Famous blogger, Amarachi Ekekwe, sits down with Pulse to give us the scoop about her travel experiences, work and love life.
Recently back from a 3-month-trip to Egypt, famous travel blogger, Amarachi Ekekwe, sits down with Pulse to tell us more about her life in the travel space.
Amarachi Ekekwe is a Systems Engineer by day, an aspiring author and a travel blogger. She is the founder of Travel With A Pen, a blog where she shares her personal travel adventures as well as tips to help her audience travel cheaper and differently.
Amarachi talks to Pulse about her travel experiences, work and love life.
What have been some of the most interesting experiences you’ve had with travelling so far?
Couchsurfing. It was a really exciting experience for me and it just opened new avenues to explore budget travelling more. I've also had exciting experiences whilst travelling in Northern Africa, in Morocco and in Egypt. Meeting people and just getting to explore new cultures and traditions have been very exciting for me.
How do you manage to travel with a full-time job?
I try to find the perfect balance between the two. Most times, I try to organise my vacation time very close to a public holiday, so I get more time off by taking just a few days off work. For example, the two day public holidays are great because I can take five days off work and get like 11 days including the weekend so I try to balance work time and travel time.
Do you make money from travel blogging and how so?
So, the bulk of the money I make comes from my day job, but I do make a little money from travel blogging and this comes from reviewing things for people in the travel space and also talking about some of the products, and some of their services on my blog and on social media channels.
What catalyst do you think is needed for Nigeria to focus on tourism and why do you think it’s important they do so?
Tourism in a lot of countries is a huge source of income. So, it is very important for Nigeria to key into it. I think we are in a good space now because more Nigerians are looking to explore within, and we can harness this interest and grow our tourism businesses. I think the first thing we need to do is make sure our tourist sites accessible and there's enough information for people who want to visit these places. So, information and accessibility, and we also need to promote them. We need to sell Nigerian tourist sites to Nigerians and even, foreigners as well. It will help the country and serve as an additional source of revenue for the country.
What are some of your tips for dealing with fussy custom officials and rough borders?
So, we have a lot of that, especially in this region. One of the things I would typically advice is: You have to know your rights. You also have to be polite and courteous at all times, and you have to weigh the situation. Sometimes, you just need a little bit of persuasion and a friendly smile — a lot of customs officials actually react to that — and sometimes, you need to be able to stand your ground. You need to know when to be firm and when to be a little bit playful. Be respectful at times. It depends on the situation, you just need to be able to discern what technique to use with Customs officials.
Getting a little bit more personal: What is the dating life of a busy travel blogger like yourself like? What do you think about dating locals?
So, I think the dating life of a travel blogger isn't that much different from the dating life of anyone. It just depends on the kind of partner you have, if you have someone who's understanding of your passion, even if they don't typically like to travel, as far as they understand that it's your passion and they support it, then it's pretty much the same thing. You both have to be comfortable with — for example, if your partner doesn't like to travel — some time spent apart because you'll be travelling and they won't. Essentially, the same building blocks that apply to relationships outside the travel space are the same things that apply within. So, it's not that much different.
Dating locals in terms of the places you visit... I know some people are open to doing that, but it depends on the kind of person. If you get to a place and you connect with someone there, then if you're willing to explore, it's something you can do. But if you were dating someone in your home location then you might want to keep that relationship while you travel.
And... are you dating someone in your home location?
I am dating someone in a different location from me, who I met while travelling as well.
Where were you travelling when you met them?
I went to Benin Republic and that's where I met... this person.
You’ve been to 23 states in Nigeria alone. Which has held the best experience for you and which held the worst?
In terms of the best experience, the state that comes to mind is Adamawa state. I was posted to Adamawa for my NYSC program and I just experienced so much love and so much connection from that state. Because I'm not from the state and I would go to the market in my corps uniform and they refused to collect money from me.
I would go into buses and the drivers will refuse to collect money, even coming down to Lagos, I met a lot of bike riders from Adamawa state who applied the same principle. So, in terms of states I've visited, Adamawa tops the list. But I've also had good experiences in Cross River, Oyo, Kwara... there are just good experiences everywhere.
In terms of terrible experiences, I actually don't remember anything. I don't think I've ever had a terrible experience in any of the states, it's just been wonderful!
What country do you think has the best jollof rice?
Nigeria, of course!
What's a word or phrase you’ve learnt in another language?
"Je ne comprends pas!" which means I don't understand (in French). I feel like that's the safest phrase. When I'm travelling, the first things I learn are "I don't understand" and "Do you speak English?" in the language of the place I am visiting. Oh, and "Thank you!"
And do you have a default travel outfit, for if you're travelling by road or by plane?
I usually go with a gown, a very simple gown, and slippers or sandals I could easily take off and wear back on. I don't like shoes with strings, because if you're passing through border security, that's just a big hassle. I just like to avoid things I have to take off and put back on so as comfortable as the outfit gets, that's what I would go for.
Finally, where are you off to next?
I'm hoping to go to Namibia next but my travels are often spontaneous so, I could be off to Ivory Coast tomorrow. But I'm hoping to go to Namibia next.
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