In this episode, we are joined by Phil. He originally comes from Brazil. Phil began searching for job opportunities in different countries and came across Luxembourg. Intrigued by the country's position and language, he decided to do some research and eventually landed a job offer in Luxembourg in 2021. Fascinated with the country, he co-hosts the videocast Let's Talk About Lëtz, where he talks about and discusses Luxembourg politics and life in the country. Phil also shares with us his great passion for movies and for books. He talks about his love for football and his experiences playing the sport.

Links:

Let's Talk About Lëtz

Phil’s Football Club – Grêmio 

Music:

Podington Bear – Climbing the Mountain

Latin Loop Brazil 

Carnival in Bahia – Samba by Francesco Biondi

I sit down with my long-time friend, Knigtwise, who is a world-renowned cross-platform geek. We talk about how he got into the tech world and he talks about his experience in the IT industry. We talked about the potentially addictive nature of technology and managing our digital presence in a way that technology should work for you, and not the other way around. Knightwise also introduces us to his current role in the company he and his wife own - storytelling and communication as powerful tools for positive impact and encourages the use of technology for connecting brands with customers. At the end, we explore who Knightwise really is.

 Links:

Knightwise.com

DeRangers.be

Music: Podington Bear – Climbing the Mountain

In this special episode, I talk with Chris who is a native Luxembourger. Chris talks about his experiences living in his country, where almost 50% of residents are foreigners. We talk about the communicating aspects in a multilingual and multicultural environment but most importantly how often native Luxembourgish persons feel secluded and alienated in their own country, when they have little opportunity to speak in their native language. On the other hand and personally for Chris, he expresses his curiosity for the diverse people he meets and his appreciation for how foreigners bring a different perspectives to Luxembourg.

Links:

List of language institutions and school to learn Luxembourgish.

RTL.lu – news and podcasts in Luxembourgish

The Statistics Portal of Luxembourg

Music Used:

Podington Bear – Climbing the Mountain

In this episode, I talk with Peter who is a German-French-Luxembourgish citizen and he lives in Luxembourg. Peter speaks four languages and is now part of the growing comedy scene in Luxembourg. He uses stand-up comedy as a form of therapy and is also taking a course to become a therapeutic coach to help others understand their feelings and behaviors. Peter explains that thanks to therapeutic coaching, persons can learn to accept themselves and use tools like the “stop process” and tapping to relieve anxiety. 

Music: Podington Bear – Climbing the Mountain

In this episode I talk with Dan Verdick. Dan lives in the United States, in the state of Maine, but he travels to Luxembourg and Europe quite often. We talk about the differences between the US and European cities and why Dan feels Europe is his second home. Dan also talks about his childhood and youth, how he has overcome addiction and travelled across the country. We dive deeper into one of his passions – sports – cycling and running. He also shares how marrying his partner is the best thing that happened to him.

Music: Podington Bear – Climbing the Mountain

In this episode of the Chronicles of Curious Characters podcast, we continue talking to Joao. If you haven’t listened to the first part of our conversation, I invite you to listen to Episode 6 first, in which Joao talked about his experience from the Portuguese special forces, his passion for photography, videomaking and a passion for learning. In this episode, Joao will tell us about his passion to travel and camping, especially on a motorcycle; what role nature plays for him, as well as meeting new people during his moto adventures. He will also talk about a more intimate topic and probably his biggest passion – raising his son and observing him grow.

Links:

MotoCamping Luxembourg (website) 

MotoCamping Luxembourg (YouTube) 

MotoCamping Luxembourg (Instagram) 

Joao’s Portfolio

Music Used:

Podington Bear – Climbing the Mountain

In this episode we talk to another resident of Luxembourg. Joao was born in Mozambique but he grew up in Portugal. He joined the Portuguese army and earned his special forces green beret. He developed a passion for photography and thanks to this he took a very popular and the first in Europe photograph of a skydiving tandem with a military dog. After he left the military forces, he continued learning and developed an interest in many different fields, such as videography and he has also opened his business and has become a personal trainer. Joao has many more interests in life and I will continue talking with him in the next episode.

Links:

Joao's photograph of tandem skydiving with a military dog 

Joao’s Portfolio

Music: Podington Bear – Elephants on Parade 

Mireille is a long-time Luxembourg resident. She has been doing all sorts of sports from an early childhood and she even did a ballet. Therefore, sports play an important role in her life and her well-being. She talks about the different physical activities she's been doing recently, like distance running, half and full-marathons, spartan races, strenght-training at the gym, to name just a few. She also talks how she finds motivation and strenght to always do sports after a day at the office.

Links:

Mireille’s Strava Profile

Mireille’s Instagram Profile

Music: Podington Bear – Elephants on Parade 

Hans is a long-time resident of Luxembourg. He is originally from the Netherlands but he frequently visits the land of the rising sun - Japan. In this episode, Hans talks about the beautiful country of Japan, a few interesting facts about the Japanese cultures and he dives into describing for us the experience of visiting onsen - the country's hot springs and the bathing facilities.

Links:
Koto, Japanese national instrument
Hans's Photography Album
Hans's Onsen Videos

Recommended onsen:
Hokkaido Island:
- Kotan onsen (outdoor rotenburo in Lake Kussharo)
- Wakoto onsen (outdoor rotenburo in Lake Kussharo)
- Yoroshi Yuyado Daiichi onsen, really gorgeous
- Koshikawa onsen, roadside, unmanned

Aomori prefecture
- Shinofuro onsen and the public baths in the village
- Yachi onsen
- Sukayu onsen, 1000 persons bath
- Furofushi seaside onsen, stunning sunset

Iwate prefecture (Hanamaki)
- Fujisan onsen, standing bath
- Osawa onsen

Miyagi prefecture
- Naruko onsen town

Music in the episode:
Japan Koto Folk Music
Ronin by yoitrax - https://soundcloud.com/yoitrax
Music promoted on https://www.chosic.com/free-music/all/
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

In this episode we continue talking with Dirk. If you haven’t listened to the previous episode, I invite you to also listen to Episode number 2 titled the Colours of Jazz. Today, Dirk dives deeper talking about the oldest European Toastmaster’s Club and the importance of public speaking even in the times of remote working. He also shares with us his unique experience of how Luxembourg has changed in the over 30 years while he’s been living here. 

Links:

Dirk’s Flickr Page – Colours of Jazz

Toastmasters Europe - Bossuet Gaveliers Club

Music: Alex Productions Gypsy Jazz Lounge / Street Food