Episode 184 - Christine Winebrenner Irick, Summer Reading Book-isode
In this episode of Soul of Travel, Season 5: Women's Wisdom + Mindful Travel, presented by @journeywoman_original, Christine hosts a special summer showcase of authors who wrote some of our favorite books at Soul of Travel.
Be sure to check out our latest Summer Reading blog, highlighting even more encouraging and inspiring books from our Soul of Travel community!
In this episode, Christine is so happy to share about her past guests’ recent books – as well as some favorites from the last few years! These women continue to show up in big ways to shift the narrative around who is traveling. The result: Getting more memoirs and travel stories written by women on bookshelves around the world, and inspiring future generations of travelers.
Authors highlighted include:
· Dr. Anu Taranath
· Beth Santos
· Nikki Vargas
· Maria Baltazzi
· Lisa Niver
· Kat Medina
Quick note: This post contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a commission should you choose to make a purchase using my link.
Use these links to support me, or visit any of the author’s websites or your locally owned or women-owned book store.
Wander Woman by Beth Santos
A simple search for ‘solo traveler’ comes up with a very distinct persona; Beth often felt this while traveling solo herself. But as she points out, the vast majority of travel decisions are made by women, who are all too often left out of the travel conversation entirely.
Wander Woman addresses this paradigm and explores all the different ways women move through the world in travel, from safety and why the topic of fear is so pervasive in the conversation of solo female travel, to how to define travel for yourself. “It is written for people who are new to traveling alone, but it is enjoyable for anyone, whether it’s your first trip or you’ve been on hundreds of trips.”
With shoutouts, resources from experts in the field, Beth’s hope is that this book changes the way you think and talk about travel–and that you give yourself the grace to get out there.
Listen to Christine’s recent episode with Beth.
Purchase your copy of Wander Woman.
Connect with Beth on Instagram.
Call You When I Land by Nikki Vargas
Nikki’s bestselling memoir is a coming of age story that covers a lot of ground–from running away from a wedding last minute, to finding new love, and chasing career dreams. “This book will transport you in vivid detail all over the globe–from the food stalls in Vietnam to the jungles of Iguazu National Park on the borders of Argentina and Brazil.”
Above all, Nikki shares, Call You When I Land is an invitation to realize it’s never too late to go after the things that are most important to us.
With a recommendation list that includes Shondaland, Cheryl Strayed, and Apple Books, you won’t want to miss this summer read!
Read Nikki’s article in Cosmopolitan.
Listen to Christine’s episode(s!) with Nikki.
Purchase your copy of Call You When I Land.
Take a Shot at Happiness by Maria Baltazzi
Maria shares: “Having an immersive experience makes for a more transformative experience that will last long after the physical journey itself!”
Before launching her transformational travel company, Sojourn Explorers, Maria worked as a renowned television producer on Survivor and a number of documentaries and series. As a producer, the demands were exhausting. She found herself experiencing suffering in every area in her life–and chose to do something about her happiness and wellbeing. SHe started reading books and taking courses, leading to her PhD and inspiring her to write Take a Shot at Happiness.
Her book draws lessons from her life as a television producer, her travels, world events, and media that we all know and love. Each chapter teaches on what Maria calls “The Happiness Essentials,” all to help readers discover a life they love.
Maria shares that her book is for anyone early in their wellbeing journey, and everyone looking for a new perspective to living a happier, more purposeful life.
Listen to Christine’s recent episode with Maria.
Purchase your copy of Take a Shot at Happiness.
Brave-ish by Lisa Niver
Lisa’s book is the memoir detailing how she completed fifty crazy challenges and dares after turning fifty to reinvent herself after her divorce.
Brave-ish is for people who might not feel that brave, “and who are trying to figure out what to do next.”
“Small steps lead to big changes,” she encourages. She enjoys sharing all of her experiences and her travels in different mediums and online, and is thrilled to be the narrator in the audiobook version of Brave-ish.
Listen to Christine’s episode with Lisa.
Purchase your copy of Brave-ish.
The Joys of Jet Lag by Kat Medina
“For most of my life, I’ve been two different people. When I traveled, joy was effortless…when I returned home, it was elusive.”
She found herself constantly working for that next trip–and realized that she had the power to bridge the gap between who she was as a traveler, and who she had been. Adopting a traveler’s mindset has taught Kat the joy that’s possible when you change your outlook–no matter where you are.
Kat decided to write about adopting a traveler’s mindset in everyday life in The Joys of Jet Lag. Her hope is that readers begin to view setbacks as adventure, and how to seek out moments of awe and fulfillment everywhere you go (and stay!).
No passport required!
Listen to Christine’s recent episode with Kat.
Purchase your copy of The Joys of Jet Lag.
Beyond Guilt Trips: Mindful Travel in an Unequal World by Dr. Anu Taranath
When her book began to circulate throughout the travel industry after being published in 2019, Dr. Taranath began connecting with more and more people in the travel industry who are resonating with the ideas and approaches she shares about traveling across difference, holding complexity in ourselves and each other, and navigating “the complicated feelings that travel bring up in us.”
“What I’m learning from many of the readers of this book is that these are the moments that really stay with us–those uncomfortable moments that we didn’t know what to say, or we weren’t sure if we should look away or continue to gaze. Those moments that leave a lot of uncomfortable questions in our mind about…How do we do tourism better? How do we visit one another’s countries in more ethical ways?”
Dr. Taranath wrote Beyond Guilt Trips to invite people into reflection and conversation, especially around some of the stories she shares. She also hopes that we each learn some strategies about moving through the world, “with a little more presence, a bit more grace, a bit more strategy, and a bit more connection.”
Listen to Christine’s episode with Dr. Taranath.
Purchase your copy of Beyond Guilt Trips.
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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
Looking for more summer reading inspiration? Read the 2024 Summer Reading Blog or check out the list below!
12 Trips in 12 Months by Jen Ruiz
Blood, Sweat, and Tears and Alone in Wonderland by Christine Reed
10 Steps to Happiness by Alice Ford
The Power of Days by Celeste Mergens
Hey You, Just Go! by Sahara Rose Devore
The Inside Out Journey: An Elusive Search for Self Across Three Continents by Kristina Liu
Mind, Body, Soulmate by Jennifer Mac Niven
Sherbert Skies by Tess Millhollon
In Every Mirror She’s Black, Everything is Not Enough, Lagom: The Swedish Secret of Living Well by Lola Akinmade
The Meaning of Travel: Philosophers Abroad by Dr. Emily Thomas
Adventures in Morroco and Walking with Nomads by Alice Morrison
The Shooting Star by Shivya Nath
Light Through the Cracks and Jumping the Picket Fence by Lydia Dean
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). GUEST NAME (Guest). Original music by Clark Adams. Editing, production, and content writing by Carly Oduardo.
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Soul of Travel Episode 184 Transcript
Women’s travel, transformational travel, sustainable travel, women leaders in travel, social entrepreneurship
Christine: Welcome to the Soul of Travel podcast. I'm Christine Weinbrenner Eirich, the founder of Lotus Sojourns, a book lover, yogi, mom of three girls, and your guide on this journey. We are here to discover why women who are seasoned travelers, industry professionals, and global community leaders fall in love with the people and places of this planet.
Christine: Join me to explore how travel has inspired our guests to change the world. We seek to understand the driving force, unending curiosity, and wanderlust that can best be described as the soul of travel. Soul of Travel Podcast is a proud member of the Journeywoman family, where we work to create powerful forums.
Christine: for women to share their wisdom and inspire meaningful change in travel. In each Soulful Conversation, you'll hear compelling travel stories alongside tales of what it takes to bring our creative vision to life as we're living life with purpose, chasing dreams, and building businesses to make the world a better place.
Christine: But the real treasure here is the story of the journey. As we reflect on who we were, who we are, and who we're becoming, we are travelers, thought leaders, and heart centered change makers. And this is the soul of travel.
Christine: Welcome to our first summer reading bookisode. I am so happy to share about many of my past guests recent books, as well as some of our past favorites. These women are showing up in big ways to shift the narrative around who is traveling and getting more memoirs and travel stories written by women on bookshelves around the world and inspiring future generations of travelers.
Christine: These stories are so important. I cannot count the number of times that women have told me that Elizabeth Gilbert's journey in Eat, Pray, Love inspired their own, or that Cheryl Strayed got them out on the trail after they read Wild. I have already heard how women are being inspired by Nikki Vargas's Call You When I Land and Beth Santos book, Wander Woman.
Christine: I hope over the summer you'll grab a few of these books, toss them in your beach bag or backpack, and enjoy their stories. Then pass them along to your friends and let us know what you think. First up, I had so much fun sitting down with Beth Santos recently, both here on the podcast and at the WITS Creator Summit in Utah.
Christine: We talked about her new book, Wonder Woman, a book that is so much more than a travel guide. I really love the topics that Beth chose that not only prepares you to travel the world solo, but also prepares you to do it in a way that will make you feel more comfortable, confident, and prepared for the more challenging conversations and emotions that you may come across as you travel.
Christine: I don't think there is another book that tackles topics for solo women travelers in quite the same way. To hear more from Beth, you can go back and listen to episode 43 and episode 171 here on Soul of Travel podcast. And now let's hear about Wander Woman from author Beth Santos.
Beth: I am Beth Santos, founder and CEO of Wanderful, which is an international community of women travelers. I'm also the author of Wander Woman, which is a great book that is for women who are thinking about traveling alone, or maybe already do travel alone, that gives them the confidence and honest conversation about the messages that we're telling women and how a lot of them are wrong.
Beth: Uh, it published in 2024, in March of 2024, with an imprint under Hachette called Grand Central Balance. And, you know, I wrote this book because when I first started traveling alone, I really thought I was the only one doing it. I mean, I felt Excited, but also lonely. Um, if you looked at the time and, and even now, if you look at who is represented, when we talk about solo travel, like literally put in a Google search, you know, solo traveler and see who shows up, it's a very narrow.
Beth: Interpretation of what a traveler is, is usually a white Western able bodied, usually young, usually guy, but sometimes women. And, um, and it didn't really give the full. Scope of who is out there traveling and who is out there traveling alone. And the other thing that's interesting to know about that is that actually women dominate the travel industry.
Beth: We make 80 to 85 percent of travel decisions. We are traveling more than men. We are traveling solo more than men. And yet at the same time, we are systematically told that traveling alone is unsafe, that we're going to be bored and lonely, that we should be traveling with a partner or with our family, um, that, that travel isn't made for us.
Beth: And I wanted to create a book that really sat people down and had honest conversations. about the world that we're in. Some of the issues that we see and how we talk about travel to women. The fact that when you do travel alone as a woman, there are things that you notice up front. The gender norms and expectations that um, that hit us in the face when we're alone.
Beth: The reality of, um, of being a woman abroad is different in all of the places that we go. The culture shock that you might experience when you come home, all of those things are really important. And this book fights against a lot of that. We talk about safety. We lean into fear and why this is so pervasive in the topic of solo female travel.
Beth: And then we also give some really good tips. I talk about what it's like to go out there. Some of the things that you might want to do. I talk about what travel actually is. Let's discuss how far do you need to go? How many passport stamps do you actually need to even have in order for this to be a real trip?
Beth: All of that is, is kind of in this book. Um, It is written for people who are new to traveling alone, but it is enjoyable for anyone, whether it is your first trip or whether you've been on hundreds of trips. Um, there are a lot of shoutouts to really cool women and non binary folks that are doing amazing things in travel and their advice.
Beth: There's also a very comprehensive resources section in the back, which I love, that has, uh, like women owned businesses to follow, organizations to learn more about, trips to go on, all sorts of things that can help you there. Um, and I, I have just come to love this book. I hope that everybody reads it.
Beth: reads it. I hope that it changes the way you think about travel, that it changes the way you think about yourself, um, and you give yourself the grace to get out there, to not have strong expectations of, um, of what your trips should be or who you should be. That you give yourself the grace to fail forward, to do what I call the, the three things that make up a travel experience.
Beth: One, challenging your preconceptions. Challenging the way you see the world. Two, trying something new. And three, getting uncomfortable. And I believe, and I talk a lot about in the book, that if you can do all three of those things, it doesn't actually matter how far you go, or you know, how many passport stamps you get, or how many miles you Having those things happen can happen close to home too.
Beth: And that is just as much of a travel experience and even more of a travel experience than going somewhere thousands of miles away and not feeling any of those things. Um, I am always sharing my, Anecdotes and inspiration on Instagram, you can find me at MaximumBeth. You can learn more about my community, Wonderful, at SheIsWonderful.
Beth: com. That's Wonderful with an A. And of course, you should get a copy of the book. It's great. I really like it. I hope you do too. You can find it at thewonderwomanbook. com or pretty much wherever books are sold. Bookshop has it, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Target I know has it too, or go support a local independent bookseller.
Beth: And you know what? If they don't have it in stock, they can order it. So take a walk down the street, find that bookstore that you love, and get a copy. Support some small business. Um, get a copy for yourself. Get one for a friend, somebody who's studying abroad, who's about to graduate, who's about to retire.
Beth: All of those people I think could really use something like this.
Christine: Next up is Nikki Vargas and her memoir, Call You When I Land. It shares what happens when she finds herself in the jungles of Argentina, calling off her engagement and stepping towards the life of her dreams. You can read more about her book in her Cosmopolitan article, which I'll link in the show notes, and listen to her episodes.
Christine: Yes, I said episodes. She's been a guest here three times at the podcast. I love chatting with her so much. First sharing about her magazine Unearthed Women. Then she joined me to share about Wanderess, the Unearthed Women guide to traveling smart, safe, and solo. And then most recently, she was here talking about Call You When I Land.
Christine: You can find all those links in the show notes. So I'm going to turn it over to Nikki to talk about her book.
Nikki: Hello Soul of Travel listeners. My name is Nikki Vargas and I am the author of the best selling travel memoir, Call You When I Land, which came out from HarperCollins this past November in 2023.
Nikki: I'm also the co author of Wanderess, which was published by Penguin Random House in 2022 and is a woman's travel guide. In addition, I'm a senior digital editor over at Foders Travel, a legacy travel publication since the 1930s, and I'm the founder of Unearthed Women, a woman's travel publication I founded back in 2018.
Nikki: But I want to tell you a little bit about my memoir, Call You When I Land, and why I think you should add it to your summer reading list. Call You When I Land is a coming of age story that covers a lot of ground. It's a love story, a story about running away from a wedding last minute and finding new love.
Nikki: It's a story about chasing career dreams all around the world, from Buenos Aires to New York. to Borneo. And it's a story about connecting with identity and even investigating an unsolved murder within my family in the jungles of Colombia. This book will transport you in vivid detail all over the globe from the Food stalls of Vietnam to the jungles of Iguazu National Park on the borders of Argentina and Brazil.
Nikki: But above all, Call You When I Land is an inspirational read for women. It's a book that gives us permission to go after what we want, to be fearless in that pursuit and to realize that it is never too late to course correct and to go after the things in our life that are important to us. Since its publication in November 2023, Call You When I Land has been named a Best Woman's Memoir by Glamour Magazine, a Staff Pick Favorite by Apple Books, a Book Club Pick by Real Simple, and a Recommended Read by Good Morning America, Forbes, Shondaland, Cosmopolitan, and one of my favorite authors, Cheryl Strayed, who wrote the best selling book turned movie, Wild.
Nikki: You can find Call You When I Land wherever books are sold. In addition, you can also listen to the audiobook wherever you get your audiobooks. You can also follow me, Nikki Vargas, on Instagram at nicknackvargas. or on Twitter at Miss Nikki Vargas or on TikTok at Author Nikki Vargas. I look forward to connecting with you there and I hope you'll consider adding Call You When I Land to your reading list and beach bag this summer.
Christine: Next up is Maria Baltazzi. In her book, Take a Shot at Happiness, I love how she brings together her love of travel and photography with her career in television to create a book that shares the power of transformational travel while giving practical tools to help you write, direct, and produce the life you want.
Christine: I had so much fun talking to Maria about her book recently, and if you want to hear that conversation, you can go to episode 172. And if you go way back to the beginning of the podcast, episode 23, I have another great conversation with Maria about transformational travel, as well as her career in television and her work on Survivor.
Christine: I always love the heartfelt and meaningful conversations we have, and I'll let Maria tell you a little bit more about her book.
Maria: Hello, my name is Maria Baltazzi, the founder of Sojourn Explorers, where I design and guide guests on transformative experiences meant to uplift their happiness and well being.
Maria: I have a PhD in Conscious Centered Living, specifically, Happiness Studies and Mindfulness. So I'm a teacher, and I weave my holistic lifestyle teachings, which are the virtues, qualities, and values. and habits of happy people and to extraordinary travel experiences that are active. I take guests on safari in Africa to see lions or to India to see tigers.
Maria: I have taken guests on pilgrimages walking part of the Camino de Santiago in Spain, climbing Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and trekking to Machu Picchu in Peru. I think having an immersive experience makes for a more transformative experience that will last long after the physical journey itself. It's these guided experiences that help one explore who you are and what really makes you happier.
Maria: Hence the name of my company Sojourn Explorers. However, before all that, my career started as a television producer. I'm an Emmy Award winning producer and the show you would most likely know is CBS's Survivor. I was one of the original supervising producers. I have also done shows all over the world and covered topics like anti poaching in South Africa for Discovery's Animal Planet.
Maria: I have done wildlife series for Paramount and ABC Family and worked on documentaries like the History of Paratroopers and the History of Martial Arts. I have done other television pilots for ABC, CBS, and many others. As a producer, the demands of my television work were and are often exhausting, and eventually they wore on me in not the healthiest of ways.
Maria: Doing the kind of television that I do, the hours are long, you give up a lot of personal time with friends and family, relationships suffers, your health suffers, so when I hit the road, bottom and felt that neither my professional nor my personal life was working for me. I chose to do something about my happiness and well being.
Maria: I started reading books and taking courses, which led to my PhD, and now my book, Take a Shot at Happiness, How to Write, Direct, and Produce the Life You Want. My book was published by Post Hill Press and distributed by Simon Schuster in October of 2023. My book draws lessons from my life as a television producer, my travels, world events, and films we all know and love.
Maria: Each chapter covers what I call the happiness essentials to living a more hopeful and meaningful life. To help readers explore what happiness truly means to them, I offer guided phone, camera, photography, and journaling prompts, which makes my book unique, and the reader's happiness and whole being journey, as in mind, body, and spirit, more fun, practical, and accessible.
Maria: My book has been endorsed by former Harvard lecturer and Happiness Studies Academy founder, Dr. Tal Ben Shahar. It received the 2024 Silver Nautilus Award, which recognizes books that promote spiritual growth, conscious living, and high level awareness. Best Holistic Life Magazine with over a million and a half readers voted it best personal development book for the year 2024.
Maria: My book is for anyone early in their well being journey or for those who want a fresh perspective on creating a happier, more purposeful, and meaningful life. I also have a book companion app, Take a Shot at Happiness, available in the App Store. You can find me and I would love to hear from you at Maria Baltazzi on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and X.
Maria: I am also a teacher on Insight Timer and my website is mariabaltazzi. com. I love being part of this like minded solo travel book community and thank you so much for tuning in and indeed it is a honor and a pleasure to be here.
Christine: Lisa Niver is an award winning travel expert who recently released Bravish, her memoir that tells her journey of one little step at a time that brings her from a painful moment in her life to adventures big and small. And shares the courage it takes to find yourself at the age of 47 and taking your life in a whole new direction.
Christine: I am so grateful for Lisa's friendship and hope you love curling up with her book this summer.
Lisa: Hi, this is Lisa Niver, and it was my honor to be on the Soul of Travel with Christine to talk about my book, Bravish. So my book is called Bravish, One Breakup, Six Continents, and Feeling Fearless After Fifty.
Lisa: And my book is my memoir, it's my story. about how I did 50 crazy challenges or dares before I turned 50 to reinvent myself after my divorce. I felt really terrible about myself and my situation and I did these crazy dares and it turned into a book which has been incredible and actually Christine and I were not that long ago in Utah for WITS, the Women in Travel Summit, which was in mostly in Salt Lake City in Utah, but we spent a day in Park City and I got to go with her and Beth Santos, who founded WONDERFUL and the WITS conference.
Lisa: And we went to the public library in Park City and they had two copies of my book. And it was so exciting and I got to sign my book and Christine took pictures for me. And I think that's what I love about the travel industry and Being on her podcast is just the way that we can all be there to support each other.
Lisa: You know, Beth's book had just come out. I hope someday Christine's book's gonna come out. And so my book is for people, it's called Brave ish. It's for people that maybe don't feel that brave and are trying to figure out what to do next. I know for myself, I didn't feel brave, but people kept telling me I was brave.
Lisa: And I, I love the name Brave ish because I think that's. It's a little more open to people that, what I always say is, small changes lead to a lot No, I don't say that. I say small steps lead to big changes. Small steps. And your small step could be driving home a new way, or going to cooking class, or asking a friend to lunch.
Lisa: It can be really something that feels like it's almost not a step. In the beginning of my 50 things, they were really, really tiny things. And I didn't think they even counted on my list, but they really did. And they did. Again, it's been such an incredible journey for me. I've been lucky. I've had a lot of different jobs in the travel industry I worked on cruise ships now.
Lisa: I'm a travel journalist. I'm also an author I'm sharing travel segments on the jet set TV. So there's so many different things I've done over the years different places. I've had the honor of going and writing about If you're looking for more from me, you can find my book, Bravish. It's a paperback. It's a digital book.
Lisa: It's also, I was lucky enough to be the narrator. I'm not sure if you know this, but if you have a traditionally published book and you are lucky enough to get an audiobook, You have to audition to be the narrator. So I am the narrator. I'm real thrilled about that. So that's available also. My book has won several awards and so you can find it everywhere.
Lisa: Anywhere you find your audiobooks like Audible, anywhere you look for books like Amazon, Barnes Noble, Target, Walmart, you can find my book and order it. If you're looking for more from me, I have two websites. Lisa Niver dot com. L. I. S. A. N. I. V. E. R. LisaNiver. com has information about my book, my podcast, some of my articles, and then I also run a travel website that's been around since 2010 called We Said Go Travel.
Lisa: If you're looking for me on the internet, everything on the internet is my name, Lisa Niver. On YouTube I now have over, over 2 million views, so you could check out some of my videos and find a great next destination. LisaNiver. Again, it was so exciting for me to get to spend time with Christine in person.
Lisa: We've seen each other at several different women's conferences, women's travel conferences, and to be on the Soul of Travel podcast. I'm so excited for her to have so many episodes and to be part of this special summer reading episode. I hope Bravish, and feel free to reach out and tell me How it inspired you to take small steps that lead to big, brave changes.
Lisa: Have a fantastic summer.
Christine: Okay, there's just a few more books here on our book list. I was so happy when Kat Medina reached out to share her book, The Joys of Jetlag. I immediately resonated with her ideas to bring the traveler's mindset into our everyday lives to experience more joy. I had been thinking and talking about this idea since the early days of the pandemic and it was great.
Christine: So great to meet a kindred spirit and have a beautiful conversation. If you want to hear more from Kat, be sure to go back to episode 166. Now I'll turn it over to Kat to tell you a little more.
Kat: My name's Kat Medina, and I'm a writer, public speaker, and avid traveler. For most of my life, I've been two different people.
Kat: I've traveled to 35 countries and lived in Ecuador, France, Argentina, and Spain. And when I traveled, I was my best self. Joy was effortless. But when I returned home, it felt elusive. Forced even. I'd try to control the uncontrollable, I'd get frustrated when things didn't go as planned, and I stopped appreciating the little things, like clean drinking water and a hot shower, even though I knew firsthand just how rare those things were in so many parts of the world.
Kat: So I'd focus on the next trip when I could feel fully alive again. And then one day, I realized as much as I prioritized traveling, most of my time was still spent at home. And it felt like such a waste to spend my days wishing I was somewhere else instead of enjoying where I was. A couple of years ago, I made it my mission to bridge the gap between who I was when I traveled and who I was at home.
Kat: And I realized that it all came down to mindset. A traveler's mindset. And by embodying a traveler's mindset in daily life, I was able to feel the joy that I craved no matter where I was. So, I decided to write about it, in hopes of providing people with simple but impactful strategies that they could use in their life to experience more joy and adventure on the day to day, instead of just when they were on vacation.
Kat: So my book, the joys of jet lag, how to use a traveler's mindset to not be an a hole in daily life was published in November of 2022 and it acts as a guidebook for how you can use a traveler's mindset to experience more joy in daily life. I mean, most of us, Just get a couple of weeks of vacation each year, but we all know that feeling when we get to our destination And the stress and worries just melt away.
Kat: We're quicker to laugh more Spontaneous and are able to view setbacks as part of the adventure So this book teaches readers how to seek out moments of awe and fulfillment regardless of whether they're standing in line at a Trader Joe's or Sipping margs on a sandy beach in mess, Mexico Basically, The Joys of Jetlag is a book for anyone interested in experiencing more moments of adventure, joy, and wonder, no matter where they are, and with no passport required.
Kat: So you can find my book at Amazon, Barnes Noble, or you can also request it from your local indie bookstore. Um, and that's it. You can follow me along on social media. I'm mostly active on Instagram at KatMedinaWriter, that's Kat with a K, uh, KatMedinaWriter, or on my website, KatMedina. com. Thanks for listening.
Christine: As they say, we may be saving the best for last. And while I cannot actually choose a favorite in this list of books, I do have to say that Beyond Guilt Trips is Mindful Travel in an Unequal World by Dr. Anu Taranath is the book that most shook me, in the best way. When I first picked up Anu's book, I was about three pages in, I was near tears with a big smile on my face and a light being ignited in my soul.
Christine: I immediately emailed her because I knew she was someone I needed to connect with. This was the book I had waited my whole travel career to read. I found it gave shape to thoughts and feelings I had experienced, but could never find words to share. This book honors the complexity of travel experiences and helps readers to navigate what it means to be a traveler in a world that challenges our beliefs.
Christine: I strongly encourage listeners to pick up this book, especially if you're interested in being a more mindful and conscious traveler.
Dr. Anu Taranath: Hello, I'm Dr. Anu Taranath, and I do a couple of different things. I'm faculty at the University of Washington in Seattle, and teach about race and identity, issues of otherness and belonging, and connection through global literatures.
Dr. Anu Taranath: I do a lot of international education and study abroad work for the university, and I do a lot of consulting for them as well. Outside of the university, uh, I am a racial equity and a DEI consultant where I partner with people across various sectors and, uh, help people get more comfortable with uncomfortable topics.
Dr. Anu Taranath: I help people with, uh, conflict, strategy, uh, training, and a general thought partnership, uh, around, uh, complexities of racial equity. Uh, what does it mean to create more belonging in the spaces in which we work and how do we engage with one another in more equitable and thoughtful ways? In the travel industry, um, I have done a couple of different things.
Dr. Anu Taranath: Um, my book, Beyond Guilt Trips, Mindful Travel in an Unequal World, was published in 2019, uh, by a small press in Toronto called Between the Lines Press. And the book started to circulate, uh, within the travel industry during the pandemic, when we. Of course, we're not traveling. Um, I got to know many people in the travel industry through my book, which has been a most delightful, uh, uh, surprise to see how many people are resonating with some of the ideas and approaches that I'm sharing, uh, about traveling across difference.
Dr. Anu Taranath: Being able to hold complexity, uh, in ourselves and each other. And importantly, some of the really complicated feelings that travel, uh, brings up in us, especially about having more, having less than a community that we are getting to know. Um, we usually don't talk about some of these issues and, uh, what I'm learning from many of the readers of this book is that these are the moments that really stay with us.
Dr. Anu Taranath: Those uncomfortable moments that we didn't know what to say, or we weren't sure if we should look away or continue to gaze, those moments that leave lots of uncomfortable questions in our mind. about how do we do tourism better? How do we visit one another's countries in more ethical ways? This is a book that I wrote for people to have conversation, uh, with others about, uh, there are questions for reflection and discussion peppered throughout the pages as an invitation for people to come in, uh, read a chapter or two and then have a cup of tea and engage with one another, especially around some of the stories that I'm telling throughout the book.
Dr. Anu Taranath: I tell many stories about myself, uh, as well as many other travelers that I've met over the years. And in each story, I'm aiming to invite the reader in to see a bit of themselves, and also to learn some strategies about how they might move through the world. Whether that's far away from home, or whether that's right around the corner, how we can move through our world with a little bit more presence.
Dr. Anu Taranath: a bit more grace, a bit more strategy, and a bit more connection. You can find me in a couple of different places. Uh, I post work updates on LinkedIn and, uh, on Instagram, uh, under the handle
Dr. Anu Taranath: I post work updates, talks that I'm giving, uh, podcasts that I've been on, uh, as well as, uh, some fun photos here and there. Thanks so much. Bye.
Christine: Thank you to all of our past guests for sharing about their books. Here are a few more I would love to share with you. Recently, Jen Ruiz launched her book into the world in a big way. In the past few weeks, it has been so amazing to watch and support and cheer her on. A few weeks ago, she had a billboard in Times Square and a professional photo shoot to document and celebrate the success.
Christine: Jen has continually inspired me by her cut to the chase and get it done attitude. Anytime there's an obstacle, I see her figure it out. And there she is overcoming it, growing and putting another tool in her tool belt and seeing her bring this book to life has really been great to watch her grow. If you want to learn more about Jen's story, you can go back to episode 107.
Christine: There are a few more authors on our Soul of Travel guest list, and I don't want to leave you without their stories. One book recently released is Blood, Sweat, and Tears, a collection of short stories by 27 women plus hikers and runners edited by Christina Reed. You can also check out her memoir, Alone in Wonderland, and hear about it in my past conversation.
Christine: And I'll share links to all of these authors and their episodes in the show notes so that you can find them, as well as in our blog on summer reading from Soul of Travel. Also make sure you check out Ten Steps to Happiness by my friend Alice Ford, The Power of Days by Celeste Murgans. Hey, you just go by Sahara Rose DeVore, who is the founder of Travel Coach Network and also an ally of Solo Travel Podcast.
Christine: The Inside Out Journey, an elusive search for self across three continents by Christina Liu. Mind, Body, Soulmate by Jennifer McNiven, Sherbert Skies by Tess Milholland, and The Meaning of Travel, Philosophers Abroad by Dr. Emily Thomas. You'll also want to check out Adventures in Morocco and Walking with Nomads by Alice Morrison and The Shooting Star by Shivya Nath.
Christine: I also want to make sure you look for three powerful books by Lola Akinméde. They are not necessarily travel books, but they're really important and powerful and beautiful books, and they should be on your reading list this summer. The first is In Every Mirror, She's Black, and the follow up book, Everything is Not Enough.
Christine: You can also look for Lagom, The Swedish Secret of Living Well. I'm sure I pronounced that wrong. Sorry, Lola. Bye bye. Thanks so much to all of my Soul of Travel guests who have come on in recent episodes to tell us more about their books. Again, I'm so excited for their success and the way this is beginning to shape the landscape of travel memoirs, travel fiction, travel writing in general, to be more inclusive and include the female voice and experience in the travel genre.
Christine: So proud of these authors. Again, if you pick up a book and you love it, be sure to let them know, write a review, send them a DM on Instagram and pass it along to a friend who will also be inspired by their story. I've loved sharing these books with you, and I hope they add even more meaning to your travel experiences or your summer reading.
Christine: We have some great content coming up for you. We are re airing a few Soul of Travel episodes. So Focused on ethical travel writing. And we have some mashup episodes coming on traveling with children, the power of early travel experiences and more. So stay tuned the summer. We're getting a little creative, giving ourselves a little breathing room and bringing some attention back to great voices that have already been highlighted here on the podcast.
Christine: So I look forward to connecting with you all here soon.
Christine: Thank you for listening to soul of travel presented by journey woman. I hope you enjoyed the journey. If you loved this conversation, I encourage you to subscribe and rate the podcast. Please share episodes that inspire you with others, because this is how we extend the impact of this show. Learn more about each of my guests by reading our episode blogs, which are more than your average show notes.
Christine: I think you'll love the connection. Find our episode blogs at www. souloftravelpodcast. com. I am so proud of the way these conversations are bringing together people from around the world. If this sounds like your community, welcome. I'm so happy you're here. I am all about community and would love to connect.
Christine: You can find me on Facebook at Soul of Travel Podcast or follow me on Instagram either at she. sojourns or at Soul of Travel Podcast. Stay up to date by joining the Soul of Travel Podcast mailing list. You'll also want to explore the Journeywoman community and its resources for women travelers over 50.
Christine: I'd also like to share a quick thank you to my podcast producer and content magician, Carly Oduardo, CEO of Convergente. I look forward to getting to know you and hopefully hear your story.
You can find me on Facebook at Lotus Sojourns on Facebook, or join the Lotus Sojourns Collective, our FB community, or follow me on Instagram either @lotussojourns or @souloftravelpodcast. Stay up to date by joining the Lotus Sojourns mailing list. I look forward to getting to know you and hopefully hearing your story.