The Divergent Path with Rollie Peterkin

In this episode I speak with Cristen Hemingway Jaynes, who is the author of Ernest's Way, a travel biography about her great-grandfather, Ernest Hemingway. The book traces Hemingway's world travels and life abroad. Each chapter is dedicated to a different place like Key West, Paris, or Venice. And she takes you through all his favorite haunts, where he lived, where he ate, and of course, where he drank. It's part travel guide and part biography. Christen holds an MA in Creative Writing from Birkbeck, University of London. She has a JD and an Ocean & Coastal Law Certificate from University of Oregon School of Law. She is a writer at EcoWatch and a passionate advocate for environmental issues.  Cristen is the author of a short story collection called The Smallest of Entryways. And she's working on another book with stories about her travels around the US and Europe.   

Mark Cirino has written and edited many books about Ernest Hemingway, including Reading Hemingway's Across the River and Into the Trees, One True Sentence: Writers and Readers on Hemingway's Art, Ernest Hemingway and the Geography of Memory, Hemingway's  Spain, and Ernest Hemingway: Thought in Action. He's the editor for Kent State University Press Reading Hemingway series. He's also the author of two novels, Name the Baby and Arizona Blues. And my favorite, he hosts a podcast called One True Podcast. One of my favorite podcasts out there.  

In this episode I speak with my friend Nancy Da Campo. She has some of the most amazing travels around the world and shares her great perspective on travel. Nancy just recently returned from 3 months in Iran. Then she traveled to Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Nancy shares what her experience was like as a solo female traveler around the Middle East. She also has an amazing Instagram with her architectural photography, make sure to follow her: @_nancy_dc 

Madison Tuff is an amazing human being. Born and raised in Canada, but truly a citizen of the world. In my travels I have met many adventrous travelers, but she takes it to another level. In this episode, she explains how she became interested in traveling to off the beaten path places and fell in love with experiencing new cultures. She visited North Korea, Afghanistan, Sudan, and many other places that most of us would never dream of. And she recently returned from volunteering on the front lines of Bakhmut, Ukraine with an organization that was helping evacuate citizens from the brutal warzone that is the current situation. It was so inspirational speaking with Madison and this is one you don't wanna miss! 

In this episode I finally get the chance to chat with Nathan Pettijohn who has a really crazy story. He left LA, where he was firmly established for years, and packed his stuff in his car, along with his dog Rafa, and drove south through Mexico and Central America and into South America. 

Dave is the best Spanish speaker that I know and someone who is deeply thoughtful about languages and language acquistion. In this episode we talk about the best way to learn a new language and some tips and tricks for practicing. And the big question: Why learn a new language?

In this episode I speak with my friend Irina who is a tour guide in Moldova. We met a few years ago and have become good friends since then. We talk about what to do and see in Moldova. Since this is called the Divergent Path podcast, I feel it's fitting to talk about a place not many people visit but they should! 

My friend Inna joins us on this episode and shares her experience traveling around the world to crazy places like North Korea, Iran, and Chechnya. We talk about he war in Inna's home country of Ukraine and what it means to be Ukrainian. She is someone who inspires me 

In this episode I chat with my frien Illimani about our travels around the world and experiencing different cultures. We talk about learning about the history and traditions of a place and how that leads to deeper travel and understanding. 

I've been waiting a long time to get the chance to talk to Lauren! She is a fascinating person and had led a truly Divergent Path. Lauren is a falconer who has worked with may species of birds of prey around the world. She even trained with Kazakh hunters in rural Mongolia. I mean, come on! Who does that? Lauren does. I was so happy to finally speak with her and hear her story. Website: https://rolliepeterkin.com/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Lauren: https://www.instagram.com/eaglefalconer/

In this episode, my old friend Andy interviews me about my recet travels. Andy was a atural in his podcast debut and it was such a fun conversation. YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GkYmtbVAuw Website: https://rolliepeterkin.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Andy: https://www.instagram.com/ohhebandy/

In this episode of the podcast, I get the chance to speak with legendary music composer Jonathan Wolff who wrote music for 75 primetime series, including the theme songs for 44 TV shows. Most famously, he wrote the iconic theme song for Seinfeld. Jonathan is a fascinating and thoughtful person and it was such a pleasure to speak with him!

Quint Clarke had a successful career as a lawyer. And he admits that he hadn't led a very adventurous life before he decided to book a trip to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. And his life was never the same. So profound was Quint's experience that he came home, quit his job, and spent the next year traveling the world. Since then, Quint has been teaching history at Blair Academy for the past twenty years. But the story doesn't end there. Inspired by his experiences abroad, he always encouraged students to travel and experience the world. And he has led countless student trips abroad in search of a greater understanding of the world. And on one trip to Africa, he was inspired to make a difference. So he began raising money to build a school there. Today, they have two schools where serve 1,000 Kenyan students. Read more here: http://www.blairinkenya.com/ Quint's journey is fascinating and I was so happy to have him share it with me on this episode of The Divergent Path! ------ Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Ryan Warner is the host of the Wrestling Changed My Life podcast. He is one of the premier voices in the wrestling community and has interviewed all of the greats. He most recently produced the 7-part audio docuseries The Smiths which follows John and Pat Smith, two of the most successful American wrestlers. In this episode we talk about some of the challenges of producing the documentary and some of the inspirations behind it. IG: @wrestlingchangedmylife Twitter: @Ryan_N_Warner https://wrestlingchangedmylife.com/ ------ Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Dr. Coyte Cooper is a former university professor at UNC, holds a PhD, was a Division I All-American wrestler, speaker, and has authored three books. It seems like he's done it all. But Coyte and his family have recently embarked on a new adventure: they sold all of their possessions and bought an RV. Together with his wife and two children, they have been traveling around the country for the last 5 months, experiencing a nomadic lifestyle. And they have no plans to return to their stationary life. It was a fascinating discussion we had! Learn more about Coyte : https://coytecooper.com/ Instagram: @coytecooper / @livingoutsidethelimits ------ Find Out More : Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Mark Neilan never ran cross country in high school. And he wasn't very into sports. But now he runs 100-mile races regularly. Find out how he made the transition to becoming an endurance athlete, how he trains, and the mentality he uses to survive such grueling tests of willpower. Mark is the owner of Excel Fitness Center. IG: @excelfitnesscenter @mark_neilan Find me here: Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/podcast Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Tommaso Ferrari hails from Verona, Italy, of Romeo and Juliet fame. Tommaso played guitar in a heavy metal band as a teenager, but soon found that he was paying more attention to the sound equipment and acoustics. He became so passionate about audio engineering, that he decided to pursue a career in the field. Tommaso wanted to work on films and TV. So he worked as a driver whenever people from the film industry visited Verona. And one day he was driving to the set of Hollywood movie Letters to Juliet, when they noticed that he was the only person around who spoke English. This led to his breaking into the industry. Now Tommaso resides in Tenerife in the Canary Islands and works on film and TV sets all around Europe. Read more about Tommaso here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/tommaso-ferrari Find me here: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Jake Hunter is the Chief Operating Officer of Wrestling Mindset. But this episode is about so much more than wrestling. We talk about Jake's career path from high school teacher to mindset coach to a fulltime job with Wrestling Mindset. Jake and I nerd out a little bit about Roman history also. It was great catching up with Jake! Read more about Jake here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/jake-hunter Find me here: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

D'Juan Owens is a professional MMA fighter with 35 fights of experience, even though he never played any organized sports growing up! D'Juan has a fascinating perspective and such a great attitude in everything he faces. In this episode he talks about dealing with losses and why he fights. He also discusses the 14 trips he has taken to the African continent, where he has led projects teaching self-defense to women as well as other initiatives. It was great speaking with D'Juan! Read more about D'Juan here: https://www.rolliepeterkin.com/djuan-owens Find me here: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/rolliepeterkin Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/rolliepeterkin Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rollie.peterkin Website - https://www.rolliepeterkin.com My book - The Cage: Escaping the American Dream http://amzn.to/1Y0xbzD

Justin Jenny is a photographer who specializes in exploring abandoned buildings and quarries. He has some crazy stories about sneaking into rundown asylums at night and run-ins with police and metal scrappers. Check him out on Instagram @justinjenny