Amateur Traveler Travel Podcast

The Amateur Traveler talks to Stefanie Michaels (better known as @AdventureGirl) about a recent trip to the Marquesas Islands which are near Tahiti (or part of Tahiti depending on who you ask). Stefanie sailed on the freighter Aranui from Tahiti out to these remote islands. She encountered a warm people living in a tropical paradise… with very nice cars and nowhere to drive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Madeline Jhawar from Italy Beyond the Obvious about life as a tour guide for an adventure travel company. Madeline was previously on the Amateur Traveler talking about Travel to Sicily. Madeline talks about her misconceptions about what being a tour guide would be like and the reality of keeping a group of people happy (and not lost). She guided hiking and biking tours primarily in Italy. What skills do you need to be a successful tour guide? It might not be what you think. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Joseph about his recent trip to Malawi in Southern Africa. Malawi is not know for its game parks like other countries in the region for for the relaxing shores of Lake Malawi as well as the lush green highlights. It is a country heavily influenced by David Livingstone and the Scottish Presbyterian church and one benefit of this legacy is welcoming church guest houses to stay in. So join Joseph and I as we talk about the people, the politics and the minibuses of Malawi. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to photographer Ralph Velasco about tips to keep in mind when you are taking pictures on your travels. We talk about:    * telling a story    * depth of field    * giving your self assignments    * giving a sense of scale    * adding a human touch    * reflections    * avoiding the crowds    * embracing the weather    * seeking the unique picture    * capturing the essence of a place Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Nancy Sathre-Vogel from FamilyOnBikes.com about their odyssey – a bike ride with two young boys along the length of the Pan-American highway from Alaska to the southern end of South America. Learn why they did this trip, how they have managed it and what they have learned along the way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I talk about my recent trip to Berlin and Prague in December. This trip was just after the 20 year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall and 20 years after my last trip to Berlin. We will look at a 3 hour free walking tour of Berlin and at a paid private tour of Prague (a gift from OurExplorer.com). We will talk about the history of World War II, Communism and even the Hussite Wars. We will talk about the Christmas markets which are everywhere in both cities in December with their booths, crafts, food and mulled wine. I will tell you of some of the sites of these cities including museums, castles, churches, memorials, and even an Art Nouveau stain glass window in a very old yet also very new cathedral. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler travels to Geneva and experiences the Escalade which celebrates the defeat of the Savoy in 1602. Geneva is the home to many UN agencies, an old town, a cathedral and an excellent rare book collection. You can also find lots of ways to eat melted cheese and other Swiss treats on the shore of beautiful Lake Geneva. In this unusual episode Chris overcomes a technical microphone difficulty to record an episode on the road. This episode inlcudes some of the sounds of the Escalade festival. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Ilana Fayerman from Project Explorer about Johannesburg, South Africa. Project Explorer creates educational videos for kids and Ilana is one of the video hosts. She traveled to Johannesburg to meet its people, experience its culture and eat something very weird (see picture). She will take us on a virtual tour of neighborhoods like Newtown where she will introduce us to the New Market Theatre. She will take us into the township of Soweto. Out of the poverty of Soweto has come some of the hope of South Africa. It boasts the only street in the world (Vilakazi Street) to have produced two winners of the Nobel Peace prize. Ilana will also tell us which game animal is the tastiest and what happens when you put too much Chakalaka on your pap. We will dance in gum boots, take a safari to KwaZulu-Natal, learn when you can join a drum circle, lunch with art and visit the cradle of Human Kind. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amateur Traveler talks to Matt Kepkes of NomadicMatt.com about his trip to the ancient capitals of Thailand: Ayutthaya, Lopburi and Sukhothai. Before the capital moved to Bangkok it was in each of these three cities as invaders came in from what is now Cambodia and Burma and then were subsequently repelled. Instead of taking the night train to Chang Mai as many tourists do, Matt and his traveling companions explored these cities on the way. In their travels they found ancient temples (some in ruins and some well preserved), wonderful night markets, troops of monkeys, friendly people and a slice of rural Thailand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Eleonora about visiting eastern Germany. Eleonora grew up in Dresden and starts our tour there with a city restored from the rubble of World War II to one that boasts beautiful baroque architecture. She takes up verbally to the Master’s Gallery and also to the Green Vault in the old palace. She recommends the famous opera house as well as the recent rebuilt Church of Our Lady (Frauenkirche). We climb to the old fortress (Festung Koenigstein) which protected the area. After Dresden Eleonora directs us to the mountains of Saxon Switzerland and to the Oer Mountains with its tradition Christmas wood carvings. From there we go to Leipzig and to Bauzen (capital of a slavic minority – the Sorbs). We make a sobering stop at Buchenwald concentration camp before hiking in the Hatrz Mountains. Then we head north to Saxony-Anhalt where we stop by the oldest chocolate factory in Germany in Helle. Eleonora encourages us to visit the palace of Sanssouci at Postdam and the Hanseatic cities Rosto

The Amateur Traveler talks to Ira Bernstein about two lesser visited cities in Italy - Turin and Bologna. Turin has the reputation as the Detroit of Italy because of its long association with Fiat but that nickname does not express the beauty of the city, the warmth of its people nor the quality of its wine. Bologna has a reputation for good food in a country known for its good food which may be one of the reasons that Bologna is known as "the fat". The city is the home of bolognese sauce and lasagna. It also lays claim to one of the oldest if not the oldest university in Europe. Ira takes us on a tour of surprising museums (like the largest Egyptian museum outside Cairo), pivotal history and of course wonderful food.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Edith about the mountainous region of Austria where she grew up, the Tyrol. Edith designs for us both a winter and a summer itinerary, both of which involve getting outside and enjoying the beautiful mountains. In the winter we would ski and in the summer we would hike. When we are not hiking or enjoying one of the mountain alms then we can explore the palace at Innsbruck, a hiking museum and the Höfemuseum which is a farm museum. Edith talks about traditional foods such as Wiener Schnitzel, Kaiserschmarrn (sweet pancake dish), Kaspressknödel (fried cheese dumplings) and Graukäse (literally grey cheese). To work off that rich food (and of course beer) she will recommend we hike between the mountain huts or up her favorite hike Nochspitze. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Pam Mandel of Nerd’s Eye View and the Holoholo Wale blogs about two less visited islands in the Hawaiian islands – Lanai and Molokai. Both islands are less developed than their neighbors and better islands for relaxing on a beach than filling up your time with excursions from the activity vendors. Molokai is the one of the two that stole Pam’s heart away with a more authentic Hawaiian experience. Molokai might be best known for recently sainted Father Damien who worked with victims of Leprosy (Hansen’s Disease) on the island until he himself succumbed to the disease. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Jon Miller of the Rest of Everest podcast about his journeys in Nepal. Jon originally went to Nepal as part of a film he was shooting on an Everest expedition, but as Jon tells it you come for the mountain but fall in love with the people and the culture. Jon describes Kathmandu with is various temples or stupas like Swayambhunath (the monkey temple) and Boudhanath with crowds of people performing a kora around them. He tells us places to get a good meal in Thamel (the tourist district) and suggests a day trip to the well preserved city of Bhaktapur. After Katmandu Jon tells us about trekking and also hiking up to Everest basecamp where the altitude can be very challenging (and Jon lives up at 6000 feet at home in Colorado). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Dave Grenewetzki about his recent trip to Iceland. Taking advantage of the weakness of the Icelandic economy Dave and his family drove the ring road around Iceland and visited places with great names like the waterfalls Svartifoss, Seljalandsfoss, Skogafoss and Gulfoss, Lake Myvatn and the dark castles of Dimmuborgir, the glacial lagoon of Jokulsarlon, the geysers of Geysir and Strokkur, the geothermal activity of Namaskard pass, the university town of Akureyri, the hobbit-like town of Glaumbaer. They went bird watching at Ingolfshofdi, took in the baths at the Blue Lagoon, took the free welcome walking tour of Reykjavik with Jonas, zigzagged between icebergs, hiked to Thingvellir, and took in the tourist attraction of the Midlina bridge. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Gary Arndt about his trip to the 5 different countries that make up the Gulf states: UAE (Dubai), Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, and Kuwait. Each of these countries is an Arab country and a muslim country but in some, like Dubai, large portions of the population are from elsewhere. These countries include the very modern emirate of Dubai with its malls, hotels and an indoor ski slope. The gulf states also include the surprising country of Oman with ancient forts and the most memorable person Gary has met in his nearly 3 years of travel. Qatar is the home to Al Jazeera and of course Kuwait was the site of the first Gulf War. Hear about the world’s tallest building, fastest ferry and longest bridge. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Karl Anders who has traveled to Sri Lanka 8 times after striking up a friendship with the late author Arthur C. Clarke who settled there. Karl takes us on a vital tour of Sri Lanka from the capital of Colombo to the beautiful beaches to some of the archeological ruins at Dambulla, Sigiriya, Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa. Dambulla is notable for some of the cave murals. Sigiriya is particularly notable for the rock fortress, ruins of a palace high on this rock outcropping and again some of the cave murals. Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa both also have numerous stupas (a mound-like structure containing Buddhist relics). The inland high mountains are home to the tea country, plentiful tea fields and numerous tea factories. Karl recommends the Galle Face Hotel and some of the other inexpensive hotels left over from the British era. He also recommends hiring a car and driver/interpreter and avoiding the traffic and public transportation. We also talk about the recent civil war. Learn mor

The Amateur Traveler talks to Ivan Hernares, an award winning Philippines travel blogger, about his home country of the Philippines. Ivan leads us on a virtual tour of the 7107 islands of the Philippines archipelago starting in Manila. Manila has the walled city of Intramuros that reflects its Spanish colonial heritage as well as its asian heritage in Binondo (its chinatown where we can pick up some Lumpia or a winter-melon cake ). There are inexpensive places for backpackers to stay in the Malate neighborhood. Polish up your layup if you want to meet locals since the unofficial national sport is basketball. Then we head south to the power white sand beaches and nightlife of Borocay, the oldest city in the Philippines which is Cebu, the chocolate hills of Bohol and the underground river of Palawan. We explore the rice terraces of Ifugao (a world heritage site) and the WWII historic sites at Corregidor and Bataan. Ivan talks about unique architecture such as the Philippine Baroque churches and the vahay na bat

The Amateur Traveler talks to Christine who comes to tell us that Wisconsin has more to offer than just visiting my relatives. She starts us on a tour of the state from the college town and capital of Madison with its street fairs, concerts and capital building. We hear about the influence of Wisconsin born architect Frank Lloyd Wright who founded his school of architecture at nearby Taliesin. We enjoy the bike paths, breweries, badgers football and burial mounds. The we move on to Milwaukee with its neighborhoods, breweries and of course baseball. We stop in Kohler and then head up Wisconsin’s “thumb” to Door county. After visiting Green Bay and the home of the Packers we head up to the north woods with its many small lakes and Lake Superior with its one very big one. We wrap up by winding down the Mississippi river. Think there is nothing to see in Wisconsin? Think again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Amateur Traveler talks to Sam Oppenheim (who has previously been on the show talking about trekking in the Himalayas and traveling to Cuba) about travel to Laos. Sam Visited Laos as part of a year spent traveling around the world when he traveled extensively in Asia. Sam’s itinerary included the capital of Vientiane as well as Luang Prabang, trekking in the hill villages around Luang namtha and cruising on the Mekong River near Nong Khiaw. Along the way Sam photographed monks, children and little bottles of alcohol with snakes in them. Discover this beautiful country through Sam’s stories and through his lens. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices