Deviate

Why We Travel: Happiness, curiosity, wonder, sex, healing, and other motivations for hitting the road


Listen Later

"No one motivation is ‘better’ than any other. We travel with different motivations at different times, and they sometimes overlap." –Ash Bhardwaj

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Ash talk about curiosity as a motivation for travel (1:30); the ancient Greek concepts of happiness that underpin human motivations like travel, and how mentors influence travel (14:00); serendipity as a motivation for travel, Type One versus Type Two fun, and the dangers of "voluntourism" (21:00); how "awe" differs from "wonder," how to bring these perspectives home, and how "eroticism" can be a part of travel (36:30); "grief travel," and how one's sense for travel can become intertwined with a sense of hope (48:30).

Ash Bhardwaj is an award-winning journalist and broadcaster, and the author of Why We Travel.

Notable Links:

  • Paris travel memoir workshop, with Rolf Potts (creative writing class)
  • Banana Pancake Trail (backpacker route in Southeast Asia)
  • Hedonism (philosophical concept involving pleasure)
  • Eudaimonia (philosophical concept involving happiness)
  • A Moveable Feast (posthumous memoir by Ernest Hemingway)
  • Georges Perec (French novelist)
  • Beginner's Mind (Zen Buddhist concept)
  • Levison Wood (British explorer)
  • Arsenal F.C. (English soccer team)
  • Joseph Kony (Ugandan warlord)
  • Flow (focused mental state)
  • Mihály Csíkszentmihályi (Hungarian-American psychologist)
  • NGO (non-governmental aid organizations)
  • Air Vanuatu (national airline in the South Pacific)
  • Hokitika (town in New Zealand)
  • Pounamu (stone valued by the Māori)
  • The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber.

    Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we’re happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at [email protected].

    ...more
    View all episodesView all episodes
    Download on the App Store

    DeviateBy Rolf Potts

    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8

    4.8

    161 ratings


    More shows like Deviate

    View all
    Hidden Brain by Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam

    Hidden Brain

    43,713 Listeners

    Zero To Travel Podcast by Jason Moore

    Zero To Travel Podcast

    831 Listeners

    Good Life Project by Jonathan Fields / Acast

    Good Life Project

    3,304 Listeners

    Making Sense with Sam Harris by Sam Harris

    Making Sense with Sam Harris

    26,346 Listeners

    The Human Upgrade: Biohacking for Longevity & Performance by Dave Asprey

    The Human Upgrade: Biohacking for Longevity & Performance

    7,245 Listeners

    Ram Dass Here And Now by Ram Dass / Love Serve Remember

    Ram Dass Here And Now

    2,609 Listeners

    On Being with Krista Tippett by On Being Studios

    On Being with Krista Tippett

    10,172 Listeners

    The Science of Happiness by PRX and Greater Good Science Center

    The Science of Happiness

    1,898 Listeners

    The Peter Attia Drive by Peter Attia, MD

    The Peter Attia Drive

    9,200 Listeners

    The Daily Stoic by Daily Stoic | Backyard Ventures

    The Daily Stoic

    4,932 Listeners

    Deep Questions with Cal Newport by Cal Newport

    Deep Questions with Cal Newport

    1,313 Listeners

    Huberman Lab by Scicomm Media

    Huberman Lab

    29,248 Listeners

    The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

    The Ezra Klein Show

    16,098 Listeners

    All the Hacks: Money, Points & Life by Chris Hutchins

    All the Hacks: Money, Points & Life

    1,611 Listeners

    Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin by Rick Rubin

    Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin

    1,062 Listeners