“Women in Travel Summit” Video part 2!

Aaaand part 2, here we go!

I had fun with this one and tried a few speed-ups and a blooper at the end.

Enjoy!

WITS, India and other amazy-crazy things

Sorry everyone, it was just one of those weekends where I was so busy doing things, I couldn’t find the time to write.

First of all, Chicago’s very first “Women In Travel” Summit was fantastic!

I learned a lot, met some great people and have so many ideas about what to do with my blog and career and talents and well, life, I guess!

And I was able to bring a camera, so expect videos by the end of the week.

The fact that it was happening during Chicago’s famous St. Patrick’s Day weekend (you know, the one when everyone and their mother are suddenly Irish?) gave our out-of-towners a  great chance to see the city in full…

…Green! River, people and all!

Aside from the greenery, we had a lot of fun at the conference too. We learned about how to build our own careers on-the-go and traveling while making money through 3-5 “revenue streams” (a fancy way of saying that we use a lot of skills to get by!). Many travelers, for instance, earn money through ads on their blogs, freelance writing and photography, web design, consulting and a lot more! It was great to know that so many people have been able to create a lifestyle around the things they truly love doing.

I used to feel bad about not having that one big talent I could just focus on and get better at for the rest of my life, but no more! Now I have a purpose (well, several) and will never again complain about my many interests. In the world of freelancers, the more you can do, the better.

It’s the Jills-of-all-trades who survive in the end!

(*Disclaimer: I do not own this picture, it was last seen on a blog called “Entrepreneurial Spark” and I thought it looked awesome. My compliments to the artist!)

So between websites, self-promotion, finding talents to utilize as income, revising travel stories, learning about SEOs, Google AdSense and possible internships, job opportunities and press trips…

I’ll be a busy girl!

More than that, I was the youngest one at that conference which means I am ahead of the game. Instead of having to make a drastic job switch a decade into my working life, I’ve realized what I wanted to do early on and can take the time to turn it into a career I will never want to leave.

Anyway, the weekend, plus my awesome class with TheBellaVie about traveling alone (check out Isabelle’s “Wanderlust Remedy” here) has really stuck the dream of going to India firmly in my mind.

There was also the fact that everyone I met at the conference asked me the same question.

“So, have you been to India?”

In the midst of lawyers, doctors and businesswomen who gave up everything to teach in Bali, work in Senegal or travel the Siberian Express, I felt rather small admitting that this travel-India-junkie had never been to the homeland.

I wonder if that’s how Muslims feel when Mecca seems like a distant dream. So it only makes sense that, like a good pilgrim, I turn my thoughts and prayers Southeast and imagine breakfasts of jalebis and milk and days of monsoon rains.

Okay, waxing a little poetical here!

Let’s just say my resolve is firm and my determination unwavering. Plus, I had a fantastic reminder of why I want to be in India on Sunday when I went a food and culture tour of Chicago’s “Little India”.

(I’m second from the left in the orange and brown sari. It was really heavy!)

A group of us were lucky enough to receive free tickets for Mohammad Ali’s “Spice of Life” tour and I’d been looking forward to it all weekend.

My new French-Montreal-based friend Claire and I (on my right in the picture) hiked alllll the way up to Roger’s Park, missing several buses in the process but generally having fun.

And it all turned out okay because no-one was on time anyway!

Along with eating a wide variety of food and sweets from different regions of India, our group was given a sari fitting, henna tattoos and explored tchochkes (Yiddish word for “knick-knacks”) in tiny shops all over Devon.

My favorite part was being offered chai in a quiet Sikh temple. We sat cross-legged, barefoot with our heads covered, burning our tongues as we  tried to chatter and sip out of Styrofoam cups at the same time.

But more on that later.

I promise a detailed account and a video in a few days!

All in all, it was a fantastic weekend, well worth the price of admission.

Makes me almost wish that I could drop school, quit my job and become a starving artist-traveler full-time.

…Almost.

My first WIT Summit!

The Women in Travel Summit, hosted by Go Girl Travel this weekend March 14-16, is not only my first, but the first ever conference for women travel bloggers!

Held in Chicago at the Palmer House Hotel, it’s going to be an awesome weekend of networking, story-swapping and advice on making money while writing a travel blog.

My dream job, right there.

Now, this blog may not focus so much on travel, but I’m hoping that with the tips from super-successful travel bloggers, I can give Masala FM a little makeover 🙂

After all, travel doesn’t have to be about leaving the country. You don’t even have to move from the couch! Some of my favorite adventures around the world have begun and ended in Bollywood films and world music and dance.

I don’t have to see the world to appreciate it!

But it would still be nice to combine what I need to do (make money) with things I really want to do (writing and travel). Who doesn’t want to earn a living doing what they love!

And that’s why I’ll be at the WIT Summit this weekend, making friends, taking names (and lots of notes) and learning how to make a career out of this weird freelance media-writer-radio-blogger mish-mash I’ve got going on.

And don’t worry! I will be documenting the whole thing for you all to enjoy.

With any luck I will even have my brand-new camera to help me out.

Check out the amazing WITSummit schedule here!