Travellers Yarn

Today I chat with Dan from a small village near London. We chat food, work, travel and growing up in the UK. Dan has an upper class feel to him so I tease him for being a snob. I think he's a nice guy, however you can just listen and decide for yourself. 

This week I'm delaying the start of my British theme by discussing the top 10 questions asked of travellers on Google as found on my Google search of "Top 10 Traveller Questions."I'm discussing these questions with Sam from the United States who I interviewed during my Double Shot USA episodes. We discuss these questions in a bar over a drink and really delve into what it means to travel and identify as a traveller. 

Today I spend a day in the often forgotten Japanese City of Fukuoka. I walk around the docklands mostly and share my thoughts about my surroundings, and my thoughts about various experiences I've had across several parts of Asia. 

Today I chat with Yadan Sun again from China. She featured on the episode titled 'On China' which was an episode about China itself rather than a traditional interview about life. Yadan talks about her life growing up in a small village in Northern China. We talk about the factory that supplied all the jobs, where her parents had to disappear to for years on end to make money, and the surprise religion that is followed by roughly half the village back home..

This is the jam session where Yulia from the last episode and I rock out with the violin and a table and try to figure out the song she will use to seduce her future band from wherever they are in the world. We just play, work through the kinks and she improvises until we create something amazing. 

This episode has me both interviewing and jamming with a Russian super-violinist with many years of study and experience. Yulia is looking to create a band from people anywhere in the world and we use this episode to hopefully find that person! We also chat about Russia, her childhood and the long, long road to playing in orchestras and shows all over the world. 

Today I speak with Ji (Fnu Agari) from Mongolia. Ji was raised on his family farm, one of the many farms around the country entrusted to it's citizens by the nation itself. Mongolia is the final remnant of the way the majority of Asia use to be. Farmland as far as the eye can see, with ownership borders only placed in recent years. Mongolia is a country eating and living in fresher ways than most, and killing its livestock in the most unique and bloodless ways..

Today I chat with Naomi from the UK. We talk about her life and growing up in the UK and what it means to be British. We also chat about her impression of China and the Chinese, and whether she'd continue living here beyond the time she's committed. She's brutally honest and it gets a bit inappropriate, but Naomi in my mind is a fun and real representative of the Queens country who will surprise you. 

Today I chat with Li Jie who goes by Jane in English. We discuss China and its checkered past, her own career, her future and what her parents expect of her. While talking about the past we discuss the tyranical Mao who governed China with his 'little red book' and the other books that rule the lives of young Chinese even today. 

Today I discuss China with Feifeng Liu, a citizen of Chinas large cities and Yadan San from a small Chinese village. We talk the good and the bad ranging from positive traditions and values passed down from older generations, to the Chinese internet firewall and how it all affects Chinas recent opening to the world. 

This is our second and final week in the United States before heading for China. Today I interview Alexis Fischer and Trevor Hansen. Alexis is a dancer who performs in musicals around the world and Trevor is a diver working for oil rigs and in other capasities. We talk about America, travel, food, politics and much more. 

In this update I journey to an obscure district of Shanghai in search of a new microphone, and I introduce you to the upcoming focus of the podcast. 

Today marks the beginning of our USA Double Shot as this week and next I interview Americans and we discuss life, travel and what matters to the United States. Today I chat with Sam Gagliardi, a young singer from a small town who grew from a child with a speech disorder into a professional world touring singer. We discuss life and travel and what it means to accept a culture with a grain of salt. 

Today I chat with Beknar Bermudez from Puerto Rico. We talk about her modest upbringing in the crime riddled streets of the projects of Puerto Rico, her time in West Side Story and acting with the accent she speaks with naturally. 

Although I had a different interview planned for the first ever episode we instead we are going to begin with Leo. Leo was born and raised in Chile during the infamous dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Leo shares his life growing up in the dictatorship, a life of being told what to think and believe. He tells us about his life now being happy and grateful everyday for the freedom to think his own thoughts, research anything he wants and believe whatever he chooses. He talks about his home country and also, how to travel well.