Comes With Baggage

How does study abroad make you a better person than the losers who stay home? Is it really all that much more expensive? What are other options for you if you are no longer a student? Kaitlyn and Chris interview Megan Ostovarpour - a study abroad advisor in the UC system - about the process beginning to end, as well as what you can expect from the experience.

Having the ability and the means to travel and see and experience other countries around the world is a privilege. Yet, sometimes, people tend to forget they are in someone else's home and end up getting drunk and having sex on top of a scooter with no regard to noise or decency. *guilty* On this episode, Chris and Kaitlyn discuss the many bad behaviors they have witnessed, as well as been privy to themselves, when abroad. Learn from our mistakes and take into consideration our advice for keeping the indiscretions to a minimum so you can avoid being known as the asshole tourist. (You are representing your whole country, for goodness sakes.)

This week, it's just your hosts Kaitlyn and Chris as they tackle the debate on hostels! Are they really all that safe? They are just for people that want to get drunk and party all the time right? But aren't we all a little too old to be sharing a room? Hostels can be a fantastic part of the travel experience, but there are many myths about them that dissuade people from giving them a chance. (The horror film taking place in one didn't help their case much either.) Listen along as Chris has his reservations on them and Kaitlyn does her best to convince him otherwise. They share stories, both good and bad, and let you come to your own conclusion!

Which sport has the most dedicated fans? Where can you play cricket with a former umpire of the ICC? How do you become a volunteer at the olympics? This week Chris and Kait chat with Jub from Tiki Touring Kiwi. If the blog name didn't give it away, Jub hails from New Zealand, but spends most of his time galavanting around the world to experience sports through the eyes of locals.

Chris and Kaitlyn are back this week with another guest! Mike Swigunski of the blog Swig Meets World, author of the book Global Career, and a recent subject of Forbes, joins them to discuss everything it takes to find legit long term jobs all around the globe, as well as how to maintain living in foreign countries on something other than tourist visas.

It's just Chris and Kaitlyn for this episode and we are diving deep and discussing EV-ER-Y-THING that has to do with air travel - from weird stuff that Chris always tries to get through security, Kaitlyn's unfortunate incidents at, not one, but TWO Indonesian airports, and why liking the middle seat probably makes you a special kind of stupid. (Kidding! Sort of.)

This week we have our first interview and we're super excited about it. Chris's fiancée Richelle runs the successful travel blog Adventures Around Asia and joins us to discuss her experience teaching abroad in China. From ending up in a factory town in the middle of nowhere on her own, to now running a super awesome program that assists other teachers get a great job in China - she is definitely full of so much useful knowledge and we get her to spill as much as we can for you!

What nationality makes Kaitlyn weak in the knees? Will Americans need a visa to visit Europe soon? What food brings Chris to climax? Was sticky rice really used to build the Great Wall of China? Would emu's or Aussies win in a war? Kaitlyn and Chris discuss all of this and more, play Fact or Fiction, and introduce themselves to anyone who cares to listen in this inaugural episode of Comes With Baggage -- a real-talk travel podcast where nothing is off limits.