WanderLearn: Travel to Transform Your Mind & Life

Last year, I stayed in Cairo's Sheraton hotel. I spoke with two representatives to learn about the dirty underbelly of running a luxury hotel in Egypt. 

I asked them:

• When was the last terrorist act in Cairo?


• What's hard about running a 5-star hotel that most people don't think about?


• How can they run a casino when Islam forbids gambling?


• At 22:00, when the hotel realizes they won't sell out their rooms, why don't they just drop the price to $40 to at least make a little bit of money rather than lose money with the unused inventory?

 For some background, read my article on Forbes.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/francistapon/2018/02/04/luxury-hotel-face-off-in-cairo-sheraton-versus-the-four-seasons-plaza/#5c754c0385fb 

And see this YouTube video, where I compare the Sheraton with the 4 Seasons:

https://youtu.be/9iPIe0a_RGM

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

I love talking with Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) because they offer such a unique perspective on a country. Because they're stationed in one country for two to three years, they are both insider and an outsider.

They're an insider because they usually:

• Live in villages


• Learn the local language


• Hang out with the locals so much that the locals start behaving "normally" with them

However, at the same time, a PCV they are outsiders for obvious reasons. Sometimes they can blend in. For example, a black American can blend in most of Africa.

However, the blond and blue-eyed Alicia Carter and Brandy Hart had no hope of blending into Lesotho. They were both Peace Corps Volunteers in Lesotho, a small country surrounded by South Africa.

Alicia and Brandy both extended their two-year stays because they loved it. 

I ask them about their experiences in Lesotho.

At the end of the podcast, we take a quick tour of Alicia's rondoval.

To see the interview, watch it on YouTube at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppz-L6v0arI

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

Tomas Higbey has been an environmentalist for over 2 decades. In this 45-minute profound and sometimes funny conversation, I debate environmentalism with him to get a rise out of him.

Listen to find out what he thinks is the:

• Most important environmental problem we're facing.


• Solution to global climate change.


• Elephant in the room regarding the environment.


• Urge to reproduce - are men and women different?

 In the 2nd half of the conversation, we discuss some of his travels, specifically:

1. Chile, where Tomas lived for 5 years. 


2. Africa, where Tomas traveled and worked in. He was in Somalia when there was a serious war going on.

 Tomas is witty and always fun to listen to.

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

A skeptical teenager named Wolf asked me a bunch of questions about Bitcoin, so since his parents are one of my patrons, I am happy to address them.

The WanderLearn podcast focuses on travel, tech, and transformation, so Bitcoin fits in there.

Moreover, Bitcoin has important travel implications, especially when you go to places that have sanctions and other controls.

One hour before I recorded this episode, Bitcoin passed $10,000 - an important milestone. I recommended buying it in Dec 2018, when it was $3,500. I predicted it would double in 2019. If it drops to $7,500, I will be right!

I recorded this episode live for my Patrons. Although you can't see the video, I'm sharing the audio with you.

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

Frank Isaac was my roommate for a couple of months in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Here are some of the questions I asked him:

• How is Tanzania's government fighting corruption? Is it working?


• It seems that African men are rarely at home. Is that largely the case or is that a myth?


• How are Ugandans different than Tanzanians (Frank lived in Uganda for a decade)?


• Do Tanzanians date between tribes?


• How popular is polygamy?


• Is witchcraft a big deal?


• How faithful are Africans to each other?


• Do African men spend much time with their children?


• Do men often abandon their kids?


• What's the future of Tanzania?

Here's a sad, true, and disappointing story about Frank Isaac. After this podcast, we got along great for a couple of months. There was never any sign of negativity or conflict.

Days before Rejoice and I were going to leave Tanzania, Frank's smartphone was stolen. To help him out, I offered my backup smartphone. I told him that he could either buy it for $300 (a good price) or, if he didn't like it after a couple of days, he could return it for free. 

On the morning we were leaving for Zanzibar, he hadn't given a clear answer. I should have woken him up as I was leaving, but I trusted him and we were going to be in Zanzibar for a week (which is 1 hour from Dar es Salaam by boat).

After we left, Frank cut off all communications. He ignored all my calls and messages. I told him in so doing he's effectively stealing my phone. He may not consider himself a thief, but that's what his actions are indicating.

I had two of my Tanzanian friends pressure him to either send me the money or return my phone.

Finally, he coughed up the phone when my friend went to his apartment. 

Frank never explained to my friend (or me) why he was trying to steal my phone. I didn't owe him rent or anything. I couldn't understand his behavior. It's like getting dumped by a lover with no explanation when you thought everything was going well.

The only explanation I could come up with is that he might have been upset that Rejoice (my wife) told Frank's girlfriend that another woman slept with Frank one night. Female solidarity compelled Rejoice to spill the secret. 

If that was the reason he felt justified in stealing my phone, Frank never expressed it, perhaps because he knows that he shouldn't punish me for Rejoice's actions.

He was never man enough to tell me what was going on.

I share this story because it's so typical of Tanzanians: they are non-confrontation people. 

In fact, most Africans avoid direct conflict and arguments.

Nigerians are the exception. Tanzanians are closer to the African tendency.

Indeed, Africans remind me of the Japanese in that respect. They rarely share negative feelings with you directly. It's your job to read between the lines.

Frank probably thinks that it's "obvious" what I did wrong.

The only thing that was obvious to me is that Frank wasn't the friend that I thought he was.

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

Mark Joseph hiked El Camino de Santiago with his father's ashes. The father and son had intended to walk the long trail together, but, like many people, they postponed their dream hike until it was too late.

He's filmed a documentary about his walk to Muxia, which is the end of El Camino de Santiago.

Between now and August 3, 2019, he is running his Road to Muxia Kickstarter project, which aims to raise an eye-popping $83,500!

In the interview, which was done a couple of months ago, Mark mentions he wants to raise $65,000. Since the interview, he has raised the bar. He realized that making a film is a lot more expensive than you can imagine! 

I was the 2nd backer on Kickstarter. He's got a long way to go. Support him. If he doesn't raise $83,500, your credit card won't get charged.

In my 40th WanderLearn episode, I talked with Mark and his cousin, Ariel Jonotan Fernadez Arias, about El Camino. We discussed:

• How they met


• How Mark convinced Jonathan to get involved in his documentary


• The challenges of doing the documentary


• Why anyone should hike El Camino


• How Mark's dad died

My article "10 Reasons Why El Camino de Santiago Sucks" has had 3 million views. It's an often misunderstood article. I support anyone who walks El Camino, including Mark Joseph.

If you prefer watching this podcast, watch it on YouTube at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UbPUPa7Do4

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

The three most popular excuses people have for not traveling?

1. Lack of time


2. Lack of money


3. Lack of children

Just kidding about that last one!

Today, we'll look at the real excuse #3: I can't go because I have kids!

When I was in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, I interviewed the parents behind Growing Up Without Borders.

For the last few years, they are systematically visiting every country in the world with their three daughters!

That's right! 

They've been traveling with them since they were 5, 7, and 9 years old!

Now they're 9, 12, and 14 years old.

Tyler & Chantal Patton have three daughters Julia, Angelique, & Chloe.

They've been to nearly 100 countries in the last few years!

Listen to find out:

• What did they do right?


• What did they do wrong?


• Why should you do the opposite of what everyone else is doing?


• What's this biggest travel bargain they ever had?


• How does Tyler find such travel bargains?


• How does travel impact a child's development?

Comment on this episode and share it with this link:

https://francistapon.com/Work/WanderLearn-Podcast/Traveling-To-Every-Country-With-3-Kids

Because their kids were within earshot, I didn't swear! Aren't you proud of me?

The WanderLearn Podcast has over 10,000 downloads in its first 38 episodes! 

This is episode 39 and we're averaging nearly 500 downloads per episode. I'm happy! Thank you!

Still, I want to boost that 10x, so please help me by reviewing it on iTunes (or wherever you get your podcasts). Encourage your friends to subscribe too! Buy 10 phones and download the podcast on each one! Or just download 10 apps and download it on each one! Woo-hoo!

Send me your questions for my next AMA episode!

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

Stephen P. Williams, author of Blockchain: The Next Everything, talks about bitcoin, cryptocurrencies, and blockchains. In this interview, I ask him:

• What is a blockchain?


• Is each bitcoin transaction really consuming 30-USA-households worth of electricity?


• What's the difference between proof-of-work versus proof-of-stake?


• What's the promise of Etherum vs. Bitcoin?


• What's blockchain's killer app? What what's the next low-hanging fruit?


• Why should painters love the blockchain?


• Why did someone pay $170,000 for a digital crypto kitty?


• Why is Williams bullish on Ethereum and Litecoin?


• How are dapps (distributed applications) going to impact us? See the state of the dapps that Stephen Williams mentions.


• What does a self-sovereign world look like?

Around 35 minutes into the interview, we discuss an interactive McKinsey matrix about the blockchain industry. It's worth seeing the matrix (or to watch my YouTube video about it).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRSYkay394k

You can follow Stephen Williams on Twitter.

For those who don't see how this relates to travel (my normal subject), it's that cryptocurrencies and blockchains have the potential of disrupting everything, including the travel industry. 

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Kennedy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

There's a project that is searching for an Einstein in Africa. I may have found him.

His name is Baye Gaspar. He's from the extreme north of Cameroon. He's won countless awards. He's just 26 years old.

It's a brutally honest discussion. I am politically incorrect, as usual. We don't sugarcoat the conversation.

One thing that few will appreciate is that Baye Gaspar comes from a Francophone region. It's hard to find someone from a Francophone region that speaks English as well as he does. That's just another testament of his intelligence.

In this long conversation, we discuss:

• What awards Baye Gaspar has won.


• Why many Africans believe witchcraft is behind his success.


• The pervasiveness of cheating and corruption in many African educational systems.


• Baye's artificial intelligence app that will help with doing medical diagnosis. 


• What's the price difference between a modern doctor and a witchdoctor?


• He's been to 5 African countries. What did he observe?


• What does Gaspar think of the Anglophone separatist movement in Cameroon?


• What are 10 positive traits and 10 negative traits that Africans have in common?

We recorded this in 2018. Since then:

• Germany didn't give Gaspar his visa.


• Gaspar's app is coming out in late 2019.


• Paul Biya, Cameroon's perennial leader, is still in power in 2019, as Gaspar predicted.

One of WanderLearn's top patrons, Kathy Enger, asked me to draw attention to Health Access Sumbawa. I am happy to promote this remarkable nonprofit. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded the organization to bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Since then, it's expanded thanks to generous donations. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support to one of my favorite wallets:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83

Mustapha, Tual, and Usama are three young Egyptians hanging by the Nile in Luxor. 

• What do tourists miss out on when they zip through Egypt?


• How important is Allah in Egypt?


• What do think of Israel, Sudan, and Libya


• What's the marriage ceremony like?


• What do you they imagine relationships are like in America?


• What's the future of Egypt?

I apologize that there's the annoying sound of wind during the recording. The Nile is windy and I didn't have a windscreen. The only reason I released this episode was that the content was revealing.

This show was sponsored by Health Access Sumbawa. In 2014, Jack Kennedy founded this nonprofit that is helping bring malaria control and healthcare to remote, impoverished communities. It started on the remote island of Sumbawa, Indonesia. Visit their website to learn more and to donate: https://healthaccesssumbawa.org

You can post comments, ask questions, and sign up for my newsletter at http://wanderlearn.com.

If you like this podcast, subscribe and share! 

On social media, my username is always ftapon. Follow me on:

• http://facebook.com/ftapon


• http://twitter.com/ftapon


• http://youtube.com/user/ftapon


• http://pinterest.com/ftapon


• http://tumblr.com/ftapon

Claim your monthly reward by becoming a patron at http://Patreon.com/FTapon

Rewards start at just $2/month!

If you prefer to do a one-time contribution, you can send it to my PayPal at [email protected]

If you prefer sending me cryptocurrency, then please send your support:

• Bitcoin: 3EiSBC2bv2bYtYEXAKTkgqZohjF27DGjnV


• Ethereum: 0x86D8Ab45260F82A5548F39BF21C9e244D0405a83