’m rooting for.
While I’m all for staying in a boutique villa or hotel, and lounging in the room or pool all day, one of my favourite things to do is exploring my surroundings - whether it’s hiking or spending all day in the sea! I feel like it’s these little moments that you’re going to remember in future. So, whether you’re a solo traveller or a couple of love birds, there’s going to be something so beautifully imperfect about your holiday that’s going to be so memorable! I can only hope that my travel blog encourages you to live out your experiences.
Q: During the worst of the pandemic, were your blogs completely on hold?
A: One of the fun (or not so fun) things about being on lockdown, was that you suddenly had all the time in the world to focus on your travel content. I was able to set aside time to work on all my pending content - there’s actually still more from previous travels that I need to publish on the site! For me, it was the best time to build my content since everyone was spending more time online!
In addition, writing some of these blogs allowed me to revisit the destination all over again. I remember, writing about how I got robbed in Greece (titled: Horror in Athens on my Imperfecttraveller.com), and I was transported to that exact time it happened last December, and felt the exact same emotions all over again as I was typing out my story. It was quite a rollercoaster of an experience!
To be able to visit a country twice, first when you’re travelling to it and the second when you’re writing about the experience from the comfort of your home, is one of the best feelings in the world - for a traveller at least!
Q: Now that tourism is starting to get going again in Sri Lanka, what will it be like for your blog moving forward?
A: Ah! I’ve been dreaming about stepping out of my house and heading to the beach before anything else. There’s nothing like a glass of beer or wine on one of Sri Lanka’s sunny, honey coasts that I would trade for.
But there’s still a bit of hesitancy in travelling though; I don’t drive, so I obviously have to factor in the hygiene and safety of travelling by other methods of transport too. I work in the travel industry as well, so I have a few insights, especially with how hotels are managing through the pandemic. All of us in the tourism industry are quite hopeful local travel will pick up quite fast, not only for a few weekends but at least for the rest of the year.
I don’t think things will be hard. Marketing and brand awareness might need more effort than usual but with the right methods, it definitely can be done. Just like with anything, we’re going to have to adapt and evolve with our new situation. Once I start travelling again, while safety will be one my priority list, I’ll be looking at hotels that can live up to my standards and expectations of that too - while also providing me with a good base to explore its surroundings.
Q: Now that lockdown has been almost totally lifted, how different do you think the field of travel would be in the future?
A: Like I said before, I have yet to venture out of my house - so I’m not too sure how travelling would actually be, in the practical sense. A lot of hotels such as Jetwing or Taru Villas have published their safety and hygiene measures from temperature checks to limiting guest interaction online; I just hope it continues. Travelling will require a bit more protocols to adhere to now, with masks, PCR tests and temperature checks, but I guess, for an experiential traveler, those are just minor hurdles to jump through. I’ve actually written an article on how I think travel might be impacted post Covid - if you’re interested in reading it, look for ‘Globe Trotting Post Covid’ on Imperfecttraveller.com.
Q: What kind of advice do you have for anyone wishing to do what you do?
A: Be yourself. I know a lot of people would tell you this, but there’s nothing more authentic than being who you are. And most importantly, don’t write for anyone, but yourself. Write with YOU in mind - information that you would find useful, information that you would want to read before travelling to a new country; write about that. There’s plenty of content about the history of a city, but people want to know your travel experiences in that country; how hard was it to reach the place, was there a never-ending queue to take one picture? Get them the details, a tour operator won’t ever disclose.
Q: What do you look for when travelling to a new country?
A: For me, it’s a variety of things. I start off with history and myth, then move to cuisine, culture and finally the convenience of getting wine. A fine glass of wine and a stunning view is something that will leave me breathless. Speaking of, one of my favourite parts about travelling is flying! Taking off and landing on a big metal bird with a perfect soundtrack is like honey to a bee for me.
Q: Where to next?
A: Exploring our island will always be my highest priority. I’ve been to quite a few locations already, but there’s still so much I need to see. As for international travel, I plan on visiting Turkey by the end of the year; hopefully if my book launch goes well and the pandemic eases up a bit.