The Thoughtful Travel Podcas‪t‬ Amanda Kendle

Volunteering abroad is an experience lots of thoughtful travellers contemplate - who doesn't want to give back when we can. But of course, we know that not all volunteering opportunities are created equal. In Episode 228 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast, I chat with three women who have had fairly in-depth volunteer experiences in Uganda, Zimbabwe and Nepal, and their stories might help you reflect on what does make a good volunteer experience.

First, I chat with Lindy Alexander who spent eight months volunteering in a remote part of Uganda. She's very frank with me about how, on reflection some years later, she's not sure that everything they did had a positive impact - although lots did.

I then speak with Julia Salnicki, a zoologist who has spent many years either volunteering or managing volunteers on animal research projects in Africa. Her stories are amazing and apart from her tales on this episode, I've added another one about her three years in a painted dog research project onto Patreon - if you're a supporter, listen now, or sign up at notaballerina.com/supporter

Finally, I hear from Patti Lefkos who, after several decades of experience as a teacher and principal in Canada, volunteered in a small school in Nepal. She tells us some of the many lessons she learnt from that experience.

Links:
Support the podcast on Patreon - this week's bonus content is an extended chat with Julia Salnicki - https://www.notaballerina.com/support
Lindy Alexander - The Freelancer’s Year http://thefreelancersyear.com/ 
Julia Salnicki from Classic Safari Company - https://www.classicsafaricompany.com.au 
Patti Lefkos - https://www.pattishaleslefkos.com
Episode 145 on Volunteering Experiences - https://notaballerina.com/145 
Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers
Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/228

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Travelling to see the sights is one thing; travelling when you get to know some of the local people is a whole other level of wonderful experiences. Finding ways to have meaningful interaction with locals is something really important to me when I travel, and the three guests in Episode 227 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast illustrate some wonderful ways to do so.

First up I chat with Tasha Goldberg who describes how a friend of a friend in Kenya became an inspiring local she met on Lamu Island. She also mentions the bonus part of making close connections when you travel - the chance to make return visits!

I then speak with Lindy Alexander about her experience of a cooking class with the Courageous Kitchen in Thailand. This is a really interesting example of meeting not just any locals, but marginalised ones who you might not ordinarily even know about, let alone have the chance to meet and learn from.

Finally, Penny Walker speaks of the value of tapping into local knowledge and uses her example of the Pyrenees in France where locals she gets to work with include shepherds who've spent their lifetime in the mountains. And we mention cheese, too!

Links:
Tasha Goldberg’s project Evidence of Hope - https://www.evidenceofhope.com/
Lindy Alexander - The Freelancer’s Year http://thefreelancersyear.com/
Courageous Kitchen online classes - https://www.airbnb.com.au/experiences/1701757 
Penny Walker of Adventure Creators https://www.adventurecreators.com 
Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers
Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/227

 

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If nothing goes wrong, were you even travelling?

Episode 226 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast centres on my firm belief that many of the best travel memories derive from when things go wrong on our trips.

First I chat with Travis King, and he introduces a concept that I will carry with me on every trip from now on: "Level 3 fun". You'll have to listen to learn what "Level 3 fun" he had with his brother on their cycling trip across Canada.

I also talk with Tracey Croke, an adventurous soul who never shies away from a challenge and she certainly found plenty of them in a mountain biking expedition over the Talas Mountains in Kyrgyzstan.

Links:
Travis King's website and book - http://www.traviswking.com/
Tracey Croke's website - http://www.traceycroke.com 
Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers
Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/226

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Whether you follow a vegetarian or vegan diet or not, the stories in Episode 225 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast will still fascinate you, I'm sure! I start off chatting with Lindy Alexander, a social worker turned freelance writer who spent eight months living in rural Uganda in her mid-twenties. As a vegetarian, she was a bit concerned about what she could expect there in terms of food and what she actually found is very interesting!

I then chat with Tasha Goldberg who, like me, was raised vegetarian and tends to follow that diet on the whole, but can be flexible at times when travelling, and she tells me about her experience with this, starting out with a special invitation in Senegal.

Finally, I speak with Brighde Reed who has been vegan for the past decade and has lots of useful tips and resources for anyone looking to research their trip and wanting to eat a plant-based diet along the way.

Links:
Lindy Alexander - The Freelancer’s Year http://thefreelancersyear.com/  is all about giving practical advice about how freelance writers can earn great money from their writing
Tasha Goldberg’s project Evidence of Hope - https://www.evidenceofhope.com/ 
Brighde Reed - World Vegan Travel - https://www.worldvegantravel.com/ 
Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers
Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/225

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Usually the souvenirs we purchase on our travels are relatively small - we want to be able to fit them in our baggage to bring home, after all.

I say usually: because Episode 224 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast proves that there are times when people make rather large purchases when they travel! Curiously, none of these three guests had any plan to make these big purchases on their trips - which makes these stories even more fun, I think.

First up, I chat with podcast listener Tim Tricker. He has a fun tale of something quite unusual he and his friends bought entirely by accident on a trip to Spain.

Then I speak with Nan Caple who was holiday with family and friends on Kangaroo Island when they suddenly decided to buy something quite large.

Finally, I talk to Karen Emanuel who was travelling in Nicaragua when a sign caught her attention and she made an even bigger purchase - but one she's very glad of.

Links:
Nan Caple of Snellings View on Kangaroo Island https://snellingsview.com.au/ 
Karen Emanuel of Jicaro Island Lodge in Nicaragua  https://www.jicarolodge.com
Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers
Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/224

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This special episode is the audio of the Facebook Livestream of the January 2021 meeting of the Thoughtful Travellers Book Club, talking about Bewildered by Laura Waters.

If you'd like to join the Thoughtful Travellers Book Club, all the info is at https://notaballerina.com/bookclub, 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 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.