Grapple Asia Interview Ep. 12 | Patrick Letica - My Way to Japan

Patrick Letica is a former athlete and financial advisor from Switzerland. As he progressed through his young adult life a question kept coming to mind, "What truly made him happy?" As it turns out, helping people and exploring the world was the answer. Over time, Patrick's goals became clearer and he would make the decision to challenge himself and cycle from his home in Switzerland to Japan and help people through the trip, facing the challenge head-on with no prior cycling experience. Inspired during a trip to Brazil in 2021 to visit his Jiu-Jitsu professor, Broa, in Recife, Brazil, Patrick would see how life is in the many favelas of Brazil. His goal for this trip is to collaborate with two coaches he met, Jairo Santos and Renan Bastos to establish infrastructure in favelas in Ibura and Pina, Brazil. They aim to lead social projects that rescue children, teenagers, and adults from the streets. Socials: Website: https://www.mywaytojapan.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patrick.letica/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mywaytojapan ----------------------------- Chapters 0:00 Sponsors 0:37 Guest Introduction 1:55 Helping kid's in the Favelas 3:34 My Way to Japan's origins 5:13 Preparation for the trip 7:14 Initial challenges of the journey 9:57 Training in every country 12:08 The Middle East & their amazing hospitality 13:59 Distinct features of each Arabian country 16:43 The level of BJJ in the Middle East 20:00 The importance of law enforcement & military learning BJJ 21:48 Patrick's length of stay in each region 23:37 Crossing to India from Pakistan 26:38 The crash close to the Nepali border 30:14 The food in various countries 31:24 The importance of clean water 34:20 Nepal 36:37 Diwiz Piyalama as a leader 38:24 Arriving in Thailand 40:04 BJJ in Vietnam 42:00 The final destination 43:13 Training in Japan 44:16 CARPE DIEM BJJ 46:55 The business of Jiu-Jitsu 48:17 Memorable moments 50:22 Future plans & goals 52:35 The allure of Asia 56:40 Jiu-Jitsu in the Philippines 58:50 The growth of Jiu-Jitsu in Asia 1:00:23 Dubrovnik 1:01:08 Japanese work culture 1:04:05 Gratitude ----------------------------- =========================== Connect with us! ============================= IG: ➡︎ https://www.instagram.com/grplasia/ IG: ➡︎ https://www.instagram.com/grappleasiapod/ FB: ➡︎ https://www.facebook.com/grplasia/ =========================== Subscribe and Listen to the Grapple Asia Podcast HERE =========================== ➡︎YT: https://www.youtube.com/@GRPLASIA ➡︎Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/grapple-asia-podcast/id1717848251 ➡︎Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2XC4Ct28MhyxJRHe8dpP0j?si=4893974dfb24499f