Sahana Kulur

Hello, I’m Sahana, founder and chief author of the travel blog Vacaywork. I’m the girl who loves to wander in every possible street of the world in hand-woven cotton sarees. This passion for handmade handicrafts, along with the love of traveling and writing, has taken me a long way to become a monthly contributor to Deccan Herald– India’s leading National newspaper.

My parents made the travel bug bite me when I was 5! Till date, my longest trip I have ever taken is for 27 days to North India when I was 6! I kind of remember seeing the Himalayas for the first time and crying in front of Taj Mahal for some lame earring – So before kicking off my international traveling in 2018, I have spent at least 2 weeks in 16 of 28 Indian states.

So, I am a vegetarian who eats eggs, loves to travel anywhere and everywhere – No bucket list, zero intention of filling my passport with stamps and adding “I visited these many numbers of countries” in my bio.

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Education and Profession

I am an architecture graduate with a Masters degree in Construction Project Management. I teach at an architectural college as Assistant Professor.

But I really had a thing for writing since a kid. My grandpa made me write a journal when we went to Kedarnath when I was 6 – You can call it my first-ever blogging!- That journal has why it was hard for me to find ice creams in Uttarakhand or how my grandpa was pranking with me all the time.

Then I wrote a story on a chewing gum “Big Babool” to a Kannada kids magazine “Balamangala”when I was 10- It won me a prize – My first Tetrics! So the writer in me kept coming out and sleeping.

I loved architectural journalism as an undergrad student. My favorite subject was, is, and will remain History of Architecture – So now you know why I love wandering in historical places. That is why my blog posts aren’t just “hey, see that, see this.” As an architect with a keen sense of observation, I connect dots well. My eidetic memory rings a bell when I see similarity – Like how I spotted similarities between Bijapur and Iran.

So, you can really trust me when I tell you historical stories. I am too good at digging deep into history and bring the rightful information – This makes me super eligible as a researcher – So, taking up Ph.D is in the pipeline.

I loved architectural journalism as an undergrad student. My favorite subject was, is, and will remain History of Architecture – So now you know why I love wandering in historical places. That is why my blog posts aren’t just “hey, see that, see this.” As an architect with a keen sense of observation, I connect dots well. My eidetic memory rings a bell when I see similarity – Like how I spotted similarities between Bijapur and Iran.

So, you can really trust me when I tell you historical stories. I am too good at digging deep into history and bring the rightful information – This makes me super eligible as a researcher – So, taking up Ph.D is in the pipeline.

My Contribution to Vacaywork

I write about almost everything – Places to visit, getting a visa, tips to travel on a budget, what to wear on vacation. But the favorite part of my writing is “letters to humans and sharing things about Homo Sapiens I met on the road.”

These stories are hard to be optimized for search engines and I don’t care– but they need to be told. Traveling is glamorized, not every person you meet or place you visit is awesome. People make a place beautiful – So writing stories of humans, is what I enjoy most.

What is My favourite part of travelling

Among the very few common interests between Ashrith and me, planning a trip is what we love! You won’t believe; we may not have money or holidays left to take a vacation, I keep planning the trip! It isn’t that I make day-to-day travel itinerary – But jot down places I want to visit and how many days! There is almost a list of about 15 countries and two states of India itinerary – I learn a lot while planning.
Then, of course, food – Finding veg food in a foreign land feels like winning a lottery at times.

Why do I like to travel?

I love to travel because it is the finest way to widen my horizon. Each trip I take makes me less judgmental. It isn’t that my first trip to Greece was a life-changer – I became a better person. It makes me feel good, lets me touch the stone I once studied as an architecture student. Teaching the younger generation about Ar Geoffrey Bawa after having visited many of his buildings in Sri Lanka brings some sense of satisfaction.

Recently, while I was reading the book ” The subtle art of not giving a f***” by Mark Manson I realised one more thing. He says

Happiness is found in solving problems, not avoiding them. True happiness occurs only when you find the problems you enjoy having and enjoy solving. Happiness is wanting the problems you have and wanting to solve them – Mark Manson

I realised – Travelling is like solving a problem. I land in Jordan for the first time without knowing Arabic – But I solve the problem of getting to Amman Citadel to enjoy the beauty. Not knowing Thai Language and with no clue on how to use Songathew, spending 15 days in Thailand made me super happy. Travelling is a problem where I find joy in resolving it.

Who do I travel with?

I travel with my witty, funny, the man I love most – husband Ashrith Shetty. We got married in 2018 after dating each other for about 9 years. But on every trip, I feel I am getting to know him better.

When you travel to an unknown place, you are surrounded by only strangers. Your travel companion is the only person whom you know. So, traveling with Ashrith makes our marriage more intimate, and it grows stronger.
Then my Mommy darling.

My parents are the ones who got me into traveling. They both have been traveling in India. But when mom was 55, it was her first-ever trip to a foreign land – Thailand for 15 days. Mom is super fun, chilled and believes that travelling makes her a better person. With only one rule – Dress up well!

Honestly, unless I wear a saree or a gown, I really don’t care how ugly my shorts or pants are. I even had forgotten to carry a comb to Japan. I didn’t buy one and finger combed my hair because buying a comb in Japan was expensive. But when with mom, these “Looking lazy” isn’t possible.

Would Sahana quit her job to travel the world?

Traveling is simpler than travel blogging. It goes beyond just writing “visit this, stay there.” I mean, you can write that, but who wants to read it? I aim to produce useful content that helps folks like us who wants to travel the world without quitting their job.

It’s not enough if I just become less judgmental; all of us in the world must. So, creating decent yet engaging content needs time and work. Plus, the technical stuff – If you are a self-taught person like me as a beginner, you will need more time.

This doesn’t mean I quit my job for travel writing or traveling. I love working as a teacher in an architecture college. Students keep me young. Their favorite anime location was part of my Japan trip itinerary.

Plus, I can never stay away from my parents for too long – “Swades” is the movie that inspired me the most. So I am not going to quit my job to become a full-time blogger or traveler.