Nicole from ‘Stepping Out’ is a freelance blogger and TV Host who also travels and documents her trips through a blog, videos, and photography. She also does restaurant reviews because of her love of the food culture around the world.
Having always had a passion for travel, as well as meeting people, learning about new cultures, and enjoying her life, this was the reason for setting up her blog.
“and just having fun in the process”.
From the time she was small, Nicole would always look up in the sky and see the planes flying over and wonder where they were destined.
“My family had instilled in myself and my siblings a great love for travel by encouraging us to read travel books and also watch travel shows on television. I am happiest when I am travelling to a new place”
'Nicole Stepping Out ' is her way of sharing experiences with the world. She has been fortunate to have had the opportunity to travel around the world and meet so many people from different cultures.
“My purpose is to share my own perspective, experiences and to educate people of all ages on what I have experienced and hopefully inspire more people to travel”
Nicole moved back to her home country for the COVID lockdown, South Africa from Dubai, to be with her family. She is currently working on her blog and social media accounts and is busy studying Spanish as well as the TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language ) course.
“Spanish is the second most commonly spoken native language in the world and I would also like to teach English overseas”.
As Nicole like all of us cannot travel because of the travel restrictions she is having to rely on her past travels and experiences to draw material from.
“I have, however, utilised the time enormously to work on my social media platforms and grow them”.
Nicole’s thoughts are that international and local travel will change with a focus on more precautionary measures to prevent the spread of, not only the coronavirus but any communicable diseases. This would possibly include, amongst others, more online interactions, medical checks and declarations and the use of preventative equipment like masks may become mandatory.
When it comes to Ecotourism Nicole believes it is great that there is a shift towards more responsible tourism, to preserve natural environments and reduce the detrimental effects of climate change, however, she thinks more could be done.
“We need more awareness on how we can contribute positively to minimize environmental impacts as well as creating more focus on the preservation of indigenous cultures”.
Nicole herself practices this by respecting each place she visits by learning about the local culture, the natural environment and recycling and disposing of garbage and trying to support local businesses, besides other measures.
“I plan on showing my support by visiting more eco-friendly tourist destinations in the future”.
For 13 years Nicole was based in Dubai. This was a unique experience as the UAE is such a mix of cultures from all over the world and she was fortunate to meet people from many countries. She also travelled to more than 30 countries in her time there and feels “truly blessed” to have had this opportunity.
“Dubai is quite expensive to live in however if you are prudent financially you can manage. Many ex-pats adjust by renting out rooms which are on the outskirts of the city as well as shopping at cheaper supermarket outlets. On the positive side, travel was very easy being based in
Dubai, as it is close to many other countries so, for the most part, the flights are cheaper and not too long”.
Nicole’s advice to others is to be very flexible and try to be more innovative especially considering the current situation.
“You can do anything you put your mind to and always stay positive. Everything happens for a reason!”
“All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney. This is a motto she lives by and it has worked.
When it comes to travelling again in the future Nicole loves Europe especially Germany and Italy for the history, culture, food and architecture.
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