Deviate with Rolf Potts

“Pretty much the second you step outside your front door, you have some basis for calling what you do 'travel'” – Spud Hilton In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Spud talk about the “messy, fun, and naughty side of travel” (3:20); sex and travel (26:00); the overly reverent language we often use to talk about travel (37:00); and the death of the "Mile-High Club" (48:00). Spud Hilton (@SpudHilton) is a travel expert, speaker, writer and host of the Inappropriate Traveler podcast. Notable Links: Pico Iyer (travel writer) Paul Theroux (travel writer) Tim Cahill (travel writer) Jan Morris (travel writer) Vagabonding, by Rolf Potts (book) The English Patient, by Michael Ondaatje (book) Rolf unpacks his very first vagabonding journey (Deviate podcast episode) Travel hookups with Flybrother Ernest White II (podcast episode) Nude in Hvar with Joel Riddell (podcast episode) Pam Mandel and Seattle’s secret piles of pot (podcast episode) AFAR (magazine) Experiential travel (form of tourism) The Atlanta Hotel (Bangkok) Stag party (pre-marriage ritual) Tinder (dating app) Grindr (dating app) French Quarter (New Orleans neighborhood) Mile high club (slang for airplane sex) "The Death of the Mile-High Club," by Rolf Potts (article) Andrew McCarthy on how travel changed his life (Deviate podcast episode) Camino de Santiago (pilgrimage road) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

“It’s good as you travel to take the time to do nothing, and have nothing planned.” –Tim Leffel In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Tim discuss the advantages of traveling to cheaper parts of the world (3:00); how living overseas can actually be cheaper than your life at home (13:00); strategies to save money on the road (23:00); setting a budget, and counterintuitive sightseeing (34:00); and breaking the myth of expensive European travel (51:00). Tim Leffel (@timleffel) is an award-winning travel writer and author of The World's Cheapest Destinations and A Better Life for Half the Price. He is the editor of the narrative web publication Perceptive Travel. For more about Tim, check out https://timleffel.com. This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

“A writer tends to notice things that other people do not notice. And they are noticing so they can write about it.” – Paul Theroux In this episode of Deviate, Paul Theroux and Rolf discuss their travels through Mexico and magical realism (4:30); teaching as a way to get to know a country and the importance of reading (20:00); and Paul’s experience traveling along the US-Mexico border and geo-political complexities between the two countries (29:00). Paul Theroux (@PaulTheroux_) is a pioneer of travel writing and author of many highly acclaimed books, including The Great Railway Bazaar and The Tao of Travel. His work has appeared in such publications as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and The Guardian. In 2015, Paul Theroux was awarded a Royal Medal from the Royal Geographical Society – an award, approved by the Queen, which is the highest award attainable for a traveler. His latest book, On the Plain of Snakes: A Mexican Journey, was released last month. He last talked with Rolf on Deviate Episode 31, "Paul Theroux on the art of listening, and the necessary obstacles of deep travel." Notable Links: Sinclair Lewis (writer) William Faulkner (writer) Jorge Luis Borges (writer) Gabriel García Márquez (writer) Magical Realism (style of fiction) James Joyce (writer) Aldous Huxley (writer) Jack Kerouac (writer) Rebecca West (writer) Harriet Doer (writer) Leonora Carrington (artist) The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, by B. Traven (novel) Nathaniel Philbrick (author) Moby-Dick, by Herman Melville (book) Subcomandante Marcos (revolutionary) Zapatista Army of National Liberation (militant group) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

“You do not have to feel beholden to the formula, but you do have to know the formula” – Benjamin Percy In this episode of Deviate, we sit in on a lecture that Benjamin Percy gave at the 2019 Paris Writing Workshop, on the craft of screenwriting.  Benjamin Percy (@Benjamin_Percy) is the author of four novels, including The Dead Lands, Red Moon, The Wilding, and The Dark Net. His other work includes numerous comics, his writing-craft book, Thrill Me, and his story collection Suicide Woods, out this month. His work has appeared in The Paris Review, The New York Times, and GQ. He currently writes the audio drama Wolverine, now in its second season, and is a regular on the lecture circuit, including at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, the Breadloaf Writers’ Conference, the Tin House Writers’ Workshop, Aspen Summer Words, and the Paris Writing Workshop. Find more about Benjamin at http://benjaminpercy.com/. Notable Links: Jaws (movie) Jaws screenplay (PDF version) Touched by an Angel (television show) AWP Conference & Bookfair Time and Distance Overcome, by Eula Biss (short story) Ursula K. Le Guin (author) The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (movie) John Ford (director) Quentin Tarantino (filmmaker) Psycho (movie) The Untouchables (movie) Winter’s Bone (movie) "The Chain," by Tobias Wolff (short story) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (movie) Sinking of the USS Indianapolis (WWII incident) Pet Sematary (movie) The Devil’s Advocate (movie) 21 Grams (movie) Final Draft (software) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by the Paris Writing Workshop, a month-long creative writing workshop at the Paris American Academy, in the artistic heart of Europe. In addition to taking classes and participating in workshops, students will receive one-on-one consultations with professional writers, attend literary panel presentations, and give readings in Parisian venues. Core classes include Fiction, Poetry, Creative Nonfiction, Screenwriting as well as Submissions and Publications, a seminar that will give students information, insight and strategies for getting their portfolio work published. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

“You have to think about the shelf-life of the tension you're creating. There should be a bigger mystery on the other side of that expiration date.” – Benjamin Percy In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Benjamin discuss the idea that all fiction is essentially genre fiction (3:30); the movement of narrative and the idea that structure underlies all stories (15:00); learning "story math" (31:00); and research processes and work habits (42:00). Benjamin Percy (@Benjamin_Percy) is the author of four novels, including The Dead Lands, Red Moon, The Wilding, and The Dark Net. His other work includes numerous comics, his writing-craft book, Thrill Me, and his story collection Suicide Woods, out this month. His work has appeared in The Paris Review, The New York Times, and GQ. He currently writes the audio drama Wolverine, now in its second season, and is a regular on the lecture circuit, including at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, the Breadloaf Writers’ Conference, the Tin House Writers’ Workshop, Aspen Summer Words, and the Paris Writing Workshop. Find more about Benjamin at http://benjaminpercy.com/. Notable Links: Refresh, Refresh, by Benjamin Percy Suicide Woods, by Benjamin Percy Stephen King (author) Stan Lee (comic book writer) The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien (novel) Alice Munro (author) Flannery O’Connor (writer) James Baldwin (writer) Lost (television show) Dungeons & Dragons (role-playing game) The Sandman, by Neil Gaiman (comic book series) Preacher (comic book series) Scalped (comic book series) Transmetropolitan (comic book series) What we Talk About When we Talk About Love, by Raymond Carver (short story collection) Emily Dickinson (poet) Odyssey, by Homer (epic poem) Wild, by Cheryl Strayed (novel) Jaws (movie) 24 (television show) 25th Hour (movie) Superbad (movie) Alfred Hitchcock (director) The Tell-tale Heart, by Edgar Allen Poe (short story) The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson (novel) The Island of Dr. Moreau, by H.G. Wells (novel) The Outsiders (movie) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by the Paris Writing Workshop, a month-long creative writing workshop at the Paris American Academy, in the artistic heart of Europe. In addition to taking classes and participating in workshops, students will receive one-on-one consultations with professional writers, attend literary panel presentations, and give readings in Parisian venues. Core classes include Fiction, Poetry, Creative Nonfiction, Screenwriting as well as Submissions and Publications, a seminar that will give students information, insight and strategies for getting their portfolio work published. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

“To go off the beaten path, I use a guidebook.” – Pauline Frommer, quoting a young reader In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Pauline discuss the founding of Frommer’s guidebooks and the guidebook revolution (3:30); curating content in the modern world (10:30); sidestepping travel-marketing content (17:15); how guidebooks have been tailored to meet the demands of current travelers (29:00); the impact of global over-tourism (38:00); and the pitfalls of travel, and how to start the process of planning one's next trip (46:00). Pauline Frommer (@Frommers) is the co-President of Frommer Media LLC, publisher of the Frommer's Travel Guidebook series, for which Pauline is the Editorial Director. She is the author of the best-selling travel guide, Frommer’s EasyGuide to New York City and her writing has appeared in such publications as Budget Travel and Newsweek. Pauline is the co-host of Frommer’s Travel Show.  Notable Links: Arthur Frommer (travel writer) The GIs Guide to Traveling in Europe (guidebook) Book Passage Travel Writers & Photographers Conference The Beach (movie) Lonely Planet (guidebook) Rick Steves (guidebook) Hawaii Revealed (guidebook) Let’s Go (guidebook) 60 Minutes (television program) Fodors Travel Guide (guidebook) Moon Travel Guide (guidebook) World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (organization) Workaway (travel platform) Anthony Bourdain (celebrity chef / travel documentarian) Midnight's Children, by Salman Rushdie (novel) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

"All the crowds gravitate towards the name-brand national parks, and even within those parks there's a handful of famous hikes or viewpoints that everybody visits. With a little knowledge, creative thinking, and physical effort, you can have a wilderness experience that's peaceful and beautiful -- and you'd never know there were big crowds elsewhere in the park." --James Kaiser James Kaiser (@JamesKaiser_) has written bestselling travel guidebooks to a number of American national parks, including Acadia, Joshua Tree, the Grand Canyon, Zion, and Yosemite. He speaks about national parks at elementary schools around the United States, and he is also the author of Costa Rica: The Complete Guide. In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and James talk about their early experiences in American national parks (2:30); how to find national parks in a given part of the country, and the rewards of visiting lesser-known parks (14:00); how James became a guidebook author, and the kind of research he does at national parks (20:15); strategies for visiting parks in the 21st century, new trends and developments, and the effects of over-visitation (29:00); how to avoid crowds in national parks and similar American wilderness areas (35:00); strategies the parks use to lessen the impact of visitors (42:00); using (and avoiding) smartphones in national parks, and how social media has affected visitation trends (46:00); the impact of international visitors on national parks (50:00); and why national parks are special, and how to best approach them for first-time visitors (55:30). Notable links: "Van Life before #VanLife" (podcast episode) Acadia National Park (wilderness area in Maine) Ansel Adams (landscape photographer) The National Parks: America's Best Idea (television documentary miniseries) Mount Katahdin (highest mountain in Maine) Yosemite National Park (wilderness area in California) Grand Canyon National Park (wilderness area in Arizona) Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve (natural area in Kansas) Find Your Park (national park search engine) Crater Lake National Park (wilderness area in Oregon) Joshua Tree National Park (wilderness area in California) The Joshua Tree (1987 U2 album) Glacier National Park (wilderness area in Montana) Arches National Park (wilderness area in Utah) Zion National Park (wilderness area in Utah) Bureau of Land Management (government public lands) Horseshoe Bend (incised meander of the Colorado River in Arizona) Campendium (camping search and reservation app) HipCamp (camping search and reservation app) Recreation.gov (camping reservation website) This episode is brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

"I will never have another vagabonding journey that compares to that first one -- even though I have since traveled to far more exotic parts of the world -- in part because there's something special about embarking on a long-term trip for the first time." --Rolf Potts In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and his old friend Jeff Nienaber talk about their 8-month van trip across North America back in 1994, how they prepared for it, and how it differed from current-day #VanLife excursions (5:30); how they exercised on the road, and how the conditions and travel-hacks of van journeys were different for two young men in 1994 (23:30); the route they took through North America, what happened along the way, and how they kept daily journals recounting events (36:00); the experience riding with cops in Houston, celebrating Mardi Gras in New Orleans, volunteering at a church in Mississippi, meeting girls in Florida, and seeing New York for the first time (51:00); the experience of staying at a Trappist monastery in Massachusetts for one week (1:14:30); visiting National Parks in the American South, Northeast, and West, and memorable books read along the way (1:28:00); and why the trip was life-changing (1:42:00). Van trip preparation and planning links: Digital nomadism (travel lifestyle) #VanLife (travel lifestyle) Composting toilet Blue Highways, by William Least Heat-Moon (1982 book) On the Road, by Jack Kerouac (1957 book) Travels With Charley, by John Steinbeck (1962 book) Vanagon (Volkswagen van) Volkswagen Westfalia (camper van) Trangia (alcohol-burning camp-stove) A (literal) photo album from my 1994 van vagabonding trip (blog post) Links regarding early months of the 1994 trip: 924 Gilman Street (Berkeley punk club) Northridge earthquake (1994 earthquake) "The Mystical High Church of Luck" (Salon essay about Las Vegas) Lollapalooza (music festival) O. J. Simpson murder case (1994 media incident) USCGC Northwind (Coast Guard icebreaker) Bourbon Street (historic street in New Orleans) The Geto Boys, by Rolf Potts (2016 book) Fifth Ward (Houston neighborhood) Cops (TV show) Canton (town in Mississippi) In His Steps (Mississippi Christian outreach ministry) Waffle House (southern restaurant chain) Savannah State (historically black university) Debbie Does Dallas (1978 pornographic film) Tompkins Square (New York park) Trappist monastery experience links: St. Joseph's Abbey (Massachusetts monastery) Trappists (order of Catholic monks) Thomas Merton (Trappist monk and writer) Memento Mori (existential expression) Chant (1994 Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos album) Compline (end-of-day church service) Links regarding the final months of the 1994 trip: Ocala National Forest (protected area in Florida) Shenandoah National Park (Virginia wilderness area) Mount Washington (tallest mountain the northeast U.S.) Arches National Park (Utah wilderness area) Fisher Towers (photogenic cliffs near Moab, Utah) Desert Solitaire, by Edward Abbey (1968 book) Leaves of Grass, by Walt Whitman (1855 poetry collection) The Razor's Edge, by W. Somerset Maugham (1944 book) Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by Robert M Pirsig (1974 book) Uinta National Forest (protected area in Utah) Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming wilderness area) Glacier National Park (Montana wilderness area) Pike National Forest (protected area in Colorado) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirT

"Most people do not wake up and think, 'I need more philosophy in my life.' They do wake up and think 'I have a problem and I need a solution'." --Ryan Holiday Ryan Holiday (@RyanHoliday) is an American marketer and entrepreneur, and the author of eight books, including The Obstacle is the Way, Ego is the Enemy, and Stillness is the Key, which debuts in bookstores this week. In this episode of Deviate, Ryan and Rolf talk about "Big Idea" books, how Ryan's philosophical trilogy of books came about, and how word-of-mouth works better than categorization in helping people find your books (3:00); how storytelling is better than dry analysis when it comes to writing books on a topic like Stoicism, and how writing for general audiences differs from writing for "elite" audiences (16:00); why ancient ideas and examples are often more dependable than contemporary ones, and why it's good to read as diversely as possible (25:00); what a "commonplace book" is, and how it can fuel your creative life (32:30); the difference in focus between the research phase of a book and the writing phase, and how to best plan and structure books (48:00); Ryan's writing habits, how he balances his day with non-writing tasks, and the importance of maintaining momentum (1:01:30); and the process of how he decides on which themes and projects to explore next (1:06:00). Books mentioned: The 4-Hour Work Week, by Tim Ferriss Vagabonding, by Rolf Potts The 48 Laws of Power, by Robert Greene The History of the Peloponnesian War, by Thucydides Cash: The Autobiography, by Johnny Cash The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield Range, by David Epstein The Daily Stoic, by Ryan Holiday The Hero With a Thousand Faces, by Joseph Campbell Notable links: Big Idea Book Bootcamp (writing class) Tim Ferriss book club How a book on stoicism became wildly popular at every level of the NFL (article) How And Why To Keep A “Commonplace Book” (article) Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum Marina Abramovich "The Artist is Present" A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (Mister Rogers movie) Stanford Prison Experiment (psychology experiment) Dorothy Day (American Catholic social activist) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

"In American Beauty, Lester Burnham's rebellions seem adolescent and immature because that's all he's got. His world is so stultifying that you can either be a walking-dead adult or a footloose and fancy-free teenager. In retrospect that seems sad rather than triumphant." --Kevin Smokler In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Kevin talk about how American Beauty, a movie that seemed dazzling when it was released, eventually came to feel less original and interesting (2:50); which elements in the movie are still effective after 20 years (8:00); how the movie's sour take on suburbia was not all that original by 1999 (16:30); how Lester Burnham's epiphany at the end of the movie feels adolescent and regressive (30:00); the ways that many of the movie's themes don't fully jibe with the human motivations of the characters (38:30); and the movie's take on the isolations of American masculinity (50:00). Kevin Smokler (@weegee) is a writer, public speaker, critic, and author of Brat Pack America and Practical Classics. He speaks on the future of media and culture and his written work has appeared in such publications as the Los Angeles Times, Buzzfeed, and Vulture. He previously appeared as a guest on Episode 33 of Deviate, Why 1980s coming-of-age movies matter., and Episode 60, Celebrating the best travel movies ever. Notable Links: Sam Mendes (director) Alan Ball (screenwriter) Annette Bening (actress) Kevin Spacey (actor) Double Indemnity (1944 movie) Sunset Boulevard (1950 movie) Revolutionary Road (2008 movie) The Ice Storm (1997 movie) ...Baby One More Time (Britney Spears song) Six Feet Under (TV series) Fahrenheit 451 (dystopian novel) Wesley Morris on Deviate  Jack Tripper (fictional TV character) Blue Velvet (1986 David Lynch movie) Chris Cooper (actor) Allison Janney (actress) Amy Fisher (1992 attempted murder suspect) In the Company of Men (1997 movie) This episode is brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

"The importance of Do the Right Thing out-lives all of the arguments against it. It embarrasses its critics, in a lot of ways. Spike Lee really is having the last laugh on this one." --Wesley Morris In this episode of Deviate, Wesley and Rolf talk about what Do the Right Thing is about, and why it's a unique and extraordinary movie (2:45); how the characters are both sympathetic and unsympathetic, and how the movie isn't trying to teach a tidy lesson (12:00); how Spike Lee's story ideas from the 1980s feel relevant to social conditions in the 2010s (17:30); how the movie is more like Greek tragedy than a raw realistic depiction of its setting and story (23:00); the conditions of filmmaking for black artists in the 1980s (28:00); the way Do the Right Thing attracted a kind of panic from social critics when it came out (33:15); Spike Lee's strategic use of powerful music, visuals, and blocking in the movie (37:00); the fact the Barack and Michelle Obama saw this movie on their first date, and how Spike Lee wanted the movie to be classified as a One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest-style comedy (41:00); Rolf's interest in and personal experience with the film living in Wichita in 1989 (45:45); and the narrative specificity of the details in the film, and how they parallel real-life events (49:45). Wesley Morris (@Wesley_Morris) the Pulitzer Prize-winning critic at large for the New York Times. Formerly the co-host of the Grantland podcast “Do You Like Prince Movies?”, he now co-hosts the “Still Processing” podcast with Times colleague Jenna Wortham. He previously appeared on Episode 41 of Deviate, Wesley Morris on podcast-fame, sports, and performing blackness in America. Notable links: Spike Lee (film director) Do the Right Thing ( 1989 Spike Lee film) She's Gotta Have It (1986 Spike Lee film) School Daze (1988 Spike Lee film) Bed-Stuy (Brooklyn neighborhood) Tawana Brawley rape allegations (legal case) Barry Michael Cooper (writer/producer) Do the Right Thing, by Spike Lee (film journal) Death of Sandra Bland (police-custody incident) John Savage (actor) Rosie Perez (actress and choreographer) Driving Miss Daisy (1989 movie) sex, lies, and videotape (1989 movie) Central Park jogger case (rape case) Stanley Crouch (cultural critic) Fight the Power (Public Enemy song) Southside with You (movie) Death of Eric Garner (police incident) This episode is brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

"That's one of the great things about walking-based travel in Europe: You get away from expectations. When you plan a traditional sightseeing trip you already have an idea in your mind of what you're going to see. But when you just let the trail unfold you can let things go -- and let things come to you -- and really soak in the culture in a different way." --Cassandra Overby In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Cassandra talk about Cassandra's early decision to focus on trekking-travel rather than standard tourism in Europe (3:30); how trekking in Europe is cheaper, more immersive, and more social than American trekking (11:30); which classic European trails make for "bucket list" hikes, and how to find and research less-famous ones (19:00); strategies for combining hikes with public transportation, choosing the best time of year to hike, preparing physically for the journey, and whether to hike alone or with a companion (26:00); how to reserve trails, facilities, luggage-transfers, and guides in advance (32:45); useful apps, navigation aids, guidebooks, and gear for trekking in Europe (38:00); and how to use mountain huts and plan "rest days" on treks (52:30). Cassandra Overby is the author of Explore Europe on Foot: Your Complete Guide to Planning a Cultural Hiking Adventure, which aims to help travelers find ways to discover Europe without depending on cars, buses and trains. The book provides overviews of fifteen long-distance trails (and day hikes) in Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, Great Britain, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and Turkey, with itineraries that range from one to fifteen days. Notable links: Alpine Pass Route (long-distance hiking trail in Switzerland) Alpenhorn (musical instrument) Dirndl (traditional Alpine dress) Tour du Mont Blanc (long-distance hiking trail in Switzerland/Italy/France) Tour of the Lake District (English walking route) Camino de Santiago (network of pilgrims' ways into Spain) GR Routes (network of long-distance footpaths in Europe) EuroVelo (network of long-distance cycling routes in Europe) English Way (Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route) Alsace Wine Route (hiking route through the Alsace region in France) WhatsApp (text-messaging app) GPS Tracks (navigation app) Gaia GPS (navigation app) Trekking poles (hiking accessory) Half-board (accommodation rate) Mountain hut (trekking shelter) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

"I will wake up at 7am and think to myself, 'Why am I doing this?' But then I get on the trail and I'm meeting people and seeing things that are just so beautiful, that I never would have seen unless I was walking. When the day ends I'm always thankful that I made that decision to get up and just go." --Forrest Mallard In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Forrest talk about how they know each other, and how Forrest got into travel (4:00); the time-honored tradition of walking, and why hiking is a fantastic way to travel in and experience other countries (9:45); the tradition of the Camino de Santiago, and Forrest's humbling early experiences with international trekking on the West Highland Way (21:30); Forrest's further adventures and counterintuitive tips for how to prepare and what to pack on a trek (37:00); the appeal of hiking in Slovenia (45:00); and advice for getting started, saving money, meeting people, and getting in touch with yourself while trekking (49:00). Forrest Mallard is the founder of Tramposaurus Treks, a camping and adventure-travel planning community that aims to show people just how accessible, affordable and doable international hiking excursions can be. Forrest currently splits his time between Dubai and far-flung destinations and backcountry trekking trails around the world, including – in recent months – Pakistan, Hunza Hanging Bridge, Fairy Meadows, Chilas, Granada, and Valencia. Notable Links: Werner Herzog on "The Portal" (podcast episode) Flâneur (French concept of an urban wanderer) Camino de Santiago (pilgrimage route in Spain) The Pilgrimage, by Paulo Coelho (book) West Highland Way (long-distance path in Scotland) Europe on a Shoestring (travel guidebook) Caminho Português (Camino route starting in Portugal) Camiño francés (Camino route starting in France) Slovenian Mountain Hiking Trail (long-distance trail in the Julian Alps) Alpine Association of Slovenia (hiking club) Simien Mountains National Park (Ethiopian hiking area) Tiger Leaping Gorge (Chinese hiking area) Torres del Paine National Park (Chilean hiking area) Hostelworld.com (lodging booking service) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

“The boundaries of life are responsible for the beauty of life.” – Pico Iyer In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Pico discuss the people we become when we travel (4:00); what led Pico to travel (10:00); travel in the age of technology (20:00); finding the remarkable in the unremarkable (32:00); ping pong as a metaphor for life (40:00); the importance of impermanence (50:00); and the idea of being versus becoming (1:01:00). Pico Iyer (@PicoIyer) is a novelist, essayist, and one of the most influential travel writers of his generation. He is known for such books as Video Night in Kathmandu and The Lady and the Monk, with many of his works receiving significant critical acclaim. He has also written for such publications as The New York Times, Time, and Harper’s. For more about Pico, check out http://picoiyerjourneys.com/ Notable Links: A Beginner’s Guide to Japan, by Pico Iyer (book) Autumn Light, by Pico Iyer (book) Walt Whitman (poet / essayist) John Muir (naturalist) Herman Melville (writer) Let’s Go (travel guide series) Salman Rushdie (writer) John Burroughs (naturalist / writer) This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets. This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. If you’ve ever planned a trip with multiple stops, you know that finding the right flights can be difficult. Between balancing travel logistics and cost, it often becomes impossible to build an itinerary that matches your travel goals.  AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey. The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel's 2017 album Lumber. Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.

In this special, destination-oriented episode of Deviate, Rolf talks to his 2019 students at the Paris Writing Workshop about ways to experience Paris in a slow and counterintuitive way. This episode is designed to be used in tandem with TripScout, a travel app designed to help people dream about – and plan, in a concrete way – journeys to destinations worldwide. The app provides a portal for visual discovery by featuring the best articles and videos from top publishers and local experts for each destination. Every restaurant, café, shop, or site featured within the content is mapped to one of TripScout’s 100 million+, constantly updated points of interest. With one tap, travelers can save anything they discover, allowing them to stitch together their perfect trip into a full, personalized itinerary that is connected to a downloadable offline map. More information at Deviate's TripScout link. Paris attractions mentioned: Musée Bourdelle (art museum) Champ de Mars (park) Jardin du Luxembourg (park) Château de Vincennes (castle) Bois de Vincennes (park) Notre-Dame de Paris fire (2019 incident) Panthéon (monument) Bateaux Mouches (boat rides) Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre (church) Shakespeare and Company (bookstore) Classical music concerts in Paris (guide) BHV: Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville (department store) 5th arrondissement of Paris (neighborhood) Banh Mi Descartes (Rue Descartes eatery) The Firemen’s Ball: A Unique Bastille Day Celebration (article) Monnaie de Paris (money museum) Paris clamps down on electric scooters (article) Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we're happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.