The Maverick Show: Global Travel Stories & Life Beyond Borders

Hear stories and life-lessons from circumnavigating the planet on a bicycle while living on 3 Euros a day for 5 years. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE Pablo Mandado talks about his experience growing up in the Aragon region of Spain, how a trip to Greece changed everything and led to a life of long-term travel, and how he quickly transitioned into a spontaneous, hyper-minimalist and hyper-budget travel style.  He reflects on negotiating trust and reciprocity when hitch-hiking and couch surfing.  Pablo then shares an uncomfortable moment while  hitchhiking, as well as a surprising moment of connection, and some incredible stories from his month in Laos.  He then talks about meeting his girlfriend in Latvia and embarking on a 5 year cycling journey to circumnavigate the globe together.  Pablo explains the value of of a loosely planned trip rooted in spontaneous decisions and how he was able to live on just 3 Euros a day for 5 years.  Next, he tells incredible stories of getting caught in a massive snowstorm in Turkey, the heartwarming hospitality he found in Iran, avoiding the secret police in Uzbekistan, and what it was like to cycle across mainland China.  Pablo also talks about his photography journey and how he was able to turn that into a business.  Finally, he reflects on the unique benefits of traveling the world by bicycle, the re-acclimation experience after the trip, how the journey shaped his relationship, and the lasting impact of long-term, hyper-minimalist, spontaneous travel on him as a person. → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Learn how to get over-the-top luxury bucket list experiences for free that usually cost thousands of dollars per night. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE In Part 2 of this interview Darren Chew (“Chew”) breaks down the tactics for using points and miles to fly business class and have the world’s most epic luxury experiences for free. He explains the real value of a free breakfast in the Seychelles, how to plan around blackout dates and peak travel prices, and why flying Alaska Airlines is one of his favorite travel hacks.  Chew then shares his observations about anti-Blackness around the world, reflects on how travel has impacted him as a person and his relationship with his wife, and explains how he balances travel content creation with living in the moment.  He then gives tips for traveling as a couple, traveling with carry on luggage only, and reflects on what travel means to him today. → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Hear stories from visiting Nubia, the slums of Nairobi, rural villages in Zambia & going volcano-boarding in Nicaragua. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE Darren Chew (“Chew”) joins Matt and starts off talking about his Jamaican and Chinese heritage and shares the story of how his parents met in Jamaica and immigrated to New York.  He then talks about his experience growing up in New York with mixed cultural heritage, traveling back to Jamaica to visit family, and the pivotal role of basketball in his life.  Chew explains how he started traveling the world to visit former basketball teammates in Europe and then reflects on his first impression of the continent of Africa.  He tells travel stories from Kenya, Zambia, Senegal, Egypt, Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and explains why Rio is his favorite city in the world.  Chew reflects on visiting Nubia, gives a preview of his upcoming talk at Black Travel Summit in Brazil, and ends with a unexpected story of cultural immersion in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Learn how to use points & miles to perform Umrah with a family and travel the world to celebrate Eid in different cities. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE Amena tells the story of how she met Matt and bonded around Palestine solidarity at the WITS Travel creator summit in NYC. She then talks about her parents experience immigrating to the U.S. from India and Pakistan, her experience growing up in Dallas in a Muslim immigrant home, the impact of the post 9-11 environment on her life, and how she developed her politics and worldview. Amena then talks about her first trip back to India as an adult, performing Hajj in Saudi Arabia, seeing the Islamic architecture in southern Spain, celebrating Eid in Istanbul, and visiting Japan and London. She then talks about performing Umrah as a family, shares strategies to accumulate points and miles to cover international family travel, and talks about her Umrah Guide. Finally, Amena talks about raising socially conscious kids, integrating travel into their lives, and what travel means to her today. → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Learn how to coordinate your travel plans with friends, exchange recommendations & connect around the world with Pangea. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE Matt Gray starts off describing what he loves about Cape Town and tells the story of taking the world’s highest bungee jump off a bridge there. He then reflects on growing up outside NYC, studying abroad in Vienna, and traveling the world for a decade as part of his corporate job.  Matt tells stories from visiting Reunion Island, Madagascar, Lapland, Greenland, Antarctica, Armenia and Uzbekistan.  He then talks about organizing a group safari to Botswana, building community in the digital nomad lifestyle, and his plans for co-hosting Nomad Week 2026 in Cape Town.  Next, Matt talks about founding the Pangea App which enables you to coordinate your travel plans with friends, exchange recommendations & connect around the world.  He opens up about his own transition into full-time entrepreneurship, his journey building and scaling Pangea, his recent acquisition of the Overlap app, and is 5-year vision for Pangea.  Finally, Matt explains how he designs his digital nomad lifestyle, why he wants to travel to every country in the world, and what impact all this travel has had on him as a person. → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Hear about living in China, Malaysia, Poland and Mexico as a Black Muslim woman & raising her son in multiple countries. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE In part 2 of this interview Imani talks about her experience living in China, Poland, Malaysia and Mexico. She tells stories about how many of these places defied stereotypes and how warmly she was received and treated in Poland when she gave birth there.  Imani then reflects on raising her son across multiple countries and how living abroad has impacted him as a person.  She also reflects on the development of her own politics of collective liberation, how she maintains long-term activist stamina, and how we can all rise to meet this historical moment despite feeling overwhelmed.  Imani then talks about her current role as a co-director at “Resist” and the storytelling and communications work she does.  She explains the history of the organization, their present day work in supporting grassroots initiatives, and how you can support their work.  Imani then reflects on how her travel and activism are so integrally intertwined.  She shares tips on raising socially conscious kids, standing in better solidarity with marginalized groups, and offers specific advice to Black and Muslim women travelers.  Finally, Imani reflects on why she continues to travel and what travel means to her today. ⁠ → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Learn about being a Black Muslim activist in the U.S., meeting Malcolm X’s daughter, moving abroad and living in Cairo. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE Imani Bashir joins Matt in Washington, DC and they reflect on their Keynote panel at Nomadness Fest and their experience meeting Malcolm X’s daughter there.  Imani breaks down the neocolonial dynamics that often pervade the travel industry and travel journalism, and then offers tips on how be a more socially conscious traveler and content creator.  Next, she talks about the history of Islam in Black America, her experience navigating her Black and Muslim identities in the U.S., her experience after 9-11, and how her father raised her in an activist home.  Imani then talks about her commitment to Palestine solidarity work and reflects on the history of Palestine solidarity within Black American and other anti-colonial struggles around the world.  She then takes us on her personal journey attending an HBCU, getting her first passport, the impact of visiting London, and recognizing the beauty of immigrant communities.  Finally, Imani reflects on the history of Black-American expatriation, how the death of Sandra Bland motivated her to move out of the U.S., and her lessons and reflections from living in Cairo, Egypt. ⁠⁠ → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Hear highlights from digital nomading around Africa & the power of travel in learning about struggles against injustice. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE In Part 2 of this interview Janessa Klatt talks about her experience working remotely while traveling through Africa for 7 consecutive months.  She explains why Nairobi, Kenya won her heart, why her first safari in Tanzania was so magical, and why Cape Town, South Africa is now one of her favorite cities.  She also talks about her travels in Namibia, why the landscape is so uniquely spectacular, how she learned about the genocide that the German government committed there in 1907, and how travel has impacted her politics and worldview overall.  She then talks about co-hosting the “Remote Roundup” segment on the Zero to Travel podcast, gives minimalist packing tips for women, and reflects on why she continues to travel.  Finally, Janessa gives advice to aspiring digital nomads and speaks directly to people currently in a traditional 9-5 job that aspire to create a fulfilling life of long term world travel.  ⁠ → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Learn how to leave your 9-5 job and build a fulfilling life of long-term world travel rooted in a supportive community. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE Janessa Klatt joins Matt from Winnipeg, Canada over a bottle of wine and tells the story of her Grandparents’ experience immigrating to Canada from Germany, and then talks about her experience growing up in Winnipeg.  She gives her recommendations for visiting Canada, and talks about the role of sports in her life and how that started to pique her interest in world travel. Janessa then tells the story of her first solo back-packing trip through New Zealand, her study abroad experience in Melbourne, Australia, and learning to scuba dive at the Great Barrier Reef.  Next, she talks about leaving her corporate job for an adult gap year, living and working in Berlin, and re-connecting with her Germany heritage.  Janessa then shares her experiences traveling around Europe and reflects on the powerful impact of visiting the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland.  She then talks about her experience working as a deck hand on a private yacht, becoming a dive master in the Canary Islands, discovering The Maverick Show podcast, and becoming a full-time digital nomad.  Finally, she reflects on how she has build a meaningful community, both online and offline, in her itinerant digital nomad lifestyle.   ⁠ → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)

Hear from the author of my most recommended book for travelers: Beyond Guilt Trips: Mindful Travel in an Unequal World. ============================ Get the Monday Minute my weekly email with 3 personal recs for travel, culture, and living beyond borders you can read in 60 seconds. ============================ ON THIS EPISODE In part 2 of this interview, Dr. Anu Taranath talks about her motives for writing her book “Beyond Guilt Trips”, the value and importance of stories, and how we can understand guilt and shame in order to move beyond them and build real solidarity.  She then explains and unpacks the all to common division between cross cultural engagement “at home” vs. "abroad” and offers tips on how we should think about personal transformation through travel and becoming more thoughtful at home.  Anu then talks about the importance of noticing the small moments of everyday joy and reflects on how she has incorporated travel into her parenting. She also unpacks the concept of ‘complexity’ and explains how it can sometimes be used as a tool to illuminate important nuances and at other times be used by powerful interests to obfuscate the way dominant power structures function in order to demobilize opposition and maintain unjust power arrangements.  Finally, Anu reflects on what “belonging” means to her today and names the 3 best places in the world to get Indian food outside of the Subcontinent.    ⁠ → Full show notes with direct links to everything discussed are available here. ============================ FREE RESOURCES FOR YOU: See my Top 10 Apps For Digital Nomads See my Top 10 Books For Digital Nomads See my 7 Keys For Building A Remote Business (Even in a space that’s not traditionally virtual) Watch my Video Training on Stylish Minimalist Packing so you can join #TeamCarryOn See the Travel Gear I Use and Recommend See How I Produce The Maverick Show Podcast (The equipment, services & vendors I use) ============================ ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Maverick Show on Instagram and DM Matt to continue the conversation Please leave a rating and review — it really helps the show and I read each one personally You can buy me a coffee — espressos help me produce significantly better podcast episodes! :)