Grapple Asia Interview Ep. 12 | Patrick Letica - My Way to Japan

Patrick Letica is a former athlete and financial advisor from Switzerland. As he progressed through his young adult life a question kept coming to mind, "What truly made him happy?" As it turns out, helping people and exploring the world was the answer. Over time, Patrick's goals became clearer and he would make the decision to challenge himself and cycle from his home in Switzerland to Japan and help people through the trip, facing the challenge head-on with no prior cycling experience. Inspired during a trip to Brazil in 2021 to visit his Jiu-Jitsu professor, Broa, in Recife, Brazil, Patrick would see how life is in the many favelas of Brazil. His goal for this trip is to collaborate with two coaches he met, Jairo Santos and Renan Bastos to establish infrastructure in favelas in Ibura and Pina, Brazil. They aim to lead social projects that rescue children, teenagers, and adults from the streets. Socials: Website: https://www.mywaytojapan.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patrick.letica/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mywaytojapan ----------------------------- Chapters 0:00 Sponsors

0:37 Guest Introduction

1:55 Helping kid's in the Favelas

3:34 My Way to Japan's origins

5:13 Preparation for the trip

7:14 Initial challenges of the journey

9:57 Training in every country

12:08 The Middle East & their amazing hospitality

13:59 Distinct features of each Arabian country

16:43 The level of BJJ in the Middle East

20:00 The importance of law enforcement & military learning BJJ

21:48 Patrick's length of stay in each region

23:37 Crossing to India from Pakistan

26:38 The crash close to the Nepali border

30:14 The food in various countries

31:24 The importance of clean water

34:20 Nepal

36:37 Diwiz Piyalama as a leader

38:24 Arriving in Thailand

40:04 BJJ in Vietnam

42:00 The final destination

43:13 Training in Japan

44:16 CARPE DIEM BJJ

46:55 The business of Jiu-Jitsu

48:17 Memorable moments

50:22 Future plans & goals

52:35 The allure of Asia

56:40 Jiu-Jitsu in the Philippines

58:50 The growth of Jiu-Jitsu in Asia

1:00:23 Dubrovnik

1:01:08 Japanese work culture

1:04:05 Gratitude ----------------------------- =========================== Connect with us! ============================= IG: ➡︎ https://www.instagram.com/grplasia/ IG: ➡︎ https://www.instagram.com/grappleasiapod/ FB: ➡︎ https://www.facebook.com/grplasia/ =========================== Subscribe and Listen to the Grapple Asia Podcast HERE =========================== ➡︎YT: https://www.youtube.com/@GRPLASIA ➡︎Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/grapple-asia-podcast/id1717848251 ➡︎Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2XC4Ct28MhyxJRHe8dpP0j?si=4893974dfb24499f