The Maverick Show: Global Travel Stories & Life Beyond Borders

Hear stories from visiting the occupied West Bank, being sexually harassed in Guatemala &  founding the “Queen of Trips”.

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Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

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ON THIS EPISODE

In Part 2 of this interview, Mari Monsalve talks about her experience visiting the occupied Palestinian West Bank and reflects on anti-colonial solidarity. She then opens up about her trip to Guatemala where she was sexually harassed by a hotel employee.  Mari reflects on solo-female travel safety and offers suggestions for how men can be better allies to women travelers.  She then talks about founding “Queen of Trips” platform to empower Latinas to confidently explore the world through solo travel, and what type of content she is putting out via her blog, newsletter, and social media. Finally, Mari reflects on the impact all of this travel has had on her as a person.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

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FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

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ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Hear about living in Escobar-Era Medellin, Surviving Cancer & Leaving an Abusive Relationship to Solo-Travel the World.

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Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

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ON THIS EPISODE

Mari Monsalve starts off talking about her involvement with two empowering travel events: The WITS Travel Creator Summit and Latino Travel Fest.  She then reflects on her grandparents' experience immigrating to Florida in the 1960s during Jim Crow segregation.  Mari tells the story of growing up in Miami and then moving back to Medellin during the Pablo Escobar era and what it was like to live there during that time.  She then talks about moving back to the U.S. as an adult, developing her interest in world travel, and organizing a transformative trip to Iceland.  Next, Mari opens up about leaving an abusive relationship to travel the world solo, being diagnosed with cancer, and choosing to use travel as a tool to recover from cancer.  She shares stories at different points in her cancer journey from Paris, Morocco and Thailand.  Finally, Mari reflects on her last trip to the Pacific coast of Colombia, shares some ethical considerations for visiting Colombia, and makes specific recommendations for how to respectfully immerse in her beautiful country.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Hear stories from Brazil, Japan, Serbia and get tips on budget travel, minimalist packing, and monetizing travel content.

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Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

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ON THIS EPISODE

In Part 2 of this interview Chris talks about building her remote freelance business and gives tips for spending time in the UK where she is currently based.  Matt and Chris then talk about their experiences in Brazil and Japan and why those two countries are so uniquely special. Chris then talks about founding her blog “Girl Takes Mundo” for Latino solo travelers and shares some budget travel hacks, minimalist packing tips for women, and advice for monetizing your travel content.  She then tells an unforgettable experience about wine tasting in Serbia, reflects on the impact traveling to 80 countries has had on her, and shares what travel means to her today.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Hear Latina-solo-travel stories from Guatemala, Sweden, Colombia, Easter Island, Bolivia, Madagascar, Spain and Vietnam.

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Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

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ON THIS EPISODE

Chris Davila joins Matt for a virtual wine night and starts off reflecting on speaking at the Latino Travel Fest in Chicago.  She then shares her her parents' immigration journey from Guatemala to the U.S. and how she navigated her Guatemalan and American identities while growing up in an immigrant home in Chicago.  Chris then gives her tips for how to visit and experience Guatemala, reflects on her trips back to the homeland, and explains how her interest in world travel developed.  She describes her professional career journey, explains why she took an 18-month sabbatical to travel the world, and tells the story of spending Summer Solstice in Sweden with Benny from Abba.  Chris then takes us on her journey solo-camping on Easter Island, visiting the world’s largest salt-flats in Bolivia, and meeting her husband in Colombia. She also describes solo-traveling to Madagascar and how visiting local villages there changed her perception of what it takes to be happy.  Chris also talks about her experience Running with the Bulls 6 times in Spain and training others how to do it.   She then explains why she became a vegetarian in Vietnam, how she celebrated a 42-hour long birthday while traveling from Australia to LA, and reflects on the impact of her 18-month sabbatical.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Learn about the similarities between Colombian and Botswana culture, and how to take a life-changing camping safari.

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Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

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ON THIS EPISODE

Paula Gean joins Matt for a wine night and talks about her experience being born in Colombia amidst the cartel violence of the 1980s, immigrating to Chicago and living in poverty, and then growing up in East Texas and navigating her Colombian-American identity.  She reflects on the complex experience of going back to Colombia at age 14, then talks about the origins of her lifelong activist journey and gives tips on how to stand in solidarity with immigrant communities in the U.S. today.  Paula then explains how she learned about Botswana through her husband, describes her magical first trip to the country, and shares her journey learning about the history and making connections between Colombian and Botswana culture.  She talks about co-founding Africa Culture Journeys with local Botswana people, and explains how she navigated the neocolonial dynamics in the African tourism space to build a sustainable company that empowers and benefits local people.  Finally, Paula describes how you can experience a life-changing trip to Botswana with Africa Culture Journeys and get a special Maverick Show discount.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Hear how travel, politics, and personal growth shaped her worldview and learn practical tips for freelance writing.

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Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

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ON THIS EPISODE

In Part 2 of this episode, Lolly Spindler talks about her personal growth and healing journey in Mexico City.  She then describes her trip to India and Nepal, the incredible hospitality she experienced, and her experience attending the largest festival in human history, the Maha Kumbh Mela, which only happens once every 144 years.  Lolly then talks about getting certified in trauma-informed yoga so she can teach it to prisoners.  Next, she takes us on her journey of how she developed her politics and her socially conscious travel lens.  Lolly then gives tips for becoming a freelance writer and explains how she optimizes her productivity and designs her lifestyle.  Finally, Lolly makes a number of free offers, including a special Pride Scholarship for people in the LGBTQIA+ community to take her writing course at no cost.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Hear stories from traveling the world, living in Mexico, and how losing a job led to building a thriving remote business.

============================

Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

============================

ON THIS EPISODE

Lolly joins Matt from CDMX and explains how she fell in love with Mexico City and why she chose to make it her base for the last 8 years.  She talks about efforts to combat transnational gentrification in the city, and also shares highlights from her other favorite places around Mexico.  Lolly then talks about growing up in Southern California, living in Madrid, Spain and gives tips for visiting both California and Madrid.  She then talks about unexpectedly losing her job and subsequently building her fully remote freelance writing business while traveling the world.  Matt and Lolly reflect on their shared experience on the Remote Year program, when they traveled the world together for a full year with other remote professionals, and the impact it had on them.  Lolly shares stories from Croatia, Colombia and reflects on the depth of cultural immersion that is possible when you speak the local language.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Hear stories of underwater mailboxes, treehouse hotels, volcano boarding & meeting a 98-year-old Filipina tattoo artist.

============================

Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

============================

ON THIS EPISODE

In Part 2 of this interview Jimena Serfaty talks about her experience exploring the Gobi desert in Mongolia, taking a hot air balloon in Laos, and embarking on a quest to find a legendary 98-year old tattoo artist in the Philippines.  She then talks about living in Australia and visiting Tuvalu where she ended up at a night club with the former Prime Minister.  Jime then describes her trip to Vanuatu where she mailed a waterproof postcard from an underwater mailbox, stayed in a treehouse, and went volcano boarding.  She also describes visiting the island of Kiribati. Jime then takes us on her journey becoming a fully-remote entrepreneur, describes how she structures her travel lifestyle, and explains why she wants to travel to every country in the world. Finally she shares some of her best travel hacks and reflects on how all this travel has impacted her as a person.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Learn about growing up in Argentina during the 2001 economic collapse and then traveling the world solo since 2009.

============================

Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

============================

ON THIS EPISODE

Jimena Serfaty joins Matt and they begin talking about meeting at the Extraordinary Travel Fest in Bangkok, and then discuss recommendations for spending time in Argentina.  Jime talks about her family’s immigrant history in getting to Argentina, including her Jewish heritage and her Dad’s Moroccan heritage, and describes her family’s recent trip to Morocco. She then talks about her experience growing up in Argentina during the economic collapse of 2001, her childhood desire to travel the world, and her first backpacking trip through Europe at age 18.  Jime then takes us on her journey living in New Zealand for a year, seeing the Komodo Dragons in Indonesia, traveling through India, and moving to the UK.  Next, she reflects on spending time in Poland, visiting Auschwitz, and re-connecting with her Polish Jewish heritage.  She also talks about her decision to visit the Killing Fields in Cambodia and shares her reflections on genocide. Finally, Jime talks about visiting China, seeing the Rainbow Mountains and the Avatar Mountains, and taking the TransSiberian railway through Russia.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!

Learn how food, slow travel, local language, and storytelling can deepen cultural connection wherever you go.

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Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds.

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ON THIS EPISODE

In part 2 of this interview Elsie Paulino starts off describing what she loves about Puerto Escondido and Guanajuato, Mexico, before giving tips on what to eat in New York City.  She then talks about her journey becoming a travel creator, including the Nomadness-Intrepid mentorship program and how her personal brand has taken shape. Elsie then reflects on how travel has impacted her and previews her upcoming talk at Latino Travel Fest. Next, Matt and Elsie discuss personal finance tips, investing strategies, and travel hacks that you can use.  Finally, Elsie talks about connecting with culture and place through food, the value of slow travel, the importance of learning some of the local language, what travel means to her today, and offers tips for Black and Latino travelers.

→ Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here.

============================

FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE

Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests.

============================

FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU

See my Top 10 Travel Apps

See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel

See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual)

Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn

See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend

See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use)

============================

ENJOYING THE SHOW?

Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation

Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally

Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!