Sharing all things about pet-friendly travels and full-time work from home setup

Cathay Pacific's #lifewelltravelled Curated Photo Project Chose My Grand Mosque Sunset Photo


I am actually a late bloomer in Instagram so my followers there are just 500+ so far. I have long been wanting to have this one but this popular photo-sharing app used to be on iPhones only. It was just in recent years that they made a version of it on Android. But this didn't stop me to pursue gaining a presence especially now that I got too much travel photos here and there. 

I really have no idea at first how to gain followers on Instagram until  I learned about using related hashtags when posting pictures. This is when I slowly getting followers and I believe before this year ends I am positive I will reach a thousand plus which is my goal!




Yesterday, I was surprised to see a comment from Cathay Pacific Airways   official Instagram account, an international airlines appreciating one of the pictures I posted which is the Grand Mosque in Cotabato City where I took my travel assignment few months ago. I was actually reluctant to go there because it is getting darker and this place is known to be not safe of all the provinces in the Philippines. Plus the place where is this situated is remote that there is no public jeep that goes there. If not for the kindness of the husband and wife whom I stayed for a night, I wouldn't be able to see this and of course capture this photo. I will forever grateful to them. Imagine they even closed their store and have me rent them their jeep just to make sure that I am safe. I only paid Php150 or $4 for the overnight I stayed and they even let me join to eat breakfast, dinner and chatted the night away. 

Their room is very modest. It did not have any blanket and the bed has no foam. Good thing because I don't know why I forgot that I have my own blanket with me which usually I don't bring when I travel! It was made entirely of bamboo and wood. It only has one ceiling fan and mosquito net. I have to go out for a 2 minute walk for a currently renovated made of wood comfort room which has no door! I have to put a curtain in front of it to signify that there is one inside.

Aside from this modesty I experienced here,  what I liked about this house where I stayed is it is only in front of the airport. I can easily get there and never get late for my flight. Plus this is entirely surrounded by military forces because Cotabato City is not a safe place for some reasons.

I have not dedicated solely a blog post for Grand Mosque yet because this is just the only good photo I have taken since that time I lost my camera and smartphone from robbers. I only borrowed a very simple and cheap smartphone from my housemate. I didn't realize the outcome of the photo turned so good. Actually when I posted it on Facebook it gained 100 likes!

Now because I really want to gain more followers I started knowing other influential travel related brands of what hashtags they use. One of those that I frequently use is the #lifewelltravelled and #shareastory of Cathay Pacific on Instagram.  It is simply sharing your thoughts of your travel experiences. So I started posting my travel snapshots and never thought that they will appreciate it and is sending me a gift!

I am happy not just because of the gift but the fact that a travel brand has appreciated my efforts. I will let you know what it is when I get it :) So there you go start sharing your travel moments using curated hashtags of your favorite travel products and brands via social media to gain followers and presence.

This is actually an ongoing project  to encourage more to post their favorite travel pictures and not exactly a contest that has a duration. I honestly never thought that in return they will send a "special gift" to chosen ones. 

It is on Instagram I fill my thirst whenever I want to see gorgeous wanderlust photos and connect with travelers who have gorgeous stories and photos.  Cathay Pacific Airways on Instagram has 94k followers! My picture has not been reposted yet, how I wish! It will make me gain more followers. Anyway this is only a dream. 

To those who want to follow me on Instagram,  you may click here.  


2 comments

  1. Congratulations ! It is a good photo, and I hope that your well-deserved prize is a really good one. (round trip first class tickets to somewhere nice, maybe !)

    Maria's #1 Fan in London

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. O my God I hope so! haha roundtrip ticket :) Anyway whatever that is I will welcome. Yeah this inspired me to take photos more

      Delete