Most might love travel stories, I do. Specially with photos included in those blog entries, it looks more interesting to have graphical images in it to tell more story and to share the experience.
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Travel blogs are somehow one of the most exciting but also challenging topics to write.
Why? Well based on my own experience, sharing and letting you readers feel how you felt and go through the same walks and hops in the travel story is truly inspiring. I was once only a travel blog reader, I enjoyed them a lot. They make my feet itch and my head think how they did it? How can I also do the same, how much money was involved to get there?
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All those questions are easy to answer with the use of the modern mediums at this generation. You'll find DIY or do it your own travel guides which had helped me a lot. Online research may be very necessary but one can skip that if you want to be more spontaneous. But again, it is most important to learn about where you're going, this will help you eliminate certain mistakes while on the road. Being most prepared is the name of the game.
I got friends who also travel, lots of them but don't tell them about this blog as I have kept this within my unknown online friends' circle only (yea, I haven't met anyone of these online friends just yet). I like it that way although it is also great to share to your friends where and how the recent travel experience went, I still feel doubtful and would always think they might criticize me with how I write my blog entries. So I am happy having it this way - secret blog as what they say but I regret not using my online username here. I should have done so however, it makes me feel like I am hiding something from my readers so I am simply letting it be like this - expose my real self but keep this blog as secret as possible.
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Back to my real friends who also travel, some of them write blog entries about their travels too. Only that, they couldn't keep up with writing them on time. In short, they or shall I say we get a long list of backlogs. I could point out one college friend who had traveled to some South East Asian countries, she just started publishing her Japan trip of last year this month. How late? Very very very late, perhaps a throwback blog instead!
Honestly speaking, I do have my own share of travel topic list, I had somehow managed to crash out some of them but there are still a lot on it that it would take me number of hours to start writing. I couldn't even finish some of them due to either I had already forgotten the experience because it happened years ago or I am tired of writing about the topic that I have to move on to the most recent ones.
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One example, the tour to Boracay/Kalibo. I have missed to write a lot of topics. I have this topic about the keepsakes from Boracay and there was also the side trips to Aklan and stuffs like that which I had already forgotten about so I couldn't write much about them. I only have photos left with me. I am unsure I could share the same feeling I felt while we were on the road so I had to move on, plus there were other travels after that which I also started blogging out.
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So there the real question there is why does it take that long to publish one? Here below are my three reasons why writing travel stories take time and I totally believe that writing these types of topics deserve more appreciation:
1. It costs us money
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To travel is fun, it gives the person perspective on what is happening on the other side of the country or the world. It enhances understanding of culture and it enlightens the hearts of every traveler to be humble in every single experience on the road. Now this is only for those who are traveling for the purpose of immersing himself or herself with other culture and not with those who travel just for the sake of social media. The two are totally different.
The focus here is that it takes a lot of financial aspect to be able to travel specially those who are going abroad. I however have not really thought of going outside the country just yet. I would love to see more of the Philippines before I check out other places. 
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Note that the Philippines though consists of 7k and more islands so it is best to check at least the provinces before I could go to the nearest neighboring country, Japan is a good place to start with.
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Plane / boat tickets, travel allowance, accommodation expenses, all of these are just some of the points one has to cover, shell out money from the pocket to fulfill that travel dream.
Although traveling is expensive in its sense, the feeling of fulfillment as one involve himself with the new faces, new places and new experiences is the most satisfying thing ever.
2. It takes effort in terms of photos
I admit it, adding photos to a blog makes it more interesting, more inviting to read and it takes a conscious effort to add images that are suitable for the blog topic.
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Travel blogs are also expected to have photos which are originally taken by the writer himself or herself in my case which is why as much as possible, I only post my own photos and image in my travel blogs.
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This also includes the fact that these images are taken with camera gears which are also cost much investments for the purpose of enhancing the quality of the images. Blurry photos are not good to blogs so it is necessary to have clear and sharp images to encourage readers.
But above that, video clips are also part of these media files that can be added into the blog, the same case applies to gifs.
3. Attention to detail is needed
Another important thing about travel blogs is the attention to real and actual details of the places visited. I have to personally take notes when traveling, that's why I need to bring my mobile device always.
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It takes lots of note taking, questioning, information writing and double checking to make sure that the information provided is true and real.
With all the above reasons, I totally believe that having originality doesn't only be about the article, it should also include the authenticity of materials included in the blog such as the images and videos. They should be treated far more than those which are available in the internet.
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Blog entry written and published by Jean Beltran-Figues , A Pinas traveler and photography hobbyist, find more travel blogs in my blog section: click here !
