WanderLearn Podcast

• Podcast

Terry Repak has written an expat memoir, Circling Home: What I Learned by Living Elsewhere.

Candid, thoughtful, and instructive, Circling Home explores the notion of “home” and how our bonds with people from other countries and cultures can profoundly change us.

I ask her:

1. Which countries have you lived in?
2. What were the hardest lessons to learn?
3. What are the pros and cons of raising kids abroad?
4. What tips do you have for living overseas?
5. What surprised you about Africa?
6. Any regrets?
7. Who should we read your book?

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• Backpacking
• Africa
• Podcast

Watch three videos about South Africa's Drakensburg Traverse!

Prepping for the Grand Drakensburg Traverse

Two of my business school classmates, Brad Graff & Sam Sliman, have a spreadsheet listing the top 40 Global Hikes. On that list is South Africa's 205-km Drakensberg Traverse.

Since Sym Blanchard & I hiked the Grand Traverse, Brad & Sam wanted to pick my brain on the experience.

Timeline

00:00 Brad & Sam's hiking experience

03:30 Drakensberg Traverse Safety

10:00 When to go

10:40 Trail GPS GPX Tracks

15:00 Section hiking & logistics

If you've hiked the Drakensberg Traverse in the 2020s, comment below!

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Drakensberg Traverse Backpacking Trip Report

5 Wet Days on the Grand Drakensberg Traverse in South Africa

Brad & Sam return to the WanderLearn Show to report how their 5-day adventure on South Africa's Drakensberg Traverse went.

The short answer: it was a wet, sloppy, cold mess!

Watch the video to get the long answer!

You may wonder, "Why are they complaining about the rain, snow, and sleet when all their photos show good conditions?"

That's because when the weather sucks, nobody wants to take a photo.

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Drakensberg & Other Weeklong Backpacking Trips

Brad Graff & Sam Sliman share advice on the Drakensberg Traverse in South Africa.
We discuss what are some worthy backpacking trips for 2024 and beyond.

00:00 Drakensberg Traverse Advice
06:40 Candidates for the next trek

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Podcast

The Most Extreme Backpacking, the Julian Alps in Slovenia

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• Podcast

Eric Gilbertson is attempting to climb every country's high point. He's two-thirds done.

His clone (Matthew Gilbertson) is joining him for most of the mountains. You can follow these twins on Instagram.

Eric uses the United Nations' definition of a country. There are 193 countries. He tosses in Antarctica to make 194.

This page features all my interviews about Eric's extraordinary quest!

Subscribe to my WanderLearn podcast & YouTube channel to get the latest episodes.

Episode #1: Climbing K2 & Everest Without Oxygen

Eric's Everest documentation

Eric's K2 summit documentation

Eric's Kangchenjunga Summit story

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Episode #2: Bureaucratic Barriers in Chad, Libya, Bhutan 

Each high point has either a technical/physical challenge (e.g., K2 & Everest) and/or a bureaucratic challenge.

In this episode, Eric discusses three country high points that mainly have a bureaucracy that is stopping him, not the lack of oxygen.

I've climbed Chad's and Libya's high points, so I know what he's talking about. 

Listen to discover why I could do it but why Eric has been blocked. 

Let me know if you want to join us on a future hike up these two mountains.

He also talks about Bhutan's sacred summit.

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Episode #3: 2 K2 & Everest Climbers Swap Mountain Stories

Everyone loves coincidences. During my month in Estonia, I bumbled into Krisli Melesk, who bumbled into Eric Gilbertson on K2. Eric & I were scheduled to record a podcast a few days after I met Krisli, so I invited her to join the show as a surprise guest! 

Eric Gilbertson is in the process of climbing to the highest point in every country. He's done 143 out of 193!

This is first of a two-part series, featuring Eric & Krisli. Subscribe to get next week's episode where we will discuss Eric kite surfing across Greenland!

You must listen to my first two interviews with Eric Gilbertson!

Krisli Melesk is also remarkable. She deserves her own episode and book! Her list of adventures is long and mind-blowing.

We only delved into a couple of her countless adventures in this episode.

This episode focuses on K2 and Everest, especially their joint experience on K2. Although they didn't climb K2 on the same team, they met on K2 and summitted a few days apart.

We end the show by talking about Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest mountain, with an elevation of 28,169 feet (8,586 meters). It is situated in the eastern Himalayas on the border between Sikkim state, northeastern India, and eastern Nepal, 46 miles (74 km) north-northwest of Darjiling, Sikkim.

We discussed why Eric summited Kanchenjunga and why Krisli did not. It's a shame because Krisli would have been the first Estonian to summit the third-tallest peak had she succeeded. But she may return!

Note: In the show, I refer to Krisli as "Kris," but the automatic subtitle generator on the video transcribed her name as "Chris." Also, I apologize for the mediocre audio quality. We had tech issues.

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Episode #4: Snow Kiting Across Greenland + 4 First Ascents with Eric Gilbertson!

Eric Gilbertson and Branden Joy dragged 400 pounds (180 kg) of gear on 4 sleds across Greenland.

They covered 1,539 miles (1,420 snow kiting, 119 man hauling) in 40 days.

On his biggest day, he covered 218 miles kiting.

His fastest kiting speed was 33mph.

They did 4 first ascents.

Read Eric Gilbertson's Greenland traverse trip report.

Krisli Melesk co-hosted this show with me. She and I were in awe of Eric's accomplishments.

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• Book
• Podcast

Tim Dasey authored the 2023 book Wisdom Factories: AI, Games, and the Making of a Modern Worker.

Our discussion focuses on how AI will impact everything!

Timeline

00:00 Can AI Be Wise?

01:30 Does Consciousness Matter?

03:00 Can AI Be Wiser Than Humans?

06:00 AI Assistants

09:00 Net Good or Bad?

13:00 Will we need to memorize facts?

20:20 AI in Schools

We discuss the Khan Academy's Khamingo AI Tutor.

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My favorite section of the book was when he wrote about the Quest to Learn (Q2L) school, which serves grades 6-12. It is designed around games. It emphasizes 7 principles:

1. Everyone is a participant.
2. Challenge is constant.
3. Learning happens by doing.
4. Feedback is immediate and ongoing.
5. Failure is reframed as "iteration."
6. Everything is interconnected.
7. It kind of feels like play,

This may be the future of instruction.

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• Podcast

This is Part 1 of 4 episodes featuring Fabrizio Beverina, an Italian adventurer, scientist, and future ayahuasca shaman.

Fabrizio reminds me of Francois Xavier Paradis-Garneau, who I interviewed last year & will interview again. Both are world travelers who aren't pursuing the narcissistic goal of visiting all the world's countries (I'm guilty of this) but are drawn to areas that are extremely foreign to their upbringing. It's quality vs. quantity—profound travel experiences rather than checking off lists.

I met Fabrizio in Niger, where we stayed with the generous and hospitable Malah Abdou. The Sahara destroyed our trucks. We waited for an incompetent Portuguese mechanic to waste our time and money.

Enjoy this 4-part series & share it! 

Part 1: Ideal motorcycle for world travel

Fabrizio Beverina has traveled worldwide extensively on motorcycles. He shares his wise advice toward the podcast's end. Before that, you'll get a quick overview of his many (mis)adventures & why he's not a hippie even though he looks like one.

Timeline

00:00 Truck troubles

01:00 Fabrizio's CV

04:40 Why he dislikes hippies 

06:30 Motorcycle advice

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Episode #2: Is the Trans-Siberian Train Boring?

This is Part 2 of 4 episodes featuring Fabrizio Beverina, an Italian adventurer, scientist, and future ayahuasca shaman.

He discusses the pros and cons of taking a train across Siberia.

Timeline

00:00 Trans-Siberian Train

03:00 Tattooing in Africa

05:05 Souvenirs

Learn more about Africa's tattoo history.

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Podcast

Episode #3: How an Italian Sneaked Into Tibet China 3 Times!

This is Part 3 of 4 episodes featuring Fabrizio Beverina, an Italian adventurer, scientist, and future ayahuasca shaman. He shares how he illegally sneaked into Tibet 3 times.

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Episode #4: Why Taking Ayahuasca in South American Jungles is Best

This is Part 4 of 4 episodes featuring Fabrizio Beverina, an Italian adventurer, scientist, and future ayahuasca shaman. He shares how ayahuasca can transform your life & give you insights. Moreover, he explains why you should go to a South American jungle to experience ayahuasca. 

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Connect with Fabrizio

Fabrizio is on Facebook.

Visit his Paojilhuasca Medicine Center or their Facebook page.

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