At first we were doubtful, was Semarang the right city for the third #travelnblog travel blogging workshop? Because according to our monitoring, bloggers in Semarang — and most bloggers in Indonesia — have lost their passion for writing ink on blogs compared to a few years ago. Most of them turn to social media platforms such as Twitter and their friends.
In fact, after we held this workshop last March 28-29, the city of Semarang became the most enthusiastic city to welcome this event! Maybe the theme of our blogging workshop with the theme of ‘travel’ is currently on the rise among young people. This may also be the reason why blogging — especially travel blogging — is becoming more and more popular.
As usual, we only provide 30 participant slots to optimize the workshop. Because it’s not a seminar, that’s why we limit the number of participants. But it turns out that almost 100 people signed up! It’s hard to refuse requests from friends who want to also join the workshop, but what can we do for now, we can only afford that much.
We managed to land in Semarang by plane. To be honest, because of our mediocre budget, we almost used economic train transportation. However, because time was tight and we also had other obligations that we couldn’t leave behind, we couldn’t help but look for airline tickets. Of course it must be at the lowest price. Luckily, there are sites like Ezytravel that can find the cheapest plane prices AND guarantee the lowest prices on their website. If we find a cheaper price, just report it and we will be given a flight ticket voucher! Just try to look for cheap flight ticket prices on Ezytravel if you don’t believe me, hihi.
Even when you arrive in Semarang, you still get a special rate and you can check in early and check out late from Ibis budget. Hamdallah!
We are also very grateful to the Central Java Tourism Office for supporting our event by providing a place for the #travelnblog workshop (plus lunch too hihi!). The location of the workshop is at the Tourism Information Center (TIC) Semarang which is on Jalan Pemuda, right in front of the Semarang DPRD building. In this place we can find information about any interesting destinations and attractions around Semarang and Central Java. Seen some foreign tourists who ask for information there during the workshop on Saturday.
The material formation is more or less the same as #travelnblog Jakarta and Bandung, with only a few changes. These are the topics covered on the first day.
- Mas @AryMozta provides material about the basic concepts of blog visual design, what’s worked and what’s not. Mas Ary, who was referred to by one of the participants as the middle-eastern-bue who strayed-in-the-market-kauman emphasized that if the content is the king, the website is the kingdom.
- Mz @arievrahman still share about good writing. Not just writing, but telling stories through writing. Mz ariev with his witty but jaunty jokes always says that express writing in detail what we feel. And don’t forget to be happy. Even if your boyfriend is far away.
- Keep on @ipadguides chattering about casual photos. What can I do or just a grain of dust.
- Then there were mb @FirstaDYI and mb @lucianancy who discussed blog management and social media. From the problem of focusing on a theme, traffic, SEO, to discussing how to tweet so that more people retweet even though you are not a celebrity.
After a tiring day of material, we took a walk around Lawang Sewu, which is now beautiful and neatly arranged. At least compared to when I visited this place five years ago. That’s great!
More exciting second day!
The first #travelnblog in Jakarta doesn’t have a second day, the second #travelnblog in Bandung has a live photo contest on Car Free Day, #travelnblog 3 Semarang is much more interesting: Tour the old city of Semarang by double decker bus ‘Semar Jawi’ and then immediately proceed with live blog contest which was announced the same day!
It was my first time to the old city of Semarang and when I was there it felt like I was in Europe! Maybe because the location is quieter and more organized than the old city of Jakarta. To take participants back to the TIC for live blogging, participants are assisted by bluebird taxis which are always ready to be called using an application on their smartphone. When I tried it for the first time in the old city, the taxi came less than 5 minutes after one of the participants ordered via the application!
For us organizers, because we need to bring a lot of people and goods at once, we use the services of Golden Bird. This golden bird is a ‘charter’ version of the blue bird with a much larger car size. We spent two days circling in Semarang using this Golden Bird, we are very satisfied with the service. We can even order through the official website. So after we get to the airport, all we have to do is find the person who brought our name sign. Don’t have to wait in line.
In the morning the participants with happy faces appeared in the front garden of the Blendug church. Likewise, I was very curious to get on the bus one of the telecommunication companies donated. This bus is multi-storey, and without a roof. First ride, the fun is incredible. Five minutes after that, the fans started. As soon as the sun started to rise, I screamed in the heat! Seriously, the heat of Semarang is not very relaxing! However, traveling with Semar Jawi was really fun, especially with new friends.
After that, it was time for the live blog competition. The theme was about Semar Jawi, which the participants had just climbed. To my surprise, the participants were blogging very seriously! The atmosphere is quiet but very competitive. One by one the post links appeared on our timeline. From detailed stories of how to get there, love stories, to terrible experiences in the old city. Thank you also to Smartfren who has provided a modem + loud signal for the participants to update their respective blogs.
While waiting for us to choose the winner, @viraindohoy and @fahmianhar were guided by MC @FirstaDYI to give a talk show about the role of local bloggers in the advancement of their own regional tourism.
For every #travelnblog event, what the committee has in mind is: “I’d rather be a participant!” Ahahaha… Starting from goodie bags in the form of guidebooks, key chains and magnets from Visit Central Java, special blocknotes from Gagas Media, 2 magazines from Getaway Magazine and getting luggage tag + tin can from Urban Icon. There are also many small prizes between the workshops, such as bluebird taxi vouchers, magazine subscription vouchers, and cool books from Gagasmedia! Oh yes, in this workshop we issued certificates for the participants! ((( CERTIFICATE )))
And here are the winners of the live blogging on the spot!
- Albert Ghana Pratama – http://lostinparadise.web.id/post/114908382256/jelajah-semarang-sehari-dengan-semarjawi
- Rifqy Faiza Rahman – http://papanpelangi.co/2015/03/29/kota-lama-about-geliat-pagi-dan-semar-jawi/
- Slamet Riyadi – http://www.slamsr.com/2015/03/semarjawi-bus-wisata-semarang.html
- Indri Juwono – http://tindaktandukarsitek.com/2015/03/29/semarang-dalam-cepat-semarjawi/
- Alifia Afflatus – http://www.afflatuzz.blogspot.com/2015/03/traverse-in-kota-lama-with-semarjawi.html
We also don’t forget to thank the ministry of tourism and Wego Indonesia for helping to organize this #travelnblog event in Semarang. Where do you think the next #travelnblog will be? Do we need to visit your city? Let me know in the comments!
See you again!
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