Meet Reshma Narasing on Trell - A solo gypsy, obsessed with maps and wilderness!
Reshma Narasing, a passionate traveler, an ardent writer, and a bibliophile, is a certified travel junkie, having traveled to 100 plus destinations in whole of Asia. Come join us as we uncover the inspiration behind Reshma’s tryst with travel! She has been sharing really fascinating and adventurous travel stories on Trell. Looking at this we reached out to her. This is what she had to say!
Q. Hello Reshma,would you like to start off by telling us something about your origin to our readers?
Well, I was born in Mysore. I completed my education and Engineering there and moved to Bangalore for work. The best times were my summer vacations that would be filled with travels with family — sometimes to places far away and sometimes nearby, all of which I used to enjoy a lot.
Q. Have you always been a travel-holic? What exactly got you into travelling?
I started working and my job was all about coding. After a point, I didn’t really like my job. I always had this passion for travel and writing. I began travelling on weekends whenever I had the opportunity. At the same time I also enjoyed writing . So I just figured, why not do this full time.
I realized that I enjoyed traveling a lot — exploring new places, that sense of happiness when I pack my bags and the thrill of waking up in new destinations, meeting new people and learning things — these are some of the things that draw me to wander. I started my blog while I still had my job and started travelling from two years. I then quit my job as well. Its been a year and a half since I’ve begun travelling full time and what a great one year its been!
Q. Now I must say your blog looks wonderful !What is it that inspired you to start your own blog?
As I said, I have always enjoyed writing. So I thought why not make a travel blog where I can share my experiences with people out there. Seeing that I’m a solo traveler, as I began writing, I started receiving questions from girls specifically as to whether travelling solo is safe or not, how to go about a safe trip etc. Looking at this, I thought why not make it a platform for sharing not only my experiences but also put up details about destinations that would help people travelling. Hence the blog.
Q. How did you manage to make travelling a full time engagement? Most people only dream of it.
Exactly! So everyone wants to travel, but at the end of the day no one is ready to leave their comfort zone. I myself was like that a few years ago. But travel has always been a priority for me. So I just tried to create my life around travel. I work and look for opportunities and I save. So majority of my savings is for put into travel.
Over the years, I have gained enough experience to make sure “I TRAVEL MORE FOR LESS”. That is what I have been trying to accomplish. I have started small but its going good so far. I have a job that I can work from any part of the world. So this gives me a lot of time.
Q. Now lets rewind a little! Where was your first solo trip to?
My first solo trip! Hmm, I think not too far away from home.This was a long time ago, I was still working then. It was somewhere in Coastal-Karnataka. I did have lots of fun on the beaches. I was really young then. I felt really free and adventurous. It was a great and a fresh start!
Q. What did you find the most intimidating thing about this solo trip?
Well the most basic-the fear of the unknown, having butterflies in your stomach, all the time being watchful, being cautious. But I eventually realized that it was all in my head and no one really bothers you. Every one is on their own world and you can go about doing your thing without a single care. After a day or two, I became comfortable with being alone.
Q. Of all your trips so far, if you had to pick a favorite, which one would it be and why?
That is a difficult one! But ya, I think I really liked Philippines and Bhutan. In India, I think the Himalayas is my favorite. Philippines for the beaches, I found the place tremendously beautiful. I’ve been to a lot of Asian countries but this has been the best so far. I found it very comfortable to travel on my own. I was there for about a month and covered four regions. It definitely is a big country. I would definitely want to go back. Bhutan is another favorite because of the beautiful mountains and peaceful monasteries there. It is one of the cleanest countries I have visited so far!
Q. What is the one thing you always carry while traveling?
A camera, a book and my mobile. I like reading a lot so I always carry a book with me.
Q. About the upcoming months,any exciting travel plans?
Yes, I usually don’t do road-trips because I am a bag-packer of sorts but I will be going on a road trip to Kerala soon. I have plans to go to Vietnam as well.
Q. Seeing all the prejudice about being a solo female traveler, what do you have to say to all the the women out there? Would you encourage them to go on and take that first trip!?
Surely, in fact I have even written a blog post on this. Its called “Parents of India” asking them to let their daughters to travel. This post has been featured by the Huffington Post and Youth Ki Awaaz. I always wanted to address this issue, because its either hard to convince your parents or hard to convince yourself to let go of that fear and go out there.
So I’d like to say start off with something familiar, choose a place that is close to your hometown, or a place that you have been to but haven’t been able to explore on a different level. And once you get comfortable you can go on and explore because the world is so huge and there is very little time.
Check out the the travel stories she has shared on Trell -
http://www.trell.co/thesologlobetrotter
Also check out her personal best: http://thesologlobetrotter.com
Some of her Personal Favourites:
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