Podcasts open up an entire world of possibilities

Chris Christensen, your new
favorite podcaster

Podcaster extraordinaire Chris Christensen recently shared a study regarding the listening habits of Americans. It shows that the average person aged 13+ spends a little over four hours a day listening to some type of audio. Of that, less than two percent are podcasts. As a podcast enthusiast, I am working to improve that number.

For the uninitiated (and we were all there at one time or another), podcasts are simply a type of audio you can listen to online or download for later. They might be your church’s weekly messages, a presentation by NPR, or content recorded to go straight to podcast without being heard somewhere else first.

Podcasts can be retrieved from websites or the iTunes store. There may be podcasts that cost money, but I only go for the free ones, so that’s the only kind with which I’m familiar. And why are they called podcasts? I’m just guessing here, but it’s probably because they were originally listened to on iPods. (Feel free to correct me, if that’s not true.)

For me, the great value of podcasts is they literally open up the entire world to you…and on your schedule. Whether you are looking for information about the world around you, intellectual floss, spiritual nourishment, or simply “the odd laugh along the way,” (more about that later) podcasts are a no-charge way to listen to the very best of audio broadcasts from around the world.

This list of suggestions to get you started is broken up into three categories: The Physical World, Intellectual Considerations, and Spiritual Food.

The Physical World

Because inquiring minds want to know, the show 99% Invisible is a public radio podcast dedicated to why things are the way they are. It’s a show spawned by really smart people who were driving down the street asking themselves, “I wonder why…?” Topics vary from the sprightly carpet at the airport in Portland, Oregon, to the development of those air-powered floppy guys you see at used car lots.

Quick quiz: How are the island of Trinidad, the Olympics, and used car lots irrevocably tied together by fabric “air men?” Listen and learn, my friend. Listen and learn.

The shows are incredibly funny, stockpile you with hours of interesting conversation for cocktail parties and church socials, and will leave you absolutely unbeatable at Trivial Pursuit. And why is the show called 99% Invisible? That will be the first thing you’re smarter about when you go to http://99percentinvisible.org/.

When I recently asked visitors to my author’s site on FB to list their favorite podcasts, an overwhelming number of votes came in for This American Life, another NPR offering. I first became aware of TAL through SiriusXM. However, when my Sirius subscription expired and I was otherwise financially obligated, it was nice to know there was another way to access the show. And here’s the beauty of podcats: it doesn’t matter when a show airs or even if it airs in your local market. With podcasts, the world is your audio oyster, and served up on your timetable, not the broadcaster’s.

My favorite episode of TAL is the one in which they spent an hour explaining, point by point, how an earlier show was completely wrong. In the age of Brian Williams, it’s good to have an outlet that isn't afraid to admit when they screw up. http://www.thisamericanlife.org/podcast

I mentioned Chris Christensen earlier. His Amateur Traveler podcast takes you all over the world, from Fort Worth to Portland to Xi’an to Quito to –ready for this? – North Korea.

How much desire do I have to travel to North Korea? Zero. How interesting was it to hear from someone who did? Totally. If you’re planning a trip or wanting ideas for your next vacation, you have to make this a regular part of your listening pleasure. (http://amateurtraveler.com/)

Intellectual Floss

We know from Harvey  Deutschendorf that people with high levels of emotional intelligence are “lifelong learners, constantly growing, evolving, open to new ideas, and always willing to learn from others. Being critical thinkers, they are open to changing their minds if someone presents an idea that is a better fit. While they are open to ideas from others, and continuously gathering new information, they ultimately trust themselves and their own judgment to make the best decision for themselves.”  (http://www.fastcompany.com/3028712/7-habits-of-highly-emotionally-intelligent-people)

Hence, if you wonder what the rest of the world is thinking, what better way to find out than to find out? Three options include the daily news podcast from the People’s Republic of China (http://english.cri.cn/cribb/programs/hour.htm), the documentary archive from the BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/docarchive), and from Jerusalem, the podcasts of The Israel News (http://www.haaretz.com/misc/podcasts).

The Beijing Hour podcast promises to give you a new perspective on the world and “the odd laugh along the way.” I’ve listened and listened, but not a single odd laugh.

Okay, I came close once when they did a news story on a city official from southern China who was sentenced to three years “rehabilitation” for “repeated, excessive use of irony” in dealing with citizens. Yikes!

There are entire American cities that would go to the slammer if that was a crime in the good ole’ US of A.

Another podcast I’m quite amused by is Indiacast (http://www.theindicast.com/index.php/indicast-podcasts). It presents all things India, including their current success at the world Cricket championships. I've listened to the episode on cricket at least a half dozen times. What do I now know about cricket I didn't know before? Not a blasted thing.

But it does give me a real-time appreciation of what I've been putting my wife through for years by making her watch Sports Center and listen to ESPN Radio. Gibberish. Pure gibberish.

Spiritual Food

Many people take great care of their bodies, but their spirits are suffering serious malnutrition. Either they’re loading up on empty calories or simply starving themselves to death. Regardless of what church you attend, or even if you currently attend a church, there is a bountiful treasure of nutritious snacks available via podcasts.

Andy Stanley, son of famous preacher Charles Stanley, keeps the followers of Jesus on their toes with books like, “Can We Do That?” His podcast (http://northpoint.org/resources/podcasts) is just as refreshing and, dare I say it, irreverent.

Have you seen the t-shirts that say, “No Perfect People Allowed,” and wondered what that was all about? Wonder no more. (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/experience-life-audio-podcast/id258983493?mt=2)

And finally, have you ever wondered what was going on at the church down the street? Now you can walk right in (via podcasts) and find out. Study after study shows people – even extroverts – are reluctant to visit a new church.

Now you can literally be a fly on the wall and see what’s being taught without having to fill out a pesky visitor’s card or make small talk with strangers. Here are some to get you started from across the US.

Lubbock, TX: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/st.-lukes-lubbock-umc-sermons/id626928348?mt=2

Portland, OR: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/city-bible-church-portland-or/id81557880?mt=2

Philadelphia, PA: http://www.epicwired.net/

Milwaukee, WI: http://www.mtolivemke.org/archives.html

To find which churches have podcasts in your city, simply Google or go to the iTunes store and do a podcast search. 

By the way, you can set your iPad or other device to record all programs from a given source, only the particular episodes which you choose, or only the most recent episodes. I choose the last option for newscasts like "The Beijing Hour." If I get behind in my listening, chances are I'm not going to go back and listen to two-week old news. Hence, I set it to only keep the most recent two episodes and erase any older episodes, whether they have been listened to or not.

Enjoy, friends, enjoy. There are a lot of great podcasts out there. And if you find one you really like, please pass it on to me at Bear Mills Author on FB.

Planning a trip? Don't do it without Chris Christensen, aka The Amateur Traveler

Chris Christensen is one of America's top travel reporters. His podcasts, website, and videos feature the most interesting people and places in the world. I dare say it would be impossible for your Bucket List to not expand dramatically as you listen to and read his reports. 

Chris's iconic image, found on
the Amateur Traveler podcasts

The website, http://amateurtraveler.com/, is an incredibly handy site for perusing various destinations, deciding what you want to do once you get there, and choosing the best way to travel there and home again. If Chris hasn’t been there, he knows someone who has and will share their insights. It truly is a travel community.

One of the things I most appreciate about Chris’s interviews is that through his Dick-Cavettesque questioning style, you learn not only information about a place, but the biases of the interviewee. That can be invaluable, and you don’t get that from travel books.

The Amateur Traveler, his podcast, often includes the kind of information you usually don't find in tour books. Most importantly, his podcasts are completely entertaining. If you've never heard them, make a beeline for iTunes. The podcasts are free.

First, Chris, this interview is being conducted following an extended boat trip off the coast of South America. Tell us where you went and what you were doing there. I was on a cruise around Cape Horn from Buenos Aires to Santiago, Chile. I was sponsored by Holland America to take this cruise. We saw penguins in the Falklands, tango in Buenos Aires, and glaciers in the fjords of Chile.

Mr. Christensen's Penguins,
photographed during his trip to South America

I believe your professional career was originally centered around Silicon Valley. How did you transition from that to being a professional travel writer? I actually still make my living from software, both my own start-up company (BloggerBridge.com) and part time contracting work for my old employer, TripAdvisor. I used to be their director of engineering for TripAdvisor Flights and SeatGuru. Travel writing and podcasting are my third job.

You call yourself and your website The Amateur Traveler, but I just referred to you a professional travel writer. That sounds like a contradiction, but I know it's not. Clarify that for us. When I chose the name Amateur Traveler, I had in mind “travel for the love of it.” Amateur meaning to do something for love. Remember you used to have to be an amateur to be an Olympic athlete, yet they were considered the best in the world. The ark was built by an amateur and the Titanic was built by professionals.

Chris took this picture at the Great Wall

While people might think about travel writing as a fairly right-brained activity, what I see is that you approached this in a very left-brained way. Tell us about The Amateur Traveler as a business. I think I find the travel writing is right brained, creative; but being a travel blogger or podcaster also means that you are not just a writer, but a publisher, with all that implies. You need to sell ads if you are going to have them, set schedules, set and meet deadlines. Some parts of that I have done better than others. I am not the best salesperson for instance.

You have well over four hundred podcasts available through iTunes and on your website, www.amateurtraveler.com. Talk about what's involved in putting a show on the air. An episode of Amateur Traveler probably takes about eight to nine hours of production work starting with the interview, then editing the interview, adding in other elements, publishing, and publicizing. We also do "This Week in Travel" which takes less because we don’t edit that show. Fortunately, I hire an editor to take care of the editing of the audio, and also adding in the photos and links that we have in the iTunes enhanced version of the show. That takes 5 hours off my plate.

How do you select guests for your show? I find they are all extremely effective communicators. What's your audition process? I reach out to some people directly who I have heard speak, or ask the travel blogging community who would be a great guest for a specific destination. I also get unsolicited pitches (http://AmateurTraveler.com/pitch-me) for being on the show. You need to pitch a place, not a person. Sometimes the shows just don’t work. Not every interview gets aired.

Chris as Yosemite

What are some of the highlights of your own travels? If you were putting together a "greatest hits" list of your adventures, what would make the cut? Some of the most memorable destinations would include Tanzania, Egypt, Istanbul, China, and Japan. Rafting down the Green River in Dinosaur National Park and blackwater rafting in New Zealand were some memorable adventures. The most unusual may have been working as a photo journalist for the day in Jordan covering a visit by the pope and the royal family (http://asia.amateurtraveler.com/day-papal-paparazzi/) or an invitation last December to the White House (http://amateurtraveler.com/white-house-wants-study-abroad/).

You've traveled all over the world. What locations are still on your bucket list? I have published a Bucket List (http://amateurtraveler.com/my-travel-bucket-list/) and am working through checking things off. I also use the UNESCO World Heritage list (http://amateurtraveler.com/unesco-world-heritage-sites/) and the list of U.S. National Parks as a bucket list.

A walk among the ruins
with Chris Christensen

How do you see your work as being unique from, say, travel books like Frommers or websites like Tripadvisor? I am a big fan of both Frommers -- I consider Pauline Frommer a friend -- and TripAdvisor. I sometimes describe an Amateur Traveler episode as an audio guidebook for a destination. We won’t provide all the information you will need to go there but we will help you decide if you want to go there.

In addition to writing about travel, you are also periodically leading travel groups. Tell us about that. We have not done that very often but in April we are having the second Amateur Traveler group trip (http://amateurtraveler.com/amateur-traveler-trip-morocco-april-2015/). We will be with a group of eleven people, or a few more if anyone is interested, counting my wife and I heading to Morocco. We did an Amateur Traveler photo tour of Egypt back in 2010, just before the Arab Spring. That trip was part of a larger group trip, so I am looking forward to a more intimate trip. I am working with a great tour company that is doing all the logistics.

The Amateur Traveler,
Chris Christensen

I believe I am correct in saying that you come from a Lutheran background. Your website also has links to some Bible study options. What is the connection, in your mind, between our physical journeys and our spiritual journey? Yes, in addition to three jobs and two travel podcasts, I also lead two bible studies a week. One is a podcast, The Bible Study Podcast (http://TheBibleStudyPodcast.com), and the other is in a lock-down unit for violent youth offenders in the local Juvenile Hall. I view all of life as a journey, only some of which comes with jet lag.