At the end of May our co-host Polly tweeted about spreading some sunshine with an act of kindness – her tweet went viral spreading love along with it! With that in mind we decided to stick with the theme of kindness for our travel link up.
Travelling abroad is good to the local economy but tourists can ruin places just as much as they can make it flourish. For example the recent closure of Maya Beach in Thailand. All the pollution led to coral being destroyed. Being a bit conscious with simple decisions like local transport and littering can help make that difference. It is always hard getting the correct balance.
I remember at my recent visit in Havana, we went around in their Vintage cars. It was a beautiful ride however due to the import/export restrictions the engines are really old and the pollution levels released from the cars are very high.
Where possible, I like to donate when travelling to preserve what is out there however I am never sure if it is going to the right people. With a lot of corruption in some countries it is hard to know if what you give is getting to those who need it most.
Donating to local temples, trusts, churches and heritage sites to keep them running is vital especially to for the local economy.
Another way I like to give back when traveling is eat at local markets and buy souvenirs from the markets even though this involves haggling sometimes the money is going towards families who need it most. Supporting the local traders is so key to keep and grow the culture of a country/town. Also sometimes the best meals I have had are the ones in that dingy looking shack.
When I visit Kenya, my hometown, or Goa where my husbands grandparents live I try to take clothes & niknaks that we take for granted in the U.K. to pass onto the orphanages. Luckily I have family in both places and they local knowledge and the items go to the right people. Seeing the smile on children’s faces and the gratitude they show is priceless and so moving.
In the U.K. as well as trying to support local businesses we use our Nectar Points to make a charitable donations in form of food, water, livestock etc via Oxfam. If you have some Nectar points knocking about its worth checking this out.
How to link up your post
Just pop your post up over the first week of the month (the 1st – 7th June 2018), add it to the link up widget found on Adventures of a London Kiwi, SilverSpoon London, Follow Your Sunshine or on the blog of our lovely guest host Sarah from More Than Just A Cupcake Lover.
There are no rules – all we ask is that you check out some of the other cool bloggers that are involved in that months travel link up; make a few comments here and there and tweet a few of the posts out to your followers that you think they will love. It’s a great way to meet some new travel bloggers and share some blogging joy!
The Travel Link Up is open to all bloggers as long as the post is relevant.
Hope you enjoyed the read.
Cheerio for now!
Neha x
Great post! Shows how even the simplest of things can make a difference x
Thanks Megan
Loving this month’s topic and so uncanny that both you and Bejal have covered such a similar perspective of the topic. These things all make a difference no matter how big or small and a little kindness goes a long way x
It is a great topic and I am loving the reads. It’s nice to see everyone’s views. They are definitely very informative x
Half of the time when I travel, I do volunteer work or get involved with local work of some other kind. I spent one year volunteering with stray dogs in the Republic of Moldova (“Europe’s poorest country”). I have also done volunteer English teaching in some countries. I plan to continue doing this. Both the English teaching and working with animals in need. It gives my travel purpose and makes the world a better place 🙂
This sounds amazing
What a great idea! Sometimes it’s easy to get caught up in your own enjoyment of a place without thinking about the consequences of your visit on the local economy or environment. This makes me want to be more conscious and make more local donations to places i visit.
Not littering is something so simple yet many people still can’t do that. There are so ‘just-okay’ places that I feel would look so much nicer if there wasn’t so much trash. I just saw an article about Hawaii banning sunblock with certain ingredients because they are harming the coral. It’s a start!
I appreciate what you did, I’m the same. It always has to be something different, not just the main touristic and boring things to do and leave 😀
Well done girl, just go for more! 🙂
Fantastic – very, very important topic. We have it so good and can afford to travel the world so at least we should be aware of that and try to make the world a better place instead of just taking advantage. I find there are far too few posts dealing with this side of travelling, so thank you very much!
It’s very nice of you to take clothes with you when you travel to the lesser privileged countries for the orphanages or ensure to buy food and souvenirs from local businesses to help them. Also, I did not know driving vintage cars in Havana leads to higher pollution levels. I guess it’s key to be environmentally and socially conscious while travelling and try to contribute wherever possible. Not a lot of people do it, and it’s amazing that you do 🙂
Thabks
Oh, reminds me of one show, it is done by a team from Ukraine and the explore the opposite sides of countries, they go really deep. And they help people who are in need. The guy even gave his camera for auction, telling that the money would go for a girl, who was seriously sick and needed expensive treatment.
This is a brilliant post Neha