Travel Outtakes – What Travelling REALLY Looks Like

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Before anyone goes off on me for “complaining” about travel, I’m not. I am simply saying that travel is, for the most part, not glamorous. It is busy and loud and exhausting, but we love it anyway. What I want to do with this post is, first and foremost, make you laugh at my ridiculousness.

Secondly I want to show you that all those picture-perfect Instagram accounts are made up of moments just like the following pictures that I’m going to show you. My Instagram looks pretty idyllic, but in reality I spend the majority of my time sitting in my pyjamas, hair bunched on top of my head, bra-less and staring at my laptop for hours on end. This eventually results in some sort of migraine. Again, I’m not complaining, I love what I do. But it most certainly is NOT always glamorous. Here’s the evidence.

Travel Outtakes

1) The constant search for wifi can land you in some strange places. For example, when I was in Waikiki (Hawaii) the hotel had said that it had free wifi. What they failed to mention was that it was only available in the hallway beside the lobby. So, of course, I sat in the hallway, in my pyjamas, trying to upload a Youtube video. GLAMOUR! I’m sure you can relate.

2) When you’re trying to save money while travelling so you buy a $5 pizza and eat it in bed…… off your own stomach….. and your boyfriend thinks it’s fun to take a picture. He is 100% rebelling against the “Instagram Husband”, trend. This was in Florida after a big day of Disneyland!

3) Similar to number 2 but with popcorn and from my crotch instead of my stomach this time. Of course, I’m multi-tasking and doing a bit of social media at the same time. I’m pretty sure this was Hawaii again.

4) Camping in Death Valley National Park. I got so cold at night that I ended up wearing my pjs, 2 jumpers, my coat, 3 pairs of socks and a scarf. I was still shivering in my sleep. Somehow my boyfriend slept soundly in pj bottoms only! Getting up in the middle of the night and making the pitch black run to the toilet hut to pee is not glamorous. Camping is fun and you get the best views, but yep, no glamour.

5) Maybe I should get a new boyfriend? 😛 (I don’t mean it darling). Another unflattering snap of me Snapchatting (add me @ whereistara) from my room in Queenstown, New Zealand because I had to keep my story up to date! Strangely this one did not make it to my Instagram.

6) Taking pictures of EVERYTHING in Death Valley. I sometimes have to tell myself to put the phone down and just take things in with my actual eyes. But then I remember that I need good photos for my Instagram. The struggle is real.

7) That jetlag feeling you get after 8 flight in 9 days. I’m pretty sure I didn’t even know where I was, let alone what day it was. This usually happens to me once every month or two, to varying degrees. Again, my boyfriend was so kind as to take this photo for me. He particularly delights in whatsapping pics like this to me later and watching the outrage and surprise on my face #bfoftheyear .

8) When you’ve been flying so much that you get a tonne of spots and you try to hide them in photos. Damn that dry air on planes. Again, you don’t see this on my social media channels. BUT it is just a reality of travel. This was taken yesterday in Edmonton (Canada). Luckily the spots are clearing up a bit, but it’s still not sexy. So obviously I opted for a low cut top to compensate for it. haha.

9) This is literally my every day life. This is what I look like right now. Sure, tomorrow I’m heading off to the beautiful mountains and lakes of Banff and Jasper (Canada), but right now I’m chillin’ in pjs, on my laptop, being a general babe.Beauty/fashion/haircare brands, I am available for brand ambassadorship, first come first serve, I can’t fit you all in I’m afraid…. #glamour

10) When you’re in this beautiful tropical place (The Maldives) taking pictures of palm trees, making your friends jealous and looking like some sort of tropical beach babe on Instagram. Oh wait, what’s actually happening is you think you might die from heat exhaustion and you are convinced you have insects on you, but it’s just hundreds of beads of sweat dripping down your legs, arms, ass, neck and everywhere else.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved the Maldives, but it wasn’t always a walk in the park. Especially when a couple of hours after I took this photo I was walking through the airport (dripping sweat) and my trousers ripped right up the ass. Luckily I had a pair of shorts to change into in the bathrooms. Granted I had to walk to the bathroom with my ass hanging out. Unfortunately for me they had just hosed down the bathroom so everything was dripping wet. Of course, in order to take my trousers off and put on the shorts I had to take my shoes off and stand bare foot in this wet/sticky public toilet. So as I squelched around changing into my shorts, I did definitely question my decision to travel full time.

That’s it

If you’re planning on travelling long-term, get ready for the crazy, tiring, wonderfully chaotic madness that is travel. Things go wrong, you get tired and you’ll feel like going home. BUT it is always, without fail, worth it in the end. What you get out of travel is 100 times more than what it takes out of you. Something that “ruins” your trip one day, will make a great story for the rest of your life. If you want to read another story about the less glamorous side of travelling then make sure you check out this travel disaster story about giant blisters and sleeping rough in Prague. The things we do for adventure, eh?!

Have you got a “glamorous” travel moment?? Tell me about it in the comments!

Want to read more about my travel fails? Check these out;
– Attacked by bugs in the Amazon
– That time I thought I might die on a flight to Canada