Wanderlust in Words: Travel Writing Picks of The Week.

Of late, I’ve been reading so many thought-provoking, eye-popping, jaw-dropping, smile-evoking travel posts from around the Blogosphere, that I’ve decided to start this ‘Wanderlust in Words’ bi-monthly travel section to collect the best of the lot, and keep myself from losing my sanity (and hopefully yours too). If all goes well, each alternate Monday, you can come back here to find inspiration for your first solo trip, go on a visual journey somewhere across the globe, open up to the idea of long-term travel, indulge in a minute or two of someone else’s reality, and read something stirring on Incredible India, which seems to be on everyone’s travel list these days. Or better still, you can subscribe to this blog so these travel musings are delivered right to your inbox to fight them Monday blues.

Without further adieu, I present this week’s Wanderlust in Words:

INSPIRING YOU TO TRAVEL, SINCE 2012.

20 Ways to Cut Your Expenses, Grow Your Bank Balance, and Have Money For Travel.

By Matt of Nomadic Matt.

One of the foremost reasons people who want to travel don’t, is because they don’t afford it. Or so they think. In this post, Matt lists just how you can save a large part of what you earn and travel with it. And no, it doesn’t matter if you don’t earn millions. This post really rung a bell, having tried many of these expense-cutting measures myself to save everything I have for my travels. As a female, I’d surely add ‘shopping’ to Matt’s list; there’s no bigger hole-in-the-pocket puncher.

NEW ZEALAND: FOR YOUR BUCKET LIST.

Postcards from New Zealand.

By Amanda of A Dangerous Business.

Ever since my cousin sister moved to New Zealand for work, visiting this postcard country has moved from my bucket list to a distant reality (maybe if I can save enough funds using Matt’s tips). These photographs from the Paradise of the Pacific will immediately transport you into a world where the only blues on a Monday are the waters & the skies, and all else is white & misty. Be warned, you won’t stop dreaming about travelling to New Zealand after seeing these postcards.

INCREDIBLE INDIA: FOOD FOR THOUGHT.

How India Turned Me Into a Feminist.

By Rakhee of Aussie Girl in India.

I’ve met Rakhee and tweeted with her and talked about places we want to travel to and dissed the sleazy men we’ve each encountered on our travels. But when I read this hard-hitting post on how her travels across India transformed her into a feminist, something in me sank. It felt like a mirror of what I’ve felt for so long, but haven’t voiced in as many words only because I don’t have the courage to face what I know. Perhaps a little heavy for a Monday, her post is one of those realities that we can escape for a little while but can’t turn a blind eye to.

GOING SOLO: DITCH THE ‘NO COMPANY’ EXCUSE. 

Why Travelling Solo Isn’t So Scary.

By Sally of Unbrave Girl.

Inspiring my own recent post on 5 Reasons Why Travelling Alone in India is Not So Scary, Sally addresses the one thing you always wonder when you meet someone travelling alone – Isn’t it scary? She talks about how solo travel makes you want to trust the world all over again, because you can’t carry fear and doubt with you at all times, though you can carry a pepper spray. In her words, I identify the transition to ‘trusting’ I’m gradually making in my own travels.

RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL: CAN WE SAVE ROHTANG PASS?

The Himalayas and The Old Man: How Much Do We Care?

By Tarun on Hill Post.

Last year, when I crossed over to Manali from Spiti via the Rohtang Pass, my heart broke. Not because I was stuck in traffic for 4 hours and missed my onward bus, but because of the state of this once majestic snow-filled terrain that now looked like a dirty mucky picnic spot littered with waste as most picnic spots in India are. In this post, Tarun talks about the people on the other side of Rohtang Pass, the ones who spend one half of the year in frigid weather and the other half ‘clearing’ & ‘cleaning’ the road for tourists who want to see snow. A sharp reminder on why we need to get our act together and save our country’s most precious natural wonder – The Himalayas.

I hope that’s been a good dose of travel readings for your Monday (or whichever day you happen to read this). If you have written or read travel posts or clicked pictures that you think should be featured in my upcoming weekly picks, please leave a link to them in the comments. As always, I’m all ears to what you think of the many dreams & thoughts these travel writing picks may have raised!

Join The Shooting Star on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more travel stories all week long.