August 9, 2005

Travel Podcasts for the Restless Soul

I’ve recently subscribed to some Travel Podcasts, and I wanted to take a few minutes to tell you about my favorites thus far. I’ve just started to get the travel bug in recent years after going over to Europe while I was in college. Now I live on the west coast and I’ve pretty much lived up to my vow to see as much of the state as I can. All I have left to see is Napa Valley, Death Valley and the Redwoods and I’ll be satisfied. Anyway, this selection is by no means perfect, its just stuff I’ve responded to this week:

Live Ireland Podcast: I’m really into Ireland. I like it so much, I’ve been there twice (never been north though). Since I don’t consider twice to be enough, I take what I can get living in California, as I do. This Podcast is good for anyone that’s never been there, and for those like me that simply want to remember how great Ireland truly is. You hear about culture, meet various locals and get informed on different hotspots to be found in the Emerald Isle. I can almost breathe the air again.

Guzen Radio Podcast is hosted by an American living in Japan. At some point I want to set aside some time to get over to Japan, as I’ve been feeling drawn to the East recently. This podcast offers a great view of the country from the perspective of an anglo that has lived there for awhile and is in love with the culture. For another good Podcast set in Japan, I also recommend The Kyoto Podcast.

Interested in finding new places to hike? Deborah Lee Soltesz’ Hiking with Deborah lets you take a tour with an avid hiker from Arizona. On each Podcast Soltesz takes listeners on sound seeing tours as she hikes various sites throughout the American Southwest. Deborah talks about what to expect when visiting a particular site, what weather conditions are like, and other details that any avid outdoors person would need when they think about roughing it in the desert. Deborah speaks with the kind of confidence you can only get from a seasoned hiker, and honestly I wish we could get a version of this Podcast for natural location. Imagine a Podcast that takes you Mountain Climbing or one that is recorded from a tree in the Rain Forest. Food for thought.

For something with a quirky bent, take a look at Mark Peacock’s TravelCommons. A frequent traveler, Peacock records his thoughts on a given location from hotel room bathrooms. That’s right; every Podcast comes to you from a different hotel bathroom. He figures the sound is best there I guess. In any event, this Podcast is a humorous look at what we all go through when we travel, and it gives insert here a chance to rant about things that excite and sometimes annoy us all when we visit new locales. It also brings in to focus the fact that when we are away from home, the most intimate places we can grab on to are hotel rooms, and what could be more specifically intimate than a bathroom?

Oh yes, on a related note, I just want to wish my parents a happy 27th anniversary as they travel through Alaska for the next two weeks. I wouldn’t be anything without you!