Last year saw a bigger and much brighter happening for Best Life Qatar. What started as a personal blog in 2016 has steadily become one of the most trusted references by expat families for restaurant and hotel information. Since the blog objective is to inform the readers on the ongoing promotions and events around town, it also encourages everyone to enjoy their life in Qatar, thus the hashtag: #LiveYourBestLife.
Amidst the ongoing regional blockade which limits mobility of many expats in Qatar, a wide array of activities and information about new store openings helped in ensuring that life goes on and people’s spirit are not dampened by the regional crises.
January
Our first blogpost about 18 Cities to Visit in 2018 paved the way to my first travel invitation to Azerbaijan. However, prior to this flight, I had an invitation from two hotels who also gave me regular invitations all throughout the year.
February
My first staycation invitation for 2018 is at Premier Inn Hotel Qatar. On the same month, I also had my first foodie event at Warwick Hotel, an event which became part of Giro D’Italia series for their Carisma Restaurant.
March
We were invited for a staycation at the newly opened Time Rako Hotel located in Al Wakra.
April
In time for our wedding anniversary, we were blessed to have won a staycation package from Warwick Hotel which included a full board stay plus a relaxing massage session for couple.
May
During the holy month of Ramadan, we have received a host of invitations from many hotels for Iftar and Suhoor. This month was highlighted by the helipad Iftar hosted by Fraser Suites West Bay.
June
We rolled out a blog series entitled “Str-eats of Doha” to feature some areas known to have more interesting food establishments. It paved the way to discoveries of new restaurants like Brooks Café in Matar Qadeem (Part1), Poori and Karak and Al Bait Al Kuwaiti in Al Nasr (Part2), and Burger Hood and Naji Burger in Azizia (Part3).
July
Crowne Plaza Hotel Business Park invited us for a staycation in time for their summer promotion.
During that time, we also launched BLQ’s first ever Instagram-story based trivia game: KNOW YOUR CITY which later on became a contest platform for brands like Mcdonalds who usually partners with BLQ for their prizes including their very popular MCcoins launched during the 50th Anniversary of Big Mac on the same month.
August
We had a Day-cation at Fraser Suites West Bay to promote their DAY PASS which allowed their guests to use their facilities at the x floor including their Swimming Pool, Gym, Jacuzzi and Sauna, plus their kids play room and games area.
Best Life Qatar also organized the first ever Pinoy Content Creators Meet-up at Java U Al Sadd. The online registration was an instant hit with bloggers, vloggers and social media influencers all wanting to participate in the event.
September
As an offshoot to the successful Content Creators Meet-up, series of workshops were scheduled and the very first session was received with much fanfare, creating a buzz for having sold out in just an hour after opening the online registration! This prompted us to make a second session just to accommodate the clamor of more participants.
October
Also, since there were those who have not joined the first Pinoy Content Creators Meet-up, a second batch was held in the lovely Sky Lounge of Fraser Suites Westbay Doha. It was highlighted by a contest initiated by Fujifilm Qatar and a visit to the hotel’s helipad.
November
November somehow showed us the blueprint for the direction of BEST LIFE QATAR in the coming years – a lifestyle blog that doesn’t only focus on food and hotels but also on other areas like travel, personal care and more, which is still in the context of family. We were able to meet several brands and started working with them on their marketing campaigns.
Also, our staycation at Tivoli Souq Waqif Hotel with a day pass to Banana Island Resort was scheduled during Jasmine’s birthday and both places made special surprises for our little princess. Her endearing presence on our blogposts and Instagram photos as the trademark of our family blog was proven by the cakes prepared from Tivoli Hotel to Banana Island Resort.
December
The last month of 2018 wouldn’t let go without leaving a big mark. There were also a series of invitations for food tasting and media appreciation plus a second call to stay at Premier Inn Hotel Qatar for their Winter Family Staycation promotion.
We also tried to introduce another innovative Instagram story contest SHARE YOUR STORIES to gain more interaction with our friends and blog readers.
THANK YOU 2018
I was reminded by what my mom said to always be grateful to all the people who have helped me in my journey to life. And i couldn’t find a better way to say thank you to all the brands who have given me their trust, but through this. I may not be able to mention them individually, but I am very thankful to each and everyone of them.
May this also encourage new bloggers to always work passionately and with love showing genuine concern both to the brands and customers in presenting facts and actual experiences – that’s why I used more photos in all of my blogposts.
Building up reputation will really take some time and more work is needed in order to prove everyone that you are worth the trust and respect that they are giving. As competitive as it may seem, I tried to veer away from negativity and always encouraged unity and cooperation among content creators. As the saying goes, no man is an island… and as for me, I will always be grateful to that “first person” who invited me to an event which paved the way for me to get invited in more events afterwards. And if given every opportunity to be that “first person” to someone, I’d be more than happy. And i wont wait for any shoutout or appreciation for it was just an opportunity to pay-it-forward.
True that people can and may always put whatever you will post on social media in a bad light. But your confidence will always depend on your purpose (not on how grammatically correct you are or how you creatively use figures of speech). At the end of the day, your pure intentions will save you from guilt and will define who you are as a person.
My penultimate challenge, however, is thinking what if everybody becomes a blogger (lol)… and how I will still standout and be different from the rest? And that’s where the reminder to continuously learn and grow will come in. And since there’s no school for blogging, life will always present us with opportunities to become better and use it to fulfill the very purpose of our existence. Timely as it may seem, our hashtag for this new year is: #ShineYourBestLife
It’s 2019. Let’s do this!
