Who are the people behind the home page? As travel bloggers we often have a real curiosity about our blogging buddies. Trying to get to know people through tweets filled with shortened URLs and hash tags leaves but a few letters available to actually convey thoughts. Blog comments offer a lot more room for socialization; still, typewritten words in a tiny box can only say so much. Meeting the people responsible for the posts, the tweets and the stumbles – this is one of the coolest rewards that travel blogging brings.
This Saturday night I was fortunate to be able to meet up with the humans behind the avatar when I got together in Darling Harbour in Sydney, Australia with Dina and Ryan, the husband and wife team behind VagabondQuest. Dina is the words and the primary force of the blog, and I’ve really liked chatting back and forth with her over the months. Her sole presence in the social media swirl has always left me wondering, though, does Ryan actually exist?
Ryan does exist! He just works all the time. We left Darling Harbour with the intent of returning to watch the nighttime action and headed to a downtown restaurant. Here, for the first time ever, I tried Korean food – chicken, salad and kimchi. My thoughts on the latter dish at present are still unformed. Our two-hour conversation caused us to apparently overstay our welcome, as the hostess filled our table seconds after we stood up. I then had to catch a train back to Gosford in time to get on the bus to Forresters Beach so I could complete the evening with a 15-minute uphill walk home, so unfortunately there was no time for more of Darling Harbour. Dina and Ryan were nice enough to walk me all the way down George Street to the train station, though. This was the best Saturday night I’ve had in a long time. Thank you, Dina and Ryan, for stepping out of the computer and into Darling Harbour!
How about you? Any tales of enjoyable travel blogger encounters? Do tell!
Thumbnail handshake photo by G-hat
Hello Sabina
We had so much fun last Saturday with you too!! It’s very nice indeed to know on a personal level the faces behind the avatars, and you are such a nice and kind person
Thanks for coming such a long distance to Sydney to have dinner with us.
Funny comment about Ryan does exist, haha… So now you have confirmed his existence, for others that wonder about the same thing
Hey, thanks for writing such a sweet post about our dinner!
Dina´s last [type] ..An awe-inspiring day trip from Barcelona- the Monastery of Montserrat
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Sabina Lohr Reply:
August 9th, 2010 at 20:19
I’ll never forget where and with whom I ate my first Korean dinner. It’s a long trip, but then again I’m used to long trips.
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Ahh, how fun and I was JUST in Sydney last week! I stayed in the Rocks really close to the harbour. What a fabulous city (even in crap weather)–I absolutely cannot wait to get back there for longer! Unfortunately, I only had a mere 48 hours (in rain, at that) to explore. But I’m ready and willing to pack my bags and move to Paddington!
Camels & Chocolate´s last [type] ..Borneo- Chasing Paradise
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Sabina Lohr Reply:
August 9th, 2010 at 20:17
Thank you! Sydney is a pretty cool city. Love the harbours.
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Dina Reply:
August 11th, 2010 at 12:25
Are you not in Sydney anymore? Maybe we can meet up
Dina´s last [type] ..A Taste of the Greek Islands- a Day in Santorini
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Good photo and smily faces makes my day!
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Sabina Lohr Reply:
August 9th, 2010 at 20:16
Awww, thank you, Mike!!
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Dina Reply:
August 11th, 2010 at 12:28
Sabina made us smile
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It’s easier than you’d think, right?! I’ll never hesitate to meet an Internet friend again!
Candice´s last [type] ..The Royal St John’s Regatta- and One Girl’s Quest for Hotdogs
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Sabina Lohr Reply:
August 10th, 2010 at 20:52
Yeah, it’s pretty cool, huh?
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Dina Reply:
August 11th, 2010 at 12:27
It was a blast, going out with Sabina! I’m sometimes a little bit too shy in arranging outing with someone I know from internet, but every single time I lost the chance, I regretted it.
Dina´s last [type] ..A Taste of the Greek Islands- a Day in Santorini
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I love meeting other travel bloggers. Or other online friends with whom I have something in common. The first travel blogger I met in person was JoAnna Haugen, who lives in Las Vegas. I was visiting there last September and asked if she wanted to meet up. It was terrific to be able to talk about travel and blogging and writing with someone who shared those passions in common with me.
Gray´s last [type] ..A Table for One at Thai 51
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Dina Reply:
August 11th, 2010 at 12:30
I agree with you, it’s really nice to talk with people that understand why we are doing what we do.
Dina´s last [type] ..A Taste of the Greek Islands- a Day in Santorini
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Sabina Lohr Reply:
August 13th, 2010 at 03:22
What Dina said.
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Yes, I do exist!
Ryan´s last [type] ..Traveling Game- 26 Cities A to Z Challenge
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Sabina Lohr Reply:
August 16th, 2010 at 15:45
Hahaha! Well, I know that now.
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