Ever had something go wrong when you’re travelling? Honestly, I think it’s a sign of a good trip if a few things go wrong. And nearly always, something going wrong leads to something happening that’s serendipitous and funny and interesting. At the very least, it makes a good story to tell on a podcast!
I have had plenty of things go wrong when I travel, and one that springs to mind is a miscommunication (apparently … I still think it was just their mistake!) about a bus transfer to Hurghada airport in Egypt. It led to a very scary taxi ride hurtling along an unlit highway in the middle of the night with no headlights on (the taxi driver reckoned that saved petrol) and while I didn’t enjoy it while it happened, it’s made for a good story that I’ve told many times since. And the guests in this episode of the podcast have a series of similar “what went wrong” stories that I’m sure you will find entertaining, because I sure did!
Show notes: Episode 73 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast
When Things Go Wrong
When you travel, something is bound to go wrong. Most of the time, whatever went wrong ends up making a good story, and that’s exactly what the three travellers in Episode 73 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast think too.
In this episode, I start of chatting with Luke Mackin of Wild Sumatra, who has two equally hilarious tales about things that have gone wrong both on his travels and in his expat life in rural Indonesia.
We then move to South Africa, where Kristen Truempy had a particularly interesting experience when things went wrong with her accommodation booking. Finally, over in New York City, fellow Aussie Aggie Lim has a great story to tell about things going wrong on a simple attempt to catch a bus in the Big Apple.
Links:
- Luke’s Wild Sumatra site and blog
- Kristen’s The Positive Psychology Podcast
- Aggie Lim at Drawn to Explore
- Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers
- Follow me on Facebook on the Not A Ballerina page
You might also like:
The Thoughtful Travel Podcast: Episode 16 – On Grief and Travel
The Thoughtful Travel Podcast: Episode 22 – Memorable Travel Moments: Hungry Porcupines and More
Culture Shock Abroad – Episode 41 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast
Foodie Lessons from Travel – Episode 62 of The Thoughtful Travel Podcast
Just listened to this episode and found the interview with Kristin offensively ignorant on South Africa.
The guest saying that apartheid had benches for blacks only which is a LIE, the benches literally said “slegs blankes” meaning “whites only” because the white minority reserved things like benches and beaches for themselves only, what she said implied that black people were being racist against whites during apartheid which means she clearly understood nothing.
I stopped listening after she claimed to have been to Saldanha to find that the hostel she booked had closed down and the driver, who came from a Coloured area invited her to stay with them and said she would be the first white person people there would be seeing is a laughably preposterous and stupid lie and exaggeration. But I guess to be the main character and feel special you must make things up?
Also, keep in mind that when you talk down on places like townships you forget that real, poor people live there but you joking around like it’s amusing that people live in such difficult circumstances is offensive.
Just shows that people can travel and learn nothing and only reinforce their own prejudices. So much for being a thoughtful traveller. I hope the guests improved in the following years.