What could be nicer than gathering memories from around the world and sneaking into less explored places? That is why traveling is considered a super cool thing and a passion that many nurture. Traveling offers us a break from our everyday life and gives us an insight into different cultures, foods and places and opens our perspective on the world.
In recent years, exploring the world has been on many people’s to-do lists. As the field gains tremendous pace, many young influencers are working hard to bring the beautiful beauty of the world to our phones.
One of these bloggers and photographers is Sahib Singh Sadana, who makes memories in different places around the world. He mainly works to impart knowledge about ecotourism in order to make the planet a better place. We spoke to him on World Tourism Day to get an insight into his travel route.
Tell us about your Traveling Indian blog.
Travelingindian stands for modern India, where a young Indian wants to travel the world and learn from his experiences. For me, Travellingindian is a means of finding out how things happen on the other side of the world. I would also like to show how Indians are developing and contributing to the global travel industry.
What made you choose to travel as a career?
I had a revelation that not many Indians travel. They only travel when they have to, and I wanted to change that. I want to change their mindset that traveling is not just a hobby. People can also do it regularly, and not just when they have time to kill. You can even take it up professionally. Otherwise, I believe that the tourism industry in India is still very young and has enormous potential. I want to help bridge the gap between people who want to travel and people who can take them in or help them travel.
Egypt was my first long solo international backpacking trip. There I learned to dive and became a certified advance diver. It made me aware of the value of every breath.
Why do you think travel is important?
Imagine having $ 86,400 deposited into your bank account every day. Unless there’s a twist! By the end of the day, the money dropped to ₹ 0. But the next day the balance returns to $ 86,400. What will you do? If you are smart you will withdraw every single rupee, right? If it will go away at the end of the day, it makes sense to put it to good use.
Well what if I say you get 86,400 in your “account” every day. Yes that’s right! In fact, you’ve always had it – it’s called time. You have 86,400 seconds every day. But at the end of each day, your time is over. Suppose you don’t use it wisely. That’s it. You can never get it back. We all get the same 86,400 seconds every day. But not everyone spends these seconds carefully.
I think my blog TravellingIndian will help me enjoy those 86400 seconds to the fullest.
What kind of destinations do you usually visit? What makes your blog and style different from others?
I am a child of the mountains. I was born and raised in a small town in Himachal Pradesh, India known as Mandi. I fell in love with nature a long time ago, so it is very difficult for me to decide on a certain type of travel destination. I try my best to visit any type of destination because they are all natural – mountains, deserts or beaches. Each place has more than one thing to offer and I try to see it all.
I make sure to plan well before going to any particular destination. There are so many great creators out there and everyone has their niche. Mine is the underwater world and landscape. I hardly know anyone who covers both in their blogs.
In India, awareness of sustainable tourism remains low. Do you want to address this through your blogging?
It is important to educate people about sustainable tourism. My goal is to motivate and inspire people to become responsible travelers. However, this concept may not be familiar to most of the people, especially in India. I tried my best to write / speak as much as possible to spread awareness.
Recently, I was a keynote speaker at a webinar where I shared my thoughts on how we can inspire people to think about sustainable tourism. I think it’s hard to change how adults behave, but if we get their kids around the concept, they’ll convince their parents to travel responsibly.
What are some of the major environmental issues related to the tourism industry?
The quality of the natural and man-made environment is crucial for tourism. However, the relationship between tourism and the environment is complex. It involves many activities that can have adverse effects on the environment. Many of these impacts are related to the construction of general infrastructure such as roads and airports and tourist facilities including resorts, hotels, restaurants, shops, golf courses and marinas.
The negative effects of tourism development can gradually destroy the environmental resources on which it depends. On the other hand, tourism can have a positive impact on the environment by helping to protect and preserve the environment. It is a way of raising awareness of environmental values and can serve as a tool to protect natural areas and increase their economic importance.
Can you enumerate a few commandments for tourists in India to reduce the ecological footprint of their trip?
- Choose public transport over car. If this is not possible, try looking for shared taxis that go to the same destination.
- Instead of using plastic or metal straws, drink your drink straight from the bottle or mug. People don’t know that most of the time, straw is unnecessary.
- Do not use sunscreen or sunscreen before going underwater. It destroys the corals and reefs. Instead, apply it after you get out of the water.
- Instead of asking for water bottles, teeth and shaving kits at hotels, bring your own reusable water bottle and other toiletries with you.
- Think about ways to make the place cleaner than you found it.
Now there is a new concept called “Revenge Travel”. What are your thoughts on that?
Vengeance trips aren’t bad when travelers behave responsibly. It is okay to travel as long as they are vaccinated, wearing masks, and practicing social distancing.
We need to understand that if we stop traveling altogether, people connected to the travel industry will lose their livelihoods and will not be able to support themselves.
How did you deal with the pandemic? Are you looking forward to traveling regularly again?
For me it was an emotional roller coaster ride. Fortunately, after such a long time, I was able to spend time with my family again, and I loved it. I learned a lot of new skills like cooking and singing during the lockdown.
Yes, I am planning to become a Master Diver now, and for that I am going to the Andamans in October. I’m extremely happy about that.
What did traveling teach you? Would you like to share a special experience?
Traveling is about living the moment and enjoying what is happening now. Yes, there are problems in life, but have you ever imagined that these problems are temporary.
In a few years, you’ll be looking at the problem like it’s no big deal; You might even laugh at yourself for feeling unhappy at the time. The problem is we think we have unlimited time so we always give an excuse, “Ahh! I’ll do it another day”. We tend to push what we love to do in the future.
That is not right; start doing what you love today. Would you like to paint? Do you want to be a comedian? Do you want to be a dancer? Do you want to sing Do you want to play an instrument? Do you love someone and want to tell them?
Get started today! Do what you love to do today. Tell that person that you love them, stop thinking about the consequences. Just don’t worry about the future. You will only have a happy future if you do something you love in the present.
For more of Sahib’s amazing work, check out his Instagram and Youtube.
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