80 Days: An Exploration Podcast Luke Kelly, Joe Byrne, Mark Boyle

Full shownotes at www.80dayspodcast.com/aland | Support: www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast

In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast, we’ll be talking about Åland, an autonomous and demilitarized archipelago of Finland, which lies between Finland and Sweden, although it is closer to the latter by around 20km. Åland (which can also be spelled Aaland) is the smallest region of Finland by both area (1,580 km2 or 610 sq mi) and population (30,000), constituting around half a percent of Finland's land area and half a percent of its population. Despite being Finnish, the only official language is Swedish and the capital city is Mariehamn. Aaland is made up of around 6,700 islands, making it one of the world's largest archipelagos. 

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Ireland, Mark Boyle @markboyle86 in the UK, and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Ireland . (Theme music by Thomas O'Boyle @thatthomasfella)

Full shownotes at www.80dayspodcast.com/burkina-faso | Support: www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast

In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast, we’ll be talking about Burkina Faso (formerly the French Upper Volta), a landlocked country in West Africa bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest. As of 2021, the country had an estimated population of just over 20,000,000. Total land area is around  274,000 km² (or roughly 106,000 sq mi), making it slightly smaller than Italy, slightly larger than New Zealand or the US state of Colorado. Burkina Faso has a primarily tropical climate with two very distinct seasons, wet and dry. Its northern regions are in the Sahel, making them very dry and arid, while the more southern regions are cooler and more tropical. 

The Mossi people, which still dominates the country today, moved into the region around 1100, and still makes up around 50% of the ethnic population. These were a tribal, agrarian society with a love of horses. In 1896, it was colonized by the French as part of French West Africa; in 1958, a new nation named Upper Volta became a self-governing colony within the French Community. In 1960, it gained full independence with Maurice Yaméogo as president. However, since then the country has struggled to maintain political stability, with political coups or uprisings taking place in 1966, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1987, and twice in 2022.

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Ireland, Mark Boyle @markboyle86 in the UK, and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Ireland . (Theme music by Thomas O'Boyle @thatthomasfella)

Full shownotes at www.80dayspodcast.com/christmas23 | Support: www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast

In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast, we’ll be talking about Ho ho ho! In this Christmas minisode, we’ll be talking about Christmas Markets and a few delicious festive treats, as well as where these things come from and how they've changed to the modern day.  

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Ireland, Mark Boyle @markboyle86 in the UK, and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Ireland . (Theme music by Thomas O'Boyle @thatthomasfella)

Full shownotes at www.80dayspodcast.com/salem | Support: www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast

In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast, we’ll be talking about In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast, we’ll be talking about Tsushima, an island in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan, which lies in the Tsushima Strait on the western side of Kyushu, the southernmost mainland island of Japan. Tsushima sits between Japan and South Korea, about 60 km from Iki, its closest island neighbour, 138 km from the city of Fukuoka, and 49.5 km from Busan, South Korea.

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Ireland, Mark Boyle @markboyle86 in the UK, and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Ireland . (Theme music by Thomas O'Boyle @thatthomasfella)

Full shownotes at www.80dayspodcast.com/salem | Support: www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast

In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast, we’ll be talking about Salem, Massachusetts, which has a strong historical connection to the famous witch trials that took place there in the 1690s. Salem lies on Massachusetts Bay between Salem Harbor and Beverly Harbor, lying alongside the Danvers River, which feeds into the harbour. It’s around 20 miles or 35 kilometres north of Boston. The witch trials took place in a small settlement just outside Salem proper then known as Salem Village, but later renamed Danvers, and we’ll likely touch on both throughout. Salem today has a population of around 44,000, while Danvers is home to around 28,000. The area had long been occupied by the indigenous Native American tribe the Massachusett before the arrival of Puritan settlers from England in the 1630s. For obvious reasons, Salem today is one of the most popular destinations in the US to celebrate Halloween, attracting over half a million visitors each year.

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Ireland, Mark Boyle @markboyle86 in the UK, and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Ireland . (Theme music by Thomas O'Boyle @thatthomasfella)

Full shownotes at www.80dayspodcast.com/northpole | Support: www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast
In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast, we're (sort of) exploring the history of the North Pole, and in particular, it's significance to the Christmas season. We also conduct our now-traditional Christmas quiz, and give a brief update on Season 6. From all of us, have a very merry festive season, and we'll see you in 2023.

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Ireland, Mark Boyle @markboyle86 in the UK, and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Ireland . (Theme music by Thomas O'Boyle @thatthomasfella)