On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Dr Francis Boorman. 

Francis is a British historian, an expert on certain 18th-century happenings in London. While not researching and writing books and papers Francis enjoys travel and exploring new and interesting places. What's a little more unique is that Francis uses his wheelchair to explore places afar and has managed to visit every continent except Australia, and Antarctica but let's not count that. 

Francis is an experienced traveller with a positive mindset and outlook, on the serendipity of travel and adventure, so why not get some interesting first-hand information on the accessible travel industry. 

In conversation, Francis reflects on some of his earliest travel memories as a kid with his family and (9:25) schoolmates. He's very candid in describing what his first international trips were like (again with his friends and family) after he became a wheelchair user (13:20) as a young adult. We talk about some of the places he's been and particular favourites (17:15) over the last 10 to 20 years. 

Flying with a wheelchair can make travel more complex. Francis gives a run down on what the flying experience can be like, navigating through airports and the logistics of moving seats and making sure the chair survives the journey (18:30). 

We talk about some travel mishaps (23:30) that although can often not be the most comfortable at the time, can end up a great anecdote. But I think one of the best things about Francis as a traveller is his attitude and mindset. His way of thinking could be adopted by every traveller, from everywhere. 

We get into some of the planning and the practicalities when travelling with a wheelchair (31:50) and touch on some things to think about, sites to check out, insurance issues and stuff to consider in general trip preparation. We talk about how the accessible travel industry has evolved and continues to evolve as greater investment, tech and general awareness becomes available (35:00). 

Things are still not quite there yet, better, but not perfect by any means. Dr Francis shares his thoughts on how he'd like to see the industry continue to improve (48:50) and has some good advice (49:30) for wheelchair users who want to travel when it's possible again, and also for their family and friends. 

The best thing as Francis says is to think positive, always enjoy it (it's a holiday after all) and if things do go wrong which they will from time to time, the best thing is to chill out, have a nice beer, and try again tomorrow... 

Enjoy. 

Further links:-

Back Up: https://www.backuptrust.org.uk/

SIA: https://www.spinal.co.uk/

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Morgane Thöni. 

Morgane is from France but moved to Canada a couple of years ago where she works as a brewer in a rural brewery, kind of in the middle of nowhere, like a lot of Canada one could argue. Being French, I expected Morgane to be into wines (6:20) but Morgane is very much into her beers. Perhaps spending a lot of time in Germany studying, travelling and of course, drinking has something to do with that? 

Morgane and I met in Liverpool about 5 years ago when she was travelling with her friend and fellow beer enthusiast Mickael. We enjoyed taking a real ale pub tour (10:30) of the city sampling many traditional and some unique beers. 

In conversation, Morgane shares a few places around the world, countries and specific regions, (13:30) she has visited where she found the beer and culture to be interesting. We talk about beer tourism and how beer and culture might be related. Morgane shares of some particularly interesting experiences in Norway, where they use juniper in their brewing process (19:30) which is unusual and something Morgane was intrigued by. 

Beer culture has exploded in the last decade or so. It's now possible to get American style IPA all over the place, craft beers and some bizarre heavy beers made with lactose and marshmallow even, banana juice mixed with wheat beers etc. 

Morgane tells of some of her favourite places to enjoy a beer (27:45), typically outside in a Biergarten but she is also very happy to take a beer on the terrace at her work, and enjoy the view out to sea, providing it's not snowing I suppose. 

Morgane shares the path which led her to become a brewer (30:00) and made it to hold her position at Pit Caribou, in Quebec. She is one of the few female brewers in the industry but this is changing along with the times. 

Morgane elaborates on how travel influences her brewing creatively (39:00) and how she sees beer culture and the simple act of enjoying a beer as a way of breaking down barriers and finding accessible means to get to know people and make friends all over the (42:40) world...

Enjoy. 

Don't forget to follow Morgane and her beer adventures on Instagram @the.iron.mango

Since recording, Morgane wanted to share that her favourite foreign word is "Feierabendbier" which is a German word and means the beer that we drink at the end of a hard day's work.

Further links:-

Pit Caribou: https://pitcaribou.com/en/

plus their Instagram @micropitcaribou

Oak and Time Brewery in Oslo Insta: @eikogtid 

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Sixtina from sixmilesaway.com her website and blog. 

Sixtina says that travelling and living in diverse countries has helped shape her into the person she is today. Evolving from a self-proclaimed rebellious teenager, intolerant and stubborn, who wanted things her own way to a more rounded, simple-living woman who speaks multiple languages, is more tolerant, more patient, open-minded, spontaneous and good-humoured. Is this the result of the expat life? 

In conversation, Sixtina talks about her first living abroad experiences which happened in the USA on high-school exchange to improve English (6:55) of course but many other things too. 

We go on to talk about the meaning of the term 'expat' (8:55) at least what it means to us. I ask Sixtina what she believes makes for a good expat or a not so good one (10:15).

We discuss stereotypes, pre-judging people and how we have to be aware of how easy it can be to hold prejudices, boxing people into who we think they are, based on where they come from (15:40). On the road, we can always be surprised. That is one of the great things about travelling. Sixtina shares some of the occasions where her expectations have not been met, (23:20) both in good ways and not so good ways. 

Being involved in the community (28:55) is important to Sixtina's expat existence. She has some information on how she assimilates when she is abroad and gives tips on volunteering opportunities that can be found all over the world and websites like "Work Away" that facilitate this exchange of culture and goodwill. 

We talk about Homesickness. Can you become immune or is it something that will creep up on you from time to time (39:10) especially when far away from your family during special holidays? Sixtina has some tips on how to cope from her many years of experience living as an expat in the Netherlands, Mexico, Ireland etc where the customs are different from that of

No matter whether you are a beginner expat, or have been playing this game for a while we can always improve. Sixtina tells us how she intends to continue to improve and be the best traveller and expat she can be (48:55). It's good stuff. So are you ready? 

Enjoy!

Don't forget to get out Sixtina on social media.

Her blog: https://www.sixmilesaway.com/

Her Insta handle: @sixmilesaway

And Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/SixMilesAway

Further links:-

Work Away: https://www.workaway.info/

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Valentina, aka "Kooky" from KookyLovestoTravel.com. 

She is a digital nomad, writer, and content creator with a big passion for photography and an even bigger passion for life. 

Valentina left her home in Croatia years ago and has since lived in three European countries and travelled through 13 or more. In this way, we are from a similar experience. But how does someone who loves to travel and explore like this respond to a global crisis where we are forced to lockdown and not really go far? 

In conversation, Valentina tells the reasons why she loves to travel nad (6:20) where it all began and what her specific motivations were to leave home and move to Amsterdam (11:10) and then onto Spain where she found herself at the start of the pandemic when the whole world began to shut down. I was curious to find out details on how Valentina managed to explore some of the Mediterranean islands during these Covid times with such a quiet atmosphere, being able to meet locals and not have to wait in line with tourists (17:45). 

Valentina explains (26:40) how she has been able to keep positive, stay happen and remain travel optimistic over the last year and a bit. She offers great advice on how to stay humble and maximise the opportunities that have been presented to us recently, the opportunity to travel more domestically and reacquaint oneself with one's home let's say. She has some tips for places even more interesting and less touristy to visit in Croatia now too (31:35). 

We talk about how we can create a travel philosophy for ourselves (40:05) or at least try to be the best traveller we can be in these modern 21st century times (41:30)... 

Enjoy.

You can follow Valentina on Instagram @kookylovestotravel

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNhwxpddM1GcemIBK7c9b9w

Blog: https://kookylovestotravel.com/

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Emma Krebs. 

Emma is a lovely, friendly Canadian girl. She's still in her early twenties, so I am old in comparison and find myself sometimes today referring to people of a similar university age, like Emma is, as "kids" but not Emma. She has a wisdom, maturity, and a level of self-esteem as well as common sense far beyond her years. Whether this has anything to do with her unquenchable curiosity (so much so that she had to create and host her own podcast) or to do with her vagabonding experiences touring Australia for 10% of her life (at that time) is something we're going to discuss. 

In conversation, I ask why Australia? (6:25) Why go there?

Emma shares what a typical viewpoint of Australia is for someone not born and raised there, like myself. We reflect on reading 'Vagabonding' which is a travel bible by Rolf Potts and how certain types of travellers can be different from many people in society, leading to feelings of disconnection (14:00) from the mainstream. 

Emma shares a brief chronology of what she got up to during her two-year jaunt around Australia (18:25) notably her WWOOFING in the Daintree rainforest, farmwork in Queensland (34:00) and being broke-as in Melbourne.

Travelling is not always super fun, chilled or even glamorous you see. You can be hot, sweaty, hungry and afraid of spiders all at the same time. But it's certain moments even beyond these that can have an impact (22:30) and Emma is generous enough to share them openly as well as what living out of a backpack for two years (27:50) will teach you. We then challenge that whole stranger-danger narrative we were both fed as kids, growing up (29:30) too. 

I was curious to find out from Emma whether two years of life university in Australia would be better than actual uni (32:25) and what her best and worst moments were in her Aussie adventure (44:20). 

Emma rounds out the chat by answering how travel has helped her evolve into the kind of Emma she is today (50:00) and whether her experiences abroad have helped her establish or re-establish her connection to society and herself... 

Enjoy.

Don't forget to check out Emma's podcast, 'the Curious One' which is available everywhere and follow her on Instagram @thecuriousonepodcast too.

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Simon Palmer. 

Simon has been practising architecture for well over ten years in his home country of Australia and abroad too. The interesting thing about Simon, in discovering who he is and what path he would choose as a 20-year-old, is that his decisions stemmed from experiences abroad and the solo travels he made between studying at high school and undertaking tertiary qualifications. The so-called GAP year you could say:- 

Get A Purpose!

Or in Simon's words that cliche of, "Finding himself." 

In conversation, we reminisce on times at the University of Canberra (6:30) while we were both students there in 2005/2006-ish. Simon mentions how he felt grateful and even privileged to be allowed the opportunity to study at the university (12:20) to realise his career ambition to design buildings for his vocation. 

Simon explains in detail the events which happened in Berlin (16:45) where he was challenged about the person he was and the person he could be. This all happened in the beautifully designed Holocaust Museum and then his chance encounter with a soothsayer of sorts on the streets outside. 

We talk about savouring moments (29:00) and how at a young age Simon discovered this practice and has carried it with him throughout his life. This is interesting because it was this act that caught my attention in the first place. I have a very visual memory of Simon enjoying an obscure beer while chilling at a uni party where the rest of the students were drinking cheap box wine as quickly as possible. No savouring at all, and not even tasting most probably. Cause it tastes bloody awful. 

Simon shares some suggestions of places to go and savour life's moments (32:00) from his experiences. Places like the Greek islands, Croatia, Costa Rica and New Zealand surprisingly for one of the best night skies in the world. 

We discuss (39:15) whether international experience, travel and working/living abroad impacts on your job and future prospects. (41:30) 

And to conclude, Simons tells of his thoughts on possible destinations to explore in the future in the upcoming post-covid global experience...

Enjoy.

Further links:-

Jewish Museum in Berlin: https://www.jmberlin.de/en/libeskind-building

Stoicism: https://aeon.co/essays/why-stoicism-is-one-of-the-best-mind-hacks-ever-devised

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Clive Drew. 

Clive and I met in actual 3-Dimensional space over 10 years ago near the end of 2010 on a night out in the East End of London. We have a mutual friend called Chris who organised a curry on the famous, Brick Lane, then to go on and enjoy Clive's gig at 93 Feet East in the old Truman Brewery. Good times - Apart from the overly inflated price of Jamaican lager. 

Clive is a passionate and creative person with over 12 years of experience in PR and marketing, specialising in the music biz. Writer, musician and conscientious worker, it makes sense that Clive excelled in work and life in the big city of London. So why did he move? 

In conversation, we talk about moving to London in your 20's and 30's (6:55) to pursue your best life and I ask questions as to why then after a decade or so Clive decided to pack up his life in London (9:25) and move abroad. Perhaps for a sea-change with a career change? 

Clive shares some of the preparations he made, (13:25) in terms of vocation and location prior to leaving London and also about his 6-week trip to India (14:55) he made in the time available between leaving the UK and setting up in his new job and place to live in Italy, on the Adriatic Sea. 

We talk about the timings of our big decisions in life (18:55) whether there is a right time, a wrong time, or just our time.

Clive explains what his motivations were for this experience living abroad (22:55) and working as an English teacher in Bari. And how this time has been beneficial for rediscovering some of his first-loved creative pursuits such as writing. 

We discuss the kind of discoveries, explorations (25:55) and mini-adventures Clive has made since living in Italy and how his lifestyle has been affected (31:10) by Covid times. 

In the end, we both agree that the best thing to do right now is to keep a positive mindset (35:55) and immerse yourself in culture (41:50) for creative inspiration. 

Clive gives his advice to anyone thinking of seeking a sea-change and maybe a career change and becoming a TEFL or a TESOL teacher somewhere in this wonderful world... 

Enjoy.

You can follow Clive on Instagram @clivedrew and don't forget to check out his musings on his writing website too http://setyourownscene.com/

Further links:-

Teaching English: https://www.tefl.com/ , https://www.tesol.org/

Clive's school: https://www.lordbyroncollege.com/teaching-opportunities/

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I talk with Matt Chalupnicek. 

Matt is another Canadian and fits my descriptor of being cool, charismatic but kinda crazy. 

Matt Sebastian was the other Matt in fact, the other Matt who was on the previous podcast episode with Shaun McCord. It was this Matt, Matt C, who was one of the other riders on that epic east to west bike hike across Canada. 

In conversation, we talk about an accident in Calgary that could have killed Matt (10:10) ironically on a bike. While he was in recovery, with a busted jaw, broken arm and a sore head he was invited on the journey. After some deliberation, he decided to join but make the trip his own at the same time (22:40). And why not try to raise money for charity too. So he did. 

Matt tells of some of the mishaps he endured (38:10) like when he got sick in Quebec, all alone and had to make a deadline while cycling, soaked in the rain and dog-tired. The things you do for others I suppose. 

Matt explains how this journey changed him (54:40) and some of the achievements he is proud of (55:10) too. 

I was curious to know Matt's favourite memory (60:10) of the trip and why he would recommend (1:07:00) these kinds of epic adventures...

Enjoy.

It was great to have a chat with another old buddy after so many years. If there has been one benefit to this pandemic it has been the willingness of people to reconnect over Zoom. That's been pretty sweet...

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond' podcast, I have two guests on to chat. And these two guests are zooming-in from two different locations on either side of Canada. Today's guests are Matt Sebastian and Shaun McCord. 

Matt and Shaun are a cycling partnership. Together, they crossed the whole country of Canada, east to west. More or less. Shaun is from the west coast and Matt is from western-ish Canada but their journey together started on the eastern side of Canada, in a hostel in Halifax, Nova Scotia many years ago. 

In conversation, we talk about whose crazy idea (10:50) it was initially to attempt such a daring adventure to cycle from the eastern tip of Canada, all the way to the west coast. 

As with any trip, there are fears that have to be considered (15:35) and how these might be overcome. We talk about the unique route (18:50) that Matt and Shaun ended up taking and some of the picturesque vistas (28:50) they passed through, notably Manitoulin Island on Lake Huron. 

On a mega-long trip, such as this one, there will always be those inevitable scary moments (39:20) but I was caught off guard by what Shaun and Matt had to say about witnessing an awful racism encounter one evening in Manitoba. But on a more positive note, Matt Sebastian's life changed on this trip as he met his now-wife en route (44:50) in Ottawa. 

With so many weeks on the highways together I was curious to hear what Shaun and Matt experienced once they had finally reached the finish line (48:00), so to speak. I was confident that both Matt and Shaun would have comments about how this epic road trip - by peddle power - was life-changing (51:00) with countless opportunities for personal growth. And I didn't expect such heartfelt comments from both guys saying how much their riding buddy

Enjoy.

Shaun wanted me to make a note that he made a mistake about cultural greetings during the "Fav 4" at (56:20) and he actually texted me the correction, "Miigetwetch is not a Cree greeting expression, it is an Ojibwa word which means - thank you."

Cheers Shaun :)

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]

On this episode of 'the Nostalgic Vagabond podcast, I talk with Tatum Skipper. 

Tatum is an entrepreneur and travel is at the heartbeat of her enterprise. Some people know her as the fearless travel coach, others know her as the founder of Bonvoyage Babes Travel Blog and others still as host of 20 Till Takeoff podcast. 

If you've met Tatum on the traveller beat and didn't know these amazing things she is up to in her day-to-day life, you might know Tatum as a no-bullshit, dive headfirst traveller, who is a barrel of laughs, a classic drinking buddy perhaps, but no doubt, all-round good company. 

In conversation, Tatum reveals that certain toxic relationships (6:30) in her past pushed her to step outside of herself, and the person she'd fallen into, in order to rediscover her true identity again and travel helped her to make that happen. 

We chat about travel social media and whether or not it is a true and authentic representation of the travel experience. (14:45) Is it better to have a positive experience rather than a negative one? How much do travel expectations (24:15) play a role in the outcomes of certain travel adventures? Tatum offers candid stories of some of her dumb-arse mistakes (26:15) from the past. 

Fear takes centre stage in the second half of the chat. Tatum expresses how she fears regret more than failure (34:45) and gives away some free advice with her "ATA GIRL" approach to travel and fears in life, in general. It's good stuff...

Enjoy.

If you want to follow Tatum, her blog and podcast you can find her at the following:

Insta: @bonvoyage_babes and @20tilltakeoff

Website/blog: https://bonvoyage-babes.com/

Tatum is also on tiktok and clubhouse if you prefer those platforms.

A big thanks to Tom Forfar for creating the title tracks for the podcast series.

And, any comments or feedback feel free to email

[email protected]