Jodi Ettenberg left her job as a corporate lawyer to pursue her dream of traveling the world for a year. That was over eight years ago, and she is still on the road. In today's episode we get the inside story about why she left, what struggles she has faced along the way (including an emergency trip home), what she has learned about traveling with celiac disease, how she uses food to connect with people and cultures, and why she isn't planning on settling back down any time soon.

View full show notes at http://thebudgetmindedtraveler.com/73

No matter what your individual fears may be, pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone is a great exercise for personal growth. I have been using adventure travel to challenge myself lately, and in this special episode we dive into my journey of recently attempting two via ferratas, even though I have a pretty significant fear of heights. Follow me on my journey as I share what I was feeling, get a sense of what was going on in my head during the tough parts, why I wanted to attempt these via ferratas in the first place, what it took for me to get through them, and why I believe the takeaways and lessons I learned can be applied to anyone, anywhere, in experiences all across life. We can leverage travel to safely find these challenges and push ourselves to be stronger, more courageous, and more confident. 

View full show notes at http://thebudgetmindedtraveler.com/72

In today's episode, we move across the pond - westward, with Ian Ord, a Canadian expat who built a new life in Thailand. Though he only planned to stay for a few months at the beginning, he is still there over five years later, with a couple of businesses, a new fiancee, and a life full of adventure. Hear his story about how he did it, struggles he faced along the way, and whether he plans to stay in Thailand in the future.

View show notes at http://thebudgetmindedtraveler.com/71

Teressa Canosa left the U.S. seven years ago to pursue her dream of living in Spain and learning Spanish. That has since turned into a residency permit, a Master's Degree, and a spontaneous move to Italy, among many other adventures. In today's episode, hear her story, find out what steps she took to get to where she is today, teaching English in a small town in Southern Italy.

For full show notes visit TheBudgetMindedTraveler.com/70

It's back! This is the best Ask Jackie session yet, as it stems from our recent LIVE Q&A from the BMT Community group on Facebook. Join me as I answer questions about toilets overseas, washing your laundry, travel credit cards, flight insurance, movies, crazy experiences, packing, food, RTW travel, and much more. Use the guide below to reference the questions you are most interested in, or stay for the whole show, I promise you'll learn something. 

Full Show Notes at http://thebudgetmindedtraveler.com/69

We are wrapping up our series featuring people with BIG travel

Show notes at http://thebudgetmindedtraveler.com/68

The Benson family has BIG plans. They are selling their house and many of their possessions to hit the road as a family of five for a year of round the world travel. In this episode we discuss how they decided to do it, how they plan to fund it, where they think they will go, what fears they have around it, what they hope to get out of it and much more. 

Show Notes - http://www.thebudgetmindedtraveler.com/67

Meet Maddy, an inspiring, soon-to-be college graduate on her way to Israel to work for a year. In this episode, Maddy explains what drives her to travel, how travel sets her apart, and why she believes in it so strongly for other college students. Maddy and I both studied abroad twice during college, and I stand with her 110% in encouraging college students to get out. If you know a college student considering travel, pass this episode along to him or her, the world awaits... 

About Maddy

Maddy is a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she is earning a bachelor’s degree in English Literature. A midwestern girl at heart, she was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota. Maddy’s love of travel was cultivated at a young age when she took several trips abroad with her family. This prompted her to pursue several more abroad experiences, and ultimately led her to accept a teaching job in Tel Aviv, Israel after she graduates. Maddy is an avid listener of The Budget Minded Traveler Podcast, and is so excited to have this opportunity to share her passion for travel and seeing the world with others. In her spare time, you can find her reading, running, cooking, or devouring the nearest chocolate dessert!

Join us for part 2 of a conversation with first time solo traveler Anjie Mikesell, who is about to set off for the number one destination on her bucket list: ITALY. In this episode we get into Italy-specific tips and itinerary suggestions, along with a plethora of general first time travel resources. As part of a series featuring people who are making BIG travel plans, we get an idea of what Anjie is planning now, and then we will catch up with her in the future to find out how everything went, what she thought, and what she learned.

This is the first part of a two-part episode featuring first time solo traveler Anjie Mikesell. Though she has traveled with groups before, she is going solo to conquer the number one thing on her bucket list: traveling to Italy. She brought all of her questions to the table to talk everything first time traveler and everything Italy, and we recorded for over an hour! In this first part, we tackle the big safety questions about how to handle bad situations, how to prevent bad situations, and other general travel tips. In part two (stay tuned!) we discuss Italy itinerary specifics, transportation, and many more general travel tips. These two episodes are a must listen for first time travelers!