Travel Tales

Rob Samborn is a New York guy who followed his writing dream to Hollywood, and has since relocated to Colorado. He shares Tales of inspiration and travel working on his new Venice-based novel, Prisoner of Paradise.

Jennifer Raezer and her husband left their jobs back in 2003 to travel the world. They began writing travel guides, which morphed into their current business – Approach Guides – which provides travel media content for businesses. 

Greg is a native of Poland who emigrated to the UK and is now teaching high school calculus in Beijing, China. His side gig is seeking out and photographing abandoned sites around the world.

Direct from San Sebastian, Spain, chef/author Marti Buckley dishes on life in the foodie heaven that is Basque Country.

Adventure travel journalist Melissa McGibbon checks in from Utah to share Tales of skiing, scuba, and meeting Fidel Castro!

Born in Europe and raised in New York City, fashion designer Stephanie von Watzdorf has traveled her entire life, and the pandemic didn’t slow her down one bit.

For three weeks over the holidays I made my return to performing on a cruise ship. Let’s just say, it did not go as planned. Here’s the story.

Catching up with my fellow VH1 VJ from the 90’s, Robin Dorian! She and her husband Nick went on to create the Find Eat Drink foodie site and now, the FED Travel Guides.

Nicole Chamberlin has lived a life on the move. She was an army brat who lived in Germany as a teenager before moving to Colorado. She later became a flight attendant, then a TV producer living in LA. She’s since lived for three years in Hong Kong and now, Minneapolis.

Nailah Hayward of the travel blog TheresSoMuchToSee.com stops in to share her Tales of journeys around the world.

Comedian Ron Placone spent time living in Italy, in hostels throughout America, and even in his car.

Krissy Krash earned her moniker on the roller derby circuit, but is still rolling strong! She’s now a life coach and personal trainer living and surfing in Costa Rica.

Nate Ritter is the founder of RoomSteals.com, a site that offers hotel rooms at wholesale prices.

Mike celebrates 10 years and 300 episodes of the Travel Tales Podcast by sharing some of his favorite travel memories, answering frequently asked questions, and taking a look at the road ahead. Thank you, listeners!

Comedian Lenny Schmidt has just returned from his first post-pandemic run of cruise gigs to give us the scoop on what to expect on the high seas in this new world.

After leaving the US and living in both Japan and Germany, David McNeill now makes his home in Portugal and founded ExpatEmpire.com to assist others in transitioning to the expat life.

Colorado-based Scott Marshall is the President and CEO of Semester At Sea.

Former Hollywood exec Scott Neeson had it all: big house in the Hollywood Hills, cars, boat, and money to burn – until a trip to SE Asia inspired him to sell everything he owned, move to Cambodia, and create the Cambodian Children’s Fund charity.

Angelyn Rudd caught her traveling bug following the Grateful Dead. That sparked a travel Jones that led to over 60 countries and counting.

Senior Director/Head of Communications for Expedia, Nisreene Atassi, is a Chicago-area native who worked in Dubai and now makes her home in Seattle. We talk tips, trends, and some of her worst travel experiences!

We’re talking expat life with someone who literally wrote the book on the subject – Jessica Drucker!

Author Jessica Drucker literally wrote the book on being expat. 

Rob Babirad never felt settled as an inner-city schoolteacher or a run-of-the-mill lawyer, but he did feel the calling of other countries and cultures. His travels inspires his book “In-Transit Passenger.”

Mike Savas took off during the pandemic for what he called his “Mid-Life Awakening” – learning 12 new skills in 12 months in 12 countries.

For some reason this episode first posted under the wrong name! Here is the correct name – Travis King! Milwaukee native Travis King has lived the better part of the last decade working and traveling around the world and now makes his home in Mexico.

Milwaukee native Travis King has lived the better part of the last decade working and traveling around the world and now makes his home in Mexico.

Comedian Avi Liberman spent the bulk of the 2020 pandemic shuttling between Israel and any other place he could get into, including Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, Dubai, and Russia.

Andrew Steven’s April 22, 2021 episode seems to have vanished into Apple Podcasts air, so here is a repost: Andrew Steven wanted to challenge himself and lose weight while doing it. One month and 100 pounds later, he finished hiking California’s John Muir Trail.

California-based geneticist Sara Winokur set her debut thriller novel in Iceland, and went there to do research. She has never stopped visiting.

Andrew Steven wanted to challenge himself and lose weight while doing it. One month and 100 pounds later, he finished hiking California’s John Muir Trail.

Back in 1999 Polly Letofsky took off with one goal in mind- to walk around the entire world. Five years later, she achieved her goal.

Travel writer Kristen Gill checks in from her new home in La Paz, Mexico. She shares Tales of her expat life, her many travel-related injuries, and much more! The Giller!

Eric Giuliani had a dream to travel around the world in one trip – without ever flying. He sold his belongings, saved his money, and took off on a nearly four-year journey. He came back to write a book about his amazing Tales, “Sky’s The Limit.”

Travel writer Katherine Parker-Magyar shares Tales of her many Caribbean adventures and trips to the Middle East, Africa, and beyond.

SoCal native Michael Wedaa talks about his personal travel hacks in his new book, International Travel Secrets, and his trips around the world.

English journalist/filmmaker Andrew Gold calls in from his home in Berlin to talk about his upbringing, years in Buenos Aires, and films about exorcists and pedophiles!

Mikkel Thorup of EscapeArtist.com stops in to explain how to live the expat life abroad.

World Traveler and LA native Bryan Souders calls in from Sweden to share Tales of his many adventures and his Swedish lockdown.

Aussie comedian/actor/director Simon Palomares shares Tales of his lockdown experiences from Melbourne, his time on cruise ships, his Cuban documentary, and performing around the world.

Writer/comedian Tess Rafferty is back to talk about her new novel, “Under The Tuscan Gun” and her favorite subject of all – Italy!

Travel professional and Lifestyle Coach Jennine Cohen has traveled extensively through Central and South America, and we caught her just before she makes her permanent move from San Francisco to Mexico.

Actor/stuntwoman/filmmaker Meena Amani shares Tales of ocean adventures around the world, her many injuries, and her new film about ocean conservation.

Vera Camarena returns as guest to give us an update from Portugal, where she and her husband Cam opened a boutique hotel just before the global pandemic and lockdown hit.

Posting this week’s episode as a test for those who didn’t receive the new ep on Apple Podcasts.

Checking in with our old friend Rob Paravonian in Brooklyn to get a taste of what life during COVID-19 is like in the Big Apple.

Nate Timmons graduated college and took off in a 1985 VW Vanagon (and later a bicycle) to visit a father in each state and write a book on parenting – The Dad Book.

Bob DiMenna is one half of the Traveler’s Blueprint podcast. He shares Tales of his trips abroad, what he loves about travel, and his road philosophy.

Stephen Chrisanthus shares his Tales of living in Cabo San Lucas, his many road trips across the US, and his experiences of traveling for four months during Covid-19.

Dialogue Coach and Crypto-realtor Piper Moretti stops by to share her Tales of a recent trip to the Middle East.

Taking a shot of wellness and a side of Italy with yoga instructor Jenny Geyser.

We welcome the founder of Vane Airport Media, Cristina Alcivar, from her home base in Toronto! Can wellness be found in an airport? Yes it can!

REPOST OF 7/2/20 EPISODE- Been getting notice from some listeners that they did not receive last week’s episode with Tyler Smith on Apple Podcasts (I didn’t either!) so I’m resending it this week. Sorry about that. Still working on what happened! -Mike

Filmmaker and host of the Battleship Pretension podcast Tyler Smith makes a long-awaitied return to the studio.

We turn the interview tables on Christine and Jules from the Not So Bon Voyage travel podcast and the Don’t Forget to Move blog!

Christina Cindrich has hosted and produced countless travel TV shows in over 40 countries around the world.

Brittany Lynne is a yoga and meditation teacher who spent the better part of last year working in the jungles of Costa Rica.

Filmmaker Roger Nygard returns to talk about traveling and doing research for his latest documentary, The Truth About Marriage.

A special episode as we check in with travel expert Rachel Rudwall, who is recovering from her battle against the COVID-19 virus.

Since 2016 Brittnay and her boyfriend Jay have been traveling the world and staying for free as house sitters. The Aussie/Kiwi couple started TheTravellingHousesitters.com and show no signs of slowing down!

David Lowe is what many would consider to be a “Renaissance Man.” An Englishman with a background in science and a PhD from Oxford, David moved to France and became a successful actor for 30 years. Last year he won an immigration lottery and relocated his family to Venice, CA.

Special COVID-19 episode. Mike puts in a ZOOM call to Sky Italia entertainment reporter Barbara Tarricone in Bologna to get an update on the situation in Italy.

Steve Bramucci is a novelist, travel/food writer, adventurer, teacher, and storyteller. He is also editor of the LIFE section at Uproxx.com.

A brief announcement to discuss the Coranvirus lockdown and what it means moving forward for Travel Tales and the entire travel industry. Stay safe people!

Author and travel journalist Ernest White II stops by to chat about his upcoming PBS travel show Flybrother, and to share Tales of his experiences living in places like Sao Paolo, the Dominican Republic, Cape Town, and more!

Philip DeBevoise is an entrepreneur and founder and CEO of Citizine.tv destination site and helped launch the Travel Video Awards back in 2018.

Chris Cisneros is a Venezuelan comedian and voice-over actor who emigrated to Medellin, Colombia due to his home country’s political situation. We compare comedy notes, talk about Medellin, and what it’s like to be a stranger in a strange land.

Ever meet anyone who’s spent a year living at the South Pole? Me neither…until I met Darby Butts! Darby is an old friend from my 2014 Kilimanjaro climb who’s now living and working in Medellin, Colombia. He lived and worked for a year at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station and has the most amazing Tales.

Born and raised in Australia to American parents, Krista Parker seemed destined to cross continents. She’s made travel her lifestyle, and has had many adventures throughout Asia, South America, and beyond.

Travel Writer Andrew Bender has lived as far away as Japan and Poland, and has spent over 20 years contributing to newspapers, magazines, and travel guides. He also leads tour groups through Japan.

Recently married couple Vera and Cam Camarena are leaving New York City to open a countryside hotel/spa/wellness retreat in Vera’s native Portugal.

Hola from Mazatlan, Mexico! In November I did a comedy show in Mazatlan and sat down with the woman who books the show, Canadian expat and musician Cheryl Gaudet.

Greg Schwem is one of my old comedy pals from Chicago, who makes his living in the lucrative world of corporate comedy. He also has a new YouTube series about staying at AirBnB’s on the road- “A Comedian Crashes Your Pad.”

Jenny Is Free! That’s the name of the blog and Instagram handle of Jenny Richardson, a digital nomad who’s worked and lived in Thailand, China, and around the world!

As a lawyer, travel blogger, teacher, influencer (TravelEsquire.com) and former mayor of a city in New Jersey, Glen Gilmore certainly wears a lot of hats. I met Glen on my recent trip aboard Rocky Mountaineer, and enjoyed hearing of his many varied journeys throughout his life.

Creator of the Travel Off Path blog and minimalism author and advocate Kashlee Kucheran shares her story.

Writer/comedian Amber Tozer returns three years after her last appearance with a whole new life- married and living in England!

The Bohemian Vagabond is in the house! Travel blogger/Influencer Jacki Ueng is in the house to talk solo female travel and all things food!

Entertainer Jesse Kazemek joins Mike on the Yellow Submarine (actually the MS Zaandam) to talk about being a successful Beatles tribute act on cruise ships around the world.

All aboard! Cruise Director Jude Day sits down to discuss what it takes to keep the party rolling on the high seas.

Canadian David Peck is a man who wears many hats: entrepreneur, philosopher, podcaster, and even magician! He works in developing nations around the world and has a great perspective and also great Travel Tales!

TV host Angela Sun (American Ninja Warrior, MTV, ESPN) stops by to talk about her Chinese/Taiwanese roots, her travels around the world, and her documentary film about ocean waste, “Plastic Paradise.”

Megan Snedden from the sites HeyWanderWoman and TheKindEffect stops by to share how travel helped her recover from tragedy and how she devotes her time to spreading random acts of kindness.

Recorded in Africa, Mike chats with five women from his tour group that spent a week in Uganda and Rwanda trekking to interact with mountain gorillas.

Mike Schmidt from the popular 40-Year-Old Boy podcast returns to spin Tales of his first-ever trip to Japan!

Friend, neighbor, producer, and content creator Diana Dixon stops by to tell her Tales of her Wisconsin upbringing and her trips around Europe, Iceland, Asia and beyond.

Host of Travel Channel’s Booze Traveler and longtime friend Jack Maxwell stops by to share Tales of drinking around the world, his cancer scare, and his new projects.

Travel host, producer, blogger, video producer: Kelley Ferro is a one-woman travel industry!

Travel host/producer Monica Ortega (MonicaGoes.com) reveals her journey from Michigan, through Nashville, to Hollywood, and following her dreams.

Soccer legend and Fox Sports broadcaster Alexi Lalas shares Tales of being an international pro athlete, attending multiple World Cups, and touring as a musician.

You may recognize Kinga from her work as a guest commentator on Travel Channel’s Park Secrets, The Wild Side with Kinga Philipps, and VH1’s 100 Greatest. She is perhaps best known as the host of the hit Syfy series Legend Quest and National Geographic’s America’s Lost Treasures.

Good friend and host of the Rock Solid Podcast Pat Francis returns to talk about the documentary he shot last year called UpLyft, where he and a friend traveled across America taking only Lyft ride share service.

Podcast favorite Jeannette Ceja is back to talk about her revamped website, Jet Set with Jeannette, and shares Tales of her many travels and personal growth over the past two years.

The woman behind the website trustedtravelgirl.com stops by to share her Tales of starting her blog, what travel means to her, and her bucket list destinations.

French adventurer Patrick Leipold has been a safari guide in Tanzania, he drove the entire Trans-Continental Highway from Patagonia to Alaska, and leads tour groups around America and elsewhere.

Comedy magician Jeff Peterson has ben performing on cruise ships worldwide for over 25 years and has been to over 100 countries.

Jessie Festa of the popular JessieOnAJourney.com website gives great tips on how to become a successful travel blogger and influencer. She also share some her favorite places and Tales.

Elisa Kotin of The World Traveled website joins us to share how travel transformed her life literally and figuratively. When she travels, she goes far off the grid: Africa, Asia, and more!

We have a real TV star in the house! Juliana Dever, one of the star’s of ABC’s Castle joins us to talk about her career, her love of travel, and we should join her on a trip to the country of Georgia!

Adrien Behn, host and creator of the Strangers Abroad Podcast, calls in to share what travel and storytelling mean to her.

Instagram star and travel blogger Michelle Halpern of Live Like It’s The Weekend talks about her journey from disgruntled fashion employee to web influencer.