🚐🌄 Sacred Landscapes: Sam Gennawey's 175,000-Mile Quest for Meaning episode artwork

EPISODE · Jan 25, 2026 · 36 MIN

🚐🌄 Sacred Landscapes: Sam Gennawey's 175,000-Mile Quest for Meaning

from The Not Old - Better Show · host Paul Vogelzang Smithsonian

 🚐🌄 Sacred Landscapes: Sam Gennawey's 175,000-Mile Quest for Meaning The Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates Interview Series 🌄 What if your second act began at 60… behind the wheel of a van? Meet Smithsonian Associate Sam Gennawey — former urban planner, theme park historian, and now full-time van lifer. Sam made the bold decision to leave his Los Angeles loft, hit the road in a Mercedes Sprinter he calls Darlene, and spend six years exploring America's most sacred places: our national parks.  Sam Gennawey will be appearing at Smithsonian Associates coming up. Please check out our show notes for more details about Sam's presentation, but we have Sam today! 🚐 175,000 miles. Nearly 390 parks. Countless stories. But this isn't about travel tips. It's about rediscovery. It's about confronting our history — the awe-inspiring and the uncomfortable — and asking what it means to age with purpose. 🎙️ In this episode of The Not Old Better Show for Smithsonian Associates, Sam shares the most moving moments from the road — the quiet places, the stories we don't tell enough, and how volunteering inside the parks helped him find meaning, community, and clarity. 📚 His new book, Sacred Landscapes, isn't just a travelogue — it's a blueprint for intentional living, especially for those of us asking, What's next? 🎧 Whether you're dreaming of a van, a new start, or simply a deeper understanding of your country, this conversation will inspire you.  Sam Gennawey will be appearing at Smithsonian Associates coming up. Please check out our show notes for more details about Sam's presentation, but we have Sam today! Listen here on Apple Podcasts!  https://notoldbettershow.info/4456zJi #SmithsonianAssociates #VanLife #NationalParks #ReinventionAfter50 #SecondActs #NotOldBetterShow #PurposeDrivenAging #SacredLandscapes https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/programs/architecture-of-national-parks?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2025FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=276223

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🚐🌄 Sacred Landscapes: Sam Gennawey's 175,000-Mile Quest for Meaning

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 🚐🌄 Sacred Landscapes: Sam Gennawey's 175,000-Mile Quest for Meaning The Not Old Better Show, Smithsonian Associates Interview Series 🌄 What if your second act began at 60… behind the wheel of a van? Meet Smithsonian Associate Sam Gennawey —...

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