I just got back from my honeymoon in Bali and learned a serious life lesson about “real” life along the way. (Yes, this does have to do with “why Instagram is ruining our body image”, I promise!)
All of my research prior to our trip showed nothing but gorgeous white-sand beaches, turquoise water, serene coastline and other images of picture perfect paradise.
Things like this:
I mean, c’mon….this looks like a picture-perfect paradise if I’ve ever seen one!
In reality, while Bali does have some beautiful beaches and gorgeous spots, there’s also another side to Bali.
A Bali that’s very poor, where villages are polluted with garage, beaches are severely littered with plastic bags and bottles, and streets are noisy, chaotic, and choked with exhaust.
Here are some photos we took:
A woman prepping her daily offerings to the Gods:
A trash pile right beside a temple, where locals deposit their waste:
Double Six Beach in southwest Bali
Now, I don’t want to discount our experience. We had an amazing time, stayed at incredible villas, got to experience to-die-for food, and had adventures we’ll remember forever. And we also got some awesome pics!
It’s just to say that THIS is what got me thinking about Instagram.
We saw so many tour packages with the advertisement:
*photo credit to hsh-stay.com
Guides would take you to the “insta-perfect” spots so you could capture them and post on Instagram. Say whaaaat?! (I had no idea this was a thing! Am I behind the times?!)
I then began thinking about how much of our world is filtered.
How many images do we see each day on social media that aren’t “real”? Photos that project an image of perfection because it’s just one moment in time?
Answer: A LOT!
I’ve been avoiding Instagram like the plague because I didn’t want to surround myself with perfect moments in people’s “perfect” lives. (I have enough issues as a recovering perfectionist and didn’t want to make it any more difficult for myself!)
Social media can be amazing and it can also make you feel like crap: comparing your body to hers, second guessing your own happiness, feeling like you aren’t enough, etc.
But then I saw an opportunity…
What if I posted photos and then showed the “real life/behind the scenes” of the photo?
I kept thinking about it and got more excited.
What if I used my Instagram account to make sure the world knows that behind every “perfect” pic is an imperfect story?
It sounded like fun to me! (And truly, it’s the first time I’ve been excited about Instagram, which is saying a lot for me 🙂 ).
(I actually don’t know how to send a link to follow me, but if you want to join me in the journey, follow me @jenn__hand!)
So, here’s the lesson in my Bali trip:
At first we were disappointed that our expectations of paradise were very different than what we experienced.
But then we realized that “real life” is always different than snapping a photo of an experience. Real life may have the bumps and difficulties and warts, but ultimately, it’s real and authentic. And it’s the imperfectness of life that feels, well..REAL.
So, join me in my Instagram journey (@jenn__hand) or use your own account as a way to show YOUR imperfect life. After all, doesn’t the world need less perfection and more… just being real?
What a great idea! You are so right, Jenn. I remember going to Jamaica a while ago. I too, was shocked by the poverty, the tin shacks that the average person had to live in, that most of the people working in the hotel had one or two more jobs to make ends meet. So yes, there is always another side to life. I love how you are expanding your comfort zone to include this. Sorry, I won’t be joining you on Instagram, I have enough to do with Twitter, LinkedIn and FB!
Wishing you every success,
Thanks, Cheron! I get the social media overwhelm-it’s a real thing 😉 I don’t use twitter or LinkedIn much, so figured I better make my way over into the Instagram world 🙂
Hi Jenn, I’ve also just returned from Bali (and Lombok), and I completely agree with so many of your observations. I, like you, did have a great time – but I was amused and saddened by the “photo opportunities” (for anyone who doesn’t know, those famous Balinese swings are usually by a main road and cost you 100,000 Rupiah for the pleasure, as well as the “plastic heartbreak” which is something very close to my heard. So many of my group spent too much time worrying about their “Insta” shots than experiencing the beauty (plastic heartbreak aside) and culture of the islands. If onyl we all spent as much time worrying about the planet as we do what others think of us in an entirely virtual world perhaps we wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in.
I do use Instagram, but to document the places I’ve been and aside for a recent “w4nky Instagram shot I posted tongue in cheek” but own body is something which rarely features. I’ll be sure to follow you Jenn, keep up the good work of keeping us all sane.
Much love, Rowena (@rowena.bellamy if you’re curious haha!).
I can’t believe you were just in Bali! We missed each other by a few weeks 🙂 I’d be curious to what you thought of Lombok, as I heard it’s like Bali but much less developed/fewer tourists. I do wish we all spent more time caring about our real world instead of what we look like virtually. It’s something I have to continue to be mindful of and keep myself in check!