The Thoughtful Travel Podcast

There's a bit of a myth out there that we travellers are brave, confident people who never get anxious. From my own life and knowing many other travel-loving friends who also have experienced anxiety, I can promise you this is wrong. Episode 173 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast includes two very special conversations with women who divulge some of their very personal experiences with anxiety and its connection with travel. Firstly, I speak with Megan Blandford (who literally wrote the book on anxiety!) about some of her experiences with anxiety during her travels. Megan gives some really specific examples of how anxiety gripped her on trips to Japan and earlier on a dolphin swim trip and I personally find this one of the best ways to understand more about what anxiety can look like on our travels. I then get the chance to chat with Laura Waters who has just published a book that also features a lot of her anxiety: Laura spend five months hiking from one end of New Zealand to the other and what happened to her anxiety during this trip is fascinating. Links: Megan Blandford https://meganblandford.net/   Her book I’m Fine (And Other Lies) about postnatal depression and motherhood https://amzn.to/2tY7zAc  Laura Waters https://soultrekkers.com.au/  Laura’s book Bewildered https://amzn.to/2S20zu2  How to Deal with Travel Anxiety - Episode 93 - https://notaballerina.com/93  Getting Past Travel Anxiety - Episode 71 - https://notaballerina.com/71  My blog post from a few years back about my experiences with anxiety and travel - https://www.notaballerina.com/2015/02/travel-for-the-anxious-anxiety-prone.html  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/173 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wanting to help others when we travel is a common theme amongst experienced travellers, because we've all realised how lucky we are and how unlucky many people around the world are. In Episode 172 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast I'm not giving you all the answers on how to solve the world's problems but I do want to bring you stories from three travellers who've helped others in three different ways.  First up I talk with Veronica from Happily Made about her experiences in Cambodia and beyond, trying to figure out ways to help women in poverty or who need some way to support their children going to school. Veronica's Happily Made business is a great example of a sustainable way to help - she sells toys and other knitted products made by women who work out of their homes in Cambodia. Next, I chat with Marilyn from the Wow Travel Club who's also had lots of different experiences in helping others when she travels, and she tells the story of how a Dining for Women project she was involved with took her to Vietnam and some really impactful experiences.  Finally, I get to talk with Rafferty, basically my favourite travel-expert 11-year-old, who described an experience he had recently in South Africa. Links: Veronica’s Kickstarter - https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/happilymade/happily-made-gifts-that-give-back by 1st March 2020 Happily Made - https://happilymade.com.au  Marilyn Murphy from the Wow Travel Club https://www.wowtravelclub.com/  Dining for Women - https://diningforwomen.org/ - US only Raff is the boy of his mum Aleney’s blog Boy Eats World - https://boyeatsworld.com.au  KASI RC - Shack Art School & Theatre, Cape Town - https://www.facebook.com/KhayelitshaArtSchool/  Tin Mugs Africa Trust - https://www.tinmugs.org  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/172  Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's one thing to travel to a foreign country, but to completely migrate and move to another country is another level of experience entirely! In Episode 171 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast I'm chatting with three guests who've made the big move: one to Mexico, one to Japan, and one from Brazil to Australia. We've got half the world covered! First up, I talk with Queen D Michele who retired from her job as a school teacher in the United States and moved to Mexico. I asked her what her family and friends thought about her big move which opened up one of the most amazing stories of all! Next, I chat to Suzanne Kamata who is an American married to a Japanese man and living in a fairly rural part of Japan. It's interesting for me to hear how she feels there after several decades. Finally, Luana Marchi explains about the decision she and her husband made to leave their home country of Brazil and migrate to Australia - though at the start, they weren't so sure of their lifelong plans. Links: Episode 162 on Choosing Where to Live Abroad - https://notaballerina.com/162  Queen D Michele’s book Considerations: A Guide For Moving Abroad - https://amzn.to/2WWjHf0  Suzanne Kamata - http://www.suzannekamata.com/ Suzanne’s book, Squeaky Wheels - https://amzn.to/2qPbCNQ Luana Marchi - health and wellness coach - https://luanamarchi.com.au/ Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/171 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's 2020 (and arguably not the start of the decade but let's skip that discussion) and I want to look back on the years from 2010 until now. Travel has changed a LOT in that decade - more than I realised, until I started thinking more deeply about it and asking what some of my favourite thoughtful travellers thought. In Episode 170 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast, I talk about many of the ways in which how we travel, why we travel, what we do when we travel, and more, has changed since 2010. A shout out to my lovely friend Kristy Morton, first, for giving me the idea for this episode - fitting, since she was the very first guest I ever interviewed! In this episode, you'll hear a fabulous variety of ideas and opinions from my fellow travel media from the Australian Society of Travel Writers and, just because I realised I needed diversity (it was an all-female show until then!) a snippet from my friend Ian, aka The Barefoot Backpacker, from the UK. The topics traverse a wide range: of course, the incredible developments in smartphone technology rate highly, but there is also discussion of how the #metoo movement has changed travel, how industry disruptors like Airbnb have altered how many of us travel, and, most excitingly for me, how many travellers are maturing in what they want: the rise of niche travel and, I hope, the rise of thoughtful travel! Links: Ian - the Barefoot Backpacker - https://barefoot-backpacker.com  Kate Hennessy - https://www.instagram.com/the_smallest_room/  Kate’s piece in the Financial Review - https://www.afr.com/life-and-luxury/travel/how-metoo-has-changed-the-way-women-travel-20181023-h17039 Monique Ceccato - http://www.littlemissmonbon.com/  Christine Knight - Adventure Baby - https://christineknight.me Carmen Jenner - http://fluffytowel.com Di Bortoletto - https://travelletto.com Liz Bond - http://lizbondwriter.com/ Marianne Rogerson - https://www.mumonthemove.com/ Emily McAuliffe - http://www.emilymcauliffe.com/  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/170  Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's kick off 2020 with something we've never covered on The Thoughtful Travel Podcast before: romance and travel! Episode 169 covers the whole gamut of travel romance, from dating apps to testing new relationships by travelling together and exploring the cultural differences that come up when you date someone from a different country. First up, I chat with Christine Retschlag who has done a lot of research on dating as she travels the globe! She's no stranger to testing out a dating app in a new city and has discovered it's a fascinating way to meet the locals. Next, I speak with Ian and Ann who actually did meet on a dating site, and say that the fact they both liked travel was a crucial part of them becoming a couple. I love how they road-tested their relationship quite literally and quite early - and now they travel full-time. Finally, I speak with Dan Johnston who has lived abroad in a range of different countries in Europe and central America. His dating experiences are also interesting and we realise that dating is also a good way to really get to know the local way of life in a new country. Links: Christine Retschlag - https://www.theglobalgoddess.com  Ann and Ian at Expat or Not - https://www.expatornot.com/  Dan at Dreams Around the World - https://dreamsaroundtheworld.com/thethoughtfultravelpodcast/    Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/169 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Celebrating the turn of the year can be a lot of fun, and if you happen to be somewhere away from home for December 31, it can be even more fun and memorable.  This week's episode of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast is a replay of my first New Year's Eve travel episode from three years ago, as I know many current listeners won't have heard it. It features Kim-Ling's story of New Year's Eve on Ibiza - and it's not what you think - and Di's story of what makes up a wonderful New Year's Eve in Tasmania. Of course, I also mention some of my memorable New Year's Eve celebrations - I think one of my favourites was a year in Bratislava with local Slovak friends and my sister (on her honeymoon, no less!), featuring snow(wo)men and fire crackers. This year, I'll be near the beach, always a good way to ring in a new year, I think! Links: Kim-Ling at Travel-Ling - https://travel-ling.com/ Di at Travelletto - https://travelletto.com  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers  Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Christmas time again - it comes so fast! - and I'm replaying this Christmas episode of the podcast from the early years, which I know many people won't have heard. It's full of both fun and poignancy, and even includes a guest appearance from the Easter Bunny. At this time of year, when I've mostly wound down from work for the year and am spending lots of extra time with my son, who's on holidays from school for six whole weeks, I have lots of time to reflect and one of those reflections is just how much I love creating The Thoughtful Travel Podcast and how grateful I am for my fabulous audience and community. So, if you celebrate Christmas, I hope it's a fabulously merry one. And delicious, too. In this episode, I chat with Annalicia Lynn who had an interesting Christmas in Taiwan while she was teaching English there. We talk about the cultural differences between many Asian countries and English-speaking nations and she has one of my very favourite stories about how her Taiwanese colleagues tried to create a Christmas atmosphere in the workplace. Emma Mann started a tradition of spending Christmas abroad, and she talks about the difference between spending Christmas in another country where the traditions are strong, versus a place where Christmas generally isn’t celebrated. Finally, Joe Baur chats about his experience living in Germany at Christmas time – one of my favourite places to be during this season! Links: Annalicia of Exercise180 - https://www.exercise180.com/ Emma of The Vagabond Feminist - https://thevagabondfeminist.wordpress.com Joe Baur - https://joebaur.com Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers/ Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2019 is coming to an end - and it's been another big year for The Thoughtful Travel Podcast. You can hear about some of our travels in Episodes 150 (Thoughtful Travel in Denmark) and 160 (Cairns and Queensland), and in this episode I'll tell you some of the statistics from this year (including in how many countries The Thoughtful Travel Podcast has been downloaded in ... it's quite a lot!). I also answer some great listener questions which include topics like what I think the next hot destinations will be, how I will get out of my comfort zone in 2020, how to balance thoughtful travel with kids and a great question about how to answer "what is your favourite country?" when, as is the case with most of us, we definitely can't narrow that down to one (and it kind of defeats the purpose of travelling to do so, too!). Thanks to all my fabulous guests and listeners over 2019 - I literally couldn't make this show with you and your excellent input! Links: Thoughtful Travel in Denmark - notaballerina.com/150 Cairns and Queensland Diary - notaballerina.com/160 Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/166Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You never want to need your travel insurance ... but you should always have it. Episode 165 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast is a mix of trips gone wrong (but yippee - travel insurance was there!) and some expert advice from people in the insurance industry. Let's just say - I learnt a lot! First up, I chat with Shelley Winkel who had cause to use her travel insurance after an injury far from any hospital or medical help in Patagonia - pretty much the last place in the world you want to have an accident! Next, I speak with Lisa Kable from the Insurance Council of Australia. I've known Lisa for a couple of years and have figured out that she knows everything that needs to be known about insurance - she definitely taught me a thing or two in this chat! Finally, I talk with Anthony Bianco about some of his experience in the travel insurance industry and allow him to tell the worst joke in the podcast's existence to date!! Links: Shelley Winkel from Tourism and Events Queensland - https://teq.queensland.com  Lisa Kable from the Insurance Council of Australia - http://www.insurancecouncil.com.au/  Anthony Bianco from the Travel Tart - https://www.thetraveltart.com/  Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/165 Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I might be a little bit obsessive about this topic - although it's been a long time since an episode of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast has covered it - but I really passionately feel that taking your kids travelling is so very beneficial for them (and you, too!). In Episode 164 I chat with some great guests who feel as strongly about why you should travel with your children as I do. First up, I chat with Nicci O'Mara who impressed me no end with some of the great ideas she has about how to help kids get the most out of their travels. I thought I was good, but Nicci is next level! I then speak with AJ and Natasha who travelled the world with their young son, and intended to do it again in a few years. We discussed how there are a lot of great lessons for parents when travelling with kids, too. Finally, I talk to Suzanne, an American who lives in a fairly remote part of Japan with her Japanese husband and biracial kids. She has lots of important reasons to take her children travelling and it was great to chat with her. Links: Nicci O’Mara from Trip Chiefs - https://tripchiefs.com/  Natasha and AJ - 2 Idiots Travel Blog https://www.2idiotstravel.com/  Suzanne Kamata - http://www.suzannekamata.com/ Suzanne’s book, Squeaky Wheels - https://amzn.to/2qPbCNQ Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/164 Sign up to the Thoughtful Travel Thursday newsletter - http://eepurl.com/gLeG9L  Support the show: https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.