3 Years of Travel Blogging – It’s About Learning & Growing

February 1, 2013 • Posted by +

Today marks the 3rd anniversary of As We Travel – yes we started this blog way back on the 1st of Feb, 2010!

It feels like these past 3 years have gone by so quickly and yet we’ve experienced and learned so much since we started blogging – when we began this journey 3 years ago we never realised how much it would end up changing our lives and the decisions we made.

Who knew a blog could be life changing in such a way?

Today we want to take a moment to look back at our year and the things we’ve learned about ourselves, blogging and business, and what we’re most grateful for …

1) Learning Skills For Any Industry.

Sometimes there is just no short-cut, and you have to do things the hard way by learning from your mistakes – this year, we’ve done that more than ever before with the 3 new non-travel related websites and 2 iPhone apps we are working on.

But while we learned so many new things, we also realised just how much the knowledge and skills you get from travel blogging can be used in other industries online.

Next to the good old “make-money-blogging-bloggers” – travel bloggers are among the most internet-tech-savvy of bloggers, and it’s a great industry to learn new things which you can implement in other projects.

Techniques we take for granted or are over-used in travel blogging can be used to really push and promote your company websites to another level elsewhere.

2) Our YouTube Fans Are Awesome!

Among the things we’re most grateful for this year with AsWeTravel are our YouTube followers - if you are not following us on there yet, make sure you join us: www.youtube.com/AsWeTravel

After we released 50 travel videos in 2011 and 2012, it was a big anti-climax when nobody seemed interested in them on our blog – not many comments, not much appreciation – nothing … we thought the hard work of making these videos had been a massive waste of time.

But it turns out that good things sometimes take time.

Today we have over half a million views on YouTube, and 50,000 monthly viewers watching our videos – we love the crazy comments and wild discussions that our videos provoke, from laws about filming publicly to how you’re really supposed to drink Turkish coffee.

We have had TV channels from America, Canada, China, and Czech Republic reaching out to us wanting to use our video content on their official TV channels, and it’s really fun to see that people appreciate the effort we have put into them.

3) Every Path In Life Has Sacrifices. 

No matter what you do in life, there will always be sacrifices – there will be as many sacrifices if you choose to quit your 9 to 5 job as there will be if you choose to stay.

This isn’t something many people care to talk about – we live with this illusion that getting away from everything will cure every problem we have, when in fact leaving will often bring up even more problems than if you were to stay at home if you don’t understand the real cause.

During the last 3 years we have been tested over and over again if this life choice to travel and work the way we do really was the right decision to make – the amount of times we nearly decided to give it all up for a “morally-correct” job can’t be counted on our fingers.

The realisation that you will have to sacrifice things with any choice you make in life really helped us stay on track and continue to build what we have done.

It all comes down to what means more to you, and what you’re willing to let go of.

We chose an uncertain life over a safe path, and we have to deal with the consequences of that, but in the end it has all been worth it. :)

So we just wanted to say a BIG THANK YOU for following our blog and videos the last 3 years, and we look forward to sharing yet another few years with you all! :)

39 Responses to 3 Years of Travel Blogging – It’s About Learning & Growing

  1. Jenna February 1, 2013 at 8:32 am #

    Congrats on three years! The right choices are almost always not the easiest, but good for you for taking the leap.

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:23 am #

      thanks Jenna! I agree, it’s never easy to choose, and you never really know if it was the right decision until after you’ve made the choice.

    • Pankaj Sharma March 28, 2013 at 3:26 pm #

      If you think every day as an investment and you feel satisfied at the end of the day with your work, you improved. So every single moment invested would bring result over a period of time. Keep going ….

  2. Ian Ord - Where Sidewalks End February 1, 2013 at 9:14 am #

    Wow – three years! That’s phenomenal, guys!! Looking forward to watching you grow over the next three to come! :)

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:24 am #

      Thanks Ian! :)

  3. The Social Traveler February 1, 2013 at 9:24 am #

    Congratz guys! Have been following your adventures from the very beginning. Keep up the great work.

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:26 am #

      Glad to hear you’ve enjoyed our blog for so long! We loved your biking adventure through Asia, it seemed like so much fun.

  4. Claire February 1, 2013 at 10:12 am #

    Interesting comments about your Youtube channel. The most worthwhile things sometimes take time to grow.

    Hope the next 3 years are just as successful and interesting!

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:28 am #

      Thank you claire, yeah it’s definitely something we’ve realized this year, how you can’t always expect a quick return on everything, but that many things need more time.

  5. Jules February 1, 2013 at 5:46 pm #

    I so enjoy following your travels. You are really an inspiration to us. Keep it up. And I love your patience- it has paid off!

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:28 am #

      Thanks Jules, so glad to hear you enjoy our blog!

  6. Wil @ Where's Wil February 2, 2013 at 5:46 am #

    Great post. I graduated college and I’m now starting my adventure traveling around the world. I created a blog, mostly for myself, and It’s opened me up to a whole new set of digital skills that I’m sure I’ll use in other entrepreneurial ventures.

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:32 am #

      Hey Wil, I’m sure you’ll find all the new skills useful in other areas of your life and businesses.

      We started out the same way, just writing for friends and family, so you never really know where things will end up!

  7. Jade February 3, 2013 at 9:03 pm #

    Congratulations, there are a lot of cool stuff you can learn in traveling the world in 3 years

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:40 am #

      I agree, I’ve learned more important things from traveling the world than I ever did in high school. ;)

  8. Matthew Karsten February 4, 2013 at 3:57 am #

    Nice. It’s good to see hard work pay off. But 3 more websites & 2 Apps? You guys are machines!

    YouTube commenters can be brutal. If you make a mistake, or do something they don’t’ agree with, they’ll be sure to let you know. :D

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:42 am #

      Thanks Matthew! Haha yeah it’s funny to see people on YouTube getting so worked up over nothing, but it’s also a lot of fun to be able to reach those who you would otherwise never be able to connect with.

  9. Hogga February 5, 2013 at 1:30 am #

    congratulations!

    • Sofia February 5, 2013 at 7:43 am #

      Thanks hogga!

  10. Vi February 6, 2013 at 3:26 pm #

    Congratulation with 3rd birthday :)
    It is good you didn’t gave up as it takes sometime to get something back from the blogging :)

    • Sofia February 11, 2013 at 5:00 pm #

      Thanks! Yeah we’re happy we didn’t give up, and we have gotten so much in return.

  11. Lisa February 8, 2013 at 9:07 pm #

    Thanks for honestly sharing the ups and downs of your experiences with long term travel! It is a challenge, but such a rewarding challenge.

    My husband and I quit our jobs in Oct 2011 and traveled for a year. We’ve been temporarily settled down for three months and the pressure to go back to a “morally-correct” job has been intense! I can really relate to your experiences — wanting to settle down while wanting to be on the move.

    Our best wishes that you will find the balance that works best for you!

    • Sofia February 11, 2013 at 5:55 pm #

      Hi Lisa,

      I’m glad you liked the article, it’s a strange and confusing feeling to want two entirely different things as the same time, right now we’re doing something in between where we test to live in a place for one month.

  12. Eric White February 11, 2013 at 3:40 pm #

    I haven’t even really started my first adventure for my site and already that 3rd point hits home. Well, I did leave San Diego to come to the east coast to kick things off… but I don’t know if that really counts. And forget “morally correct”! There’s way too much to see and too many people to meet to be cooped up in an office for 40 years!

    • Sofia February 16, 2013 at 8:14 am #

      I completely agree with you Eric, life is short so we should all stop trying to live up to others expectations and do what we know is right for us.

  13. Ian Garstang February 12, 2013 at 6:58 pm #

    Huge congrats on making it to three years, it sounds like so much fun (as well as hard work) and part of me wishes I could do it too.

    Will you be seeking adventure for many more years or are you thinking about starting a family… if so… you will still travel?

    • Sofia February 16, 2013 at 8:19 am #

      Thanks Ian! We know we won’t always be traveling the way we are right now, but when we do find a place we’d like to settle down in and raise a family we will still travel a lot – I just can’t imagine life without it :)

  14. Tom Miller February 13, 2013 at 12:41 pm #

    These are great realizations. I, for one, am happy also with all the learning I have made along my travels. Despite the sacrifices along the way, I would never want to regret my decisions. Happy three long years for you and may you have more years to enjoy for your travel escapades. Cheers!

    • Sofia February 16, 2013 at 8:21 am #

      Thank you Tom, glad you liked the article. I think you have a great mindset about never regretting your decisions, life is so much better and easier then :) .

  15. Suitcase Stories - Nicole February 15, 2013 at 3:56 pm #

    Congrats on 3 years guys! Thats awesome! We have been following you for 2 of those years. In fact, you were one of the blogs that inspired us to go and live the life we had always dreamed about! And now we have been for 12 months – So thank you :)

    • Sofia February 16, 2013 at 8:26 am #

      Wow that is so nice to hear, it really makes us happy to know that we’ve inspired you! Keep up the good work and lifestyle and enjoy your dream life to the fullest :)

  16. Julio Moreno March 1, 2013 at 5:39 pm #

    I found your blog today. I might be late to the party but I am hooked on your archives. I actually just started my own… kind of travel review blog. Yeah it’s slow but rewarding!

    http://juliosworldmarvels.wordpress.com

    I guess my first question is, what should I invest on, getting rid of that pesky “.wordpress.com” or more space than the allotted 3 gb?

    • Nathan March 23, 2013 at 3:01 pm #

      Hey Julio – glad to see you are enjoying our site :) alo noticed that you got rid of the wordpress.com ;) its so much better and really worth the investment to have a self-hosted website!

  17. Franca March 10, 2013 at 9:42 am #

    A massive congratulations to you guys!
    It’s always good to read about successful stories like yours and it can only encourage us that have only few months ago started traveling and blogging.
    Keep the good videos and posts coming! ;)

    • Nathan March 23, 2013 at 3:00 pm #

      thank you very much Franca :)

  18. Bastiaan Blikman March 10, 2013 at 5:36 pm #

    Congrats guys with your blogs third birthday! I stumbled upon your site via a website of dutch travelers. You certainly have written some really nice posts! I am just starting up a weblog for my travels and I know its going to be a long term project. I hope one day i’ll be as successful as you guys! Keep up the good work and i’ll be following you!

    • Nathan March 23, 2013 at 2:59 pm #

      Thanks for the awesome comment – really glad to hear you are enjoying our content!

  19. Martina March 23, 2013 at 8:35 am #

    Congrats and thanks for the interesting and inspiring aspects. I started my German travel blog a few months ago and could certainly benefit from your experiences. All the best, Martina

    • Nathan March 23, 2013 at 2:59 pm #

      thanks a lot Martina and good luck with your new blog :)