Marcia DeSanctis on revisiting places, souvenirs, and travel as self-reinvention

“Travel imparts a liquid language whose sole property is the flow of questions.”  –Marcia DeSanctis

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Marcia talk about what it was like to work as a TV producer for Barbara Walters (1:30); how she made the decision to transition into prose writing, and how a sense of curiosity and abandon can inspire travel and travel writing (6:00); how we all change as travelers over the course of a lifetime (13:00); the way the things we bring home from our travels shape our memories of places (21:30); and how travel is a way to reinvent oneself (30:00).

Marcia DeSanctis (marciadesanctis1) is a Contributing Writer for Travel + Leisure. Her 2022 essay collection is entitled A Hard Place to Leave: Stories from a Restless Life.

Notable Links:

• Barbara Walters (American TV host)
• Muammar Gaddafi (Libyan revolutionary)
• The Millions (online literary magazine)
• Souvenir, book by Rolf Potts (book)
• Alexander Pushkin (Russian poet)
• Kievan Rus’ (medieval state)
• Leningrad (former name of St. Petersburg)
• Trans–Mongolian Railway (Asian train route)
• A&E Biography (TV program)

The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber.

Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we’re happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.