Eternally Evolving (with Miriam Donovan)

I have been staying in hostels since my first ever trip and I am a firm believer that they are a core experience as a traveler. There are so many different types of hostels and they always vary from country to country, but in this episode I am giving you all of my advice on how to pick the right hostels for you and how to have the best experiences possible! After 2 years I have a defined list of what makes a good hostel in my mind and have stayed in so many that I truly loved. I'm also gonna go through a list of some of the best and some of the worst hostels I have ever stayed in all around the world.

ALSO link to my whatsapp travel community where I will be giving away 2 FREE Worldpackers memberships (and more!): https://chat.whatsapp.com/LSzJnsnkon4Df6TgTBbi2n

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This episode finally follows up with my Turkey pt. 1 episode about Istanbul from a few months ago. I will never have the words to describe this place. Cappadocia is truly one of a kind; the hot air balloons at sunrise every morning, the flavors of the food, the otherwordly landscape and history carved into said landscape-- everything about it makes Cappadocia one of my favorite places I have ever been. The land is pure magic there, especially in the off season around November when it felt like we nearly had it all to ourselves. And yes, obviously we rode in a hot air balloon at sunrise!

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As stated early on in this episode, I am giving my personal opinion and lived experiences. Obviously, I'm not a doctor, so take what I say with a grain of salt. But throughout my last 2 years of traveling, I have noticed significant ways in which travel has impacted my health. Since I was 15 years old, I have been dealing with some very impactful chronic health conditions, both mental and physical. These chronic conditions have all shifted + transformed throughout my time traveling the world; some went away completely, and others I still struggle with but are getting progressively better. But overall, I truly believe that traveling has helped me heal important aspects of my health and can help you heal in a variety of ways too.

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After a small hiatus I'm back with a more detailed episode about what my life has been like for the past few weeks of volunteering at a hostel in Leon, Nicaragua. I found the most stability, routine, and community that I have had in a very long time while running the social media at Bigfoot Hostel (I'm literally already planning to go back.) Let's call this the Nicaragua pt. 1 episode because I will explore so much more of the country later in the future, but I truly had so many life-changing and perspective-altering experiences while in this incredibly special place. This was also my first ever work exchange experience and I can't wait to do more of them in the future to integrate more slow travel into my life.

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INSTAGRAM: _miriamdonovan_

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Super quick life update episode about what’s been going on for the past few weeks and some reflections about what I’ve personally been thinking about in terms of travel. I bought a one way ticket to meet my best friend in Guatemala and have lived a million lives in just the week and half since I’ve been here. Can’t wait to talk more about this incredible country

INSTAGRAM: @_miriamdonovan_ (https://www.instagram.com/_miriamdonovan_?igsh=ODdjYXkzcDh1cGMz&utm_source=qr)

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In this episode of Eternally Evolving, I'm recapping the two places I went to during my first trip to Thailand! I know Thailand is one of those countries I will always go back to, so instead of trying to see as much as possible, I spent longer chunks of time in two places that are both so special to me. I spent a week in Bangkok by myself, my first experience with an Asian city, and it quickly became one of my favorite cities in the entire world. And while I planned to visit a few different islands in Thailand, I ended up staying for 2 weeks on Koh Phangan because I absolutely fell in love with the island.

INSTAGRAM: @ _miriamdonovan_ https://www.instagram.com/_miriamdonovan_/

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Introducing first ever guest on the podcast!!!! Introducing my best friend and travel partner who I've mentioned so many times on this podcast before. She has just completed an entire year of traveling the world and had so many incredible, unique experiences. Not only does she discuss her perspective and the way she views the world because of her education/background, but also how her perspective has expanded through all of the lessons she learned this year. Em discusses hallmark experiences like a month-long survival course in the desert in Utah, staying at a women's collective in Rwanda, hiking Mt. Kilimanjaro, and completing a silent meditation retreat in Thailand. This was probably the most fun I've ever had recording an episode and I hope you guys have just as much fun listening to it while getting to know my best friend!

You can't understand me without understanding my deep connection to New Orleans, Louisiana. This is the first podcast episode I have ever recorded about a place in the United States and it's super fitting because I grew up going to New Orleans all the time because one side of my family is from there. New Orleans has always been my second home and going back feels like such a celebration of my Cajun heritage and culture that I grew up with, especially because so much of my family still lives there. I'm sure I will make many New Orleans episodes down the line but in this one I'm giving you a brief overview of what makes New Orleans so unique, the best places to eat, stay, and all of the incredible cajun foods you need to try if you go.

tik tok: @_miriamdonovan_

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Go check out 'While She's Away' Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/4uET75IYKHieFF6AtIsP71?si=7567bf62013f4271

It can be really overwhelming to try to understand everything that's going on in the world when you have no idea where to start. However, there's a lot going on in the world right now politically, and if you travel the world, I truly believe that you are obligated to keep up with international politics. So this episode, I am using my background/education to help break down 3 (kind of 4) of the most relevant and pressing political issues of the past week. Again, I do have a degree in international relations that helps shape my perspective while I travel the world, so I hope my analysis helps you better understand these complicated issues. Starting with the recent horrifying developments on the genocide in Gaza, then the misinformation surrounding the fraudulent elections in Venezuela, then the student riots that ousted the Prime Minister in Bangladesh, and finishing with some brief thoughts about the new official democratic ticket for the upcoming terrifying US elections.

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In the second part of my series about incredible cultural experiences I had in Cambodia, I'm detailing 3 main experiences in Siem Reap that I will remember forever: Songkran (Khmer New Years) water festival, getting a traditional Sak Yant tattoo from a monk, and experiencing the power of Angkor Wat, the largest religious complex in the world. I accidentally spent two weeks in Siem Reap (which most backpackers would definitely not do lol). Still, I really appreciated how deeply I could dive into Cambodian culture and history through solo traveling and developing a little routine there. The three main experiences I discuss changed my perspective on both myself and the world in so many ways, and I'll say it again, Cambodia is so severely underrated.

**Worldpackers code MIRIAMKD for $$ off your annual membership