The Thoughtful Travel Podcast

Creativity is an important part of my life, and I have so often observed that when I'm travelling, and also on my return, my creative thinking gets a huge boost. In this episode I chat with other travellers who feel the same. First up, I talk to author Spiri Tsintziras. Spiri has written several memoirs related to her experiences and travels in Greece, and explains beautifully how being away from home impacts her creativity so positively. Next, artist Carol McQuaid describes how travelling not only allows her creativity to flourish, but also talks about how travellers who take her visual art workshops while they are travelling have the same experience. Finally, author Diane Hartman tells me about her experiences in Ireland and in particular, about a writing retreat in a beautiful part of County Cork which included all the required ingredients for maximum creativity. I also chatted with friends and colleagues from the Creative Schools program, Claire Davenhall and Joanne Marriott, about how they feel travel and creativity come together, and I've included some of their thoughts. Links: Episode 207 Writing Retreats Around the World - https://notaballerina.com/207   Episode 52 How Travel Sparks Creativity - https://notaballerina.com/52  Spiri Tsintziras - https://www.writingspirit.com.au/  Spiri’s new book Twelve Golden Gifts - https://amzn.to/4mWCqCa Carol McQuaid - The Illustrated Vagabond - https://www.theillustratedvagabond.com Diane Hartman https://dianehartmanauthor.com/ Diane’s new book Getting Lost On My Way: Self Discovery on Ireland’s Backroads - https://amzn.to/45Q9Awp Claire Davenhall, visual artist - https://www.instagram.com/clairedavenhall Joanne Marriott - MOJO Creative Leadership + Culture - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joannemarriott/ Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/362 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This special episode is the audio of the livestream of the August 2025 meeting of the Thoughtful Travellers Book Club, speaking about Chris Broad's book "Abroad in Japan". If you'd like to join the Thoughtful Travellers Book Club, all the info is at https://thoughtfultravellersbookclub.substack.com and you can keep up with all the thoughts about our current books in the Thoughtful Travellers Facebook Group at https://facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers   Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Getting to know new people is one of the fun parts of travelling, and sometimes these encounters turn into long-term and even lifelong friendships. In this episode, my guests have wonderful stories to tell about the friends they have made on a trip - I found it very uplifting! First up, Heidi Brown describes how taking solo trips to indulge her love of U2 has led to a delightful network of similarly U2-obsessed friends, who continue to meet up around the world. I then chat with Shari Leid, who carried out a fantastic project having a meal with a stranger or near stranger in all fifty US states, making some good friends along the way. Finally, Steve Hoffman ponders the difficulties inherent in making lasting friendships when we travel and gives a great example of a friend he made while spending an extended period in rural France. Links: Substack post I mentioned: Conversations that changed my perspective on life - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/p/conversations-that-changed-my-perspective  Heidi Brown - https://www.heidikristinbrown.com/ Heidi’s memoir The Map I Draw: A Memoir of Travel as a Passport to Self - https://amzn.to/44Mky6T  Sharri Leid - An Imperfectly Perfect Life - https://animperfectlyperfectlife.com/ Shari’s book Table for 51: Lessons Learned from Sharing Meals across America - https://amzn.to/4ls5WOQ  Steve Hoffman - https://www.sjrhoffman.com/  Steve’s book, A Season for That: Lost and Found in the Other Southern France - https://amzn.to/3DSqosP  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/361 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When my friend Tracy Collins messaged me to say hey, I'm doing a new series on the Global Travel Planning Podcast and I want to interview you first - I said yes as fast as I could. Tracy had an idea to guide me through a chat about a number of my very most special travel experiences and I knew it would be fun. In fact, I think it turned out to be such a great chat that I asked Tracy if I could share it here with all my audience too. We cover so many topics: who inspired me to travel in the first place, some of my favourite trips (taking the Trans-Siberian across Russia and my road trip in Iceland both got airtime here), why I love and keep returning to Japan, how speaking a language can help you connect more deeply with a place and where I'd really like to return to soon. And more! Hope you enjoy listening just a fraction as much as I enjoyed being interviewed - thanks Tracy! Links: Global Travel Planning - https://globaltravelplanning.com/ Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/360 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the fourth part of a monthly, six-episode series celebrating the fact that exactly 40 years ago this year, my family and I spent six months in a striped motorhome travelling around Europe. I was nine years old and yes, this trip had an enormous impact on my life - I'm sure you wouldn't be listening to this podcast today if Van Life 1985 hadn't taken place! Throughout the series, I'll include chats recorded with my Dad this year, extracts from my late Mum's travel diary from 1985, and of course my own memories and thoughts.  In this episode, we move on to spend time in Germany, a country that would become very important in my future life. We bypassed Munich, visited the Black Forest, Baden Baden and Heidelberg, and spent time staying with friends near Frankfurt, where my sister and I especially enjoyed the flying fox play equipment in a local path. Belgium featured very briefly in our trip and we then carried on to the Netherlands, enjoying a cheese market in Alkmaar and a canal cruise in Amsterdam. A big thanks to Context Travel for sponsoring this series, and an even bigger thanks to my Dad for agreeing to be part of it. Links: Context Travel - https://bit.ly/contexttravel - use the code THOUGHTFULTRAVEL to get 15% off any online booking. Context Travel operate walking tours in cities around the world, and have interesting and qualified subject-matter experts leading your walk Listen to Part 1 of Van Life Diaries: Episode 348 - https://notaballerina.com/348  Listen to Part 2 of Van Life Diaries: Episode 351 - https://notaballerina.com/351  Listen to Part 3 of Van Life Diaries: Episode 355 - https://notaballerina.com/355  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/359  Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Solo travel might seem daunting, but as you'll hear from my guests today, the benefits can be amazing. While this episode features women who travel alone, the advantages they talk about are definitely relevant to anyone.  First up, Heidi Brown shares her love of solo travel and explains that she's developed a unique strategy for finding great restaurants when she's travelling alone - it's surprisingly effective and has something to do with design choices. Next, Kaila Yu travels solo frequently for work and has discovered a clever way to avoid unwanted attention as a solo female traveller. She also talks about the freedom of not having to compromise when you're on your own. Renae Ninneman then tells us about her spontaneous encounter with a fellow traveller at a music festival in South Korea - one of those benefits of travelling alone when you can be completely flexible. Finally, Chelsea Gruber shares her approach to staying safe while solo travelling, including some practical preparation tips and a system involving her mother back home.  Links: Heidi Brown - https://www.heidikristinbrown.com/ Heidi’s memoir The Map I Draw: A Memoir of Travel as a Passport to Self - https://amzn.to/44Mky6T  Kaila Yu - https://kailayu.com/ Kaila’s memoir Fetishized: A Reckoning with Yellow Fever, Beauty, and Feminism - https://amzn.to/40EL7ID Renae Ninneman - Beyond Tourism Cultural Travel and Training - https://www.goingbeyondtourism.com/  cultural training and cultural competence biz Chelsea Gruber - https://www.chelseasolotravels.com/  Chelsea's Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/chelseasolotravels/  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/358 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Did you know that one in ten jobs worldwide is in the tourism industry? I think we're all sometimes guilty of merrily going on our travels without giving much thought to the people behind the scenes that make this possible. In this episode I chat with three people in very different careers in the travel area and hear some of the behind-the-scenes of what makes tourism tick. First up, Suyash Keshari, founder of Ameliya Safaris, gives us the rundown of a typical day in the life of a safari guide. It's interesting to hear the ups and the downs of what sounds like a dream job. Next, I speak with John Roberts, who's the Group Director of Sustainability and Conservation in the Minor Hotels group. He tells me about some of the challenges and goals of implementing sustainability actions and policies across a hundreds of hotels in different parts of the world. Finally, Jamie Burr describes how he entered the tourism industry and explains his previous and current roles in marketing. His thoughts on how travel businesses can promote themselves through telling stories rather than posting trip deals are especially interesting. Links: Suyash Keshari, Ameliya Safaris - https://ameliyasafaris.com/   John Roberts, Group Director of Sustainability and Conservation, Minor Hotels -https://www.minorhotels.com/  Jamie Burr - https://jamieburr.com/  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/357 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two of my favourite things in life are reading novels and travelling, so it's about time they appeared in a podcast episode together - especially since so many other people love this combination of joys, too! Starting with a bunch of wonderful "novel on a trip" experiences from listeners, I next hear from Carol McQuaid about the long list of novels she created to read on a round-the-world trip, along with continued reasons to read novels related to her travels.  Next, Louis Hall has a fabulous argument for why reading fiction might even be more relevant to your travels than the typical non-fiction travel narratives we often read when preparing for a trip. And finally, Jonny Wright joins me with some deep thinking on the impact of reading during our travels, both for the books we read and the places we read them in. Links: Festival of Fiction in Perth - https://festivaloffiction.com.au/  Carol Mc Quaid - The Illustrated Vagabond - Carol’s pre-trip reading list - https://www.theillustratedvagabond.com/blog/reading-list-jkbjz  Carol's South American Sketchbook - https://www.theillustratedvagabond.com/shop/p/southamericansketchbook  Louis Hall - https://www.louisdhall.com/  Louis’ book In Green: Two Horses, Two Strangers, a Journey to the End of the Land - https://amzn.to/3FP0J52  Jonny Wright on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/goandfindoutpod/ Jonny's podcast Go And Find Out - https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/go-and-find-out/id1807777446 Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/356  Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is the third part of a monthly, six-episode series celebrating the fact that exactly 40 years ago this year, my family and I spent six months in a striped motorhome travelling around Europe. I was nine years old and yes, this trip had an enormous impact on my life - I'm sure you wouldn't be listening to this podcast today if Van Life 1985 hadn't taken place! Throughout the series, I'll include chats recorded with my Dad this year, extracts from my late Mum's travel diary from 1985, and of course my own memories and thoughts.  In this episode, we move on from Italy to Switzerland, where much of our fun involves mountain and snow. Growing up in Western Australia, none of us had any experience with snow, and we were all thrilled to play in the summer snow we found in alpine Switzerland. You need to listen to find out what we wore during these snowy adventures! We then spent time in Austria, and thanks to my Mum's diary we know we had some good times there too - curiously, neither my Dad nor I remember it well. Travel memories are strange! A big thanks to Context Travel for sponsoring this series, and an even bigger thanks to my Dad for agreeing to be part of it. Links: Context Travel - https://bit.ly/contexttravel - use the code THOUGHTFULTRAVEL to get 15% off any online booking. Context Travel operate walking tours in cities around the world, and have interesting and qualified subject-matter experts leading your walk Listen to Part 1 of Van Life Diaries: Episode 348 - https://notaballerina.com/348  Listen to Part 2 of Van Life Diaries: Episode 351 - https://notaballerina.com/351  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/355  Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When you're given an intriguing invitation or an interesting opportunity on your travels, do you say yes? I try to whenever possible, and that's led to some very memorable experiences - and the same is true of the three guests in this episode of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast.  First up, Carl Klein explains what happened when he was invited to tag along with a family he'd got to know in northern Colombia, as part of a very important day. I then chat with Tracy Collins about her brave "yes" moment, which led to a lifetime of fun and friendship. Finally, Chiara Barbera explains that although her cousin tried to put her off agreeing to a particular offer in Italy, saying "yes" led to quite the epiphany and a major passion and goal in life. Links: Carl Klein - Lost Canyon Imports -  https://www.lostcanyonimports.com/  Tracy Collins - UK Travel Planning https://uktravelplanning.com and Global Travel Planning at https://globaltravelplanning.com  Chiara’s Assaggio platform - https://experience-assaggio.com/ Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com  Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/354 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.