Episode 182 - Retha Charette, Roaming Nanny, WHOA Travel and Damesly
In this episode of Soul of Travel, Season 5: Women's Wisdom + Mindful Travel, presented by @journeywoman_original, Christine hosts a soulful conversation with Retha Charette.
Retha Charette, aka “The Roaming Nanny,” is an adventurer, blogger, and travel nanny based in Vermont, USA. Retha is all about women supporting women and has been from a young age because of her membership in the Girl Scouts. She has been traveling consistently for over 6 years and, in February of 2019, left her full-time job as a Nanny to be a Travel Writer, Adventure Guide, and Travel Nanny (just to name a few things she does). In 2020, she found herself on the Long Trail and completed the Appalachian Trail. Retha loves sharing her passion for travel and discovery with others and is always looking for new and exciting places to explore. She shares her expertise as a trip leader for WHOA Travel and Damesly, and created The Beginner’s Guide to Hiking.
Some of her favorite adventures so far include climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, learning to scuba dive in Cozumel, Mexico, and camping in Antarctica.
Healing through Travel and Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro
Retha grew up in Massachusets and is based in Vermont; self-described as “pretty intense,” Retha does a lot of things, primarily traveling and experiencing life outdoors.
Retha has been a Girl Scout since age five, spending sixteen summers at Girl Scout camp and even moving into a camp director position. “Being outside is always something that I have loved.”
After searching for an adventure for women online, Retha joined a trek to climb Kilimanjaro and the rest became history. She expects to visit her 40th country this year!
Retha turned to travel to heal following her divorce. She found camaraderie and shared experiences with women who were significantly older than her on that first trip. She found comfort in their understanding and connection about her experience–and it was even better after taking on such a challenge.
“I still cannot put into words how important it is to connect with other women while physically challenging yourself,” shares Retha.
Creating an Online Presence and a Compelling Story
Christine and Retha share about what it’s like to create content based on our adventures. Retha, who chooses to bare it all–from crying on trail to reflections after her travels–finds that these moments are what make her stories meaningful, with raw honesty at the forefront. Especially when thru-hiking, she finds carrying the extra pack weight of a camera and battery and the extra steps of walking to a spot, setting up a camera, walking to it, and then tearing it down…all take away from her experience.
Retha details the reality of thru-hiking and its blister, wet tents, tears, blood, and sweat–and how “that needs to be shared with everybody, because I think it’ll set more people up for success. And they will have a better experience in the outdoors,” she shares.
The thru-hiking community, Retha shares, has become a supportive space for her that she goes to when facing all types of challenges, including with mental health.
I was able to reset, go out in nature, be one with the planet, and then come back into the real world.
Traveling More Sustainably–and Educating the Next Generation
“Educating the next generation is so important, because they’re the ones that are really stuck with this problem, right? If we teach collectively all of them how to make smaller changes, it’s going to be easier for them to make changes in the future, and they’re going to pass it on.”
Connecting choices with actions teaches children and young people that they have the power to affect the outcome of our world in many different ways, on many different scales. Retha shares a number of simple changes that she implements during her hiking adventures and travels to minimize her environmental impact, including buying used gear and using gear for the full duration of its lifetime, bringing reusable water bottles, and steering away from fast fashion and too much air travel.
Traveling with children, whether it’s to a nearby park or all the way to Tanzania, is so important, shares Retha. “When you show kids things that are different from their reality, it helps them understand the world more.”
“I still cannot put into words how important it is to connect with other women while physically challenging yourself.”
Soul of Travel Episode 182 At a Glance
In this conversation, Christine and Retha discuss:
· Retha’s trip to Africa that changed so much in her life
· Creating spaces for women
· Why women-only adventures, travel experiences, and communities are so important
· The importance of sustainability in travel
· Traveling with kids and what it brings into their lives
Join Christine now for this soulful conversation with Retha Charette.
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Related UN Sustainable Development Goals
Sustainable Development Goal #5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
Resources & Links Mentioned in the Episode
Follow Retha on your favorite social media network: Instagram / LinkedIn
Book your next woman-powered adventure at Whoa Travel.
About the Soul Of Travel Podcast
Soul of Travel honors the passion and dedication of people making a positive impact in the tourism industry. In each episode, you’ll hear the stories of women who are industry professionals, seasoned travelers, and community leaders. Our expert guests represent social impact organizations, adventure-based community organizations, travel photography and videography, and entrepreneurs who know that travel is an opportunity for personal awareness and a vehicle for global change.
Join us to become a more educated and intentional traveler as you learn about new destinations, sustainable and regenerative travel, and community-based tourism. Industry professionals and those curious about a career in travel will also find value and purpose in our conversations.
We are thought leaders, action-takers, and heart-centered change-makers who inspire and create community. Join host Christine Winebrenner Irick for these soulful conversations with our global community of travelers exploring the heart, the mind, and the globe.
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Credits. Christine Winebrenner Irick (Host, creator, editor). Retha Charette (Guest). Original music by Clark Adams. Editing, production, and content writing by Carly Oduardo.
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Soul of Travel Episode 182 Transcript
Women’s travel, transformational travel, sustainable travel, women leaders in travel, social entrepreneurship
Christine: Welcome to Soul of Travel podcast. I am really excited today to be sitting down, um, with someone who I have been stalking all around the world for the last, like two years. To have this conversation happen, um, the Roaming Nanny, so thus leads you to know that she is often other places, um, Retha Charette, so I'm very excited to have you here on the podcast. Um, this is a conversation you and I have been talking about having for quite some time and today's the day.
Retha: Finally. Fine. We finally got synced up and ready to go. So I'm excited. So
Christine: Great. Me too. I'm, I'm really excited. So as I was preparing for this conversation and like going through your Instagram and your website again, I was like, Oh my gosh, I always forget like how much I love your content and it's so fun when we get to connect in person as well. Like I love your energy.
Christine: And so it got me really excited. Um, but before we start, Retha, I'm just going to turn it over to you to let you introduce yourself to our listeners. Tell them a little bit about who you are, Roaming Nanny, and what you do.
Retha: I'm, my name is Reetha Charette. I'm based out of Vermont, grew up in Massachusetts, uh, New England. Um, so I'm pretty intense, uh, um, right off the bat. Um, I do a lot of things. So I'm a writer. I'm a nanny. Um, I work for two different women's, uh, travel companies. Um, I'm trying to write a book. I'm a long distance hiker. I just love to be outdoors and I love to be with other women outdoors. Um, there's not enough of us. You know, hiking and, and, and camping and backpacking.
Retha: And I want to see as many women, um, no matter what they look like, uh, in the outdoors.
Christine: Yeah. Thank you so much. I love how you're doing so many different things because it tells me that you are a soul sister because I also am like, have a shiny object syndrome, I guess, but also I
Christine: just love, yeah, I love so many things.
Christine: And so it's hard, it's hard not to follow the things that like, light you up and get you inspired and then also distract you from the things, um, like we were just talking about maintaining our website that we don't want to do.
Retha: No, no, really bad at it.
Christine: Which I think, I think it's okay. I mean, we all have our strengths and our weaknesses and, um, You know, I, I feel like the way that you create space for women and the energy that you bring is, is so important for the way that you're trying to inspire people. And so that's, that's what I was really drawn to and what I can't wait to share
Christine: with my listeners. so um, I think I would love to kind of take it back and hear when you first got into the outdoors and really started to. Realize that that's like the place that you enjoyed spending the most time and then we'll get into How travel became a part of that? Yeah,
Retha: so I've been a Girl Scout since I was five years old. Um, so I started real young in the outdoors. I, I spent 16 summers at Girl Scout camp, whether I was a camper. Or at the end, I was the camp director of the camp that I went to as a kid. So being outside has always been something that I have loved.
Retha: Um, but I would say that my like really hardcore, um, passion for the outdoors And for travel started, um, because of my divorce , I think it was like 20, 15 that I, um, 2016 that I climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and I was online and I was supposed to go visit my friend in New Zealand and she got her dream job. So like me coming to visit just was not going to work. And so I went online and I typed like women's adventure trips or something.
Retha: And, um, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro came up. So I signed up. And the rest is kind of history and I threw up every day going up that mountain, which was so not a good time for me. And before I left, uh, I, myself and my tent mate decided to go to Peru the following year with the company that I now work for.
Retha: Um, and From then on there, I started traveling all the time and I've been to, in a couple months, I will go to my 40th country, which is crazy because I grew up with not a lot of things, not a lot of money. And, uh, yeah, just trying to like, eat, like eating peanut butter and fluff as a new England girl does.
Retha: And now I've been to so many places all over the world and gotten to be outside in most of them. So that's, I just feel so blessed. Lucky to, to be where I am right now.
Christine: thank you. I think it is so interesting how so many of us really turn to travel to heal And how it is a space especially for women And when you even have the benefit of traveling with other women, that it can become such like a rich and rewarding experience. Um, so maybe you can talk about that both in the context of your trip to Africa and then we can kind of start to bring that into what you do now.
Christine: Why, why do you think that was so important for you and why it's so important to other, other women? Yeah. Yeah.
Retha: so going through my divorce, um, at home, I was 28 when I got divorced, 27. So I was really young. I was married for five years. So no one around me at that time was divorced or no one that I was friends with was divorced. So I went on this trip and I was the youngest person on the trip by like eight.
Retha: Nine years. And there are other women on this trip that, um, had been divorced. And so when I was talking to them, like they got it, it was the first time that I was with people that actually got where I was coming from. That gets like, I was the one that did the leaving, not because he wasn't a great person, not because he wasn't great to me.
Retha: So it was because I was unhappy and. Life is way too short to, to, to be unhappy. Like I'm not going to do that. And they got that even though that I was the one that did the leaving, it was still really hard and I'm still restarting and rebuilding my life. And it was women that were significantly older than me, from completely different places that I lived, that I live.
Retha: And it was really amazing to find that connection. Um, and, and to take on like a really big challenge doing it. I mean, I mean, now I live in a world where like all of my friends have climbed Mount Kilimanjaro because of a company that I worked for. Cause that's one of our big trips. We climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, but at the time I was like, I had never heard of the, heard of the mountain.
Retha: I did not know it was the tallest mountain on the African continent. Um, when I signed up to do it, I didn't even know how tall it was when I signed up to do it. So that was a bit of a shock when I found out that it was it's a little over 19 000 feet. So hence the throwing up as I was climbing it because of the altitude.
Retha: Um, but yeah, it just Getting to be in a challenging situation, not with other women, not only like you bond really fast, like you go from like being like, Hey, how are you? What's your name? Where are you from? To talking about poop. Um, because you're outside and sometimes that's things happen. I mean, there's no, there's no holds bar, uh, when it comes to that type of thing.
Retha: And then you have this shared experience and this shared challenge. And I'm just going to get, it gets like deep into your, your soul. Um,
Retha: no, I, it's so hard to describe because I love it so, so much. And as someone who's a writer and like a creator, I still, all these years later, just cannot put into words how important it is to connect with other women while being well, while physically challenging yourself.
Retha: It's so, so hard.
Christine: I agree. I feel like this has been the number one, like, challenge and difficulty in running my own, you know, women's travel company. And I try to explain to people what the experiences are. And I'm like, honestly, just say yes. Nothing I say to you right now matters. Like, I just know you need this experience and you need it for whatever reason you need it.
Christine: So whatever I say actually also doesn't matter. But like, this container. I don't think there's anyone who doesn't need it. And it, like, has a magical way of being what you need it to be anyway. So it's, it's really hard to talk about the experiences. And, like you said, it's so important, and that level of depth, because I think we live our lives in a very superficial way most of the time.
Christine: We have a lot of superficial encounters, um, in our work, in our daily transactions, in our, you know, relationships that are kind of, you know, With people that are in your life, but not a part of your life, and I think we need that deeper connection So I think that's part of why like when you arrive and you have a circle of women that are all here for that They all drop to that space really quickly because they're like, that's what I'm here for
Christine: Every once in a while someone arrives and they haven't had that experience before and it's maybe a little sticky But it's so so beautiful Powerful and beautiful, and I used to always think that I hated networking and I hated being, I hated socializing and all of those things, but I realized I really just am not good at superficial connection, which is why
Christine: when you and I met, we
Retha: which is,
Christine: good connection, we were
Christine: just
Retha: talked for a really long time.
Christine: yeah, immediately we're like, clearly we've known each other our whole lives.
Christine: Um, but yeah, I agree with you. I think that that depth is really, really important.
Retha: Yeah. And it's, it's, I don't, I don't want to talk about the weather. I don't want to talk about like silly little things. I want to get into the deep stuff. I want to get to the, I threw up on Mount Kilimanjaro. I want to get to the, I went to a yoga retreat and I had the most intense life changing experience.
Retha: And this is why, like, I want to hear about those deep things. I want to hear about your relationships with the people that you love and, and then you interact with and why you love going outside. I don't, you know, I want to talk about silly things that like you meet. Talk to, talk to an acquaintance about.
Retha: I don't have time for that. Like, it's like, life is too short.
Christine: Yeah. I think that's what I, I really love and, and also sensed again, like in your communications and your energy is this like sense of vitality, which is why I love following you on Instagram and like, I, I feel that kind of rush of vitality and that life is short, so live it big kind of is the energy that I, I, I get from you and,
Retha: And I got to just put out and say I don't live it big every day.
Christine: Yeah. Yeah.
Retha: think like that. I think that's the thing. Like, and I feel like you're very similar where like people are like, oh, where are you? And I'm like, I'm in Vermont. Like, I'm usually in Vermont. I just, when I. Do things. It's just really, really big.
Retha: And I have a lot of stories to tell about it. And, you know, when I'm on a trip, it's like two weeks or like when I'm on a hike, it's for a really long time. And like, I just have lots of thoughts that are just coming out of my head. And yeah, I just because I think that's like a thing that people think with.
Retha: With social media that we're always going and we're doing something and like, yeah, but like the things that I do like costs money and when I'm hiking for a month, that means I'm not working for a month. Um, so I, I I always try and remind people that like what you see on social media or my blog, it's not always.
Retha: Although I do live near a lot of hiking trails. Um, I can, I can see one from my house right now. Um, but it's just one of those things where, yeah. Just don't think what's on social media is always real. Unless you see a video of me crying. Which that's, that's real. I've posted many of, many of videos of me just like sobbing in the woods.
Retha: Cause if you're, if you're hiking, you're not crying, you might not be like doing it right all the time. Like, I feel like you've got to like leave some tears and some blood and some sweat on, on the trail to like really have a transformative experience. Experience. Um, maybe not all the time, but I don't know.
Retha: I'm a crier. You can ask any of my friends.
Christine: Yeah. Me too. Um, and thank you for, for bringing that up. Cause I think in, in the space of travel and especially when you're working in content creation or you're just creating a business and you have an online presence, the online presence is meant to like bring people in. Right? So you don't put the like, time you spent, like, washing your dishes and walking your dog and sitting here at the computer doing the things we don't like.
Christine: That's not what, what, people are looking for. So that's not what we're talking
Christine: about. Um, but I think it can be really misleading and also actually skew some people from wanting to be a part of the experience because they think they're not that person, because we're not
Christine: showing our full selves. When in reality, the person that's looking for this experience probably is very much like us and probably is crying on the trail or, you know, having these experiences, but because it doesn't match that perception that
Christine: you see, you can feel like you are excluding people even though you're really trying to be inclusive.
Christine: And I know I struggle with that a lot is like, how do I I really put that authentic self that's going to resonate out there and still have a brand that looks like it has legs to stand on because sometimes the
Christine: two things are in opposition to one
Retha: Oh, complete, complete opposition. Like, I don't carry a drone when I go hiking, even though I really thought about it. And, like, I don't have those big aerial photos. I don't have, like, me, like, Windily looking off in the distance, uh, in most of my photos because my style on social media is just really raw and honest and the really raw honest part of it is I don't have someone with me taking photos for me.
Retha: A lot of the times I'm by myself hiking because that's how I really, if it's a, if it's a personal hike, if it's a group hike, it's a different situation, but if it's just a hike where I'm backpacking by myself, I mean, I don't have someone there with me and I don't have patience for bringing like five extra ounces in my backpack for a tripod and like taking time in my day where I need to do 15, 16 miles to the next place where I'm camping to like stop and like walk towards the camera and then walk away from the camera or like take a million photos.
Retha: Like that's not who I am. Um, and like for anyone that actually finds that balance, all the power to them. I'm just not that person.
Christine: Yeah, I agree. It's, it's hard to figure out what, where the value is and, and then also to not take away from your own experience because it is
Christine: your experience, right? And I, I think that also is something that people struggle with. And I think about that when I'm out like scouting a trip or something and I think, Oh my gosh, I should be taking a video here.
Christine: I should be getting pictures here, but then I'm also trying to be in the moment to see what it feels like. So I can talk about that. When I want to bring travelers, because that's important. And again, it's like you, you just find yourself dancing around, like, what content do I need to be creating? What video do I need to be capturing? How much can I be in the moment to create it? And I think you just kind of keep going back and forth with figuring out how to show up and what, and what to do.
Retha: Yeah. And every, and everyone kind of comes to whatever decision that is for them. Like I remember. I had shin splints when I arrived in Damascus, Virginia, um, which is not that far into the trail. And I remember like sitting in this park, videoing myself, not knowing.
Retha: Getting ready to go to the doctor to get a, um, an x ray. Cause I wasn't sure if it was shin splints or I fractured something in my, my like leg area. Um, so I remember like sitting there crying and be like, I'm not ready for this to be over. And like looking awful, like absolutely terrible. But like, that's what I was feeling in that moment.
Retha: And like, that's the story that I want to share because a lot of people. Go out and they, they try through hiking. And I think that's great. And everyone deserves to be on the trail because there's space for everyone out there. But I think because of social media and because of like the beautiful picture people paint is like, they get the wrong idea.
Retha: And I think it's going to be puppies and unicorns the whole time. And don't get me wrong. There are times where there are puppies and unicorns, but there are times when you are. Soaking, especially in the Appalachian Trail, because we get a lot of rain, like, you're walking for a week straight and everything is soaking wet.
Retha: Every, like, you wake up in the morning and your clothes are still wet from the next day, and that's what you have to put on. And then you have to get out there, you have to take down your tent that's also wet, that's going to add more weight to your backpack, and the only thing that's even remotely dry is your sleeping bag.
Retha: And the clothes that you sleep in and everything else is soaked. And like, that's, that's the reality of that. Or you have just awful blisters. I mean, these are things that need to be, especially in the hiking and backpacking space, these are things that need to be talked about because that's real. And it's gross and it's disgusting and terrible and the smell will stick with you forever.
Retha: It really will. And anyone that's a hiker knows, knows that that smell, you will always smell it. Um, but that, that's the real thing. And the, the, and then there are beautiful views and there are moments of people that you connect with and that are absolutely spectacular because if it was all blisters and soaking wet tents and clothes, no one would do it.
Retha: But it's that balance and that perseverance to get through it. They're like, that needs to be shared with everybody because I think it'll set more people up for success and they will have a better experience in the outdoors because they are more prepared and they know what's coming at them and it's not just beautiful view after beautiful view, you know.
Christine: Yeah, I think it's really easy to romanticize long distant trails or travel in general, like it because again, part of the process of travel is is marketing travel. And that is in essence romanticizing every experience, right?
Christine: Making every experience that perfect moment. But, um, it is so important. And I think people now are really actually craving the realness and those experiences like they know they're going to be pushing marketing. themselves. They know they're stepping out of their comfort zone, whether that means hiking 15 miles a day or whether that means trying to navigate in a country where you don't speak the language and and all those things are, are really hard to do. Um, but I want to talk to you a little bit more about, you know, long distance trails and why that's something that you are really drawn to.
Christine: Uh, what do you think it is about that type of experience that pulls you in, um, and, and that other people really, find themselves craving out of that experience.
Retha: Oh, that's really hard. Um, so I did my first longer trail in 2020, um, but I did it in sections. So I section hiked the long trail in Vermont. It goes from the Vermont Massachusetts border in the south up to the Vermont Canadian border in the north. So in total, it's 273 miles. Um, I did it in sections. I was lucky enough to have a job During COVID four days a week.
Retha: So I would work for four days and then we would hike for three days. Um, and I live in Southern Vermont. So the farther North we got on the trail and those sections, the longer it took us to drive there and back. So in the lab, the last like big stretch we did was a week long. And then that's when we, we, we reached Canada and it,
Retha: the freedom of being out there and knowing that you have everything that you need on your back. Is really freeing for me personally. So when I finished the long trail, a couple of weeks later, I sat down with my then boyfriend, my now husband. And I said, what do you, what would you think? If I threw hikes the Appalachian Trail next year, and one of the reasons why I married him is because instantly he said, you should do it.
Retha: Um, so if anyone is listening to this, if you don't have a partner that instantly says you should do go, go do the thing that you're passionate about. Maybe find a new partner because that's the person that you need in your life. That's the person that's going to push you. That's the person that's going to be in your corner when everything sucks.
Retha: And he's, he's that person for me. Um, and so I, in April, sorry, in March of 2021, um, I took a train down to Atlanta, a friend that I met on a trip that I led, uh, in 2019, picked me up at the train station and drove me to the trailhead, uh, at Imacola Falls. Uh, State Park and I, and I, that's where I started my journey north and I started by myself and I didn't really know that I didn't know anybody.
Retha: Um, on day four, I met the person who is like my trail sister and we've been, we didn't even finish the trail together, but we did about 500 miles and like this, this woman is like. My person, like she is just one of those people that like she creates an amazing space. She's super kind to absolutely everyone.
Retha: She's such a better person than I am. Cause I am, I will be the first person to say that I am quick to judge. Um, and I am real feisty and she is the exact opposite. I think it's for some trails, it's the, it's the community.
Retha: Cause the community is absolutely spectacular. I mean, I don't know how many times I was like in a jam and someone was like, Oh, Hey, you okay? How you doing? Some of that I didn't know at all. Like, and everyone's just so willing to help everybody out and support each other. Like there was a person on the trail the year that I was out there that wasn't a very safe person.
Retha: They were going through a mental health crisis for sure. And everybody on the trail knew where that person was. Wasn't letting people camp alone with that person, like keeping each other safe all the time. Um, and that was like, so the community aspect of it is absolutely amazing. The freedom of just, it's just you, like you, if you want to get from Georgia to Maine, you need to get up every day and you need to go hiking.
Retha: Because the thing with long distance hiking is that you are in a. You're not in a race because you want to take your time. You want to enjoy it. But like, if you're hiking in certain areas, you're in a race to get to Maine specifically for the AT, if you're starting in Georgia, to beat the snow. Because if the snow gets there first, they're going to close the mountain.
Retha: And then you can't summit Mount Katahdin. Or like, or you'll have to like move all your stuff around and you'll have to like go up to Maine, summit, and then hike south or whatever. So like you, it's just you every day. Making your choice for you. And like, that's amazing. And as someone who like has a lot of challenges with anxiety and depression, I feel all of that goes away in, on the trail.
Retha: Like in last month, I was having not, I was not in my best space, uh, with my mental health and I was like, you know what, I'm just gonna. And it's not therapy, don't, I hate when people say that, like it really bothers me. Hiking and traveling is not therapy. Doing the thing that you love is not therapy.
Retha: Therapy is therapy. And it might make you feel better in the moment. And that might be what your, your, your heart, your body, your soul needs. And it's going to help you get through that, but it's definitely not therapy. I just want to clear that up. But like, I, I've actually three friends through all three of them.
Retha: I've met on trips that I have led, uh, which all of the same trip, but in different years. Um, and, uh, they all live in Houston. And one of them is like one of my biggest fans. Her name is Megan. And she's like always, and I, that sounds kind of weird when I say my biggest family, like she's the person when I hiked the Appalachian trail, she was watching YouTube videos of other hikers and she knew where I was.
Retha: She's like, Oh my gosh, when I come to this town, you've got to go to this place. This hostel is awesome. This, this place has this really cool restaurant. So like she actually, I think she knows more about the Appalachian trail than I do. Then I do. Um, so I was like, Hey, there's this trail north of Houston called the Lone Star hiking trail.
Retha: It's 96 miles. It's the longest hiking trail in the state of Texas. And I was like, It's like not that far from you. What are you doing during these dates? Can I come down? And you know, like I'll get a ride. Like I can get someone to bring me up there, whatever. And she's like, no. I'll bring you up. I'll pick you up.
Retha: And then we spent time together afterwards, but like getting out there and just spending five and a half days. With just me, because I saw very few people on that trail, like just getting up and walking and like having that, like walking meditation and just being with myself and like being in my feelings and just being okay with things not being okay and just like taking a step back from the world for a little bit.
Retha: And, you know, just being out there by myself and. You know, am I cured? Am I never going to be cured? Cause that's anxiety and depression. But like, I left the trail just feeling a little bit better. And it was, I was able to like, kind of reset, you know, and be like, okay, things, things sometimes suck, go out in nature, be one with the planet, and then, you know, come back into the real world because everyone that's a long distance hiker knows that the trail world is better than the real world.
Retha: Like a bad day hiking is better than a good day. In front of a computer at an office, or like, whatever your job is, like, like I'd rather be out in the pouring rain, like, pissed that I'm soaked, than sitting in front of a computer any day.
Christine: Yeah. Yeah. I think, you know, as you were speaking, you know, the idea of, you know, being with yourself, and I think most importantly, like, learning how to trust and listen to yourself, which is, I think, where No, You know, so many of us then start to feel the pressures of our real world, right, where sometimes anxiety and depression can come from.
Christine: It's like, you just stopped listening and trusting and believing in yourself and all the other noise is louder than the voice inside yourself. And I think that's really important. You know, for me, that's the stuff that, that's where it is. And I have a sticky note on my computer, and you'll be so happy that it's here. It says, this is a therapeutic process, but it is not therapy.
Retha: That's right, that's right. And something can be that, and that is 100 percent valid, but like, doing whatever it is, isn't therapy. Therapy is therapy, because there are different things.
Christine: yeah. So I, I think it does allow you to have that space to just kind of learn to depend on yourself. And, and as you mentioned, I think the community, this is something that, that I do romanticize is this community of, of long, you know, these long distance trails is, I hear over and over again that that's the thing, that's where the magic is.
Christine: Like, that's
Christine: really what people, you know, you know, you, you rely on it literally, but you, you really grow to want to be a part of that. And that takes you back again and again. And I think the same, probably similar to your experiences on Woe, if you have returning travelers, like there's something about the community, again, that we're, we're creating, we're craving that depth.
Christine: We're really craving, I think, to be seen as our as our whole selves. And we, we don't always want people to only know the most superficial things about ourselves. We want people to know, know us. And these types of travel experiences for women, I think really just allow that that connection and, and that intimacy in a way that we don't normally have the opportunity to be a part of.
Retha: Yeah, and it's, it's one of those things where like, when you go and you do something by yourself, you can just be you. You don't have to have all those walls up. So whether you're gonna go do a through hike or you're gonna do a, do a group trip, whatever, you can show up as your most authentic self. And if there are people there that like you and want to connect with you, and there probably will be awesome.
Retha: And if there aren't, you don't have to see these people again, like you can have the experience that you want to have because you want to have it, you know, and you can connect with people and, you know, have a lifelong connection.
Retha: And they know that they're my people, I mean, I'm not gonna kill anybody, but, like, when things get real, real terrible, you have those people, and, I mean, Who knew that was going to happen? Right?
Retha: Because I just showed up.
Christine: Yeah, I think it's incredible like the, like you said that those connections that you're you, you know, you wish for, but I think somehow don't even expect to happen. And the connection happens so quickly. And like you said earlier, you know, when you're facing these challenges on the trail or things are awkward and things are gross, like those things bond you in a way that other
Christine: experiences just don't like they're, they're real.
Christine: And you, you are already standing up for one another. Like, you already have each other's back. When you're doing something like hiking Kilimanjaro, which I have not done, but I've done a 14er, I led a trip here in Colorado, and the connection we needed to just get each other ready to, to hike that and then to make it to the top, those are important connections.
Christine: And, and they really, they really do foster something, um, When you build those relationships together in that context and um, again, I think that's something that's so powerful about travel for women I know people always say, you know, like why do we need women only experiences and I just think there's a
Retha: If they ask that question, they don't get it.
Christine: They don't get it. Yeah, there's just not enough safe spaces for women to show up and be themselves and to try things like this. And, and like you said, to even be brave enough to be yourself, which one of my very favorite things about traveling is like taking all those like masks and identities and layers that you carry through all the different parts of your, your daily life. And just being like, you know what, today I don't feel like carrying any of those. I just want to be. me. And I want to see what that feels like. I want to remember what that feels like, because all those other things are part of your life, but we very much lose that essential self, I think, over time. And We also forget how people respond to it.
Christine: And I think it's really fun to show up and be like, Hey, today I am just like Christine. I'm not Christine mom. I'm not Christine owns a travel company. I'm not Christine that like, you know, whatever it is. I just want to like, put myself out there. And then when other people see it and reflect it back to you, again, it also is so validating.
Christine: Just, it gives you a reassurance in who you are in a way that you don't always get in other spaces. So I think it's all of these things that are impossible, again, to convey in our, in our marketing or in why people should travel and take these experiences, but are so critically important to our own journeys.
Retha: Oh, yeah. Especially if you're a mom. I'm not a mom, but I've been a caretaker for kids for, I don't know, I was like 15 when I started working with kids in different capacities. Moms need vacations more than anyone. Moms work harder. Then anyone, because they're doing two, if not three, if not four jobs, um, at a time in different capacities.
Retha: And somehow y'all are keeping it together and I don't know how you all do it, which is why I'm choosing not to do it. Um, but like moms need vacations more than absolutely. Cause like you get so, I feel like moms get like so wrapped up in being mom because that's, that's so important, right? Like if you're going to be, if you're going to have kids, like you want to do it right and you get so wrapped up in being mom, that's like, sometimes you don't know what it's like to be you without being a mom anymore.
Retha: And so like getting away from that just for a little while, like you can rediscover yourself. And like, that's a really beautiful, I've seen that experience like happen in front of my eyes. Where someone like is like leaving their kids, maybe for the first time, or maybe after being a mom for a really long time and just like doing something for them.
Retha: Like, oh my God, I could cry. Like, even just thinking about the people that I've seen this happen to, like, that's a really, really beautiful thing. Like, you all don't get enough credit. You don't get to spend enough time on yourselves. And when you actually do, like, I feel, I've just seen women feel so much better.
Retha: And like leave trips. Ready to go home and be the best mom they can be because they invested a little bit Like that's that's powerful.
Christine: yeah. Thank you. I agree. And it's a hard lesson to learn, but it's an important lesson to learn. Um, well, one of the other things that you and I have spent a lot of time talking about, um, beyond, you know, healing adventures and, and spaces for women is sustainable travel. Um, so I would love to hear from you a little bit about your sustainability journey, and then maybe we can even talk about in the context of outdoor adventures, how people can, you know, look to incorporate that into their own experiences.
Retha: Yeah. Um, I, my sustainable journey happened right after I got my divorce. Um, and or like before and after I worked at this, um, environmental education, um, organization called Nature's Classroom. If you grew up in the, 90s or the early 2000s in New England, you've probably heard of it or gone to nature's classroom because in the 90s, I went to nature's classroom and like it's summer camp for school.
Retha: So, like, the kids from where him middle school, where I went to middle school, come for a week and you sleep in cabins and you hang out in the woods. And like, that was my job. My job was to like, be with the kids, hang out in the woods, and my whole goal was to teach them that hanging out in the woods is cool.
Retha: And like, if that's all they learn all week long, amazing. And within that, um, we teach classes. So and as a teacher that worked there, you could choose what you taught. So I taught myself and I learned from other people that I worked with that, you know, how to compost. Like, actually make it work, not just like piling things on top of each other, on top of each other, that doesn't compost anything, that's not how that works.
Retha: How, like, how much food actually goes to waste. After a meal if you aren't conscious of it like little things like that and then from there Um that just kind of grew so I don't like buying new clothes I buy a lot of my clothes from like consignment shops or from thrift stores Because the flat the fashion industry along with the travel industry they create the most carbon emissions Um Partly because of flights, because flights are, create a lot of them, but um, fashion, fast fashion specifically does that because it's always creating and it's always, it's wasting a lot of water too, because it's always washing, washing, washing.
Christine: Mm hmm.
Retha: so a few things that I do is that I try not to buy gear that's new, unless it needs to be new. Like, I'm going to buy a new rain jacket. Because, like, buying a second hand rain jacket, I'm like, did someone bring this here because it wasn't working? Um, like, I'm not gonna buy a new tent. Granted, I use my tent until it's dead.
Retha: Um, I got a new tent right before I went on the Appalachian Trail. Because the other one just, like, it needed to go. Like, there were holes that could not be fixed anymore. It rained one time, I ended up in a puddle. Like, you can't be, you can't be long distance hiking in a situation like that. So I got a new tent.
Retha: Um, and I, you know, try not to buy things if I don't have to. I mean, my, one of my oldest pieces of hiking gear is, um, an MSR pocket rocket. It's a stove, not what everybody else is thinking of. And it screws into the top of a fuel canister. I've had it for 15 years. Like, and that's how good the original Pocket Rocket was.
Retha: So if you have one, you are doing great. Um, cause it probably still works. Um, so things like that, just using things until I just can't use them anymore. Um, the best I can. And
Retha: I work, I do work with some, some brands, uh, in the outdoor industry. And I, every once in a while, I'll get approached by a brand that wants to give me something.
Retha: But if I already have like a tent, I will say no, thank you. We can figure out a different way to work together. Um, when I am not hiking, um, I'm a big, big fan of public transportation. I mean, don't get me wrong. If I'm arriving in a new city at like 1130 at night, I'm calling that Uber for my own personal safety. Cause I'm probably not getting on a train in a new country where I don't know where I'm going.
Retha: Um, and I don't speak the language. That's just, you know, women that travel, like we always get to think about like our safety. So I'm going to imagine don't need to think about, right. Um, so I am going to do that. But like during the day I public transportation, like you really get to feel like a local, it's not just good for the environment.
Retha: You really get to feel like what someone in that city or that country does because in a lot of places throughout the world, people don't own a car. You know, people aren't just driving everywhere all the time. They're walking, they're taking public transportation. Honestly, depending on where you are in the world, they're probably driving a motorcycle.
Retha: Um, what else? Oh, single use water bottles. I hate them. They're terrible. Um, and that's a huge, huge problem. Um, Oh, there's this one guy that I follow online and I wish I knew his Instagram handle. He's based out of Bali and he's working with people to like remove trash from waterways in Bali. And it's all plastic, all, all plastic.
Retha: So when I travel, I have a water bottle with a built in filter. So I can fill up my water anywhere and just drink right through it. Like it can be from the tap in Peru where you normally don't drink the water from the tap, but it filters all the bad stuff out and I can drink it just fine and be safe.
Retha: There's a couple other things that I do that, um, are like way more advanced, but if you're looking to start, those are some great places to start.
Christine: yeah, I agree. I think the, the water bottles is the easiest and I know when you travel and I even, like, when I'm traveling with all my kids, it's so tempting to just be like, it would be so much easier than everyone carrying a filter water bottle and making sure that they're using it right and all that kind of stuff.
Christine: And then it feels, I can see where it's a hard choice for people sometimes. Not a hard choice, but it's like, I guess it's, it's the easy choice or easier choice, but it makes such a huge difference. And I remember the very first time that I made that commitment and I took, I have a grail, like the press,
Retha: those work great, and those are super easy to use for kids, too, like, They, you can't really mess that up.
Christine: Yeah, yeah. Um, and I was like, man, I just took a whole trip and I just used this and it felt really empowering and I think that's maybe something that people wouldn't necessarily think of is like to be like, I made this choice and it wasn't that hard and it makes a huge impact. Bali was the place for me that I realized what was happening to our world, really.
Christine: Like, it was a place in my mind that I had always wanted to go, and it looked and felt a certain way. And when I was there, I couldn't get in the water the entire time. Because the one place that we went to swim, um, like, if you got out past the waves, it was maybe better. But at the shore where we were standing, our ankles were submerged in garbage. And it was, Like, the hardest, I, I have never felt so, like, guilty and afraid and sad in any moment. Like, I, I felt so bad about what the world had done to this place that is so beautiful and is so beautiful in many people's minds. And not that there are not many beautiful parts about Bali, I'm not saying that, but like, just this moment was so hard To witness what was happening in our world and you couldn't look away like there's just no way and we went to another beach and they literally had just like, like used a tractor, you know, with a bucket and just like pushed the garbage up to the top of the beach so that people could be on the beach and I just, when you see that you just know you have to make different choices, which is why I think travel is so important.
Christine: It's so important to get us out of our own context and, like, the version of life that we live to see somebody else's experience and to see these climate impacts firsthand. Like, it's so important, uh, it's so hard. In some places it's so hard and so important because otherwise we're not motivated to make the changes that seem impossible when, like, carrying a filtered water bottle is not impossible.
Christine: Mm
Retha: Yeah. And, and it's, it's one of those things where like I listed all those things, like they were so easy. Like I didn't just wake up one day and I was like, I'm going to do all of these things. That's, that's impossible because you were just going to overwhelm yourself. And a lot of the changes that I made, especially at home, I have, it happened during COVID.
Retha: Because, like, we were just thinking about all of these things at our house, and I was like, well, we could change this one thing, and so, like, what I tell people is, when you're at home, or when you're traveling, pick one thing, and do it until it's a habit, and then, once it's a habit, Pick another thing
Retha: and then slowly all of these things will be part of your life and Or are you gonna do everything perfect all the time?
Retha: Absolutely, not like if you go traveling and you are overwhelmed with your children and you can't do the water bottle thing Okay You know, we can't do everything all the time perfectly, but like make an effort in other places and different times and, you know, it's going to work out and like, I think that's something having worked with kids for so long, sharing that knowledge.
Retha: And educating the next generation is so important because they're the ones that are really stuck with this problem, right? But the people after us are the ones that are really gonna have to deal with it. The big, big problem, and if we teach collectively all of them now to make smaller changes, it's going to be easier for them to make changes in the future, and they're going to pass it on.
Retha: And when you know better, when you know better, you should do better.
Retha: And not everyone does, but I feel like you and I are people that like, when we know better, we do better and we're working every day to make that happen. And again, not perfect, but an effort is better than no effort at all.
Christine: Yeah. And I think, like you said, sharing it with children and making it a normal part of their conversation and a normal part of their actions. So I remember also a few years ago, I decided, you know, we really don't need to have straws, like we can carry a metal straw in my purse or whatever. And Um, we went somewhere and they, they tried to give us a straw for our drink and like my littlest was really little at the time, but she was like, do you not love turtles or something?
Christine: Like she
Retha: Yeah,
Christine: just yelled at them, you know, and she's like, why would you, why would you do that? Um, but because we talked about, you know, something in the level that she could understand and, and I think even a teacher had shown her a picture or something. And so for her, that's just ingrained to her, like this choice equals this action.
Christine: And. And that's maybe simplifying it. But for her, I know that's something that she's taking forward. And the more we just create conversation and, and share, like, we know outcomes now of, of these things. Like, I remember when we were young, when I was young, especially, they would say, you know, like, this is coming.
Christine: These are things that are going to happen in your future. Well, one, they'd start talking about 2020 and I'm sitting there in 1980 thinking like, well, in 2020, I'm going to be a hundred years old and we'll have like flying cars and everything will have fixed itself. So it's
Retha: I'm still, I'm still pissed about the flying cars though. Where, where are they? Somebody get on that. Mm hmm. Mm
Christine: And like, I think it was so hard to even imagine what these outcomes could be because it, it, it just seems so far, but like they're living already in the outcome.
Christine: They're like living in, you know, phase two of the outcome and imagining phase three and four of the outcome seems so far away. Like, I think they can see that. They can close that gap now, whereas maybe we couldn't. I don't, I don't know the difference, but like my daughters too, if we will go into a consignment store, if they're shopping and like one, they're like, yeah, this costs me less money out of my, my savings or whatever.
Christine: And two, like, they're like, oh, I, this is something that was just going to get thrown away and I can actually use it. And so they're even thinking about that a little bit.
Christine: Whereas when I was younger, I maybe would have been like, I don't want to do that. That feels weird or. Only people that couldn't afford to buy new clothes would have this, like there was a different stigma, and now it's like you're actually taking action instead of it being, you know, a different association.
Christine: So I just think it's really interesting in the context of having these conversations with children and trying to champion the next generation to make the choices we wish we made when we
Christine: were their ages. Um, Well,
Retha: it's giving kids the benefit of the doubt, right? Like, kids are smarter than everyone gives them credit for. Like, talk to them like they're humans. Don't talk to them like they're trees. Oh my goodness. Like, I hate when people do that to kids. They are smart. Treat them as such.
Retha: And like, you can, like you said, you explained about your, to your daughter about the sea turtles and like, is that sad? Absolutely. Does she need to know the reality of it? Absolutely. And she can handle it because you're giving her the power to fix it.
Christine: hmm.
Retha: And like kids, every, every kid is a completely different, everyone kid is going to have their own little journey.
Retha: But like, if you teach one kid one thing, like little actions collectively make big actions. Absolutely.
Retha: Like it's just, we all got to work together and, um, everybody can do their part. And even if it's a little thing and yes, big companies are really the reason blah, blah, blah, blah. Like companies should start taking accountability for their actions.
Retha: Cause like if I need shampoo and I can only get it in a plastic container. I mean, I need to buy the shampoo. So like companies need to do better, but like we can just, I don't even buy shampoo in a bottle anymore. I just buy a bar. Um, and hope if more and more people did that shampoo wouldn't be in containers that are really bad for the environment anymore, everything that we does has a, has a reaction and
Retha: kids can handle that.
Retha: Yeah, they're so smart.
Christine: Yeah,
Christine: they are
Retha: way to go, mom. A plus.
Christine: Yeah. Well, there's, there's my one plus sign for, for the day. Um, like you said, it's always, it's a balance for sure. Um, well, we had a couple more things that I really wanted to talk about and I, we're running out of time, but I think one thing that I just wanted to, to add on to, we're talking about children, but, um, Um, as one of your hats is Roaming Nanny, obviously that's what your, your, your brand is called.
Christine: But why do you think, um, traveling with children either near or far is important?
Retha: Um, and I feel like that's, that's a really big thing near and far. You don't have to take your kids really far away. Like, everyone's budget is completely different. And doesn't matter whether you take them to the mountains that are three hours away, or if you take them, Over to Tanzania to go on a safari.
Retha: Like everyone has their own budget and everyone should do what they can. Cause you know, as a, as a kid, I never thought I'd actually ever go and see a real safari. And I like have actually gotten to, so like everyone's going to have their own journey there. But like when you show kids things that are different from their reality, it helps them understand the world more.
Retha: Again, I said, kids are way smarter than everyone gives them credit for. And if you don't work with kids on a regular basis, um, Like, you don't necessarily know that. Um, and, and even like, I think parents don't necessarily know that too. Because parents know their kids, right? Like, you know your kids better than anybody.
Retha: But like, you don't know somebody else's kids. So like, you know how to work with your little humans, but not everybody else's. And like, if we all just like collectively just agree that kids are smart. That would be great. I'd really appreciate it. Um, and I know that they would too. So like advocate for the little people.
Retha: Um, but like just take them to places they've, you know, aren't that are different from, from their own. Like I grew up in like a little neighborhood in Massachusetts, like right near Cape Cod. So like I knew the ocean, but like as a kid every summer, like we didn't have a lot of money. We went to the White Mountains in New Hampshire every summer.
Retha: Like that was our vacation. And. I know when I through the Appalachian trail, I actually hiked straight through those mountains that I grew up as a kid. And I summited Mount Washington for the very first time on that trail. And like, as I was climbing, and I could cry right now, like as I was climbing, I just remembered all the times that I got to look at this mountain, like as a kid, cause like my parents are not hikers, that is not their jam in any way, shape, or form.
Retha: But like, I, I saw this mountain so many times as a kid, and it was such like a privilege to get to be on top of it, you know, and like seeing something that was totally like, to me at the time, unachievable, but like taking your kids there and be like, ah, you can do that. You get the right knowledge and you got to be safe and you got to know what you're doing, but you can do that and like seeing, you know, you talked about like going to Bali and seeing the reality, like kids can see that and get it, you know what I mean, like when you take kids to a national park.
Retha: And they love it and they think it's beautiful, and they're like, this is why we need to protect it. Because you see those buffalo? There weren't a lot of them. You know, for a really long time. Because we killed them. And we are making, we totally messed up there.
Retha: We're making efforts now to bring them back. And that's really important. You know, and. Don't go near them. Don't take selfies with them. But like, observe them from afar. And like, that's really important. And seeing the Grand Canyon for all of its splendor. You know, I live near Acadia, uh, National Park in, it's up in Maine.
Retha: And it's all big, crazy, coastal, and, you know, um, Lighthouses and just seeing that difference, you know, there's a kid too. And yeah, I had beach, but not that type of beach and just knowing that all of these little things exist and like, I should help protect them or like seeing a person that lives in a completely different way.
Retha: Maybe I should have love for them. Maybe I should understand where they're coming from and not judge where they're coming from. You know, I, I mean, I, I didn't see that type of stuff like as an, as a kid, but like going to like India and seeing the poverty in India and seeing the haves and the have nots because it is very polarized.
Retha: Right. Um, and seeing that for the first time, it really affected me and like changed my perspective on life. And like, you can do that with kids. In small ways. And like, you can teach them things and not get them like overwhelmed and sad and doomsday, blah, blah, blah, about the world, but showing them beautiful places and why should we should protect them?
Retha: I mean, like the, like the Lorax is a great example. Like, I absolutely love that book. I used to read it when I was a teacher and a camp counselor and all of that, because like, there was one person saying something and he was totally right, but nobody listened. And like, if you can teach your kid to be that person.
Retha: And then they teach them, somebody else to be that person. Like then there's so many more of us to help protect the world in lots of different ways. And we need that, right? Kids are always the future.
Christine: Yeah. And I think what's so great about that is, you know, these elements that are profound are like awe and compassion and, um, you know, humility. Like those can be found everywhere, which I love that you reiterated that, that we can, you know, invite our children into these experiences within an hour of our own home, if we're just thinking about how we can do it, which also I think is important because that means we can do it ourselves in our own lives too, without having to take the time to have these huge adventures, which I know we both advocate for, but the real, you know, the reality is that we can't do it all the time.
Christine: And we can bring some of those practices and, you know, those, those feelings and experiences into our life. more regularly if we just are a little bit more intentional about how we create space for them.
Retha: Oh yeah. I go on way more weekend adventures than I do big giant ones. I haven't been on a big giant adventure since 2021. And I get to do it because of work. That's a different situation. I just, I've created a life where I can go on these big situations, big trips and get paid for them. But like, me personally, like, I can't afford to do big, big trips most of the time.
Retha: Because, you know. I just live small, and I don't make a ton of money, but what I do brings me joy, and money doesn't bring happiness,
Christine: Yeah.
Christine: Yeah. Thank you. Um, well, Reetha, before we end, I have a few of our rapid fire or rapid fire ish questions to
Christine: end the conversation. So the first one is, what are you reading right now?
Retha: Um, I'm an audiobook person, and I'm, uh, re reading, I'm dyslexic, so reading takes me a long time. Um, I'm re listening to, um, Shadow of Night. It's, uh, the All Souls Trilogy from Deborah Harkness. I really like fantasy stuff, and vampires.
Christine: Hmm. Um, I do too. If I, if I have to balance my reading, I have usually something fantasy and something personal development and something business related in my cycle at all times. So, um, what is always in your suitcase or backpack when you travel?
Retha: My rain jacket.
Christine: Um, to sojourn is to travel somewhere as if you live there for a short while. Where is someplace that you would still love to sojourn?
Retha: Um, I haven't been to Australia, so I'd really, I'd really like to spend a good chunk of time there. It's so big, so.
Christine: yeah, it's so big. We were actually just talking about that in my, my house yesterday is trying to figure out how big Australia really was and talking about how maps are kind of skewed and, um, trying to understand, um, the real perspective of how big it is. But,
Retha: Oh yeah.
Christine: um, what is something you eat that immediately connects you to a place you've been?
Retha: Um, this is going to sound super terrible. Um, when I did the AT, I lost significant amount of weight very fast because I could not consume enough calories. Um, I love a Big Mac. Like it's so gross and I know it's not real food, but it's so many calories and it just brings me right back to sitting outside of McDonald's, smelling awful, destroying two giant Big Macs to try and get calories back in my body so I didn't become the Crypt Keeper.
Retha: Um,
Christine: I love it so much because there's something about those foods that you wouldn't eat. But in those scenarios, they are just like the best ever. And the one for me is always bananas taste better anywhere else in the world than here. And
Christine: especially like when you're like hiking and someone hands you a banana and you're like it's the Holy Grail.
Retha: yeah, yeah. Like I don't like mangoes anywhere except where you can actually get a fresh mango. They just taste weird everywhere that doesn't grow them.
Christine: Yeah. Um, who was a person that inspired or encouraged you to set out and travel the world?
Retha: I don't have an answer for that. Um, I know that's really terrible, but I, like, off the top of my head, I just can't think of anyone. And I know there's lots of, there's so many amazing people, like, I just can't think of someone. Um,
Christine: okay.
Retha: Yeah, I don't
Christine: I asked myself these questions, I was like, Oh, I actually don't know if I have an actual person that made me think I could or should travel, but I really put it back to National Geographic that inspired me to want to see the world and understand it, but I didn't
Christine: necessarily have a person.
Retha: I've got somebody. Um, I remember in college, um, watching the Travel Channel and seeing Samantha Brown, um, who still is like one of the only women that have had a TV show on the Travel Channel, um, along with Kelly Edwards, who is also amazing. Um, I got to meet and spend time with her a few times, but Samantha Brown, I remember watching her like in the common room in college with friends.
Retha: And being like, who is this person? How does she get to do this? I want to do this. And I actually, I got to meet her at WITS. When we, uh, not at WITS. Um, at Women's Travel Fest. Um, when, when we first met. And I like went and I told her this. And I definitely cried like in front of her. And it was the most.
Retha: Embarrassing thing that I have probably ever done because she like, she's like, Oh my God, I'm just here to take pictures with people. Like, and she's so, so, so, so sweet and she's like, that's so great, blah, blah. And like, but I felt like I made the whole situation awkward. I usually do that, but like, I made that situation extra awkward.
Retha: Cause I like could not control my emotion. I mean, she's never, I don't know if she's ever listened, but I'm so sorry. Then I made that awkward moment. Like.
Retha: Publicly apologize.
Christine: well, I'm trying to get her on the podcast because so many women have mentioned, um, her name. And when I met her at that event, I was like, do you ever feel like a Disney princess with this huge line of people waiting to take a picture? And she's like, well, I hadn't thought about it that way, but that is how I'm thinking about it forevermore.
Retha: Oh my god. I wish I could see myself as a Disney princess. That'd be amazing. Oh, wow
Christine: Um let's see, uh, who, if you could take an adventure with one person fictional or real, alive or past, who would it be?
Retha: my god, this is such a hard question. There's so many Um, okay. I'm gonna say this answer because up for my dad. Um, so I grew up listening to stories about teddy roosevelt From my dad because if you ask my dad about teddy roosevelt, he'll tell you stories like they were college buddies It's really adorable and absolutely hilarious Anyone that's met my dad knows that but I would have to say Teddy Roosevelt.
Retha: I feel like that guy was just up for anything and like within the time period that he lived Like he did do so he did some terrible things and he said some terrible things But he also did some like really great things as well But I feel like he was just up for a good time So I feel like he and I could go on an adventure together, especially like a hike and have like an absolute blast together
Christine: Yeah. Uh, the last one, um, solo travel is a space for, um, recognizing women in the industry. Is there someone you admire that you would like to bring attention to here on the podcast? Mm
Retha: I mentioned her earlier Kelly Edwards Um, she had her, her show on the travel channel for a while, and I got to travel with her on a, on a press trip. Uh, um, that was last year. I don't know. She is just so spectacular. That woman just goes out and is like making Making things happen. And she like, she's so, so incredible.
Retha: Like she's a pilot. Like, I don't even know how you would become a pilot. Like, I don't know how, what that process looks like. I would all, I would love to fly a plane, but I don't know what that looks like. Woman scuba dive, she hikes, she's out there living her best life. And it's completely on her terms.
Retha: And like, she knows, she knows what she's worth. She knows her value. And like, she's just. Doing it so well and she's not compromising herself. And like, that's, that's how I want to live my life. Like I want to do what I want to do and I don't want to do it on somebody else's terms. And I feel like she's doing it right now.
Retha: And I like, she's such a kind person, um, and it's so great to see someone who's completely down to earth, um, and kind and generous to the people around her, um, doing, like being successful.
Retha: I absolutely love that about her. She's great.
Christine: Yeah. I agree. I've, I've had the opportunity to meet her once and she's someone else that I, um, stalk on Instagram and would love to have on the podcast, but she is really inspiring. just for what you're saying. Like you feel like, um, You want her to succeed because you feel like the way that she puts herself out into the world is really valuable and like whenever something happens, you're just like, you're kind of like all the people on the trail watching it and just being like, yes, that was something. That was really well deserved and, and you're grateful that they're having that experience because of how they show up. So, um, well, thank you so much, Reetha. I'm, I'm grateful that we, we finally got this one wrapped up. We
Christine: finally got to talk and get to bring it into the, into the space of solo travel. I really appreciate you being here today.
Retha: Awesome. Thank you so much for having me. And hopefully we'll get to see each other in person sometime soon.
Christine: Yeah, that would be great.
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