Places I Remember with Lea Lane

Lea Lane
  • 5.0 (40)
  • Places & Travel
  • Semimonthly

On this monthly award-winning travel podcast, host Lea Lane shares travel memories and travel tips with passionate travelers, travel experts, and savvy locals around the world. Lea has traveled to over 100 countries, is the author of nine books, a blogger at forbes.com, and a contributor to dozens of guidebooks. Smart. Fun! Over 100 episodes!

  1. 6d ago

    Beautiful Belgium Beyond Brussels

    Send us Fan Mail Belgium can feel like a quick hop between Brussels and Bruges, but the best moments often happen when you widen the map. We start in Brussels, a surprisingly rewarding capital for art history and food, then trace the city’s signature sights: the UNESCO listed Grand Place, Art Nouveau treasures like the Horta Museum, the retro futuristic Atomium, and even comic strip murals that celebrate Belgium’s outsized influence on graphic storytelling. We also share an easy win that travelers love: using Brussels as a central hub for day trips across the country. We’re joined by two expert guides who know how to turn famous places into unforgettable experiences. Niels de Klerk of Bruges Tour explains what makes Bruges feel so perfectly preserved, when to walk the canals to avoid peak crowds, and why it’s worth staying longer for Flemish art, historic hospitals, and even new AI inspired exhibits.  We also jump to Antwerp for its diamond legacy, the Rubens House, and an astonishing train station that can rival any cathedral for sheer wow. Then Joris Desplenter of Belgium’s Wanderlust takes us into Ghent, his hometown and his pick for the best city in Belgium, with medieval towers reflected on the water and a castle right in the center. From there we head south into Wallonia and the Ardennes for quieter travel: Dinant’s citadel and saxophone story, chateaus near the river, outdoor adventures around Durbuy, Bouillon’s fortress, and De Haan for a peaceful coastal reset.  Along the way we dig into Belgian food and drink, from waterzooi and moules frites to fries culture, waffles, Trappist beer rules, and festivals like Tomorrowland and the Gentse Feesten. If you’re planning Belgium travel, building a smarter Belgium itinerary, or hunting for the best day trips from Brussels, hit subscribe, share this with a fellow traveler. Our two Belgium experts are Niels de Klerk of Bruges Tour and Joris Desplenter of Belgium’s Wanderlust. Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 120 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on the website: placesirememberlealane.com and appear on Lea's Substack, Lane Changes. _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.   _____ Our guests are Niels de Klerk of Bruges Tour and Joris Desplenter of Belgium’s Wanderlust. Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 120 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on the website: placesirememberlealane.com and appear on Lea's Substack, Lane Changes. _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    Beautiful Belgium Beyond Brussels

  2. Oct 6

    A Dozen Travel Stories from Our Listeners!

    Send us Fan Mail We love travel stories, especially from our listeners! Real tales where the smallest detail can trigger panic, wonder, or a laugh. We move from tracking lions by day to sharing water with penguins and a sea lion that swims up just to play, then jump to gorilla trekking where the rules for staying safe are simple and non negotiable. Along the way, we talk about a surprisingly effective strategy for better travel photos: hiring a local photographer to guide you off the beaten path.  We share a painful travel scam story that comes down to one habit most people skip. Then we get honest about language barriers, from nearly getting off at the wrong stop in Copenhagen to the reality that Americans often travel with fewer language skills than we should. Add in a Thai tone mistake and a hand gesture that means something totally different in Brazil, and the message is clear: cultural etiquette is part of travel safety.  The back half goes big with more adventure travel and cultural immersion, ending with a laugh-out-loud tale with a surprise ending.  If you love travel storytelling with practical takeaways, subscribe, and share this with a fellow traveler. And if you want to share YOUR story, contact Lea at any of the links in these show notes. We'll be sharing more of your stories on the months ahead. What’s one travel moment you’ll never forget? ** Our storytellers are course members at Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, NY. More Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 120 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on the website: placesirememberlealane.com and appear on Lea's Substack, Lane Changes. _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    A Dozen Travel Stories from Our Listeners!

  3. Sep 1

    Thinking of Moving Abroad? The Ultimate Checklist

    Send us Fan Mail Where would you relocate if you could choose anywhere? And what's the best way to go about it? More Americans are packing up and relocating abroad, and we dig into what makes a place feel safe, walkable, healthy, and genuinely enjoyable day to day. We compare two helpful lenses for choosing a destination: global livability rankings (think Copenhagen, Vienna, Melbourne, Tokyo) and expat friendliness lists that spotlight surprising standouts like Taiwan, Cambodia, Bahrain, and Oman, alongside familiar favorites like Portugal and Canada. We’re joined by Darren Johnston from Send My Bag, a company that helps people relocate by shipping millions of bags worldwide. We talk through a simple expat move checklist: deciding what to keep versus sell, planning baggage and shipping, and thinking early about pets. Then we zoom into the first week after arrival, when you need local cash, groceries, bedding, and the basics that turn an empty place into a functioning home. We also cover the essentials that keep a move overseas from spiraling: staying connected with eSIMs, setting up finances with a realistic three-to-six-month buffer, navigating slow bureaucracy, and building community through expat groups, local clubs, and everyday routines.  Darren shares travel memories of Rome and his pull toward Tokyo, reminding us that the best relocation plans still start with curiosity.  ** Darren Johnston is a relocation expert at Send My Bag, an international luggage shipping and relocation platform. Launched in the UK in 2006, the company now serves customers in over 80 countries each month. Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on the website: placesirememberlealane.com and appear on Lea's Substack, Lane Changes. _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    Thinking of Moving Abroad? The Ultimate Checklist

  4. Aug 4

    Toronto, Canada's Exciting Metropolis on Lake Ontario

    Send us Fan Mail Toronto is a city built out of neighborhoods, food, and constant surprises. We sit down with Ashley Rochefort, Media Relations Manager at Destination Toronto, to unpack what makes Canada’s largest city feel so alive, from its long history to its modern identity as “the world in a city,” where roughly half of residents are born outside Canada and cultures show up block by block. We get specific about things to do in Toronto, starting with the CN Tower for panoramic views, the glass floor, and the EdgeWalk, plus the waterfront cluster nearby with Ripley’s Aquarium and the Rogers Centre. From there we hit iconic stops like Casa Loma with its seasonal programming. Museum favorites including the Royal Ontario Museum, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the unexpectedly fascinating Bata Shoe Museum. We talk Toronto’s legendary diversity of authentic eats, and the fusion that comes with it, including the Toronto-invented sushi pizza, peameal bacon sandwiches at St. Lawrence Market, and the city’s serious love for Jamaican patties. We also map out walkable neighborhoods like the Distillery District and Kensington Market. Toronto's natural beauty includes beaches, parks, High Park cherry blossoms, and a quick ferry ride to the Toronto Islands. Finally, we connect the dots to a Niagara Falls day trip and the Niagara wine region, plus summer festivals, the CNE, and nightlife hotspots.  ** Ashley Rochefort isMedia Relations Manager at Destination Toronto. She loves her city and has done the Edge Walk on CN Tower.  Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on the website: placesirememberlealane.com _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    Toronto, Canada's Exciting Metropolis on Lake Ontario

  5. Jul 7

    Travel Excitement From Sharks To Grizzlies, With Travel Pro Angie Orth

    Send us Fan Mail We sit down with travel expert Angie Orth, host of Traveling with AAA and founder of AngieAway.com, to talk about the kind of travel that feels vivid and real: big bucket list wins, smart planning, and what to do when the “easy route” disappears overnight. Angie takes us from a Maldives liveaboard dive retreat with whale sharks and tiger sharks to the moment war-related airspace closures strand travelers and force a costly, creative path home. Along the way, we dig into practical travel advice that actually matters, like staying flexible, knowing alternate flight routes, and budgeting for disruption so you can make decisions fast instead of panicking. We also swap destination stories and grounded tips: Bahamas island hopping in Exuma with wildlife you would not expect, Egypt travel and why a guide can make culture shock feel like discovery, and a quick-hit Las Vegas trip built around the Sphere and great food. Plus, there is Costa Rica dental tourism, a brutal bullet ant bite, a Natchez Trace Parkway road trip warning about national park speeding tickets, Finger Lakes wine on a budget, Kauai hiking reality checks, and an Alaska finale featuring northern lights and grizzlies.  ** Angie Orth describes herself as a tour guide for global shenanigans, worldwide wanderlust, and misadventures near and far.  Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on her website: placesirememberlealane.com _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    Travel Excitement From Sharks To Grizzlies, With Travel Pro Angie Orth

  6. Jun 2

    Super Scenic Florida Road Trip: Key Largo to Key West

    Send us Fan Mail The Florida Keys Overseas Highway is a living corridor of reefs, bridges, history, and local tradition. We sit down with journalist and photographer Andy Newman, who spent 44 years with the Florida Keys Tourism Council, to build a true start-to-finish Florida Keys road trip. We talk logistics: how long the drive takes, why the mile markers function like addresses, and when you can get away without hotel reservations. From there, we trace the story behind the islands themselves: Henry Flagler’s Overseas Railroad, the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, and how the modern highway opened the Keys to a different kind of traveler. Then we start the itinerary. Key Largo brings John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park and the Christ of the Deep, plus smart reminders about the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and boating responsibly around shallow, sensitive habitat.  Islamorada delivers sport fishing culture, the History of Diving Museum, and the simple joy of hand-feeding tarpon. Marathon adds the Dolphin Research Center, Aquarium Encounters, the Turtle Hospital, and a walk into history on Pigeon Key. The Lower Keys bring Bahia Honda beaches, key deer, and even an Underwater Music Festival.  Key West rounds it out with the Conch Republic story, Hemingway Days, six-toed cats, sunset celebration at Mallory Square, and the option to reach Dry Tortugas National Park and Fort Jefferson. If you love travel stories with practical tips, local food, and real history, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share it with your favorite road trip partner, leave a review. Andy Newman is currently an avid fisherman and photographer, and lives in the Florida Keys. Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on her website: placesirememberlealane.com _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    Super Scenic Florida Road Trip: Key Largo to Key West

  7. May 5

    Vienna, Austria: Imperial City of Music, Palaces, Cafes

    Send us Fan Mail We’re joined by American expat resident Cherie Siebert to trace Vienna from its Habsburg-scale grandeur to its everyday pleasures. Vienna can feel like a living museum and a laid-back neighborhood on the same afternoon. We talk through how easy it is to get around on foot and by public transportation, where palace areas like Hofburg, Schönbrunn, and the Belvedere fit into a real day, and why seasonal markets mix architecture, craft, and local tradition.  From St Stephen’s Cathedral’s tower and crypt to the surprising places where Roman ruins appear under your feet, Vienna keeps handing you history. Then we follow the sound. Cherie shares her favorite place to hear classical music, the Musikverein Golden Hall, plus the pull of the Vienna State Opera. As for art, the city’s deep museum bench, including Gustav Klimt’s iconic “The Kiss.”  We also make room for the city’s hard truths, including Holocaust memorial reminders found by simply wandering the center. To round it out, we get into Vienna coffeehouse culture, where to skip long tourist lines, why locals treat cake and coffee as a ritual, and how wine bars and nearby wine inns expand the food story.  We also cover parks, Danube swimming spots, the Prater Ferris wheel at night, and easy day trips by train to Salzburg, the Wachau Valley, Bratislava, Budapest, and even Prague.  If you enjoyed this, subscribe, and share the episode with a fellow traveler. ** Cherie Siebert is an expat who lives in and loves Vienna. She is a teacher, jewelry maker, traveler and life-lover. Find her at artsfish.com.  Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on her website: placesirememberlealane.com _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    Vienna, Austria: Imperial City of Music, Palaces, Cafes

  8. Apr 7

    Sicily: Layers of History, Beauty, Pleasure

    Send us Fan Mail Sicily is an Italian island in the Ionian sea between Italy and the African coast. Greece, Rome, the Arab world, and Norman Europe left remnants there that you can still experience.  Chef, blogger, and tour director Ric Orlando tells us why Sicily feels different from the rest of Italy. His “deep dive” trips take the Anthony Bourdain approach seriously: spend time with locals, follow the market stalls, and let conversations set the pace. We get into Palermo’s layered history, the Palatine Chapel’s mosaics, Monreale, Teatro Massimo, and the city’s street markets.  Ric also explains how Sicily’s volcanic soil around Mount Etna is changing the island today, from a booming Sicily wine scene to new crops driven by climate change, and why infrastructure outside the main tourist cities still shapes daily life. Then east to Catania, to the “Black City” built from dark volcanic stone. We linger at the pescheria fish market where small boats sell the morning’s catch. We talk Sicilian flavor, especially the Arab influenced sweet and sour combinations, and we end with cannoli, farm made cheese, and the living traditions of Piana degli Albanesi.  Finally, Taormina brings cliffside beauty, a Greek theater, an artistic past, along with the modern 'White Lotus' buzz, before Ric shares a personal memory that ties family photos back to a real village festival. Come wander through the best of Sicily with us. Subscribe, share with friends who love food and history, and leave a review.  ** Our guest,  Chef Ric Orlando, leads tours to Sicily. Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. _____ Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 125 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on her website: placesirememberlealane.com _____ Travel vlogs of featured  podcasts-- with video and graphics -- now also drop on YouTube.

    Sicily: Layers of History, Beauty, Pleasure
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About

On this monthly award-winning travel podcast, host Lea Lane shares travel memories and travel tips with passionate travelers, travel experts, and savvy locals around the world. Lea has traveled to over 100 countries, is the author of nine books, a blogger at forbes.com, and a contributor to dozens of guidebooks. Smart. Fun! Over 100 episodes!

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