Suzanne Wentley

Welcome to the Travel Tales podcast. The winners are the people with the most stories. One of the great things about traveling is the people that you meet.

I've slept in bus stations. Like I've slept on people's floors. It's already on fire. And then there's just a gigantic huge explosion like out of a Hollywood movie.

It's not right or wrong, it's just different. We hired like 10 Chinese prostitutes to come be our audience. We were kidnapped by nuns in Puerto Rico.

Not a good idea to be high when you're packing. You forget a lot of stuff.

I got swine flu. By the time you've lived through it, it's just a good story.

Well, hey, everybody. Welcome to the Travel Tales podcast. I'm your host, Mike Siegel. Thanks for listening. My guest today is Suzanne Wentley.

Before we get to her, I want to remind you that we can be found@traveltalespodcast.com and there you'll see photos of the guests. You'll see some stories that I've written. You see stories that some of the guests have written.

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If you have some travel questions you want to ask me, or maybe you just want to tell me how awesome I am, you can write me a traveltalespodcastmail.com that is traveltalespodcastmail.com Suzanne Wentley is somebody who reached out to me. She wrote me an email and asked if she could be on the show and I said sure. I checked out her her website, which is called thelovelightproject.com.

suzanne is many things, but Nomad is definitely top of the List. She is a yoga instructor. She worked for many years as a journalist. She has traveled the world. House sitting, pet sitting.

She has pretty much lived around the world constantly for over 10 years now. When she first contacted me, she was living in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific. And now she is living in Da Nang, Vietnam.

She has a new memoir out called One Way Ticket, and it's available on audiobook, ebook, or paperback. And we're gonna touch on a few of those stories here. Some are pretty wild.

So it was a pleasure to get to know her and I'm glad she reached out and it works, folks.

You can write me, tell me your story, point me to your pages and your sites, and if I think you'd be a good match for the show like Suzanne is, I'll have you on. Here's my chat with Suzanne Wentley. Okay, where are you talking to us from?

I am coming to you straight from Da Nang, Vietnam.

What brought you to Vietnam and how long are you there for and why?

Okay, what brought me to Vietnam? I lived in Da Nang about six years ago. I lived here and loved it. This is such a wonderful little city right on the beach.

It's really vibrant with lots of locals, but then there's also a fun expat scene. Tons of cafes to work from and vegan food to eat and easy living, cheap prices. So this is what brought me here. How long will I be here?

Has to do with my visa. I have a, you know, a three month E visa. So that is the answer to that question. Will I stay longer? That's possible.

I'm considering going to Cambodia for a month and then returning. I'm not sure what my next step is.

This is the standard tourist visa, right? Three months.

It's an E visa. So, yes, I can get a. You can get a visa on arrival for 45 days or you can apply in advance and get a three month visa. So. And that costs. I can't.

Not much.

Okay, but you don't remember how much. But it's not one of those, like a working visa where you got to prove income and do all that stuff. You just pay the.

Pay the money and then you got it.

Correct? I am a tourist.

Got it. And you were in a place where. I can't. Solomon Islands. Is that where you were before this?

Yes, before Vietnam, I was in the South Pacific. And that was interesting. That was the first time I was in the South Pacific, which was why I went. Right.

Because it was a little corner of the world that I hadn't experienced yet. And it was so wonderful and so different. I was the only tourist, I was the only Western woman.

I was the only white woman, the only solo female traveler on the entire island. And that was in itself an experience, but it was really, it was really great, like very authentic, very easy living and different. Right.

Because I had lived in the Caribbean. I sailed throughout the Caribbean for a number of years. And so I was interested to see how the Caribbean was different from the South Pacific.

And there are lots of overlaps, but then there's, I mean, it's also very different too. Lots of dancing culture was really, I thought, special. That was the way they expressed themselves.

I went to like Western Province Day, you know, like they're sort of, you know, their independence day, but it was Western Province Day. And every island, there's like 900, a thousand islands in the Solomon island. And every island kind of has their own special little dance.

And it's not like the hula, but it's kind of like the hula, like, so it's. Everybody's a little different. So it was fun to see the, See all the different cultures on display.

Well, I've been out in the South Pacific a little bit, I mean, other than Hawaii and Tahiti and mo'orea and stopped in Fiji for a little bit, you know, here and there. But Solomon Islands, not at all. So why did you pick there rather than maybe some of the more built up places like Tahiti or something like that?

Yes. So Solomon Islands. Yes. It's like about, I think, 50 years behind Fiji.

There was, I think I saw there was one restaurant in town and it didn't serve any veg. I'm a vegetarian. It didn't serve any food for me.

So I was getting my, my food delivered from Alo, the local guy who had a leaky wooden canoe, and he would come, so I was. He would come and deliver his vegetables and fruit to my boat.

So I was there because a friend that I met when I was sailing in the Dominican Republic, she knew this.

So they went through the Panama Canal and she knew this woman in Noro, the town where I was living, who lived on a boat and had cats and needed someone to care for the boat and the cat. And I said, I'm your girl, right? Because I'm a sailor and I'm also a super cat.

I'm one of these people that see cats on the street and go, oh, it's a kitty. So, you know, so that's what I did there. I was living on this woman's boat and caring for her cats and caring for her boat as well.

Amazing. So by this time, just hearing these stories just so far, people got to be sitting, what the hell does she do that?

She's in Vietnam, she's in the Solomon Islands, she's sailing around the Caribbean. So I guess we should talk about the Love Light project and what you do and what is. When did this life on the road start and why?

Okay, so. Okay, so the present moment is that I am primarily a writer. I have been a professional writer my entire life.

So currently I am working on writing projects. Just published a memoir of a lot of the travels that we're going to be talking about today. Also do life coaching. So I'm a transitional coach.

So I work with people who are interested in changing their lives in some somewhat dramatic and maybe overwhelming ways. I'm also a yoga teacher. I'm an energy worker. I play the ukulele.

So I'm doing, you know, I actually, money wise, I do many different things and on purpose, you know, to be very flexible and adaptable because I started traveling now 10 years ago, so I'm a full time nomad. I have no home base, which makes moving from the South Pacific to Vietnam easy.

Er, I guess because I don't have to worry about whether or not, you know, how my house is doing or how my car is doing. Right. I became a digital nomad before digital nomad was a thing, before that was even a term.

You're an og. You're one of the originators.

Yes, thank you. I do think I'm an og.

But you never. So basically you knew how to make a living doing this and take care of yourself on the road before all this influencer culture and stuff started.

Well, yes, I had to figure it out as I went along, actually, which I think most people do. But you're right, these influencers make it look pretty darn easy. And it's not, it's totally not, but it's doable. So I, I started traveling.

You know, I was working. I was a journalist, so I'm a trained journalist is my main, you know, that's my trade. And so I was doing that.

I was working for a newspaper and magazines for about a decade. And then I went into nonprofit work and was doing some communications and marketing work. And I was in Florida at the time and I was burning out.

I was working for a local government agency and my job was to help them pass a referendum to continue funding for children and family programming. Okay. So that involved talking to like Everybody in the, you know, all the time. And. And.

And I, you know, I was draining, and I knew that I had to do something different, but I didn't know what that looked like. And I knew. I thought it was time to move somewhere, and I wasn't sure where. And wonderfully, I met a man with a sailboat, as you do. He said, yeah.

He said, do you want to go sailing? And I said, yes, because that's what you do. Yeah. Right.

So this is in Florida, where everybody has a boat, you know, because I've lived in California for, like, 27 years, and the beat. The boat culture here is not much. I mean, I lived near. In Venice almost, and near Marina del Rey, one of the biggest marinas in the country.

And I didn't know one person with a boat. I didn't know anybody. And then you go to Florida and everybody has a boat or at least knows somebody with one.

There's much more of a boat culture down there.

Yeah, it's, you know, I think it's better to actually know somebody with a boat.

Oh, absolutely.

To own a boat.

Yeah, absolutely.

Yeah.

They always need one.

Isn't is another thing?

Yeah, yeah.

Sailboat is.

That's a whole different lifestyle. Yeah, they're into it. Anybody sailing is, like, all about that, and they hate motorboats, and they're all, you know, into that. But what was your.

Yeah.

What was your background? I don't know where you grew. Did you grow up in Florida?

No, I grew up in Pennsylvania.

Okay.

And then I lived in New York City for a little while, and so, yeah, I got a job working at a newspaper on the beach in Florida. You know, again, it's.

I remember newspapers. I started out in those in. In Chicago. I had to tell kids what they were.

See this paper, it was actual paper that came to your house with the news, and they're like, okay, whatever, pops, whatever.

Right. Once a day.

Yeah, it was crazy. I was like a little suburban weekly. I wrote, like, sports and features and stuff like that. But that was my job out of college.

I studied journalism as well, and that kind of stuff. But it's interesting. Were you doing, like, where in New York did you live, by the way?

In Manhattan. That's where I went to school. I went to New York University.

Oh, the fun. Nyu. I lived in Brooklyn for a little while in. In the last century, in a time we call the 90s.

But it was great, you know, I only lived there for like a year and a half, but it was awesome. But I love that NYU area. I had a friend that lived on 11th in university and I loved his neighborhood. It was so fun and.

Yep. Yeah.

Oh, yeah, that's great. But then. So you, like most kids who would go to nyu, they probably plan to stay in the city, you know, after graduation, we're all going to be here.

We're in the Big Apple. This is, this is where you work and try to make it and. But you lasted it how long? A couple years. And why Florida? Is that where the job was?

Well, yes, when it was time to graduate, I did. I, I had my fill, actually.

Oh, really?

I think New York is a great place to visit, but it is expensive and it's really hard to relax there.

It ain't no Solomon Islands, I can tell you that much. Yeah.

Yeah. In a New York minute. The New York minute versus the Solomon Islands minute are two different towns.

Absolutely.

Two different time zones.

So where in Florida did you go?

Yeah, so when it was time to graduate and I knew I wanted to work for a newspaper, you know, if I wanted to start. And I did work at the Village Voice when I was there, intern, which was cool. And.

But I knew that if I were to start in a big market like that, I'd be doing nothing, right. Like working at the, you know, doing obituaries or something. So I went to Stuart, Florida. So that's right on the coast.

It's just up from West Palm Beach. And so that's where, you know, I got a job. And it was wonderful because then I could work. I was the environmental reporter.

So I got to cover a lot of, you know, I was outdoors a lot instead of, you know, boring government meetings.

And I really enjoyed my time as a journalist and it taught me a lot about, you know, being observant and understand getting, you know, analyzing, understanding being like critical and, and not sort of getting letting your identity, get involved with the community around you to really be able to see things clearly. And that's helped me as a, as a traveler and, and writing my own creative projects for sure. But yes, right.

Just as you said, you know, it, it's dinosaur stuff now. And, and when it, you know, when it changed, it was, you know, it was time to change.

Yeah. And then later I worked in cable tv. So I mean, and even that. Now I'm talking like a dinosaur. See, cable was this, you know, here we are. So did you.

So when did the transition to journalist to full time travel writer? And was it was your writing, you say you're a writer. Was your writing always about travel or did you have Other books other than this new one.

And by the way, before we go any further, get your plugs in, tell us the name of the book where people can buy it and we'll get that out of the way.

Yeah, for sure. So it's, the title is One Way Ticket, which you'll as you'll learn about my, my travel ways. That's, that's sort of the way it's interesting.

Da Nang is the first place that I've returned to, so it's been 10 years of, of that. So you can buy this book and on, you know, on Amazon. It's also. I created an audiobook as well.

So all of the audiobook platforms and you can find more information about it on my website, which is the lovelight project.com. so that's really where you can get all the links to wherever you want to go. But you can also search for it by title and my name to.

Great. Okay, so you're down in Florida and I don't know how much travel your family did before you got into this, but I mean, did you grow up?

Were you a traveling family?

Did you have a lot of experience, especially overseas, or would you just kind of go into that blindly or you were like a backpacker, that one trip blew your mind and then you're like, that's it. That's my thing.

Blind, I think is probably the answer to that question. So my family, we did a little bit of traveling and the type of travel was going to the resort and sitting around the pool.

And I have memories of being a teenager, you know, in these cool places like Saint Lucia or Barbados or something, and me saying, can we go into town? Like, can we, can I go have an authentic experience, you know, and it was not how my family liked to do.

They were, they're much more of the all inclusive resort type of folks and there is great value in that. So that in general was the way that I traveled a little locally.

So before I went sailing, you know, sold all my things and quit my job and went sailing before I did that, I did spend a year traveling around the US a little bit too, because I was thinking maybe maybe I'll move to Charleston, maybe I'll move to California, you know, maybe Austin's my place, you know, like, so I was kind of playing that game for a minute. But very limited travel experience and especially solo female travel, that's a whole nother bag of worms, you know, to, to, to experience.

So I, yes, I, I can't say that I had a lot of Travel experience before I just jumped in the deep end.

Well, when you got on this boat, where did it take you? And when? How long were you on it?

Right? We traveled. I was with my partner for about two years, and we left Florida almost immediately. Disaster after disaster, by the way, with this.

And this is, you know, this is part of the story in one way ticket too, because it's such a dream, right? Like, let's go sailing with your lover, right? And it's so amazing. And everyone's like, suzanne, you've done done it. But then, let's see.

First there was a fire on the boat, which is like a fiberglass boat, and. Fire and fiberglass boat, like, bad combo. Okay? So that. First that happened and, and, and I got. And I got some PST SD PTSD from this.

Like, this was a really. I was alone on the boat and put the fire out. And that was a. That was a hard experience to go through. So PTSD is real.

What caused it?

But then, you know, the inverter spontaneously combusted. It was a lack of. It was. It was a bad fuse. It was a lack of a fuse, actually, is what it was.

So if you're doing a solar system, don't forget your fuses. That's. That's the takeaway lesson there. So. But not only that, then, like, the, the propeller fell off. You know, we got the.

All the transmission fluid drained out of the engine and it seized up the. But before that, the engine ran away.

I don't know if you know that, like when the RPMs go and like this kind of game and you have to, you know, you have to, you know, plug it. You have to stop the air intake when that happens.

And, you know, I knew nothing about sailing at this time, so I'm grateful to my partner at the time that he had experienced. So we didn't die in all of these situations. But at the same time, it didn't make for great relationship, you know, in a tiny home. Right.

I don't know if any, you know, if any of you or any of your listeners have lived in a tiny home or like in a van or a sailboat or something. I mean, it takes good communication skills and it takes a lot of patience and a lot of love.

And if those things don't exist, it is destined for failure. And that's, you know, that's sort of the short version of this story. So it was a trying time, but I was able to enjoy the Bahamas.

We sailed all the way down island through the Turks and Caicos to Dominican Republic, around Puerto Rico to the Virgin Islands.

So that's.

And that's where I ended up getting off the boat.

How long. How long were you on for?

About two years.

Wow. Wow. Okay. But you were still writing during that time, or were you still doing work?

Yeah, so exactly when I said that, I just kind of figured it out as I went along. That was my thought when I quit my job, right? So that was that job in politics that I quit. Sold, you know, sold everything. Here I am on a boat.

I thought, well, you know, I'm a journalist, and, you know, there are. I can write for magazines. So that was the first thing I did was, you know, pitch a bunch of sailing magazines, because that was my life.

And I thought, okay, I could do. So I got some gigs that way. And I also. This was really the beginning of remote work.

So I was finding some agencies that had some copywriting gigs, and I was working for chump change, really. I started at the bottom all over again. I was. And it was great, too. One of my first gigs was writing buying guides for ebay.

And it was ironic because I had just sold everything that I owned, right, to get down to, you know, fitting in a sailboat. And here I am, like, encouraging people to buy, I don't know, cosmetics or leaf blowers and things, like, things I'm never gonna buy. So.

But, you know, I did it. And slowly I was able to work my way up. I got some more clients. I was working for some magazines. I got some more agencies that I was working for.

I also do some consulting work, too, in marketing. So I got myself a couple of clients this way, too. And I was just able to make it work, you know, and it helps, too.

This is part of my philosophy, is really keeping the overhead low. That makes life a lot easier when it comes to, you know, doing the math on life.

So before we leave the boat, the other than the fire. I know that was probably the worst night or the worst part of the boat. What was the best? Can you think of one particular moment that stands out?

They're going, this is the coolest thing ever.

Yes, I would say sailing across the Caicos Bank. If you've been to the Turks and Caicos, that that water wins.

It is so crystal clear Turquoise dream and seeing dolphins jumping, you know, across your bow and playing in the wake. And this, you know, the wind and the sails and this is the dre it. Right.

So I've had a number of experiences like this where you get that dreamy part of it. I mean, it is hard living. Sailing and being a live aboard cruiser is what they call it. That's, that's, that's hard living.

You know, it's, it's not, you know, it's not like you're taking showers or you know, like even flushing the toilet is kind of a pain, you know, but, but there are those times where it really is that, those dreamy times when you know the stars are out and where the sun is shining and you know, it's just all you hear is the wind and the sails and the boat is moving and it's, it's bliss.

So you get off the boat in where was it? St. Lucia or something?

No, St. Thomas. So yes, that's okay because it's also, it's American, right? So it's an American province. Everyone speaks English. I can get mail.

I could sort of be a normal person there for, for a minute.

So now you, you're off, you're done, you're like leaving. I was like, I'm out of here. Now you got a decision to make. Do I go back home? Do I go back to Florida? Do I go back home?

Do I go or do I keep this life on the road going? And you decided I'm going to keep this life going.

Well, I don't. So many times in this story, it didn't really feel like there was much of a choice because it wasn't like I had a home to go back to.

You know, it would have involved going, returning to Florida. You know, I had lived there for a long time. I was there for about 15 years doing good work and making lots of friends and everything.

So I certainly had lots of community there. But I don't know if that really felt any more of a home than, you know, my parents house in Pennsylvania. Right. Or, or New York City for that matter.

So it wasn't like go back home. That didn't seem like that was really even something that I, that, that made sense to me.

So I, yeah, it just seemed like I just got to get an apartment.

Right, like that because I still had to, I still had some stuff like I had a paddle board and a surfboard and a gem bay and scuba gear and like stuff that you, you know, you have on the sailboat. So I still had, and I had a cat at.

So you know, I, it was kind of made the most sense to have a little apartment and kind of get my, get my, get my bearings.

So that you did go to Florida and get a little apartment?

No, I got an apartment in red hook in St. Thomas.

Oh, you stayed in St. Thomas. Oh, okay.

Yeah.

I thought you just walked off the boat there and we're wondering.

I sure did. Yeah, that too.

So you just. You decide. I'm staying in St. Thomas for a little bit. I mean, I have to go working on cruise ships every once in a while. I go to St.

Thomas all the time.

Yeah.

But I'm stuck in that big port, you know, and I'm sure there's exactly.

Where we were anchored.

Okay. Yeah, yeah, I know. I know exactly. I can see it in my head right now. I've made. Yeah.

And so. But it worked for me because I. I was able to teach some yoga classes.

I got a couple yoga classes, and at this point, I was working steadily online, so that. That was no problem. And, you know, made some friends. And so everything. Everything was good there.

I was living there for about five months, and at that point, I had met someone who also had a sailboat. Another man with a sailboat. But this was just.

I'm starting to realize your type now.

Right. But he. It wasn't like a relationship at this point. I had gotten my captain's license.

Oh, okay.

And I was also. And I was also captaining, you know, a captain on a sailboat and doing some day charters.

And he was looking for a mate because he wanted to sail down island and through the Panama Canal. And that sounded fantastic. So that was exactly. So I said yes. So I subletted my apartment and I found a house, a home. Let's see.

No, at this point, I didn't. I was going to take my cat with me. It was cool. But I, you know, got all my stuff down and my stuff's in my friend's car.

And I call him and said, hey, you know, is Wednesday a good time to move on? And he said, I've changed my mind. I'm not going sailing. And I said, oh.

And turns out that this person, he did me a really good big favor because he had real trust issues with women. And that was really it.

He said he couldn't trust me, even though I was a master captain and had all this experience and, you know, was moving forward, he pulled the plug on the whole thing. And what a favor he did me to do this before I moved on his boat. Right.

Sounds like you dodged a bullet. You dodged a bullet.

Indeed. Indeed. But at this point, I'm now homeless.

Oh, boy.

Right?

Yeah, right.

I'm like, okay, great, what do you do now? Right. All my stuff's in my friend's car. And I said, well, you know what the problem is, is my stuff.

So I said, you know, like this, I can figure, you know, I can, I can sleep, I can, you know, get hotels or stay at my friends. You know, like, I can figure this out. So at this point, I got myself down to a backpack and I found a home, a permanent home for my cat.

And I discovered house sitting and pet sitting.

I've interviewed a few house sitters over the years on this show and yeah, it's an effective way to stay around the world if you can do it. I mean, you got to build up a reputation to be dependable and, you know, but I'm sure they, they enjoyed you.

I mean, you, you're a pet person, you're a cat person, you're responsible.

I do.

I've only known you for half hour, so I think you're responsible. I trust you with my cat.

Thanks, Mike. Yes, I, you know, I then did house sitting and pet sitting for years.

I have come to understand that while that is a really wonderful trade opportunity, it's also an interesting experience for the sitter because a lot of people really actually consider it like domestic servitude.

It's a, it's sort of an interesting second class world that took me a long time to understand I was in because after, after a number of experiences with homeowners who really, really were trying to take advantage of. Of me. Yeah, of being like a responsible adult. Because that's all it takes, right? Just being a responsible, caring adult.

And that's, you know, that, that's me and hopefully lots of, lots of people, you know, not hard, but it, you know, but it wasn't, it's not something that I really want to do in.

The future by, by taking advantage of you, you mean? They were like, all of a sudden, they would ask you to, hey, could you clean up or something.

Were you like doing more chores around the house and like all of a sudden you're like, you know, doing errands for them and things like that. Or was it more abusive or something? I don't know. What, what do you mean they.

No, I mean all of these things.

Let's see, when I was in Bulgaria last year, I was, I started a pet sitting opportunity and surprise, they're now taking care of the neighbor's dog and I have to take care. And oh, it's a studio apartment. And oh, this dog never lived with the cat. And oh, this dog is totally traumatized.

And oh, the owner is in the hospital because he got beat up by the Bulgarian mafia. He went down to Gypsy Town and had both of his arms and both of his legs beaten and broken in a beat down.

And suddenly I'm in this, you know, drama that I don't want to be a part of. You know, this is just one example.

Of where I just wanted to see.

What are you doing here? Right, exactly. And they, you know, and they were so, you know, and the homeowner is like, what? It's fine.

Right, Right. Oh, boy.

You know, and. And these, and these platforms that facilitate this opportunity, they are.

It's sort of like, you know, how if you have a problem with Airbnb, you know, you're sort of out in the wilderness if you've ever had this sort of situation.

It's a similar thing with house sitting opportunities from the sitter's perspective, because there's a million sitters and there is a limited number of homeowners who want to have this trade, and they always are siding with the homeowner. So in this situation, I, you know, like, I contact the platform and being like, wait a minute, I didn't sign up for this. And they were like, too bad.

Well, give me. If. If. I mean, it's probably one of a few bad instances of, of something happening while house sitting. Can you remember your best. Do you.

Did you have one where you were like, this is awesome. I just. I could stay here for a while.

Yeah.

You know, when you're house sitting, you're sort of trying on people's lives and is what it's like, you know, so it's sort of like, okay, what would it be like to live in a farmhouse with a cat and a dog in Argentina? Via Venti Cinco de Mayo, outside of San Rafael in Argentina? What would that be like? Right?

Or, okay, what would it be like to live in an apartment in Tokyo with two cats? What would that be like?

So I've had a lot of good experiences, a lot of really interesting different experiences that most, most people who are digital nomads don't have. Right? Most.

Most of my, I would say, I guess, peers, most of the people who do this type of lifestyle go to these hot spots throughout the world that are easy living. They get themselves a little apartment, you know, and they go to the cafe or the co. Working space, and they're sort of being a normal person.

And I got to be abnormal by going to all of these different, you know, like, I got to live in Uruguay, and then I was in Ecuador and I was living in, you know, Antigua, and I was, I was living in Zurich and, you know, living in the forests of Germany. And so I. I really got to, you know, I was in, you know, outside of Seoul, Korea, and I got to really hop around to places that are quite expensive.

Right? Housing is quite expensive. And so that's been a. A joy to.

And when I was talking about keeping the overhead low, that's one of the tricks that I was using. But just also, you know, not having to, like, live in the hostel and, you know, have this sort of, you know, backpacker experience, I could.

I could be the adult that I was and go and cook if I wanted to make myself a coffee, that kind of thing.

How about the hardest animal you ever had to take care of? The one that was just like the nightmare animal.

Yes. In. In the book, the chapter is called Mr. Handsome Hated Me. I was coming. I.

I had another relationship on the road in Australia, which, in terms of animals, wins for, like, the coolest animals, I think. But I left that relationship and was in Tokyo. So I moved from Australia to Tokyo. And so I'm like, in the throes of breakup, right?

Like, so I'm sort of like in heartbreak mode. And I'm like, okay, because I have this cat, and he's a. He was a Himalayan, a real fluffy sweetheart. His name is Mr. Handsome. He hated me.

I couldn't even believe it. Like, he thought that I made his owner go away, right? And here's. Here's Suzanne.

And he would hiss at me, and I would look, you know, I'd look across the room and he would be under the table just glaring at me. And he just. It was just like, exactly the opposite. Now, the good news was that he had a sister cat who was a real sweetie pie.

Thankfully, one time I was sitting on the couch and she ran up and put her two paws around my neck and gave me a hug.

Awkward.

And I was like, I needed that hug. So, yes, Mr. Handsome wins for being the biggest jerk and.

Or most of. Or most house sitting gigs. Like, I mean, a month or a couple weeks. I mean, how much? What's the average? You'd say, yeah, you.

I mean, most of them, when you go on these sort of apps or Facebook groups or this sort of thing, are short. You know, most people, especially in the United States, because I did a lot of travel throughout North America as well.

And, you know, so people don't have this type of vacation time. So, you know, maybe a week or two. But when you're in other places and you're sort of in the expat world, around the globe, people go away for longer.

So I was always looking for these longer gigs. One to three months, you know, sort of like if I could. If I can max out my visa, I feel like I won. That's how I like to do.

How about the yoga part of it? I know. I mean, you say you teach as well, right? You do yoga classes and things. I mean, how can you do that on the road?

And is that mostly done online or how do you work that?

Yeah, I. I've taught on five continents.

Hey, which is.

Which is awesome. Yeah. I got to get the last. I don't know if I want to.

Really go to Antarctica, teach a penguin how to do downward dog, down penguin.

I. I will teach online if. When I can. So my friend has an online studio, so I do teach online. I teach privates.

I have a couple of private students that I'll teach weekly. So that's really fun. If I'm in a place long enough, I will get some classes going.

So, for example, when I was on St Thomas, that was a long enough time that I was able to, you know, have some beach class, like classes on the beach, you know, three times a week. That was a lot of fun. I was just in Bulgaria for the summer in Bansko in a little mountain town. And so that was cool. I was teaching.

I taught yoga class, I think three times a week there as well, in person. And then sometimes I can get gigs. So I was in Mexico teaching at an all inclusive resort. And then I also spent a month in Bali.

I was working at a resort and it was just an exchange.

So I was, you know, I was on the tourist visa, but it was just an exchange for free housing and food in exchange for a couple of yoga classes, you know, a day maybe, and that's fine.

Was this an ubud?

No, that was an Ahmed.

Okay.

I did live in. I spent time in Ubud and Changu, but I think they've. I think it's blown up now.

I think.

I think it's blown up. I don't. I think I feel like Bali's over. It's. It's too crowded.

One of my impressions of Ubud, it was just like. It just stands out in my mind was a lot of white women with yoga mats under their arms walking through town. That's what I remember.

I mean, I resemble that comment.

I know.

That's why I resemble that comment.

I don't mean to stereotype, but that's why I asked if he was an Uber.

But you know what? Someone stole my. Someone stole my shoes at the yoga barn there. I think I'm over it. I think I'm over it.

There's one of those monkeys from the park there that came over.

I know it was one of those white women carrying their yoga mask around in my. In my new Birkenstock.

Oh, yeah, absolutely. They took up. So that's pretty amazing. So this. This is a nomadic lifestyle has gone on. You know, you're in years. I mean, a decade. Over a decade.

Yeah. Decade.

Give me.

For anybody who's considering this lifestyle that you have, and a lot of people are more than ever since, you know, especially since COVID and when they realized they could work online and, you know, they could do this. What advice would you give somebody trying to make a lifestyle out of this, and what can you warn them about?

Set yourself up for success. Planning ahead is, I think, really important. I know some people just sort of, like, jump in and, you know, which is what I did, right?

Like, yeah, like, we'll figure it out. And there's something to be said for that, you know, confidence in yourself. But making sure that you're financially stable is important.

You don't want to have any debt. You don't want to have to worry about financial stress, right? Because money. I say money can solve some problems, all right?

They can't solve all problems, but it can solve some problems. And you want to be able to have. You want to have that. That's. That. That safety net. That's important. You also want to be mentally stable.

This is also really important. I know a lot of people that say, you know, if they have the breakup or something, or they, you know, they need the change, and they're gonna.

Go find themselves Eat, Pray, Love their way around the world, right?

That's like. For example, my book is not Eat, Pray, Love, right? Because it's not. That's just. It's not even reality, right? She finds the dream man at the end.

Like, you know, I'm spoiling the ending. Like, spoiler alert, dream man.

And now we're back to the end of the book. Now we're back to ubud, right?

Life is perfect. Like, life's not perfect. And that's the point, right? So you have to be stable and confident in yourself. And.

And this is what setting yourself up for success means. So it might, you know, having healthy habits. You want to be a healthy person. All right? So physical health as well, right?

Like, you just have to have your act together, like, to the best of your ability. That's going to help you wherever you want to go, right? Because wherever you go, there you are, right?

So you have to, you know, be able to be alone and be flexible and be adaptable. This is something I think is really interesting. I spent some time in the Galapagos, right, which was where like Charles Darwin was, right?

And it is a, it is a misconception, right, that it's survival of the fittest. It's not. It's survival of the most adaptable.

And so being flexible in how you live is going to really serve you as you travel around and live in different cultures, you know? You know, be open to how, how people are and learn, right. I am so frequently having no idea how the world works, right?

It's, there's so often where I'm like, oh, I done. This is how you do okay. You know, like, it's, I can't be rigid in my, in my life, right?

I have to just really be open to learning new ways of, of living. And that's, and that's a beautiful thing, right? Because then I, I have a richer life and my horizons are expanded and all of this beautiful stuff.

But I think that that's really the, the key to it is to, is to set yourself up for success and then, and then allow yourself to change, right? Identity wise, really changing. So I guess maybe that would be the warning too, is, is to, is, is to open yourself up to change. And this is.

I, you know, like I work with some clients that are like that, that are scared, you know, like they have that fear. And, and you really just have to know that everything's going to work out in the end. Everything's going to be okay, right?

There's lots of beautiful, good people in the world who, who are here to be your friend and support you. And if you look for these people, they're around, you know, a smile goes a long way in the world. You know, this is a key is smiling.

It's, it's, it's easy to feel really insecure. Like I remember when I was living in Korea, that's a really interesting place too. Just like the Solomon Islands. I was such a minority.

Like I was really the only Westerner.

When I would get on the subway, like, it was so you could tell when a, a Japanese person came on the subway because they were, it was so, you know, everyone was Korean. And I don't know, like, I, it took me a minute to like, maybe that's obvious.

But you know, it was just, you know, everyone, you know, and then there's Suzanne, like, walking around, and I would. I was jogging, you know, and I would, like, jog in the. In my nearby park, and people would stare at me like I was a freak.

And I'd be like, you know, am I fat? Like, why are they. Right? Like, I'm jogging.

Like, I don't know how tall you are, but, you know, you could have been one of the, you know, the taller women that they've ever seen.

I am not. I am not tall, okay? And I'm, you know, I'm a. I'm Italian American, so I'm, you know, I'm a curvy woman. And it's.

And that's an interesting thing, too, being, like, a woman in Asia.

There's a whole, like, sub theme in the book about these extra, extra large pants, you know, Like, I'm a small in America, and then I, you know, arrive in Asia, and they look at me like I am, you know, I'm a healthy bmi, you know, and I had to really get a check on myself. And I think that's the point, you know? Like, I realized that because at first I thought people were judging me, but it's not that.

They're just, like, curious and they want, you know, and they're wondering, like, what the heck I'm doing here, because, like, what the heck am I doing here? And, you know, so having a sense of humor is really, I think, valuable, too.

Yeah, I've heard that from a lot of women that we've interviewed on here that, you know, they. They can't buy anything that fits them. When they would go to Asia. Like, even me, I'm. I'm six feet tall, but I, you know, I don't feel tall or big in.

In the US Or. Or even in Tokyo and in Seoul and Japan and in general, people have gotten bigger over the years. But then you go to, like, Vietnam.

Oh, man, I felt like a, you know, Godzilla walking around. It was crazy. I was. Was so huge, and I didn't fit in anything. I took an overnight bus to Danang, actually, down the.

And they were not built for old whitey here. I mean, I was, like, crammed into this. It was brutal. And, yeah, I just felt like an awkward giant there. It was really nuts.

Was there a place that made you want to, like, stop being a nomad that you, like, wanted to put down roots and going, you know what I can make. I could do it here. And I think I might. I mean, do you have a plan? Or. What was that?

Yeah, when people say, oh, what's your favorite place. It's always the answer is the next place.

I know that's an impossible question.

You know, it isn't. It is. I mean, I will. I mean, I will say that I've just come back to Da Nang and this is such a lovely city. This is a really. I like living here.

And I really enjoyed Bonsko, Bulgaria as well, which is really. I mean, it's like the polar opposite of here.

Yeah. I know nothing about Bulgaria, but it is. I'm looking at my Europe bucket list on the wall there, and it's on there.

Bulgaria and Georgia are two places I really want to check. And Albania as well.

I don't know if you know anything about these places, but give us a tip because places like Croatia are already found out and they're really crowded now. And of course, everybody knows the Greek islands, but I want to know more about that area and what can you quickly tell me about there?

Yeah, I don't have so much experience with the Balkans yet. I'm thinking about. I'm thinking about this summer as well. Headed back to the Balkans and maybe I'll see you there, Mike. But.

So I am thinking about this area as well. You know, there are these places on the map, I call it the digital Nomad map, that people talk about. And it's like these easy living places.

And I don't. When I know when I find out that they're on the map, I don't have to do too much research because I know life's going to be fun and easy there. Right.

So these places include like Medellin, Colombia. Right.

I saw you. No. Okay. Come on. Yeah. Hey. That was you. I knew that was you.

Yes. Yeah. You were the giant.

That's right. No, not there. You could, you could blend in there. I mean, you look like you could be a native.

Did everybody speak Spanish to you while you were there?

Yes, it's. I speak a little Spanish and, and, but you're. But not a lot. Not as much as my face acts like I'm going to. Right. So. But, but yeah, so I went to.

I went to Bonsko knowing that it was on the digital Nomad map. So I knew that it was just going to be a nice place. And so it's in the mountains, so it's a, It's a couple things.

A couple hours Bus ride from Sofia, the capital. And it's very inexpensive. First of all, that's, I mean, I was very impressed by that. It was. It's cheaper than Southeast Asia.

Wow. Yeah.

Who knew that that was even like, possible? But, but it was. And being in the mount, being a mountain town because it's a ski town primarily.

So in the summer it's like, it's sort of a different, a different thing. I'm, I chase summers myself, so I'm not like, that's why I'm not there now.

And that's why, you know, even though it was lovely, I probably won't ever find myself buying inexpensive real estate there just because, like, I like snow is not my thing.

And you can pack lighter, so that's good indeed.

But I mean, freshest air. I was walking up the ski road every day going to the river.

There was a river that was 10 degrees Celsius, which is like what, like 50 something Fahrenheit? I don't know, you do the math. But, but I would do like a cold plunge. I would do 10 minutes and 10 degrees every. And just feel like a million bucks.

And, and go to the farmer's market with the, like the ladies with the babushkas and they would sell you the, you know, fresh fruits and vegetables and dried herbs for tea and, you know, goat soap and this kind of thing. So that was really special.

How was it in terms of when there's always a poorer country or inexpensive country?

The risks are usually either infrastructure a lot of times, like the power will go out randomly or something like that, or things aren't running or the roads are brutal or something, or you worry about maybe either crime or the reverse. A heavy police or military presence. I mean, what is the deal there?

It was very safe. It was very safe in, in Bulgaria for me. You know, it's.

This was also, this was also the place where the guy went down to Gypsy town and got both of his arms and both of his legs broken. So, you know, don't be a jerk like that guy. I felt like that guy had something coming to him because I can't even imagine.

Keep your nose clean.

Right? That's, you know, exactly like, you know, I'm not, you know, buying drugs.

Well, I mean, well, right now. But also as a, as a woman, you have, you know, your guards up probably a little more than, than I, than mine would be or has to be.

Did you ever feel, were you ever in a country going, wow, as a single woman, this is a bad vibe?

Like, oh yeah, I Lived in India.

Oh, yeah. Okay. I almost brought up India. I mean, that's a tough.

That was interesting.

Yeah.

That I got. I. I, you know, like, touch wood. I have not had horrific, you know, victimization. And, you know, I've got my. I had my ATM card skimmed in.

In Ho Chi Minh, and I had my phone stolen in Guayaquil, Ecuador. But in India, I had the guard. The guard of my apartment complex grab my breast.

Wow.

Right. But it was also so interesting because this was.

This is really an example of karma because I, you know, of course, made a big deal about it, about the, you know, sexual assault. And he was this old, little, old man in a Dodie with, like, four teeth, and he lived on the cot there.

And when I alerted the, you know, the hotel manager about. Or the apartment complex manager, what happened, you know, he said, oh, yeah, this guy, he's just from my village, and he's not really a guard.

He's paid to open the gate, you know, but he. Of course, he ends up getting fired.

And then, you know, like a week later, this other little, you know, a little couple, you know, from the same village came and replaced him. And it just felt really interesting. Like, it just felt like this sort of karmic, you know, circle that happened.

You know, being in India, there's a lot. This is another situation where I got a lot of stares.

Oh, yeah.

As a. As. As a white woman, I'm not wearing a sari, you know, so I was already standing out and. And cultural.

You know, like, India is an interesting cultural place, especially for. For women, because, you know, femicide is still existing, you know, in. In parts of India. And. And. And it's certainly 20 years ago.

And you can tell the difference in male population to female population.

And, you know, there's a lot of sexual frustration, I mean, because the caste system makes it very difficult for people to find wonderful, you know, life partners. Right. So if you, you know, and you're not having premarital sex. And so there was just a lot of this type of energy going on that. You're right.

I had to Bob and weed.

I mean, you realize there's a reason. There's a reason they, you know, have separate, like, subway cars for.

For women, you know, because they were getting groped and everything all the time, and it's really hard. Yeah. India is a place of extremes. It's. You know, I always tell people it's. It's.

I've seen, like, amazing beauty there, and then, like, the worst poverty I've ever seen. And, you know, it's. It's got everything, and it's a lot of it. Too much of it, maybe of everything, but.

And the interesting thing was that I actually moved there from Tokyo, so you would. I mean, I was. That was the biggest culture summer ever had.

I mean, Tokyo, I was just there again this summer, and it's like. It's amazing. It. It's like 25 million people and cleaner than a city of 3 million. You know, it's. It's in.

Right?

And it works and it runs and it's. Yeah, it's just works. And you're going, wow. And it. It doesn't have to be complete chaos. I mean, it just is somehow.

I mean, everybody's got to give a little. You know, everybody's got to, like. You know, they follow the rules because they realized early on if they didn't, this would be nuts here.

It would be a trash heap.

You know, but it's also respecting, you know, there's pride in taking care of your community and cleaning up after yourself and, like, basic things like. Oh, yeah. Consideration of others. Wow. What a concept. And so, yeah, I do. I do love that part of it. And then you go to India, and it's a free for all.

It's just completely nuts. I should ask you. You got to start winding this down. Let's do the fun stuff. Give me.

Now that we're talking about India, the one place I got food poisoning. Give me your biggest health scares. And did you ever have to spend time in a hospital overseas?

You know, I would say that. No. I. I am grateful that I did not have to go to a hospital, but I did get Bali belly.

Oh, yeah. Yeah.

That's. That's not fun. That is not a fun time. Bali Belly, like, Deli belly, is similar.

Oh, yeah.

Bali Belly is really extreme. But it was. It's funny. This is. You know, the chapter in the book is, be grateful for everything, including Bali Belly.

Because I had a travel partner at that point, a man that I knew socially in college, wanted to do a little travel, and I said, okay. And he was such a nightmare. And what a beautiful. How wonderful to be disgusting. I was so disgusting. I was so happy to be disgusting. Right?

And it was disgusting. And it was just like, you know, sorry, I. You know, you can't. I can't be around you, and I have to cut the tr. I have to cut our time together short.

Oh, darn.

You know, you'll have to go home. Oh, man.

Right.

But never in, like, dengue fever or any Kind of crazy, anything like that, but you've been lucky.

No, that's pretty good.

That healthy yoga lifestyle.

This is another thing exactly when, when we talk about like, what, you know, what advice do you have? I mean, that is part of the setting yourself up for success. Because I also like, don't have any health insurance. I don't have travelers insurance.

I don't. First of all, that's very, it's very difficult to even get when you're not like in your home country. Right.

I'm never, you know, I was in the United States during COVID I traveled in an RV during COVID I really lucked out. I had purchased this RV about two weeks in advance of the lockdown, slapped some solar on it and it was like, yeah, I was right on time.

I was getting my Italian citizenship, so I had to be in Miami for a consulate appointment. And I was like, what am I going to do? I might as well just, you know, van life it.

And so I get this rv and while everyone else was freaking out, I just hit the road and went to all the national parks and went down the Baja and had a, you know, a wonderful time. I was already working online, so, so that was, that was nice. But yeah, like, so I, I, I have to take care of myself, right?

So this means eating healthy, this means exercising, meditating, staying hydrated, like, you know, carrying my little pack of, you know, first aid supplies. You know, you really have to be self sufficient when you live this type of lifestyle.

How about any run ins with cops or border patrol or immigration? That really scared you?

I mean, a little bit. Yeah. Here and there.

I. Bribes. You can say it. Bribes.

Yeah. It's like, how much do I share? When I, when I moved, I remember one time flying when I had to fly through.

I was flying from Argentina to Mexico like a sort of a weird way. And I had to go through Miami. And the, the immigration officer in the US Said, are you traveling for business, for pleasure or to just find yourself?

I said all of the above. I mean, yeah, when I was in, you know, when I was in the US traveling around in the rv, I got stopped by border patrol in El Paso.

And they searched the vehicle. I think they were looking for drugs.

Oh, yeah.

I mean, because I was like, I don't have any Mexicans.

It's either drugs or people. It's mostly drugs.

Right?

Mostly drugs.

Right. And like the, you know, the, the, you know, the dogs, like jumping up and down on my sofa. I could like watch it, watch him just ripping things apart.

And even going into Mexico for that matter. They were very interested in me as.

Just as a solo female, really, especially being solo, you know, just like, yeah.

They were just like rifling.

I'm on a surfing vacation. It's like, are you okay? Yeah, drug mule.

They were rifling through my underwear drawer. Like, that's what was. And I was kind of like, guys, you know, you know, what are you gonna. What are you doing here? You know, so.

But in general, you know, I know, like in coming into India, they're. They're really tough. You know, they. They really give you the rundown and. But in. But overall, yeah, like, that's been no problem.

I haven't had to like, you know, get strip searched or anything like this.

Worst or scariest. A flight or bus or train ride. What's your worst, like, say, flying experience?

Hmm. You know, I've been pretty lucky. I mean, every. I'm always amazed by public transportation when things like, will work out.

I will say though, that when I arrived in Argentina, and this is interesting because it's early in my travels, this. I came to Argentina basically straight from the island.

So this is like right when I start my, My journey solo, I fly in to the international airport and then you have to take a little bus to domestic. To the domestic airport. And when I get off the bus, it was like, surprise. They're on strike.

And you know, and I didn't, you know, and I, I say I speak Spanish, but like, Argentinian Spanish is like another level of understand.

It sounds weird to the ear. It sounds like Italian to the ear. And it sounds like I.

I can get by usually in with my bad Spanish, but Argentina and Buenos Aires in particular was like, man, I don't understand a word coming out of your.

You know, it sounds strange, but it's like if you know English and then you go to Scotland or you're learning English and you go to Scotland, they're like, I don't know what this. It's English, but it isn't. You know, Spanish was like, you know, Buenos Aires is like that. I get it. But the strike, I was just in.

In Argentina and I had to go through Buenos Aires in. This was back in. I think it was April, no, February of last year.

And I was going through and I landed because I was going to Ushuaia to get on a ship down coming from the Antarctic. So I had to change in Buenos Aires. I landed and I was like, wow, it's really quiet here for a Wednesday morning.

You know, it should be busier and no one was behind the desk. And then they told me, oh yeah, it's strike. It's a one day strike. And I got stranded. So apparently this happens all the time in Buenos Aires.

When you said a strike.

Well, it wasn't.

Or like the whole country.

It wasn't a ghost town.

The whole country.

It was the opposite.

Oh, really? It was j.

It was the opposite of a ghost town. It was madness. Like, madness.

Everyone was there, like, you know, sitting around drinking your bamate and snacks, babies crying, like, I'm carrying this ridiculously heavy, you know, there's no cart, you know, this is not like this. I'm like carrying all my, all my possessions and I'm like, it's okay, you know, Canceled, canceled, cancel, canceled on the screen.

And I was really, I mean, you want to talk about an angel coming to my rescue?

I was going to really like my first pet sitting thing and I contact the, you know, the people and turns out that the woman's father happened to be in Buenos Aires and he came and found me and got me on a bus, which, like, I didn't have pesos. I didn't know that the bus had a car. You have to buy a card to ride the bus. Right.

And then he took me to the central bus terminal, which I also didn't know existed, and he bought me an overnight bus ticket instead to Mendoza, where, you know, where I was going to be flying and how long did that. So I really, I mean, not as long as it would have been me sitting around drinking yerba mate with half of Buenos Aires in the airport.

So it was okay, you know, like. Yeah, but the overnight bus, you know, I am a big fan when I fly or do these types of long hauls.

I mean, I am like face mask, eye mask, you know, noise canceling, earphones, you know, neck wrap, blanket, take a muscle relaxer. Don't talk to me. Right. So if I can sort of black out this time, if I can sleep, I win. And so that's, that's, that's what I did there.

And that's what I often, you know, I, I just flew, you know, I was from Tuscany to the Solomon Islands and that was my longest flight. That was. Yes, that, that was days, days of travel and I was really grateful.

I, my friend gave me a couple of sleeping pills and so I was just basically a zombie the whole time. And then I arrived refreshed.

Did you go, did you go east through like, you know, Istanbul or something? Or did you go west and then come back here? Through LA or something. How did, how does that.

No, no, yeah, I went east. It was. I took a China Eastern flight. So I connected.

Yeah, that was an interesting experience too because I was in Tuscany and I had to take a train to Rome and like, oh, surprise. That's the one day strike. Like, okay, you know, it's starting to.

Sound like it's you every.

I'm not taking a mic.

We're going on strike. Suzanne's coming.

I can handle it. Because I did. And I got myself.

And I so, you know, got myself through many trains and taxis to the airport and then it was 12 hours from Rome to Shanghai. Then there was a very foggy six hour layover in Shanghai where I was not checking Facebook, not going on Google. Right, interesting.

And then, and then it was another 12 hours to Brisbane, Australia, overnight in Brisbane and then get on Solomon Airlines, which is the only airlines that flies to the Solomon Islands to get to Munda. So.

Wow.

Wow, that was, that was a, that was a long one.

Yeah, that's a big. That's, that's big. So we should wrap this up soon. But one more time about the book.

What was the inspiration to write it and what, what's your plan with it? I mean, do you want to, I don't know, do a sequel or what, talk about it real quick?

Yeah, thanks, Mike.

So as a professional writer, right, I've had so many people as I'm traveling around and living this sort of interesting life, people say, when are you going to write your book? When are you going to write the book? Right?

So that, you know, the inspiration really came from people saying, you know, you're a great writer, like to shut people up. Why don't you do it?

People up. There you go.

Kinda, you know, and yet at the same time also let people know the realities of travel.

I mean, I think that's the other thing we take our information about travel often from like you talked about earlier, these sort of, these influencers where life is perfect all the time and like, news flash, it sure isn't, you know, so the book is really a.

Has a lot of universal themes about, you know, the realities of travel and, you know, what goes right and what goes wrong and, and how, you know, and how you can navigate it. And you know, my friends who are full time travelers really relate to it, you know, so it's, it's very universal.

It's not just, you know, Suzanne goes here and Suzanne goes here.

It's, it's really what, you know, what life is, what life is like and the, you know, the types of things, you know, you fall over your handlebars on your scooter and Bali and like, yeah, like you get, you know, get the boob grab in India and this, you know, all of the stuff that goes on is, is real life. So it was a, it was a joy to, to share my story, you know, sort of in a, in a, you know, creative nonfiction narrative.

I am working on the sequel because it ends with me arriving back in the United States, you know, just buying this rv, you know, about to have a lockdown. But then I went on to have another three years of really fabulous United States based experience. So I am working on that book now.

I'm also, you know, sort of poking around for a literary agent connected with Netflix. I'd love to, I'd love to option this for screen adaptation. They haven't, they haven't done that yet.

There isn't like the digital nomad, solo female traveler. I don't know of that story yet on the screen.

So that's, that's hopefully the next phase too is to, is to get that sold and created into a series or something.

Cool. Well, we'll have a link, links to where you can buy the book on our site as well.

I'm assuming you can get it at all, your major seller, Amazon and all that stuff. And you'll send me a link and I'll pass it on to the people.

Cool. Thank you.

Finally. What do you think all this travel and what you've seen around the world, how has it changed you as a person?

How's it changed the way you look at the world and how you look at people? I mean, how has it changed you?

Yeah, I am a lot less rigid in my opinions. I really would say that I embrace the learning process deeper than I ever had before.

I think I thought I knew a lot more before I started traveling and now I don't know so much. And that's, and that's really okay. You know, one of the things I like to say is, you know that I've, I've been wrong before.

I'm gonna, I'm gonna be wrong again. You know, it's like it's okay to, to constantly be learning.

You know, I have always been a fairly open, non judgmental person and, and that's really helped me as I'm meeting different types of people to just, you know, meet people as they are and who they are in the moment and, and, and hopefully get the same back. You know, like we're all sort of works in progress. And this is, you know, I think, important.

A lot of people really sort of have this concept of perfection and everything has to. You have to have it all together all the time. And like, you never do. Like no one ever does.

And, and you know, we kind of put that pressure on ourselves. And it's okay for me to be messy and you know, like I'm wearing the same clothes, you know, you know, until they wear out.

And then I go buy another shirt because I, you know, I spell, you know, like spill stuff down your shirt, like whatever, you know, this, this kind of thing. Like, I really, I have to be really compassionate not just with myself, but with other people too, right? Like just really be in love with the world.

Like, I really enjoy seeing all the different ways that people are living. And when people do something that it doesn't make any sense to me, it makes me smile, right, instead of cringe. It's like, what's going on there?

And that's fun, right? And this is part of, you know, I think our journalist background, right? That sort of observation, right.

Like checking it out, like, how is this what's going on here? And having fun with that curiosity.

So, you know, I hope that travels made me, you know, more open hearted, fun loving person, you know, and, and I hope it continues to make me that even more sound.

Awesome. Well, that's great. I appreciate you doing this and reaching out. That was. It's been a lot of fun getting to hear your story.

Thanks, Mike.

Know ya. So I never asked you the. We never get this. The story behind the Love Light Project name.

This is, this is. Okay. Like when I started traveling, you know, I had a friend that was like, oh, you should write a blog. Which my blog is not very active.

I'm not the big, you know, I spend most of my creative writing on actual projects or work, but I did that and I started a website and this was part of setting yourself up for success professionally. Like how wonderful that I took all of my paper clips from the box in my closet and scanned them and made a. A portfolio. Right.

And that allowed me to get a lot of online work and I needed a name for this.

And you know, the Love Light Project is sort of my own project of shining, you know, shining my heart, you know, and encouraging other people to, to shine their hearts and be authentic, loving individuals in this life and, and healing and growing and you know, being them that their best self. So that's what I would say is that. But it's really just, it's really just an umbrella for what Suzanne's got going on.

But is that your handle on, like, Instagram and stuff?

Oh, no, my Instagram is Usanne Wentley. It's not my, you know, my handle, but that's my website.

We'll have links to all that too, as well. Once again, thank you for doing this. Appreciate you reaching out, and it's been great to know you. And hopefully one day we'll.

We'll meet up somewhere along the road.

Yeah, for sure. Thanks, Mike.

Suzanne Wentley, everybody. Thank you.