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Welcome to Episode 138 of The Journey Is The Reward!On this episode, Brian and Micah are crossing the Atlantic to talk with the one and only Terrific Tanya about her recent UK adventures.Before bringing our guest into the studio, Micah and Brian check the mailbag for any last-minute updates. But wait… there are absolutely zero ground delays today! With no general listener feedback and a rare episode off from Listener Lu, the guys take advantage of the completely clear skies and cruise straight into the main conversation.Tanya recently jetted over to England to meet up with the chaps from Plane Talking UK to help them celebrate and record their monumental 600th episode of PTUK.Tanya gives us the full, unfiltered trip report on her journey to the UK and the incredible festivities held at the historic Imperial War Museum Duxford. It’s an amazing story of aviation history, great community, and transatlantic travel—though her recap does leave Brian feeling just a little bit guilty for holding Micah back from joining in on the live adventure.So sit back, relax, and enjoy the stories. Because around here, the journey is the reward.As always, our ears are blessed by the utterly soul-stirring, goosebump-inducing sounds of the Madalitso Youth Choir! Their Welcome and Goodbye songs, recorded straight from the Royal Livingstone Hotel in Zambia, are pure magic.You can always find the audio recording at www.thejourneyisthereward.org.

Welcome to Episode 137 of The Journey Is The Reward!On this episode, Brian and Micah are back in the studio and catching up with everyone's favorite culinary traveler, Chef Kathy.Before bringing the Chef into the cabin, Micah gives us an honest status update on his Chase Sapphire Reserve card now that he’s hit the six-month mark. With the premium card market getting more expensive by the day, Micah breaks down exactly which features, lounge perks, and travel credits he’s used to justify that hefty annual fee.With zero ground delays on the schedule, no listener mail, and a rare night off from Listener Lu, the guys take advantage of the completely clear skies and head straight into the main itinerary.Chef Kathy recently joined Momma Coleman and Brian’s brother Shawn on the adventure of a lifetime to Ireland. Because you absolutely cannot have Momma Coleman flying in the back of the bus, Brian worked his frequent flyer magic to upgrade the family into United Polaris business class.While exploring the spectacular Irish countryside, Chef Kathy didn't just sightsee—she also embedded herself in a local culinary school to sharpen her professional skills. And despite some chaotic driving logistics on the local roads, the crew made it back to Dublin in time to clear US Preclearance and immigration without a hitch.The adventure didn't stop across the pond. Upon returning to the US, the Chef met right back up with the family to celebrate Momma Coleman’s legendary 91st birthday bash in Toms River, New Jersey. From there, she jetted out to Los Angeles to link up with Brian for an immediate road trip out to Las Vegas.In the City of Blinding Lights, Brian and Chef Kathy took over The Sphere, catching the mind-bending production of The Wizard of Oz before returning to the venue for a high-energy No Doubt concert. Kathy breaks down the incredible visuals of the venue and contrasts the show with the venue's original residents, U2, for two completely different premium entertainment experiences.Up next for the Chef? A solo expedition to Iceland—this time, safely out of range of the Coleman clan!So sit back, relax, and enjoy the stories. Because around here, the journey is the reward.As always, our ears are blessed by the utterly soul-stirring, goosebump-inducing sounds of the Madalitso Youth Choir! Their Welcome and Goodbye songs, recorded straight from the Royal Livingstone Hotel in Zambia, are pure magic.You can always find the audio recording at www.thejourneyisthereward.org.

Welcome to episode 136 of The Journey Is the Reward!On this episode, Micah and Brian are catching up with Julian Kheel from Points Path—one of their absolute favorite browser extensions (even if Brian still wants to call it an "application").Before the deep dive into point values, Brian is checking his gear for EAA AirVenture Oshkosh!  If you're heading to the show this summer, let Brian know so you can connect in person.And because it wouldn’t be an complete episode without her, we dive back into the mailbag to answer yet another question from our most frequent of flyers, Listener Lu.The guys wanted to have Julian back on the show because Points Path has been busy adding some serious "thrust" to its feature set. If you’re tired of guessing if you're getting a good deal, you’ll want to hear about:Hotel Point Values: You can now see the real-world value of your points on hotel stays right in your browser.Smart Alerts: Points Path is now acting like your personal air traffic controller, monitoring price drops on flights you’ve booked—or are even just considering—so you can rebook and save without the manual labor.To wrap things up, the guys put Julian in the hot seat. They ask what he would do with a 100,000-point windfall, and his strategy might just surprise you. Plus, Julian gets honest about his own biggest "points turbulence"—the mistakes and regrets he's had while navigating the world of miles.So sit back, relax, and enjoy the stories. Because around here, the journey is the reward.As always, our ears are blessed by the utterly soul-stirring, goosebump-inducing sounds of the Madalitso Youth Choir! Their Welcome and Goodbye songs, recorded straight from the Royal Livingstone Hotel in Zambia, are pure magic.You can always find the audio recording at www.thejourneyisthereward.org.

Welcome to episode 135 of The Journey Is the Reward!On this episode, Micah and Brian are back together to recap an incredible milestone celebration—Momma Coleman’s spectacular 91st birthday party—along with a fantastic combined aviation meetup in Toms River, New Jersey.Because the airspace is completely packed, the guys are temporarily skipping the listener feedback segment. However, they did hear from their favorite frequent flyer, Listener Lu. Micah thinks she might be stuck in a bit of a holding pattern, though, because her question sounded suspiciously similar to a previous one!Before we get into the weekend's festivities, a quick reminder that Brian is packing his bags for EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, WI this summer. If you are planning to head out to the big event, please drop him a line—he would love to connect with listeners face-to-face.To get out east for Momma Coleman’s big celebration, Brian suffered the ultimate frequent flyer tragedy: his United Airlines PlusPoints upgrades failed to clear, leaving him stuck in the back of the bus. But a little economy-class turbulence was a small price to pay to celebrate with Mom, family and friends.The trip got even better on Sunday with a combined aviation meetup. It was wonderful to catch up with old friends and welcome some new faces to the group. The travel and aviation community truly is full of the best people.And finally, while the catering on the plane and the spread in the United Club left a lot to be desired, Brian found culinary redemption on the ground with a classic New Jersey pork roll sandwich… NOT Taylor Ham!So sit back, relax, and enjoy the stories. Because around here, the journey is the reward.As always, our ears are blessed by the utterly soul-stirring, goosebump-inducing sounds of the Madalitso Youth Choir! Their Welcome and Goodbye songs, recorded straight from the Royal Livingstone Hotel in Zambia, are pure magic.You can always find the audio recording at ⁠⁠⁠www.thejourneyisthereward.org⁠⁠⁠.

Welcome to episode 134 of The Journey Is the Reward!On this episode, Micah and Brian are back with a packed show featuring international adventures, listener mail, and the ultimate puzzle of frequent flyer routing.Before getting to the main interview, the guys dive into Listener Lu’s fascinating question about Delta sponsoring a premium lounge inside The Sphere in Las Vegas. Should you expect incredible visuals, immersive entertainment, and knowing Vegas, a very long line to get in, or will this be a boring airport lounge?Next, we head across the Atlantic to the Emerald Isle. We tune in to a fantastic, on-the-ground interview that Chef Kathy recorded while traveling around Ireland with the one and only Momma Coleman.Before we get to the main topic, in major domestic travel news, Brian is packing his bags for EAA AirVenture Oshkosh! If you are planning to head out there for the big event, please let Brian know—he’d love to meet up face-to-face.Of course, getting there is where the real story begins. Brian managed to sniff out a first-class award ticket to Wisconsin for just 27,000 points, but the layout of the trip seems to have been designed by a computer making things unnecessarily complicated. He breaks down the bizarre choices he has to make to actually claim that first-class seat.Our main guest today is Eric the Mapmaker, who recently returned from a grand tour of Italy with his lovely wife, Bella. Eric gives us the full trip report on:The experience flying across the pond with Delta.Navigating local Airbnb stays and finding the best spots.The logistics of actually getting around Italy (and surviving the local driving).And because it’s Italy, a deep dive into the incredible food that made the trip unforgettable.But as any seasoned traveler knows, even the best-planned trips can throw you a curveball. When plans went sideways, Micah stepped in to save the day, finding Eric a creative way home… albeit with a very "scenic" detour.So sit back, relax, and enjoy the stories. Because around here, the journey is always the reward.As always, our ears are blessed by the utterly soul-stirring, goosebump-inducing sounds of the Madalitso Youth Choir! Their Welcome and Goodbye songs, recorded straight from the Royal Livingstone Hotel in Zambia, are pure magic.You can always find the audio recording at ⁠⁠www.thejourneyisthereward.org⁠⁠.

Welcome to episode 133 of The Journey Is the Reward!On this episode, Micah and Brian have a fascinating conversation with Retired Captain Mukhedkar, a former Indian Air Force instructor and Captain for Air India. "Capt. Mookie," as we were lucky enough to call him, joined us from India. He is currently recovering from heart surgery, so while his voice is a bit weathered, the wealth of history he shares is more than worth the listen.Captain Mookie brings over 45 years of aviation experience to the table, spanning both military and commercial operations. With more than two decades in the Indian Armed Forces—much of it spent as a flight instructor—he eventually transitioned his skills to Air India. Over his career, he logged an incredible 15,000+ flight hours across 14 different aircraft types. The guys dive into his experiences with an impressive tail-number roster, including:Trainers & Props: Lycoming-5, Harvard T6G, HT-2 (the Indian-made trainer), Dakota, HS748, and the Pushpak.Military Jets: The L29 and L39 (flown in the Iraqi Air Force) and the HJT 16 Jet Trainer.Commercial Heavies: The Boeing 707, Airbus 310, and the legendary Boeing 747-200, 300, and 400 series.As a special treat, we are joined by his daughter, Priya, who shares an adventurous family story about driving all the way from Iraq to England for a vacation. It’s truly the definition of a journey of a lifetime!Join us for a Meetup! If you are in the New Jersey area on May 17th, we would love to see you:·       When: Sunday, May 17, at 4:00 PM·       Where: Charlie’s Pizza, Restaurant and Pub·       Address: 1980 Rt. 37, Manchester Township, NJ 08759And as always, our ears are blessed by the utterly soul-stirring, goosebump-inducing sounds of the Madalitso Youth Choir! Their Welcome and Goodbye songs, recorded straight from the Royal Livingstone Hotel in Zambia, are pure magic.You can always find the audio recording at www.thejourneyisthereward.org.