The Expat Chat

In this episode, Chris Englert and Steve Goodfriend discuss their nomadic lifestyle, and explore the financial and medical benefits of travelling the world. They share their own strategies for saving money, such as investing in stocks at a young age and prioritizing travel. The speakers also share their experience finding medical care in different countries, and the importance of having insurance. Furthermore, they discuss the importance of spending time with family and friends, and the lessons they have learned from their lifestyle. Finally, they give an overview of the Eat Walk Learn resources available for those looking to explore and educate themselves.   Check out their website at https://eatwalklearn.com/

Brian and Penny Davidson have perfected the art of extended vacations, thanks to a combination of slow travel and housesitting. They have no desire to hit the road permanently but want to avoid rushing around sites and being restricted by a budget as normal travel can be. In this episode, we explore the many benefits of house sitting as an option for travel and how it can provide a local experience and cost savings. We talk about how Brian and Penny are able to afford 3 - 4 month holidays without incurring any more cost than a short term rushed holiday would be.We discuss the changes in travel over the past fifteen years, the concept of digital nomadism, and options for extended travel. We explore options for affordable travel and recommend websites and apps for travel planning. Lastly, we discuss the importance of communication when travelling, cultural differences, and earn earning options while travelling.   For more resources and episodes check out The Expat Chat website

Perpetual travelers Alan and Ros Cuthbertson of Frequent Traveller join us to discuss their life of constant travel. Since hitting the road in 2015 from their base of Bundaberg, Australia they've mastered the art of living on the road for an affordable price. They credit their lifestyle with providing them with a new-found feeling of youth. In this interview we discuss the benefits of medical tourism overseas, the kind hearted nature of people around the world and why you need to ignore what the media are telling you and focus on the impressions you see for yourself You can check out their blog at Frequent Traveller For access to more resources and our members area go to The Expat Chat         Frequent Traveller

FIRE exponents (Financial Independence Retire Early) Tim and Amy Rutherford of GowithLess.com have found the secret of early retirement and with the kids off their hands have now hit the road full time. The covid world we now live in has put something of a spanner in the works for many permanent travellers including those, like Amy and Tim, who have just got underway. They won’t be letting this put paid to their careful planning however. We caught up with them to discuss how to be flexible with your travel arrangements in the new covid environment we have to deal with and how to follow your travel dreams while taking an early retirement Enjoy! Tony and Leanne

Travelling the world has its challenges at the best of times - but attempting to do it without flight is a whole new experience! Today we interview Dave and Di Taunton who, in 2016, decided to sell up and hit the road crossing the planet without the use of flight. They left their native Sydney and havent looked back. In this interview they share their experiences of how travelling by road and sea offers a unique perspective of the world and how their new lifestyle has enriched them. Sit back and enjoy their unique perspective on the world! 

Many of you will have enjoyed our previous podcast The Future of Travel in a Post Covid World where we discussed what will happen when the current lockdown situation comes to an end. This live event was an excellent chance to ask your questions of our live panel but as we have an audience spread across six continents we weren't able to do this at a time that suited everyone. With that in mind we decided to repeat our live event with The Future of Travel in a Post Covid World - Part 2 with a fresh panel of experts ready to share their thoughts and opinions of when and how we will be able to travel the world again. This time our panelists are FIRE retiree and minimalist traveller Amy Rutherford of GowithLess.com, Housesitting expert Jodie Burnham of NatnJodie.com and long time traveller and globe trotter Peter Pecksen of pecksen.com. We hope you enjoy listening to this discussion.   

Todays podcast is a recording of our recent live panel discussion on the Future of Travel in a Post Covid World. Joinng me are world renown travel blogger Barbara Weibel of Hole in the Donut .com  Intrepid Aussie traveller Duncan Dempster Smith of To Travel Too.com and Co-editor of Housesitting Magazine Ian Usher of housesittingmagazine.com. These live panel discussions are a regular part of our interviews and gives you, the listener, the chance to participate with your own questions for our panelists. If you'd like to listen in and ask questions at our next live online event visit our website travatical.com, sign up for our free magazine, and we'll contact you when the next live online event is scheduled.

Todays guests are Canadian travellers Peter and Karen Pecksen. We first met Peter and Karen while housesitting in Singapore. We noticed from their comments on a Facebook group that they were in town - we reached out to them and the next day were enjoying each others company over a nightmarket dinner and a couple of beers. Thats just the way travel rolls sometimes! Pete and Karen are hardcore. Theyve been travelling for six years with no signs of tiring! On the interview they share their unique incites into the world of travel and why they made their escape from the rat race. SIt back with a coffee, beer...or something stronger - and enjoy!

It seems in this day and age most of the world has been explored. Trying to find a destination which isn’t crowded with tourists and cameras is an increasingly difficult job. Today’s interviewee however has found the perfect place to live where few people will bother him. For most people the idea of a job for life would seem like perfect security. For Christian Bruttel life in the German education system as a teacher was enjoyable but he felt trapped, as if his life was already played out. When the opportunity to become a guide on the remote island of Svalbard came up he leapt at the chance to follow his dream. Four years on he’s mastered everything from chasing off polar bears to building igloos and he has the photos and memories to prove it. Christian joined us to discuss one of the most unique jobs in the world, why Svalbard is a place of such great beauty and how living in this unique location has changed his perspective on life. You can check out Christians stunning photos and even purchase prints at his blog http://polarchris.blogspot.com/   What I learned from Christian’s interview: I have to admit to having no idea about Svalbard (or Spitzbergen as it’s also known ) before I spoke with Christian but the picture he paints of some of the truly unique experiences there now makes me want to go. Where else can you find a place that gives you polar bears, whales, icebergs, igloos and the Northern Lights in a ready-made package? It sounds reasonably affordable to get to despite the limited opportunities for flights. Thanks to melting ice Christian does have the excitement of seeing things that may never have been seen by human eyes before but the melting is a reminder that our planet is susceptible to change and we must do all we can to protect areas like Svalbard for the sake of all of the planet. Remember Christian had no experience of this and have never been into the Arctic but he has developed a skill and a passion over the last 4 years. There are lessons for all of us in the journey he has made.