Tales of a traveller podcast

In the first episode back after the summer break, DJ Elle Mac joins us to discuss how she discovered solo travelling and as some you already know Elle is our relationship guru so we also picked up on different perspectives of what it's like to solo travel while in a relationship. Some of the key topics of discussions include: - Barriers that prevent people from travelling solo - Types of people that you meet - Tips on how to not get bothered - Queues that people use to source people out - Solo travel while in a relationship - What are the stigmas associated with travelling solo when in a relationship and questions you may want to ask your partner travelling solo Elle Mac Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/ellemacuk/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/ElleMacUK

Clem Richards joins me in this episode recorded on the 4th of July AKA Super Saturday to discuss the travel bridge, a list of countries the English people can visit without going into quarantine. Clem and I share some of the risks associated with travelling during the pandemic and whether it's actually save to go away in the current climate. We also discover some exciting new countries such as Réunion and more. Clem Richards - https://www.instagram.com/clemtrich/

I usually form relationships very quickly with strangers whenever I'm travelling and that's because I sometimes stay in hostels where I meet like minded travel enthusiasts. In this episode, I share a previous episode about how I met my travel companions in Vietnam, buddied up with three other backpackers on completely different journeys and how we came together to travel to Halong Bay in Vietnam Eden Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/edenjbap/ Adam Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/noctorious22/

This was a tragic week for black people. We witnessed acts of blatant racism from Amy Cooper who falsely accused Christian Cooper (no relation) of threatening her. Later that same day a video of a police officer also surfaced as the officer was seen pressing his knee on the neck of a George Floyd, a black man who was later reported dead as a result of the injuries from the police brutality. It's an uncomfortable conversation but one we need to have more regularly, something my guests and I do by weighing in with our personal experiences of moments we've experienced racism abroad and at home.

In this episode, Richard (Travel Tramp), Rohan and Max (Travel of a Bookpacker) take us on the adventure of discovering the nomad life in Kyrgyzstan. The guys had a blast on their tour which included Journal of Nomads and got to experience; The World Nomad Games, lived in yurts, went horse riding and were one with nature. Niko and Cynthia from Journal of Nomads also featured to explain why they fell in love with this country only after 2 days. Cynthia & Niko from Journal of Nomads Website - https://www.journalofnomads.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/journalofnomads/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKLoxVHbaNodZa3U3cdQ5qg Richard from Travel Tramp Website - https://www.travel-tramp.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/traveltramp_uk/ Rohan & Max from Travels of a Bookpacker Website - https://www.travelsofabookpacker.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/travelsofabookpacker/

Niko from Journal of Nomads joined me in this episode to share one of the most amazing travel stories ever told. Shortly after moving out of his parent's home, Niko and a friend hitchhiked from Quebec Canada to Alaska and this is where the story gets interesting. Niko's friend chose to fly back via visiting some friends in Vancouver for a couple of days but Niko opted to race her back by hitchhiking across the country. Journal of Nomads Website - https://www.journalofnomads.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/journalofnomads/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKLoxVHbaNodZa3U3cdQ5qg

João is an award winning Portuguese currently in Beirut, Lebanon. A few years ago, he took a year out with the hope to walk and hitchhike to Turkey from Portugal. In this episode, João shares why he travelled slow and the benefit of travelling this way. We find out if he actually got to Turkey or if he took any detours and some of the amazing encounters he made at the start of his journey as he backpacks across Europe with the aim of arriving in Turkey. João Sousa Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joaocbsousa/ Website - https://www.joaosousaphotos.com/

Cynthia and Niko have been travelling together for six years and in this episode they share various times where they've had to overcome adversity as they barely had any money while visiting some incredible places around the world. Journal of Nomads Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/journalofnomads/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKLoxVHbaNodZa3U3cdQ5qg Website - https://www.journalofnomads.com/

Alex from Lost with Purpose breaks down the types of travellers, what motivated her to travel the way that she does and how she earns money to travel indefinitely Alex Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostwithpurpose/ Website - https://www.lostwithpurpose.com/

My guest in this episode, Alex, notoriously backpacks countries most westerners won't consider visiting. Some of these places include; Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Georgia and more. In this episode, she shares a unique insight into what it is like to solo travel these places. Alex Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/lostwithpurpose/ Website - https://www.lostwithpurpose.com/

I tackle this episode with my good friend Clem Richards who at the time of recording was six days away from travelling to Italy, one of the most affected countries in Europe. Clem Richards https://www.instagram.com/clemtrich/ Origin story of Coronavirus https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-daily/id1200361736?i=1000464110899

Me and Elle discuss; preferred dating app (Tinder, Bumble and Hinge), what it is like for us to date in and outside our culture, why people start relationships from a long distance and I also share a personal story about a girl I met in Iran. Elle Mac https://www.instagram.com/ellemacuk/ Finding My Husband on a Dating App - https://ellemacuk.com/2019/11/10/finding-my-husband-on-a-dating-app/ International love check list - https://www.jennasworldview.com/2020/02/12/are-you-down-to-have-an-international-bae/

In this episode, Elle shares; what it's like to go away with her partner, a friendship she lost when visiting Ibiza, and experiencing staying in a hostel for the first time. Elle Mac https://www.instagram.com/ellemacuk/ https://ellemacuk.com/

In order to create one of the sauciest travel series my guest, Elle Mac, encouraged her followers to share some of their wildest travel stories while remaining anonymous. In this episode, we uncovered was inspired Elle to create the series and to also share some of the wildest stories she received. Elle Mac https://www.instagram.com/ellemacuk/ https://ellemacuk.com/

A big part to why I travel is because I want to broaden my understanding of other cultures, it is something my guest, Benjamin also shares and discusses on this episode. Benjamin Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/keepupwithkessler/

It’s been a crazy start into 2020 with increasing tension between the US and Iran since Iran's admission it "unintentionally" shot down a Ukrainian passenger jet killed 176 people after Donald Trump ordered the assassination of Iran’s top military General, Qasem Soleimani. Mahdi Couchsurfing - https://www.couchsurfing.com/users/2008982963?utm_campaign=profile_share&utm_source=couchsurfing-ios Instagram - https://instagram.com/withthecurious?igshid=bzjiraoaukqz Quick background The Daily - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-daily/id1200361736?i=1000461683166

In the last episode of 2019, I drew inspiration from the feedback Tales of a Traveller Podcast listeners have given and I tried to capture key moments from my trip in Cuba as they were happening.

#36 New Zealand; Taking on the bucket list with Kate Thorne I met up with Kate two days before she flew out to New Zealand, a country that's been on her bucket list for so long to chat about what she intends to get up to while she's there for three weeks. Kate Thorne Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/kthorn__/

Patou joins us in this episode to chat about some of the things that we've done abroad that we wished stayed abroad or that we've brought back with us. Patou's Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/toupatoups/

Kojo creator of Holiday Helper shares a hot travel tips from his experiences. Holiday Helper Website - https://www.holidayhelperr.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/holidayhelperr/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKbuJzIWcx4qpFXfYuPDY7w Hanish Photography Website - https://hanishrc.wixsite.com/hanishrc Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/hanishphotography/

Kojo creator of Holiday Helper and Hanish creator of Hanish Photography both join me in this episode to share their passion for travelling and what this means to them, the role university played in fuelling this and the mischievous activities the guys got up to while travelling to South Africa, Swaziland and more. Holiday Helper Website - https://www.holidayhelperr.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/holidayhelperr/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKbuJzIWcx4qpFXfYuPDY7w Hanish Photography Website - https://hanishrc.wixsite.com/hanishrc Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/hanishphotography/

One of the things I wanted to do on this trip was to interview a Cuban that wanted to chat with me and also didn’t have a hidden agenda and that's exactly what this episode is about. My Couchsurf host and I discuss more than Salsa, Rum and Cigars Here is David's account - https://www.couchsurfing.com/people/david-goitizolo?action=show&controller=user_profiles&utm_campaign=profile_share&utm_source=couchsurfing-ios

The first impression of Bob (my guest) on this episode was that he is crazy and at the same time, I could relate to what he was doing. This was when I saw Bob's YouTube page of him hitching from Kazakstan back to England. Bob joins us to share a time where he felt vulnerable while travelling. Stray Bob YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2N2HqEyaVE5Tt1rFqe3_Og Stray Bob Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/_straybob_/

Amar Dhesi, one of my closest friends joins me in this episode to share his expectations for moving to Madrid, Spain to build his own Cathedral after resigning from his position as a Director in an energy firm in London. We reminisced about various group trips which include trips to Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Berlin, Prague, Budapest, Lisbon, Stockholm and more. Amar's LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amardhesi/ Amar's Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/skillspaybills/

Making this episode was a dream come true as I collaborated with two amazing travel podcasters; Whitney from The Q Travels Podcast and Pelumi from Black Kintsugi Podcast, something I set out to do at the start of 2019. Clem Richards, one of my closest friends that listeners may remember from previous episodes also joins us as I reach this milestone where we touch on a variety of topics ranging from; tourism in African countries, shortage of content from African countries, place where we’ve felt the most connection, next generation of travelling Whitney aka The Q Travels IG - https://www.instagram.com/theqtravels/ The Q Travels Podcast - https://linktr.ee/theqtravels Pelumi aka Black Kintsugi IG - https://www.instagram.com/black.kintsugi/ Black Kintsugi Podcast - https://linktr.ee/black.kintsugi

Earlier this year, I wrote a guest blogpost about the place where I received the most love on my guest Jess' website so had to bring her on the show to run it as a podcast episode to find out about Jess' travel destination where she received the most love. In this episode, we also discuss Baecation "couple holidays" where I was probably too honest. You can follow Jess on instagram @road2culturedom and if you want to read the gust blogpost I did about where in the world have I felt the most love, you can find it on her website Roadtoculturedom.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/road2culturedom/ Website - https://roadtoculturedom.com/travel-posts/

In this episode, we throwback to a previous guest, Ola the comedian to discuss the other side of Dubai you don't hear about. Listeners of Tales of a Traveller Podcast will remember Ola from an earlier episode titled the importance of local knowledge through his personal experience in Puerto Rico. To check in with what Ola is doing, you can follow him on Instagram @olathecomedian or click the link below https://www.instagram.com/olathecomedian/

Daniel Johnson, one of the founders of Take Flight Podcast joins me in this episode to discuss his 50 country by 30 challenge. Daniel immerses us into his travel experiences, we also learn about his volunteering work, something that took him to Lesotho (the country inside of South Africa) in 2019 where he and a group of volunteers built a house in a week. You can see what Daniel is up to by following him on Instagram @curatedbydj or follow this link https://www.instagram.com/curatedbydj/

Kim Slade, the founder of Unlost Co, a UK adventure company based in Brighton joins me in this episode. Kim and I have a strongly correlated travelling styles and together we discuss going off the beaten track, his adventures across Latin America and Asia. Kim goes on to share his encounter with the most profound person he met while travelling. He overcame language barrier and the stigma local residents warned him about the individual with a severe case of mental disability while Island hopping in Indonesia. To see Kim's adventures, follow him on Instagram & Twitter @Unlostco

Harry (DJ Quiche) and I discuss everything we've seen from the clubbing scene while travelling but majority considered taboo to talk about. We touch on the pressures of pulling people and getting laid while clubbing, is the culture overhyped, and the drug scene we've witnessed and the craziest/memorable moments we've experienced while travelling. Harry is a massive musichead and has started mixing his own sets. You can see some of his work on Soundcloud when you search "DJ Quiche" or follow this link https://soundcloud.com/user-752714179

The creator of Spontaneous Travel, Liza, joins me to discuss moments from our travel experiences where we’ve formed an attraction for people we meet while travelling.

I invited my Iran travel buddy, Andrej, a good friend from work George and Hanna his wife who happens to be Iranian. You also get to hear from my flatmate, Tide. Together, we tackled questions many of you listeners had about Iran, such as why we were out there in the first place, we also discuss safety and security, something many people showed concern for when they found out that I was going there.

Andrej, my travel buddy and two of our Couchsurf hosts; Ammar and Forough join me in this episode recorded and produced in Iran about what it is like to hosts strangers from other countries in their homes. We touch on the key benefits for hosts and guests for using the Couchsurfing community, some of the scepticism travellers experience when using the App and how it made my trip to Iran a unique one.

Truth be told, I only packed my back an hour before I had to leave my place and that is because I'm able to prioritise items that I need from the things that are nice to have. In this episode, i’m with Alex Dique from Champagne Funk who featured in an earlier episode where we revealed the truth about solo travelling. Alex is an experienced traveller and has been away from long periods of time so has a lot to share when it comes to living off a backpack.

This is a mini-story taken from the streets of Lagos Nigeria with Clem Richards (my mate from London) about how fewer people are speaking traditional languages in urban Nigerian cities like Lagos.

In this episode, I invited Clem Richards, a second generation Caribbean from London to share his experience about visiting Nigeria, something that's truly unique as majority of the people who travel to Nigeria are either Nigerian immigrants or Nigerian descendants living and working abroad. We discuss how everyone including myself convinced Clem to visit Nigeria and how I offered to lend him money just so he wouldn't miss out on an incredible adventure. We discuss living without consistent supply of power, how Clem bribed his way into the country and more.

Zoe Reeve joins us in this episode to share one of her fondest memories which was a result of travelling to the Caribbean where she worked on an organic farm in Trinidad and Tobago. Zoe shares one of the biggest travel myths that she’s come across about how travelling is expensive, something that inspired her to create her blog www.travelwithzoe.org where you can see all of her adventures and how she is travelled to Trinidad, Jamaica, Gambia and more on a budget.

Having local knowledge is a key component to a successful trip when visiting any country. From personal experiences, this is what distinguishes an average trip abroad that is similar to what everyone else has or had in comparison to a spectacular one that is truly unique to you. In this episode, Ola the Comedian shares his experience in Puerto Rico about the importance of local knowledge.

In this episode; Akinyi and I get real with Nike athlete Shona Richards where she shares her travel adventures to; Havana, Vinales, Santiago de Cuba, Baracoa and other Cuba towns while she was backpacking. Shona shares how she turned catcalling and been scammed into some of the most memorable experiences from her time in Cuba.

Shona Richards is a GB 400m Hurdler, Kings College University student and keen traveller. Shona started travelling two years ago in 2017 shortly after losing a close friend. At the time she felt she needed to be in a different environment so decided to go to Vietnam and Cambodia. In this episode, Shona shares her take on travelling and memorable highlights from her adventure to Vietnam, Cambodia and Cuba.

In this episode with Tolu, creator of Travel with Tolu share and compare our ways of travelling. We discuss her earliest travel memories and why that was significant. Tolu and I also go on to share what it is like to be a black female, her dream travel destination; we both share our take on solo versus group travelling, and her website Travel with Tolu.

On this episode, Akinyi Gardiner takes over the show with the latest travelling trends that you guys will be seeing in 2019. Together we discuss micro-trips, wellness trips, insta holidays, the allure of Japan, Sri Lanka, Bali, and South America.

In this short episode summarising my time in Cuba in five minutes, I tackle the most frequently asked questions that I received from you guys based on the two dedicated Cuba episodes on Tales of a Traveller Podcast. I answered the important question most of you had about the girl that I invited over who then robbed me of all my travel money on day one. I explained why I did not report the incident to the police, if I thought Cuba was expensive and why we chose to stay in the country after we found out about the prohibition and restrictions.

There were two significant moments from my time in Cuba in 2016; the previous episode covered the first moment (Robbed in Cuba) while this episode dives into my take and those of my guests (Clem Richards and Yemi Awopetu) who I was travelling with at the time. We discuss what it was like to visit a communist country during a historic time, how travel has supported our friendship, and why Cuba is one of our favourite countries to visit.

To mark the first year anniversary of Tales of a Traveller podcast, I wanted to share a personal and intimate travel experience. This episode starts with my take on the trip to Cuba in November 2016. Clem and Yemi, two of my travel buddies who were with me at the time of the holiday also had something to say.

We have different motives whenever we travel. In 2018, Ibby visited three continents, nine countries and a total of 20 cities/towns. Ibby attended several events; was in Nigeria and Thailand for two separate weddings, France for Afropunk. His travels took him on adventures to Vietnam and Cambodia where he formed friendships with strangers and got lost on a scooter. He also found himself in Romania, Poland, Germany and Denmark. In this episode with Akinyi, Ibby shares the roots and inspiration to why he started travelling and also shares why he continues to travel to new countries

In this snippet of Tales of a Traveller Podcast, I share my typical cab experience in China with Alex Dique, my guest from episode eight where we revealed the truth about solo travelling. Getting around in a foreign country is challenging, especially in countries where English isn't the main Language. In this episode, we reminisced about what it was like for us to get around in taxis before the arrival of ride sharing Apps like Uber and how we overcame the language barrier.

In episode eight of tales of a traveller podcast, Alex Dique from Champagne Funk joins me to share his stories about solo travelling. Dique is someone I look up to when it comes to travelling; he visited China and Latin America before I did so found that I was sometimes a step behind him when it came to travelling alone. China has since gone on to play a huge role in our lives and how we view travelling. In this episode, we discuss Dique's travel motives, memorable moments and share top tips for solo backpackers

In episode seven, I'm with my buddy from Mexico, Ernesto the founder of one of the most popular tours in Mexico City called Bondabu. Ernesto and I first met during our exchange program in South Korea and we discuss the myths about Mexico, he's travel preferences and what inspired him to create a unique cultural experience in Mexico.

The progress in technology has definitely made my life easier and it is something that spills over to travel. In this episode Akinyi and I share our top five travel technology devices, covering multiple software and Apps such as skyscanner, Airbnb, facebook, instagram, twitter, WhatsApp, tinder, off-line maps and also hardware like our phones, cameras and more. Enjoy this episode as we discuss devices other travellers use for their first travel trip, travel insurance, search for affordable flights to enhance their travel experience.

In 2014, my best friend and I planned a long term travel adventure to South America together but for some reason I bailed on him and wasn't able to go on the trip anymore. In this episode, we publicly discuss why I bailed on him, where he gained the courage to go solo travelling from and some of his best moments from the solo adventure to South America