Wandering Across Iraq, Yemen, Syria and Lessons from 23 Years of World Travel with Derek Baron (Ep 254)

Learn what it’s like in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Central Asia & how you can participate in one of Derek’s sustainable tours. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE In this episode Derek Baron talks about his experience traveling through Iraq, Syria and Yemen, including the incredibly unique island of Socotra.  He explains why he loves the Middle East and talks about the small group tours he runs to Iraq, based on his personal local contacts on the ground.  Derek also talks about his love for Central Asia, and the tours he runs to Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.  He explains how he designs all of his tours sustainably to have a maximum positive impact on the local people and places.  Derek reflects on the trends of over-tourism, digital nomad gentrification, and offers some suggestions for how we can make thoughtful travel decisions.  He also talks about stability anchors in an itinerant lifestyle, and pillars for sustaining the lifestyle longterm. Derek opens up about dating as a digital nomad, how his lifestyle design choices have changed in different seasons of life, and why he does not have a goal of visiting every country.  Finally, Derek reflects on the biggest impact 23 years of world travel has had on him, why he continues to travel, and what travel means to him today. → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FIND YOUR NEXT EPISODE Explore The Maverick Show Starter Packs — some of my favorite conversations curated by theme so you can easily find the episodes that match your interests. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU See my Top 10 Travel Apps See my Top 10 Books that Shaped the Way I Travel See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally Support the show by buying me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes!