Instagram Tips and Highlights from Polkadot Passport

This was on of the talks I enjoyed in Traverse 17 conference in London. 

HOW TO GAIN FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM WITHOUT LOSING YOURSELF
Speaker: Nicola Easterby

Nicola aka polka dot passport is a brilliant blogger and instagramer and she shared some of her tips with us after three years growing her audience on instagram: 

How to post on Instagram

• Only post high quality relevant photos

• Photo orientation should be portraits or square. They take more of the screen, which leads to better engagement 

• Hashtag photos. Also, find official hashtags and tag for feature accounts. 

• Post at peak times 

Tips for better photos on Instagram

• Content is key! 
• Shooting during golden hour 
• Finding unique perspectives 
• Adding a subject to your photos 
• Having both a foreground and a background 
• Capture a sense of movement 

Making money on Instagram

• Sponsored post- promote something for a brand 
• Disclosing with a hashtag 
• Creating product into your feed to tell a story that relates to your audience
• Gifting / Contra exchange - only good when starting but after 10k you should get paid! 
• Instal takeovers for brand accounts 
• Long term ambassador roles
• Hustle hard when you are starting. You can pitch to you dream brands 
• DM brands asking for the PR contacts 
• Find platforms to get noticed and to find work opportunities
  Example: tribe group for influencers. 

Let's getting gramming!
You can find me on instagram on Designer Esra! 

Over to you: do you have any useful tips and highlights for instagram that have worked for you? 

Instagram shadowban and how to get around it

Last week, I was very disheartened after I read all about the Instagram "Shadowban", especially that I have been experiencing a major engagement drop. My followers numbers have not changed in a whole year and my photos are only getting 100-200 likes from the same exact people (who I really appreciate btw!). I knew something was seriously wrong with instagram. I thought that was their way to push me to pay for adverts to "promote" my account. It turns out it was not only that, I have been shadow banned too! Let me tell you some more.  

Update: apparently this all was a hashtag "glitch" and it's been fixed by Instagram. Will keep monitoring my accounts to see. 

What does an instagram shadowban mean?

Basically an Instagram Shadowban means your account cannot be found using the hashtags you inserted to anyone else other than your current followers because you have used a broken or a banned hashtag. 

The whole system of Instagram relies heavily on hashtags because they are the "search words" people put to find accounts that relate to them. 

 

How Do You Know If You Have Been ShadowBanned?

• I feel like it was clear to me before I even read anything about this. I have been on instagram since their first year in 2010, so I know how things worked normally before Facebook took over and ruined it. 
• You can get tested in this new website: http://shadowban.azurewebsites.net/
  Their Tag line: Worried about the Instagram Shadowban? 
  You're not alone! ~4,500 people are taking the test every hour since launch (Apr 14, 2017)
  I have been checking each post after posting to see what's happening. 
• If you have used any of those spammy services to buy followers and what not. 

Six Tips to get around the Instagram shadow ban

The main cause for this are hashtags. I think that is their way to keep the Instagram community free from spammers, but they really need to work harder to fix this because it is causing problems to everyone. As a blogger this a major disadvantage to me, but nothing I can do to change the algorithms. In the past week I have been following these tips and I feel like they helped slightly.  

1. Delete Hashtags
   This is the most upsetting thing, but it has to be done. I am still trying to figure out which hashtags are triggering this on instagram ban, but till I do, I am being very cautious with my use. 
2. Use two words hashtags
   I think specific hashtags are key here. Avoid all the one word generic tags like #travel #Friday #Fashion. Instead use #TravelStory #FridayThoughts #ModestFashion or something of that sort. 
3. Switch the hashtags up
   You get blocked if you use the same hashtags all the time, so use different ones every two days or something to better your chances. 
4. Add your "Location"
   If hashtags are refusing to cooperate, then use your location and hope to be found that way. 
5. Engage Even More
   Instead of adding my beloved 30 hashtags, I have been searching the hashtags that I would have used. Then I like and comment photos on there.  
6. Avoid Spammy Behaviours
   Above I told you to engage, but don't spend the day just hitting like or commenting with the same thing because that might get you banned to. 

Disclaimer: I am not an Instagram expert, but I run three accounts on there and I have been on it for the past seven years.  

Banned post on instagram because of all the one word hashtags 

Safe post on instagram after deleting the hashtags. 

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More Useful Readings on Instagram shadowban: 

• Read: What's an Instagram Shadowban and have you been impacted?
• How to Avoid Instagram Shadowban: 4 Crucial Tricks
• Don’t Even Try Using These Banned Instagram Hashtags

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Over to you: Do you feel like you have been affected by all of this? Do you have any other tips to get around the ban?

Santorini Hijab Friendly Look book

Santorini is such a gorgeous Island. It is also the perfect backdrop to photos. I think I got the most Instgram likes on the outfit photos from Santorini. Here's what I wore the beginning of April. It was actually colder than expected (10-17 C), so I didn't feel warm with any of my outfits. They are more suited for the summer. Hope you get some inspiration! Ps. All was packed in carry on! :D 

First Hijab Friendly Island look: 

Top: Basic light jeans jacket from H&M

Neck Scarf: Primark 

Skirt: Next. I added the black panel at the bottom to make it Maxi

Shop the look: 

Second Hijab Friendly Island look: 

Top underneath: Basic light jeans jacket from H&M

Sunglasses: ASOS

Dress: ASOS

Shop the look: 

Third Hijab Friendly Island look: 

Dress: ASOS

Shop The Look

Fourth Hijab Friendly Island look:

Top: H&M

Jeans: American Eagle

Shoes: Clarks  

Shop The Look

Fifth Hijab Friendly Island look:

Dress: American Eagle

Shop The Look

Sixth Hijab Friendly Island look:

Dress: Inayah

Shop The Look

By the way, You can pin these looks to your Pinterest board! 

More Posts from Greece: 

Travel Inspiration for your gram

How Can You Afford Living in London?

This is the million dollar question that I get at least once a week or whenever I meet new people. Let me start by saying when I say I live in London, I am no where near Big Ben, London Eye, Harrods or anything in Central London really. I live an hour away and that's still considered London. This city is expensive no doubt, but here is how I can afford living in London

• Being a Full Time Student in London is GOLD

I think being a student in London gives you so many possibilities and DISCOUNTS! I have a discounted Oyster card, which means I pay 125GBP a month for a travel card from zone 1 to 4 and that includes all forms of transportation in London (Bus, DLR, Tube, Trains and the Overground). I also get a student train card (Rail Card) to travel in the UK  for a significantly cheaper prices. Plus, I get 10% off in most stores with MyUniDays or you can get the NUS card. 

As a full time student, you don't pay council tax too, which makes rent cheaper as well. 

• Give up Central London for Zone three or four

As I said in the introduction, I don't live in Central London. I live between zone three and four, which happens to be on the other side of the River Thames that you probably would not have visited. It basically takes me an HOUR to get ANYWHERE. That's a sacrifice you have to make if you want to stay in an affordable place that is slightly bigger than a shoe box. With my discounted Oyster card mentioned above, it makes sense to live further.

• Meal Planning and Home Cooked Meals is a great method to SAVE MONEY!! 

This saves so much you have no idea! Those supermarket sandwiches and crisps you buy at lunch for 3-5 pounds add up and become crazy! Think of this: A whole loaf of bread is 80p and humous is 1 pound and a bag of spinach for another 1 pound you can even treat yourself with 6 small bags of crisps for 2 pounds max. There you just made 5 lunches for 5 days for the cost of one! You see what I mean. Another thing, plan your meals before you get groceries, so you don't waste. Each meal I cook has two portions, so I have it for two dinners. Try a few vegan meals a week and that saves loads if you are using one type of vegetable, a can of chopped tomatoes and rice that's like 3 pounds for a filling meal. You can get very creative here and there are like a bazillion pages on instagram and pintrest to help you with that!    

• Meet Your Friends At Art Galleries or do other free activities

The wonderful thing about is London is the amount of free activities! (Read: How to find cool events and things to do in London). Big museums and art galleries are my default meeting point now. It gives you something to do and it is a fun. If the weather is good, you can also go to parks for picnics and catch ups. 

• Only Go out to Cafes    

I am a social butterfly and I love hanging out with my London pals. As a Muslim, we can't meet at Pubs, so I used to meet my friends for restaurant meals (Read: My Ultimate Favourite Food Guide in London). That started costing me so much!! Now, I try to meet at cafes in the afternoon for tea or a just desserts. We sometimes only get tap water and stay there for two hours or more. Even buying a cup of tea or coffee is much more affordable than a main course.

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Over to you:

How Can You Afford Living in London? Are there any other things you are doing I haven't mentioned above? Please Share your thoughts in the comments below! 

More Posts from London: 

Travel Inspiration for your gram

The Vlogging Camera I swear by (Review for Canon G 7X) + Travel Camera Recommendations

When I decided to get on Youtube, I decided to get a more portable camera other than my profession (but heavy!!) Nikon D7100. I looked around and basically read every possible review. Until I found Canon G7X. I was a little worried because it was almost 500GBP, but after using it for a year, I can highly recommend it! About 95% of my videos are all filmed with this camera, so take a look at my YouTube channel Arabian Wanderess to see the video quality if you need more video examples. 

Click here to buy*

Six things I personally love about Canon G7X

• One. The Flip Screen!!
  Omg this is so essential when I am vlogging you have no idea! I can see how I look and exactly what I am filming.
• Two. The Weight!!
  It's such a light and portable camera. It fits the smallest purses I have. I don't even feel like I am carrying it. 
• Three. The Wifi function!!
  I haven't taken any photos on my phone in AGES! The quality of Iphone photos just do not compare to the photos I take with this camera. The wifi function makes it so easy to transfer the photos from the camera to the phone using the Canon app. It takes me less than a minute to connect, upload and share on social media! My camera instagram photos are getting lots of love! You can give them some love too! 

• Four. The low light performance (Night filming)
  This is another great thing! My biggest worry was if this camera would still preform well. It does work nicely at night for the most part. I had to fix the yellow saturation of some videos on Premier Pro, but it's quiet good. It's good for photos as well. Take a look at my London after Midnight Photos. All were taken with this camera. I think it's quiet powerful. Unfortunately, this camera can't seem to take stunning photos of the moon or stars, but that's another story. For a compact camera, it's mind blowing!     

• Five. The baby tripods! (Great to take photos when you are travelling solo!)
  This is very helpful! When I am travelling light and for a short time, I only pack one of these Joby tripod with me. They are versatile and can bend and etc. When I was travelling in Sri Lanka, I took my solo dreamy beach photos (like the one below) by using the Joby tripod and the Remote Live View Shooting function (accessible in the free Canon phone app). 

Buy this tripod 

Buy this tripod

• Six. Remote Live View Shooting Function (For Quick Stop Motion Films)
  As I just mentioned in the previous point the Remote Live View Shooting, which is accessible through the Free Canon phone app is a life saver for taking travel photos if you are travelling solo OR for stop motion films! 
  ** Check the video below and forward to 2:54 to see the stop motion I included using this camera and the Remote Live View Shooting. 

Extra Tip: I bought two extra batteries from Amazon, so I stay longer on the road without worrying about the battery life! 

Another Tip: I got the wind muffler to get better quality sound. 

Also another thing you might want: a camera protective case! I got my poor camera scratched so many times until I got a case! Like a whole year later. 

Buy this Extra Battery for Cannon G7X

Buy this wind muffler via Amazon

camera protective case

Cheaper Travel Camera Recommendation

By the way, if you are looking for a cheaper alternative to the Canon G7x reviewed above and you don't really care for vlogging or flip screens and you want a light, reliable, good quality camera with the phone app then the Canon Powershot SX610 is going to be a great option for you. I bought it for my sister as a birthday present and she loves it. The quality of her photos are so much better than a phone camera. 

Note: if you are considering buying any of these practical and reliable travel bags, please consider getting them through the links provided in on this page. That will give us a little commission with no extra cost to you. These little commissions help this blog grow and continue. Thank you for your support.  

More Posts that you might enjoy: 

- Practical and Reliable Duffle and Tote Travel bags for your solo travels

- Eight reasons every Muslim woman should travel solo at least once

- How to take pictures of yourself when travelling solo

Over to you: What camera are you taking with you on holidays? and which one would you love to buy? 

Graffiti Photos in Athens, Greece

When I went to Athens in March 2017, I noticed the abundance of graffiti especially as I was hiking up to Acropolis and shopping around the old town and Plaka. I don't know much about the artists, but I enjoyed spotting their pieces like the ones pictured below. If you know the artists' names please leave them in the comments!

Fisher man Graffiti

What's next? Graffiti

Where is my mind? Graffiti

Bookshelf/ Reading Graffiti

Floating Heads Graffiti

Graffiti Letters

Calligraphy Graffiti

Searching My Inner Peace Graffiti 

More posts from Greece: 

Travel Inspiration for your gram

Weekend itinerary to Athens, Greece

Reading about Athens didn't excite me, but I needed to be in Santorini for a hen do and the tickets via Athens were significantly cheaper. I knew I would enjoy the history so I decided it might be nice to check Athens out. I can tell you in confidence that it was much more than just nice. I only had two nights there. I wanted to see the main sights, but at a leisurely base. I really enjoyed what I got to see and do. My favourite was speaking to the locals and hearing their stories. It is really worth visiting! Here are eight things I loved doing to get you started when you visit! 

Note on Transportation: You can get the day pass for €4.50 and that allows you to use the buses, trolleys and metros. It's cheap, but be prepared for the very crowded carriages. I felt like a sardine in a tin.

Tips for Muslim Travellers in Athens: 

Hijab: I wore my turban with a light scarf around my neck. I didn't get any uncomfortable looks or strange treatments. People were very kind and chatty. I made about four friends in two days. I also wasn't the only hijabi. There were few Arab tourists and residents who wore the hijab too.

Halal: I haven't looked into this because I was only there for two days and I ate in the same vegan/vegetarian restaurant mentioned above! 

Trip Budget for two days including flight (RyanAir) + hotel + food: 150GBP

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Weekend itinerary to Athens

1- Hike up to Mighty Acropolis

This was my main reason to visit Athens. I know it's the most touristy bit, but it was fantastic and much better than I thought. Finding the entrance was a little tricky but with the help of google maps, the signs and the locals I found it. Students enter for free (with a student card) and I loved that. I spent about two hours and a half there. I started with the main monuments then down to the theatre and the South slope, which took me right to the North slope. Everything is marked and there are posters near each main part with relevant information. When I went midday, it was heaving with people and the March sun was getting hot, but there was shade and lots of breeze.

Tip: bring water with you. There is a drinking water fountain there as well so you can top up.

There are tour options to see Athens Acropolis either in the morning or the evening that look good as well if you need a tour.

Plaka, Heading to Acropolis

Plaka, Heading to Acropolis

Acropolis of Athens

THE PROPYLAIA

THE ERECHTHEION

2- Visit the Olympic park

Another monument worth visiting is the Temple of Olympian Zeus. It's just at the bottom of the hill. I took the photo below from Acropolis because I spotted it from there. I got closer after hours to get better photos from the fence after the visitors left. It's a lovely walk and it's very close to the Museum. 

TEMPLE OF OLYMPIAN ZEUS STILI OLIMPIOU DIOS

3- Shop around the old town

The picture below does not show you how crowded the area is because I took it at midday, but old town and specifically Plaka are extremely crowded, full of tourists and you have to be very careful from pickpocket -ers. It is not the cheapest area to shop, but there are a few nice places to see.  

4- Spot the cool graffiti  

Walking around Athens, I couldn't help noticing lots of creative graffiti. I am not sure who the artists are, but just looking around at them was fun. 

5- Roam the town with a local!

This is an initiative by the tourism board. I read about it in a blog and it sounded interesting. I signed up via the official website, "This Is My Athens". I was paired up with my awesome local, Magi. I wasn't sure what to expect. We met up in the evening right after I landed and dropped my luggage. It was really fun! I loved hanging out with someone from the area, who knew the history and the cool hidden spots I didn't read about in the guide books. 

6- Try some phenomenal Vegan/ Vegetrian food

Magi, from the pic above, took me to Avocado, an amazing vegetarian restaurant. This is not totally Greek, but I would go there again if I am ever back in Athens. Their recipes are inventive and delicious. Portions are massive, so one order is more than enough! 

7- Watch the change of the guard

This was not even planned, but I passed by the parliament and saw a crowed so I joined in! It was fun for ten minutes, but it gets a little long after that. If you are in the area check it, but I wouldn't make it a priority. 

8- Chill at a cafe in the afternoon and friend the table next to you!

True story. After my epic walk/hike up and down Acropolis and the historic centre of Plaka, I needed to sit down with a good cup of tea. Luckily, there is a cafe culture in Greece. The weather was just right so I sat outside for two hours and got chatting to the table next to me until it started getting dark. 

Watch the Athens Video! 

Over to you: Have you been to Athens before? What were your favourite things that you did there!

More Posts from Greece: 

Romania Five-Day Trip Itinerary

I had a Romanian student in a class I taught last Fall. She told me how beautiful Romania was. I didn't need that big of a push. I already wanted to explore more of Eastern Europe especially after my two fantastic trips to Croatia and Bosnia. A quick check of Ryanair flights yield the result of the £4.99 flight to Bucharest, Romania's capital. I wasn't sure if I would actually go, but I was tempted by the super cheap tickets. In December, B. and I booked our tickets for February. We ended up paying £12.99 one way because we waited too long to book. The return was the same, but w chose a convenient time for £34.99. It was still under £50 each for a return. 

Photo of the river in Bucharest 

We booked our accommodations on Airbnb for 20-40 pounds a night, which was affordable and we got our own studio, so we saved up by making light breakfasts!

The Bike Studio in Brasov Romania

Romania Trip Itinerary

Bucharest (2 nights) > Brasov (2 nights) + bus ride to Bran for Dracula's castle

> train stop in Sinaia on the way back to Bucharest (1night)

Total cost of trip for six days including flights, trains, accommodation and food £300/each for two people.

Photo in the park in Bucharest 

All the teas I had there were herbal! 

Massive tip for Romania: pack your black tea (English breakfast + Earl Grey) with you. They don't sell caffeinated tea there only herbal.

Note on breakfast: It's just not a thing! We walked for an hour before we found an egg breakfast. There were some pastries, so we made our own breakfast the rest of the days.

Details of my time in Bucharest can be found here.

Details of my time in Brasov can be found here. 

Tips for Muslim Travellers going to Romania: 

Halal food: There were a few places around the old town of Bucharest that serve halal food like Sindibad. The halal choices were Indian, Turkish and Arabic food. So, I just skipped the, all together and had fish and vegetarian dishes.

Hijab: I was wearing the turban style and I felt comfortable walking around. Everyone was very polite and welcoming.

Mosques: There are three mosques in Bucharest, but i haven't visited any because they were out of my way. It was easier to go back to the hotel. 

Photo from the old town in Brasov 

Watch my Romania vlogs!

More Posts from Romania: 

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