The Observer Effect

The Observer Effect

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The Observer Effect episodes

  • 56 A Chasing after the Wind—Pamplona, Where Patxi Ran with the Bulls
    Patxi ran with the bulls, and I caught up with him near Iruña Cafe, where Hemingway used to write.  I asked a very special guest to translate his side of our conversation ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.
    Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org
    "I have learned a great deal from listening carefully."
    —Ernest Hemingway
    18 min
  • 55 Melted Ego—Sri Lanka, Where Amin Quit Trance
    Amin was a trance DJ from Singapore, until he traveled to Sri Lanka for his last show.  I asked how Austria brought him closer to his faith ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.
    Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org
    "I hope the leaving is joyful, and I hope never to return."
    —Frida Kahlo
    30 min
  • 54 Kopfkino—Namibia, Where Janusz Saw the Moon Freed
    Janusz made a movie in Namibia.  He claims to look like a neanderthal.  I asked how it felt to escape communist Poland ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.
    Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org
    Learn Easy German on Youtube→ at EasyGerman.org
    Check out the Global Experience→ TheGlobalExperience.org
    “The most unhappy eyes in the world are those that can not flow tears.”
    —Kornel Makuszyński
    52 min
  • 53 I Came from the Wall—Romania, Where Michal Went for Ethnomusicology
    Michal needs funds to repair his time machine and get back to the 1960s.  I asked what we can do to help ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.
    Follow Michal Oliver Music on Facebook→ https://www.facebook.com/michalolivermusic
    "So ... be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O'Shea, you're off to great places!"
    —Theodor Geisel
    15 min
  • 52 Super Loneliness—Galápagos, Where Jaey Surfed
    Jaey is in the process of moving from Seoul to Barcelona by way of South America.  We met in a blustery corner of Chile, where he told three beautiful stories from his trip.  I asked why he's not allowed into the most famous soccer stadium in Buenos Aires ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.
    Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org
    "We are for the most part lonely when we go abroad."
    —Henry David Thoreau
    33 min
  • 51 The Summing Up—Burma, Where Seph Met Mr. Book
    Part 2 of our special 50th Episode celebration!  
    We look back at some of the stories that resonated this year and what their sum could mean.  At the end I tell the story of the man in Burma who made me hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.  And a very special thanks to Dave for stepping in to host again this week.
    Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org
    "Where we are is who we are."
    —Fernando Pessoa
    44 min
  • Episode 50: An Empathy Machine
    Part 1 of our special 50th Episode mile marker!
    A friend helped me lift the hood to look into the engine of this podcast.  Inside we found a Yeats poem, the story of the coin Primo Levi brought back from Auschwitz, and why his is the path I most want to follow.  And of course, as always, I hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.  And to Allison for taking this photo.  And a very special thanks to Dave for stepping in to host this week and share W.B. Yeats's fitting "The Song of Wandering Aengus."
    Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org
    "Any careful word may suggest a route, may a strand of metaphor or event out of which much, or all, will develop." —Annie Dillard
    35 min
  • Episode 49: The Echo of a Noble Mind—Cerro Torre, Where Elio Was a Kid
    Elio and I met in a cwm, a mountain valley carved by a glacier.  What he said there led me to reflect on the sublime ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé.
    Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org "What is wonderful always goes together with a sense of dismay." —Pseudo-Longinus
    17 min
  • Episode 48: The Visa Situation—Germany, Where Andes Hoped to Become a Minority
    Andes has to get a letter from the office of labor in Bonn, so that he can extend his stay in Berlin, before returning to Sweden to continue his studies, before ultimately, maybe, one day returning to Indonesia.  I went with him to the post office ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé. “What I hear most often as I travel the country are five words that never, ever fail to touch my heart, that’s ‘I am praying for you.’” —Donald Trump
    29 min
  • Episode 47: It All Stems from Naivety—Damascus, Where Binta Met an Old Man
    Binta took her very first trip alone at a very young age.  Looking back, she wonders if maybe she might have been too trusting.  We asked why she's traveling alone still ... and hope listening like this evaporates borders.  Special thanks to the musician, Dana Boulé. Join the Observer Effect Kiva Team→ at Kiva.org "All my days I've longed to travel the right road and to take my own errant path." —Sigrid Undset
    26 min

About The Observer Effect

From the publisher's feed

These are strangers' travel stories. Each time I ask how travel has changed them and hope listening like this evaporates borders.