Thursday 10 January 2013

New Year's Resolutions


With the New Year of 2013 duly upon us, and having not been wiped out by the Mayan apocalypse I guess it’s that time of year when we have to look at the successes and shortcomings of the previous year and plan to make this year more successful than the last! 

So for Dunira, you can see that we are resolving to resurrect our blog and fill it with more snapshots of the travel and tourism industry. 

I know that my resolutions always revolve around travel and adventures, so one month at a time, a little more frivolous than usual, I want to explore some alternative and unconventional travel opportunities and maybe inspire a holiday of a different kind. One of my favourite pastimes is to browse travel blogs for inspiration and advice on travel planning, many of which are run by eternal travellers who have lots of experience under their belt. So if you, like me, are making travel resolutions, each post will include some of my favourite ideas for travel inspirations for a whole calendar of adventures for a new year!

January
Why not start the year with something a bit crazy - The Rickshaw Run
It’s hard to describe exactly what this is, but its creators The Adventurists describe it as:

“A 3,500km pan-Indian adventure in a 7 horsepower glorified lawnmower, the Rickshaw Run is easily the least sensible thing to do with two weeks.”

  
They are 10 days in to the current run, but you can sign up to take part in September 2013 or April 2014. Definitely one for the list if you’re keen for an adventure and something different, you’ll definitely have lots of tales to tell by the end of it for sure. In particular, I’ve been following Rickshaw Run Diaries for the account of three independent female travel bloggers who have united to take part, and their experience of this unique event. Good old social media is used by most teams to document their eventful journeys.
  
The event aims to raise lots of money for charities at the same time, with the entry requirements being that you raise at least £1,000 for charity, £500 of which goes to their official charity Cool Earth, who work with local rainforest communities to protect rainforests from being cut down.
For me, my environmental conscience hits in however - the long haul flight(s) to India, and the 3,500km overland journey in a rickshaw?! If I was to do it, I would personally choose another environmental charity ideally involved in carbon offsetting, then I'd be able to race around on my rickshaw guilt-free. Well, almost.
 

Ideally, you could combine the start and end dates of the ‘race’ with extra travel in India. And whilst the January “unroute”, as they’re known, is in the West of India, each is different and so each ‘race’ would give different travel opportunities; maybe the Taj Mahal, or heading out to Nepal, or maybe you could check out some work that Dunira has been carrying out at the same time with co-operative travel through Edge of India, which offers homestays and tours in West Bengal and Uttarakhand, run by the local community working towards a sustainable tourism network.
Importantly, travel responsibly. Make sure that your adventure doesn’t jeopardise local businesses –try delicious food of the region in local restaurants, stay in local guest houses or homestays with an Indian family. Responsible travel is about experiencing authenticity, support the local communities along your route and this will be more than just a journey of a lifetime, it will be an experience of a lifetime.

A bit of an ambitious one for the start of the year, but if you’re keen for adventure and always want to do something a bit different, then this is brilliant. And The Adventurists haven’t stopped there, with several other crazy Adventures if you want something different. Motorcycling 2,500km across a frozen Siberia? Maybe 2014...

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