Citizens of the World: A Stoic Podcast for Curious Travelers - Where to Travel in 2020

Episode Date: February 2, 2020

This year, while planning out my goals, I first blocked out time on my calendar for travel, and the happy anticipation of these trips feels great! (postcardacademy.co for show notes)   But I’m in trouble because I just attended London’s Holiday and Travel Show, and now my travel list is twice as long!   In this episode, you’ll hear where you should head this year if you love nature and aren’t so big into crowds: Zambia Guadalupe Islands Massachusetts, U.S.A.  Trans-Siberian Railway Guernsey Islands, U.K.  South Africa Papua New Guinea eSwatini  Nevada, U.S.A. *** I’m your host, Sarah Mikutel. Did you know I host another show called Podcasting Step by Step? Check it out if you’ve been wanting to start a podcast. Every week, I break down ‘how to podcast’ with a little loving motivation to give you the skills and confidence you need to finally launch that show of your dreams. Ready to start your podcast right now? Check out Podcast Launch Academy.Do you ever go blank or start rambling when someone puts you on the spot? I created a free Conversation Cheat Sheet with simple formulas you can use so you can respond with clarity, whether you’re in a meeting or just talking with friends.Download it at sarahmikutel.com/blanknomore and start feeling more confident in your conversations today.

Welcome to the Postcard Academy. I'm your host, Sarah Micatel, recording at London's Holiday and Travel Show. I will be talking to representatives from cities, countries, and islands around the world to give you some ideas on where to go this year. Now, historically, I have not planned travel very far in advance, but I have turned over a new leave this year, and that is because I finally figured out a system to achieve what I want to achieve in both my personal life and my business. One of the biggest mistakes that I've made in the past is prioritizing work over what really matters in life, including travel. And it's not that I value work more, even though I love what I do, but I had started to treat things that really bring me joy in my life as special rewards that I could only get once I finished my work. But work never ends, right? It's going to go on forever and ever, and even when we love what we do. We need to take a break and recharge. And so this year, while planning out my goals, my travel list was the very first thing that I blocked out time for because it's important to me and I really want to live my values,

which is some days today and we will never have this day again. So we've got to make every day matter and start enjoying each day rather than, you know, working for the weekend or working for that one week in the summertime. But now that I've been, at this travel show, I'm really in trouble because none of the places that I'm going to be talking about today were on my travel list. So my list is now doubled. They all sound amazing. And I wanted to give you some flavors of things that maybe you hadn't considered. Maybe you haven't even heard about. I think there's one country that we're going to be talking about today that you have probably never heard of. All right. Now come with me as I chat up exhibitors at the holiday and travel show.

My name is Tim Henshaw, and I'm representing the Zambian Marketing Group. Okay, so let's say that I come to Zambia. What are some hidden gems that you would take me to? Okay, well, most people, when they're heading out to Zambia, are probably going to be drawn by Victoria Falls and parks like the Lower Zambizi and South Lwangwa. But there are other much less visited parks that really are, you know, it's a bit of a cliche, hidden gems,

but they really do stand out that way. The top of that list would be a park called Kfui, which is bigger than Switzerland in terms of scale. Very few visitors. But the quality of the game there is absolutely sensational. And you can feel like you've got the National Park all to yourself. Now, we were saying, game, do you mean to look at or not, you're not talking about hunting, are you? No, no, no.

No, we're very much for photographic. Exactly. Yeah, leave any footprints. Yeah, no, we're talking about. talking about photographic and there is the opportunity. One of the great things about Zambia is the home of the walking safari. So you can actually get out of the vehicle. You're with qualified guides who are very professional.

Also, they are carrying a firearm to protect you. But you can actually walk towards and in the close confines with huge and quite scary animals. What's the scariest animal you've seen? Oh, my goodness. Plenty of elephant encounters. But yeah, Buffalo. People kind of look at Buffalo and think, you know, it's a cow with maybe bigger horns.

Those guys are very aggressive, especially the older boys who've kind of left the herds. It would be more heroic to say lions, but actually buffaloes probably are the scariest to see on foot. That's so interesting. So what's a must-have experience? We just can't miss it if we're in Zambia. If you're in Zambia,

that's a very tough call between Victoria Falls, which are breathtaking, but at the same time, actually heading out to South Luaangua, which is affectionately known as the Valley of the Leopard. So actually to see leopards, it's probably the best place in Africa to actually see them in an authentic experience.

Lions are plentiful in South Linguay. So those are the two really must-dos. But, you know, you were right to ask the question about the hidden gems. Zambia itself is a bit of a hidden gem. And then within the country, there are so many little places where you can get a... away from absolutely everyone and enjoy an amazing one-to-one experience.

So what's something that people don't know about Zambia that surprises them when they get there? I think it's the nature of the people. Zambians are very, very chilled out. I think if you want something that summed up Zambia, when they had to change a president, the new president was carried on a chair by four people, one of whom was the former president at his choice, which was to say, we are a democratic, safe, sensible country. And, okay, so politics, let's leave that aside.

But it's just the way that that's not going to happen in many countries that they celebrate a change of power. Normally they're fighting for it. So you're going to go to a very safe place and to find that the people are that, you know, call with life. It's a fabulous place to be around. My name is Eve Noel, Y-V-E-S-N-O-E-L, like... Christmas Eve, and I represent the tourist board for the Guadalupe Islands.

Now, for anyone who doesn't know, where are these islands located? The Guadalupe Islands are located in the West Indies, in the Caribbean, between Montseret, Antigar, and Dominica. Guadalupe is not only one island. In fact, it's an archipelago made of five islands. So when you go to, instead of going to a single trip, is as if you are going to discover five different universes. Ooh, all right. So let's say I get there.

What are my must-have experiences when I get to Guadalupe? So just like the other island of the West Indies and the Caribbean, we have tropical climate, exotic. are de vivre. But we have something that the other island of the Caribbean do not have the French touch.

There are only two islands in the Caribbean that are French overseas departments. Wadloup is one and Martinique is the other one. So where can we go specifically that we might not know about?

I would start with we landed in Puerto Piedre. We settled in Gossier. And from Gossier, we'll take a ferry to cross the channel and discover Marie Gallant. Marie Gallant is what we called Rued Loop 35 years ago. The Epinale picture that you have in mind with a little pier. In the back, you have a church steeple, you have the statue of Marianne, the French town hall, the church, the market. place. This picture is still there. It's Guadalupe 35 years ago. And this postcard image maybe has

disappeared on what we call the continent, Grand Terre and Bastaire. But what makes Guadalupe attractive is that you have these pictures like a puzzle and you will have to compose your own story, your own tableau yourself according to your interest and liking. So it's good for somebody who likes the beach, it's good for somebody who likes nature. You can sort of make your own holiday as you. Culture. Culture.

And foodies, because again, we have about 300 restaurants. We have Caribbean ingredients, Caribbean food culture again, but with the refinement of the French church. And this is what we call the Creole Arde Viverr. Can you tell me a little bit more about what that food is like and what's your favorite restaurant? In Guadalupe, my mother's restaurant. It's not a restaurant, but, you know, my mother's,

she used to cook very well. She's gone already, but I remember she would have this enormous cooking dishonels. And before we have a culture of each festival, there will be a meal to go with this festivity. And two days, two nights before this festivity, for example, Lex-Stay Christmas. Two days, two nights before Christmas, she will spend the whole night, a week,

looking in those dictionary. How can she improve? improve the local dish. And she was taking from this country, that country, and she was doing an own in a melting pot, and that was finger-leaking good. Oh, I love that. So if I'm going to come visit, what's a good festival to try to be at? We were talking about food. We have the Cooks Festival in August. August, there is one day that St. Louis. Lawrence Day on the 10th of August. St. Laurent was a martyr. He was what we say, the first barbecue, because he was burned alive on a grill. And St. Laurent became the saint patron of the cooks.

So we have about 300 ladies cooks on Guadalu. And on this particular day, they all gathered, and they are dressed in in their traditional attire with their good dresses, jewels, dress to kill, they are called Matador. And they will bring all their preparation to the church, and they will attend Mass, and they will put all the dishes and this big basket at the bottom of the altar. Mass will be said, and the priests will bless all this food. And then they will leave the church in a big parade going through the streets of the main city, Puerto Pied.

And after that, they will gather in a big place, a big hall, a big venue, and we'll have a banquet, which lasts about five, six hours. And they will sing, they will dance, they will drink, and this is it. That sounds like so much fun. Well, thank you for making the time to talk to me. You're very welcome and looking forward to seeing you there. So my name is Dominique and I represent Discover New England, which is the tourism office for New England in the UK for all their marketing.

I think this is so fun because I am from Connecticut and so it's great to see some New England love here today. New England is made up of like a bunch of different states. I guess let's hone in on one. So if I'm going to come and visit Massachusetts, what are some hidden gems you think I should check out? Well, everybody already gravitates towards Boston and Cape Cod and the islands. But I actually really like the Birchairs of Massachusetts. If you go three hours west, just where the Appalachian Trail crosses into New England,

there's some spectacular scenery, phenomenal art galleries, some magnificent new places to stay. There's a new resort that's just opened up there called Tourists. and it's that motel chic environment, which is absolutely beautiful. Everything's all about sustainable tourism, and they have the most phenomenal rooms with day beds overlooking the scenery on the outside, outdoor showers.

You can actually cross onto the Appalachian Trail from behind there as well, and it's only three hours outside of Boston, so you can combine a trip to Boston at the same time, as well as going for the popular regions as well. Yeah, so you mentioned in the Berkshires, they've got some galleries and stuff, What are some specific ones that we should hit if we are into art?

Without a shadow of a doubt, you've got the Masmoka, which is definitely what you want to go and see, but also the Norman Rockwell Museum is one of everybody's favorites, and it's definitely spectacular. I would recommend definitely those two if you're going to go and do any of them when you're over there. Okay, so it's a few hours from Boston. How would we get there? Easy to drive.

It's a really, really easy route, just three hours in a car, but you can stop on route, stop anywhere in any of the towns that you see. you have a coffee in one of the independent coffee shops. But it's a relatively easy route. You can set up after breakfast and be at your next destination by lunch. How would you describe Massachusetts? When I think of Massachusetts, I think of quite a few things. I think of rolling countryside.

I think of white church spires creeping out the trees. I think of clapboard farmhouses. And then I think of water and marine life and beach and history, really. So there's so many things that come into my head when I think about Massachusetts. What should we see in Boston? Boston is changing rapidly. It's changed over the last 12 months and everything new is popping up. So aside from all the historical, traditional sites that you want to see, like the Freedom Trail and Fanwell Hall and Boston Common, there is lots of new attractions that's opening up.

The waterfront's been completely regenerated. So you definitely want to head down there. There's amazing Alfrisco dining now going on around there. Seafood restaurants. Time Out has just. open timeout market in Boston, which is in the Fenway area near the Red Sox Stadium. And it's basically brought a taste of Boston under one roof. And there is a, there's various food outlets in there. There's a DJ on a Friday night, but it's not like loud music. They have

the breweries, brewing craft beer. So when it comes to the summer months, it's a really cool place to hang out. But even in the winter months, it's just a cool place to get a taste of Boston under one roof. Oh, lovely. That's really cool to hear about all that new stuff because I lived in Boston but many years ago. And so back then it was all about, like, Newbury Street and, like, Boylston Street. And so it seems like there's, like, different sections now that are opening up. Yeah, definitely. I mean, obviously, Newbury Street and Burlington Street is still traditions in themselves,

as is the North End and the Beacon Hill area. But I think people know Boston now, and they know those areas. And now everywhere's starting to get regenerated. The Fenway area is completely changing. So you've got to take in a Red Sox game when you're in Boston and see the atmosphere, but what's changing is what's going on around it, likewise in the waterfront area as well. So you mentioned history. For anyone who doesn't know, could you just talk about what the Freedom Trail is and what Vaniel Hall in? Yeah, sure. For the Freedom Trail and Franiel Hall, it's basically

it's three and a half mile, one and a half miles of significant landmarks and monuments dedicated to the revolution. And Fenwell Hall is really where the whole independence began. So you really want to go and learn and the independence from America from Great Britain. So you really want to go and learn how it all started, especially if you're ever there for Fourth of July weekend as well, then it's incredible because the whole city comes alive and kicks off. So it's really historical to learn about that time as well as the Boston Tea Party, that they've got a whole museum around there as well that will teach you more about that too. And Paul Revere's house is still there. And I think it's one of the oldest houses in the US. It is the oldest house in the US. It is the oldest house in the

US, I think. I'm not, don't quote me on that, but I do think it is the oldest. Yeah. As is Acorn Street, which is the most photographed street in the US, and you'll find that in the Beacon Hill area as well. Did you say the name again? Acorn Streets. I used to live in Beacon Hill, actually, over on Joy Street. I love Beacon Hill. I would say it's my favorite part of Boston. The Beacon Hill area and the common area, I do love. Yeah. And so, so I think the reason that we love Beacon Hill, it's very charming and very, very old. There is an organisation of home owners now in the Beacon Hill area that some of the oldest families that have had homes there that are the wealthiest homes in Boston and they are now

what they're doing is they pay money into an organisation to preserve the area and once a month they will invite people into their homes and you can actually do a tour of their homes and I was fortunate enough to do that this May and we toured four homes in Beacon Hill. One was a smaller One was a large townhouse and one was a very modern apartment as well as a really grand, huge apartment. And all very interesting, extroverted characters, but really interesting stories and history behind their properties as well. So it's a really cool thing to do. My name's Cara. I'm a tour leader for Sundown as Overland. So this sounds very romantic, the Trans-Siberian Railway. What is this exactly?

Basically, with our tours, you do the trans-Siberian or the Trans-Mongolian, so from start to finish, but stopping off along the way, visiting different sites like Yakuternburg, Odochus Lake Baikal, all along the route. It's just an iconic journey that is the locals still use. It's been running for years and years and years, just as a transport really from east to west Russia and down into China now. And we just hop on and hop off it. and enjoy it.

For those of us who are geographically challenged, what are we going to see if we do the Siberian side? And what are we going to see if we do the Mongolian side? You'll see the same to begin with. So we start the trans-Siberian. Yep, sorry, I have to look at the map. The trans-Siberian basically runs from Moscow across the Vladivostok.

When it's running across the whole of Siberia, when it gets to Ur-Cocen-Ulan-Ude, the line splits and it becomes a trans-Mongolian, which cuts down into Mongolia, or you continue from Ula Nouda across to Vladivostok, which is the end of the trans-Siberian. So it's basically the split in the line that continue trading routes in different directions, basically.

So the trans-Mongolia then cuts through Mongolia and out into Beijing. And so are we coming with a tour group if we go with you and is this hop-on, hop-off, or how does this work? We do both. We do tailor-made journeys and we do group tours. So if you take a group tour, say you did a classic trans-Mongolian, the group of maximum size 15 starts in St. Petersburg. We travel across and stop in Moscow, where we get off the train,

stay in a hotel for one or two nights and do some sightseeing in Moscow. The next day or the next two days, we get back on the train, mostly continue with then across the Yucaterinburg, where again we get off the train. This is where the sites of all the Romanovs and when the Romanovs got murdered, so at the end of the Tsar Empire in Russia. Spent a couple of days there, get back on another train. so it's all the Trans-Siberian train line, as opposed to a train.

Get back on the train, two nights on a train out to Lake Baikal. Deepest lake in the world holds about 20% of the whole world's freshwater. Spend a couple of days there by the lake, wandering around, and then get back on yet another train and head down into Ulaanbatah in Mongolia. So it's the same. So we take the whole train, but we get on and get off a different destination, so we're not just sitting on the train for the whole duration. So that's basically the idea of it.

group tour. And what kind of conditions are these? Are these sleeper cars? Are we roughing it? Is it luxury? It's a public train. So it's the quality depends on the day of what train is running. So they are sleeper trains. Normally each cabin has four berths. So in one carriage, you would normally have 10 or 11 berths of four beds with a toilet at either end with a sink and a toilet. So some of them can be a little bit basic. But in most cases, you would normally have 10 or 11 berths of four beds. We're in most cases, we only stay two nights maximum on the train. So at the end, you get to a hotel with a hot shower anyway. But you are in a bed.

You have a clean sheets, a clean pillowcase. There's a buffet car normally on most trains, so you can go down and have some dinner and some vodka. I'm Steffie Gordon, and I'm representing Visit Guernsey at the show. So for anyone who doesn't know where Guernsey is, can you tell us a little bit more about that? Yeah, sure. So Guernsey is actually made up of five islands,

so we're known as the Islands of Guernsey. So there is Guernsey, which is the main island, and then it has four sister islands. And the islands are actually situated in between England and France on the English Channel. So looking at these pictures, I mean, it seems like you could be in the Caribbean. So can you just like give us the postcard image of what Guernsey is like? It's funny that you said that a lot of people do mistake the crystal clear waters in Guernsey for the Caribbean. So just picture, sweeping bays, lots of just really dramatic but beautiful scenery, green lanes, lots of floor and floor. and that kind of thing. But yeah, it really is a paradise for nature. So how do you get there?

You can either fly there. There are a number of UK airports that you can fly from, or you can catch the ferry from Pool and Port Smith. So you've got two options there. So if I wanted to spend a weekend there, like what are some hidden gems that you would take me to? I would take you to the little chapel. It's the smaller chapel in the world. It's in the countryside parish of St. Andrews. It's absolutely beautiful. It's made from really intricate pieces of China. Really, really beautiful. I would take you to Victor Hugo's former home. So Victor Hugo actually lived in Gensie for 15 years. And he had a house called Hopeville Heist, which is actually an attraction that visitors today can go and see. And it's absolutely stunning. I would also take you to Castle Cornet, which has a couple of museums and Peri Gardens as well.

So I'd take you to a couple of those sort of key historical places. And I would definitely take you through the capital of St. Peterport. It's just a cobbled High Street, really lovely, lots of different cafes and the corners and boutique shops. So you need to try a couple of local restaurants. We're very well known for our crab and lobster, oysters, things like that. So definitely get stuck into some of the food. We'd definitely go for a really nice long coastal walk, try and time around the sunset. That'd be really lovely. Stop for a drink on the way.

There's lots of different restaurants and hotels dot along the coastline, so you can definitely stop there as well. And I would also recommend going for a guided walk, because we've got lots of accredited guides in Guernsey. They're all experts in their fields, and they'll take you on different tours. So whether you want to go and discover that World War II occupation history or whether you want to learn about folklore and tales of slightly more sort of quirky, obscure things in Guernsey, maybe facts that are perhaps lesser known, for example,

then I definitely recommend going on a tour and doing that with the guide. If we like history, are there any particular tours you can recommend? I can definitely recommend. There's actually a guided walk called the Town Walk, and it's in St. Peterport, and it takes place every day. And it basically just gives visitors the overview of town what it's about, aspects of history. I would say that's quite good to get the history of town in a nutshell. That's probably the best one. So, yeah, there's a definite mix of things I would take you to.

Sounds very charming. So what's the best time of year to go? It depends what kind of weather you're looking for. So July and August are the warmest months, but I would say things start warming up from about April and even September and October, you can get lovely long days and really beautiful sunset. So yeah, I would say, for me personally, I would say May June. I think that's a really nice sort of balance of having the these long sunny days with a bit of a fresh breeze. My name is Saseko, Seseko Yelani. I'm from Ongu to Tos, which is a tour operating company in South Africa, Eastern Cape.

South Africa is quite a big country. It's difficult to do all the highlights in one trip. But I would highly recommend maybe you can get a direct flight from Yerlana to Cape Town. You could explore around the city over three, four days. You could do Robben Island, Table Mountain, see some penguins, shark cage diving, if you like that. Do the garden route. Most clients, they love the garden route. You can do it on self-drive.

You can do it with the guided tour of that. What's the garden route? The garden route is the route between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. It's a beautiful and natural. part of the country. So in Scott, it's the garden route. It's very green, beautiful beaches, and some adventure on the way. So you're right. Probably all of South Africa is not in our graphs. So you're saying Cape Town, the garden route, anything else we could fit into this trip? Most definitely, once you reach to in Port Elizabeth, you are into one of the best

safari destination. From Port Elizabeth, you are one hour away from Addo National Park and other private game reserves around the national park. You could also do Kruger if you want Kruger. It's being the biggest national park in South Africa. So if you're into beach tourism, then you could do Deben. So there's so much to do. It varies.

There's a drunken speck mountains. There are townships, Soweto, Kaili, Jam, Tanzane. So it's really diverse, the things that you could do around South Africa. Depending on how long you have and your interest, it's also, it's South Africa, it's like 10 countries and one. There's culture, there's nature, there's the safari, so it's really nice. What if we want to learn more about history and Nelson Mandela? What do you recommend?

Where I'm coming from, I'm from the Eastern Cape, which is the home province of Nelson Mandela. So one of the tours that we do, we go to these villages where Nelson Mandela was brought up. We do like Gunu, we do Mkhegesu and Imvezo. These are the places that brought up Nelson Mandela. Before he moved to Johannesburg, joining politics. Then in John's Park, you'll be connecting through Soweto, his house. Then also the Cape Church site around near Devon, Robben Island.

So these are the Nelson Mandela heritage routes to that one. who might look into. Hi, my name's Robin Russell Pavia. I look after the tourist board for Papua New Guinea. Where is Papua New Guinea? Papua New Guinea is in the Pacific, and it's about 100 miles above Australia. Okay, and so if I decide that I want to go on a holiday there,

what are some hidden gems that you would take me to if we were going on a vacation there together? I think one of the best things is the cultural side of Papua New Guinea. We have more than 1,000 different things. tribes who between them speak 800 different languages. That's number one. You can't miss out on the culture. Number two is the amazing bird life, particularly birds of paradise. We have 38 species of birds of paradise in Papua New Guinea and there are only 43 species of them in the world. So those are the two absolute must seas as well as all the wonderful scenery above and below the

coastline. So you said 800 different groups of people. So what does that mean as a tourist? Are there opportunities to like live among different communities or how do we experience the culture when we go there? Yes, it's quite easy. You would always need an expert guide with you to take you into a local community. Local communities are quite remote and not necessarily always familiar with having visitors, but they're very welcoming when you when you go there. You can learn a little bit about their way of life, their culture and traditions. The vast number of tribal groups means that you don't have to move very far in order to see something completely different. They will have different ways of celebrating, different ways of dressing, and all manner of different cultural traditions.

What are the different activities we would, or must have experiences, I guess, when we're there? Yeah, PNG is very much a country where you go to do stuff. So I would say in no particular order of importance, culture, wildlife, diving, snorkeling, surfing, and other adventures, such as trekking, big game fishing and so on. Okay. How do we get there? The easiest way from UK is via Singapore. So from Singapore, Port-Wordsby's about six and a half-hour's flight. So you've been there a number of times, I know.

Can you tell me about, you know, a memorable experience you've had being there? Goodness, I've had so many. But I think every time I go, I have a different memorable experience. But my most recent one, which was just magical, was going out from the place called Cockapoe to a place called the Duke of York. Island. And on route we saw spinner dolphins, which are much smaller than the dolphins we might be accustomed with. And the name implies, as they jump out of the order, they spin. And it was just a real magical thing to do first thing in the morning. What is the food culture there like? I'm a

vegetarian. Could I survive there? You'd be fine with vegetarian. I would be completely honest with you. You don't really go to Papua New Guinea for the food. It's not really a massive food culture. food tends to be fairly simple and in most cases fairly international style but the good side is there's not really any unpleasant surprises and you're not really going to be given weird stuff

to eat. So if I'm planning a trip there, I mean could I just go on my own or do I need a group or do I need a guide? How should I plan a trip to Papua New Guinea? It is a destination where you'd need some pre-planning and you need a little bit of

hand-holding and I don't mean that's in a silly way but it's a country where tourism is very much in its infancy and it has a lack of infrastructure. And it's also a country where it's very hard to do anything spontaneously, simply because there isn't a coherent road network or a public transport system. So, yes, you do, you need a pre-organised tour. You need a guide to come with you to show you around.

You'll probably have a different guide in different places. And actually the research side of it is working out the interesting places to go. I would say on a two-week stay, for example, no more than three places about right. You don't want to run yourself ragged trying to see the whole country in a short time. Okay, and you mentioned UK tour operators,

but I mean, they could arrange tours for anyone, right? Yes, absolutely, yes, absolutely, that could. My name is Jenny Bowen. I'm here on behalf of the Eswetini Tourism Authority, So I'm here on the stand and we're explaining to people why they want to go to Eswatini. So Eswatini used to be called Swaziland and we celebrated our 50-50 celebrations in April 2018. And that was when we changed our name from the kingdom of Swaziland to the kingdom of Eswatini. And it was also the king's birthday.

So it's 50 years of independence and his 50th birthday. Okay. So what does Aswetian? It means Swaziland in a local dialect, so in Siswasi is their language. So it's a Swaziland means Eswati. Okay, that makes sense because I was thinking, whoa, changing a name of a country, that's pretty big, but that makes sense. We always say that Eswatini is a bit like Africa in a nutshell, so it's got a little bit of everything. It's brilliant for people who are first-time visitors. And it's got wildlife with up-close and personal sightings. It's got fantastic.

scenery, great adventure, and then there's the culture that's woven into everyday life. So in the morning you could be walking and maybe doing a zip wire in a wonderful Malalotcha. During lunchtime, you could be watching candles being woven before your very eyes. And then in the afternoon evening, you go on a sunset safari and you can see lion and elephant. That sounds perfect. So could you give me the names of some specific places we should check out to experience these things? Yes, definitely. So Malalotia, nature reserves, that's in the far western side of the kingdom.

And then you've got it in the central section is Milwani Wildlife Sanctuary. And then if you want to see some of the big five, then I would recommend going to either Mkaya Game Reserve or Lani Royal National Park. And both of those have black and white rhinos. So you get the opportunity to see those incredible animals. What is the food culture like there? What are some foods that we should try? So local traditional food is called PAP.

So they'll have, it's a type of maize meal that is ground up into a flower and then mixed with water. So that turns out a bit like stodgy, a bit like, they call it Mealy Pap. So it's a bit like a potato. And then that's dipped into relish. Or you have it within Nyama, which means meat. So you can have Pap and Nyama or Sadra Niyama. So vegetarians can survive on a vacation there? Definitely without a doubt. They cater for everybody out there, which is brilliant. So all kinds of people.

Even I've taken people out there who are gluten and dairy-free and it's all fine. My name's Alex Perez. I'm the sales and marketing manager for Travel Nevada here in the UK. Okay. So I think most of us have heard of Las Vegas. What else is there to do in Nevada? Las Vegas actually only represents a very small part of the state. We see ourselves as the road trip capital of the the US. So there are several different trips you can do. There's 10 that we've branded in total that take in different parts of the state and each trip has a really different theme. So we think the best way to see the rest of the state is getting to a car, drive yourself around, experience the open roads, the national parks we've got here, the different cultures as well.

You know, in some parts, there's cowboy culture. There's the old west. There's even a Basque region in Nevada that people don't know about. So the best way is to get in a car and explore the state for yourself. Tell me more about this Basque region. There's a couple of different areas, as I mentioned. So in the north of the state, you've got Ili and Elko that have a Basque region. So it comes from the old Spanish settlers that come to Nevada and settled here and brought their culture to the region. So there are Basque restaurants. The food is kind of served family style that have their own traditions as well that go along with that. So it's something that you'll come across and won't be expecting when you see it in the state.

Is there a specific town we should go to? There's a few, yeah. So, I mean, you can go to Elko, where they have cowboy culture there. So they have cowboy poetry. So when cowboys back in the Old West were traveling on themselves and were sitting by the campfire, they would write songs and poetry themselves. And that still continues. There's still cowboys now that have ranches and farms in Nevada that still write poetry.

So there's a big cowboy poetry's festival. and that goes along with the Basque region as well around Alco and the kind of north east of the state. What are some hidden gems that I could check out that a lot of people don't know about? So Nevada is next to California, which people think of the state parks that are there. We've actually got Great Basin National Park in Nevada, which I think is one of the hidden gems. Both seasonal, you know, winter and summer. In the summer, it's great for hiking, for fishing, for stargazing. actually that point in the state has some of the darkest skies in North America.

So stargazing in the evening is fantastic. The other one is Lake Tahoe. People know about some of the skiing there, but again, as a summer destination, going hiking, going cycling and all the parts of the smaller towns that are by Lake Tahoe, like Genoa, which is the oldest settlement in Nevada, and also Virginia City that has wooden sidewalks and boardwalks and saloons with the swing indoors. So it really kind of encapsulate the Old West that people associate with that part of America. So, you know, you can have so many different adventures in so many different parts of the state.

It's that surprises a lot of people that there's so much to do that they didn't know was there. What has been your favorite experience in Nevada? That is a very, very tough question. In Virginia City, the town I spoke about that kind of has the Old West, they have a taste of the Comstock Festival. that is a kind of cowboy festival where they have different places open with food and ranches are up there and that. So experiencing that and experience the kind of local culture and the farming culture that they have in that region was one of the highlights for me, I think, because it was authentic.

And it was something that would stick with me for a long time. Yeah, and I don't want to totally hate in Las Vegas. I've never been, so I don't know. It's actually something for everyone. You know, people think of the obvious. you know, you can go out. And there is a lot to do. But it's actually quite a large place, you know,

walking around and seeing the different resorts. Some of the resorts have 28, 29 different restaurants or bars in. So exploring it, it's somewhere that you can go. And I think everyone can find something they like, whether it's the dining, whether it's the entertainment, whether it's the museums, you know, they're very underrated as well. In downtown Fremont Street, it's the Mob Museum, which has the history of the mob and the mafia

and the Las Vegas routes and how it was formed and the mob connections to all over the US. So it's a fascinating place. It also has a secret speakeasy downstairs. We can go and get an old-fashioned cocktail and you can hear some of the stories from the bartenders as well because they've worked there for a very long time. So it's a kind of side of Las Vegas that people wouldn't think is there.

Yeah, that is a great tip because when I think of Las Vegas, I never would have thought museum. And that one sounds fascinating. So thank you very much. You are very welcome. All right, so which one of these places are you most tempted by? Screenshot your answer and share it with me in an Instagram story. You can find me at Sarah Micatel.

I want to go to all these places. And I think Guernsey is probably at the top of my list since it's in my backyard. And I have been wanting to check out more of the little islands around England. Also, I read the novel, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society quite a while ago. It was part of my mom's book club. passed it on to me, and I remember really liking it. And there's also a film out now, and that was starring Jessica Brown Finley, who played Sybil on Downton Abbey. And I think she was everybody's favorite sister, right? You watched out in Abbey. I think we are all team civil. All right,

that's all for now. Thank you for listening and have a beautiful week wherever you are. Do you ever go blank or start rambling when someone puts you on the spot? I created a free conversation sheet sheet with simple formulas that you can use so you can respond with clarity, whether you're in a meeting or just talking with friends. Download it at sarahmicatel.com slash blank no more.