Moving Along

Cycle4Fun Founder Alan Cheesley on Confidence, Training, and Self-Guided Cycling HolidaysBristol-based cyclist Alan Cheesley, founder of Cycle4Fun, designs adaptable, mostly self-guided cycling holidays in places including the UK, Tuscany, the Alps, Croatia, Montenegro, Cuba, Japan, Colombia, and Serbia. Alan explains that anyone can do a cycling holiday with appropriate training, and he helps riders choose routes and daily distances based on fitness, preferences, and desired control. He contrasts hilly Tuscany with the more predictable Alpine climbs, encourages beginners to start slowly, and emphasizes fun over racing, including rules like regrouping at hilltops and giving pedestrians right of way. Alan supports legal pedal-assist e-bikes, describes safety choices that avoid main roads, discusses luggage options from packing light to van support, recommends researching accommodations (often via Booking.com), and promotes his free guides and YouTube videos via https://cycle4fun.co.uk. Contact Alan Cheesleyhttps://cycle4fun.co.ukhttps://www.youtube.com/@Cycle4Fun  Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Alan Cheesley01:53 You Don't Need to Be an Olympic Athlete to Enjoy a Cycling Holiday03:27 Cycling Tuscany Compared to the Alps05:05 Deciding Where to Go on a Cycling Holiday06:01 Recommended Cycling Trips for Beginners07:22 Riding Solo or With a Group10:05 Fast Expensive Bikes and Regular Bikes12:06 E-Bikes14:18 Assisted Bikes vs. Electric Bikes (and Illegal E-Bikes)16:31 Converting a Bike to an E-Bike with Swytch17:19 Hazards of Bicycling18:16 Cycling Old Roads in Europe, Ireland and the U.K.19:07 It's All About Politeness20:14 What About the Luggage?20:55 Organizing Bike Trips for Adventure22:15 Transporting Your Gear25:08 Cobblestones, Rough Terrain and Bicycling in Cities 27:32 In Praise of Little Villages28:04 Camping, Inns or Luxury Accommodations Along the Way29:34 Choosing the Right Accommodations: Free Guides31:05 Alan's Mission31:43 Christi's Bicycle33:14 When You Buy a Cheap or Inexpensive Bike, Do This34:58 It's All About Confidence36:35 Alan's Next Cycling Travel Adventures37:44 How to Contact Alan at Cycle4Fun.co.uk CREDITSHost and creator: Christi CassidyContact: [email protected] by Phyllis BusellMusic by Eve’s Blue. Post-production help from Auphonic.com.Show notes written with assistance from Descript and Claude.ai. LINKS:More information and to listen to past episodes: https://movingalongpodcast.comPast episodes are here too: https://moving-along.simplecast.com/Tag and like Moving Along episodes on Facebook and Instagram

Cosmetics entrepreneur Monique Montoya, founder of The Alambique Skincare Company in Taos, New Mexico, talks about how travel, family heritage, and New Mexico’s botanical traditions shaped her path from Albuquerque athlete to international marketing work in Spain and ultimately cosmetic formulation. After studying at UNM, living in New Orleans and Austria, and working in Spain with DJs and a record label, Monique returned to Taos, joined an organic manufacturing facility, and shifted from marketing to formulating—drawing on family curandera traditions and vendor chemist support. Following a buyout and a later job loss, she used severance to fund Alambique, traveling to meet farmers and sourcing raw materials first, emphasizing traceability, supplier stories and sustainability. “Having a science brain is helpful,” she says, discussing the chemistry of hydrosols and essential oils, ethical bee-venom sourcing, and the magic of “disrupting the machine of speed and greed.” To contact Monique and for more information: The Alambiquehttps://thealambique.com   Mentioned in the episode:Josefa BacaNew Mexico Historic Women Marker Programhttps://www.nmhistoricwomen.org/new-mexico-historic-women/josefa-baca/ USDA Organic INTEGRITY Databasehttps://organic.ams.usda.gov/integrity/Default Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Monique Montoya02:36 A Giant Adventure: Traveling as a Child05:06 Monique the Track Star05:54 A Bit of a Troublemaker07:45 Seeing the Magic in Everything Unfortunate09:13  "Elevating me to be a bigger version of myself"11:08 Journey to Spain13:15 B.B. King Gets a Tamale15:00 The Secret Language15:53 The Cosmetics World18:13 Having a Science Brain Is Always Helpful19:26 The Kick in the Tuchus I Needed21:00 Founding Alambique21:36 The Farm First: Developing New Skincare Products23:57 Alambique Customers25:14 Serving Local Markets25:53 Josefa Baca26:41 Building a Network of Wholesalers and Mom-and-Pop Shops27:51 Windfall Peaches29:06 Scaling Up: Driving Revenue Through Soul30:11 Disrupting the Machine of Speed and Greed30:58 Meeting Farmers in Italy and Sardinia31:48 Discovering New Farms33:24 Bee Venom37:18 For a Runner with Bad Knees...Bee Venom Salve38:37 Alambique's Inventory of Products39:07 Hydrosols and Essential Oils40:12 Monique's Garden in Taos40:49 How to Contact Monique Montoya and the Alambique CREDITSHost and creator: Christi CassidyContact: [email protected] by Phyllis BusellMusic by Eve’s Blue. Post-production help from Auphonic.com.Show notes written with assistance from Descript and Claude.ai. LINKS:More information and to listen to past episodes: https://movingalongpodcast.comPast episodes are here too: https://moving-along.simplecast.com/Tag and like Moving Along episodes on Facebook and Instagram

Fabian Cousley, author of How Traveling Saved My Life and host of Surviving the Yellow Brick Road, discusses using travel to heal after his 30-year marriage dissolved during COVID. Fabian explains the “yellow brick road” as life’s challenging journey, fueling exploration and curiosity. Travel, he says, provides a necessary reset. Removing yourself from the environment where trauma occurred allows you to recalibrate, shifting from asking “why” to “what now.” A New York City native, he recounts solo trips from his home in Toronto—starting with Cabo, later Dubai, and a pivotal healing experience at Machu Picchu in Peru—plus advice to on how to research safety and connect with supportive people. We end talking about meeting other men who are also traveling to heal, and moving from surviving to thriving. Contact and find links to the book and podcast:www.sybr-book.com or https://survivingtheyellowbrickroad.com/ Free download sample from Fabian: https://survivingtheyellowbrickroad.com/#Download 00:00 Introduction to Fabian Cousley01:31 Growing Up in Queens and Surviving the Yellow Brick Road04:18 Youth Is Curiosity07:21 Deciding to Travel After the Breakup of the Marriage09:38 You Cannot Heal in the Environment That Broke You11:06 Are You Running Away?12:21 Travel Forces You to Recalibrate and Reset15:49 Solo Trips: Reset Happens Alone17:42 Moving from Why Me to What Now19:07 Deciding Where to Go22:11 Beginning the Journey of Healing in Cabo22:50 Finding Peace25:18 The Map as Mirror28:09 Dubai34:29 Traveling While Black35:53 Safety and Due Diligence as a Traveler38:43 Peru: A Healing Experience42:18 Men and Masculinity47:57 Contact Fabian CREDITSHost and creator: Christi CassidyContact: [email protected] by Phyllis BusellMusic by Eve’s Blue. Post-production help from Auphonic.com.Show notes written with assistance from Descript and Claude.ai. LINKS:More information and to listen to past episodes: https://movingalongpodcast.comPast episodes are here too: https://moving-along.simplecast.com/Tag and like Moving Along episodes on Facebook and Instagram

Slow Travel, Worldschooling, and Money Planning with Suzy May Certified financial educator and money coach Suzy May—host of the Wander Worldschool podcast—shares how she and her family live between Seville, Denver, and an upcoming multi-month stay near Tokyo while working remotely and prioritizing “slow travel.” She explains worldschooling options like Boundless Life’s three-month cohorts with an education center for kids and coworking for parents, describes settling into Seville via a German school to build language immersion, and outlines how slow travel supports culture, routines, and budgeting. Suzy also dives into planning styles, housing strategies such as TrustedHousesitters and HomeExchange, transportation choices, ways to fund extended travel by renting or subletting a home, and key visa considerations like the Schengen rules, digital nomad visas, and country-specific stays. Timestamps: 00:00 Moving Along - ep. 43 - Suzy May 00:36 Introduction to Suzy May, Host of Wander Worldschool 02:09 Headed to Japan 03:56 Boundless Life - An Organization for Worldschooling Opportunities 07:47 Where Suzy Started: Growing Up in Loveland, Colorado 11:01 Moving to Spain with the Family 16:02 The Benefits of Slow Travel 19:53 Travel Planning for Families vs. Just Showing Up 21:37 Renting, Home Exchange and Housesitting While Traveling 24:37 Getting Around - Rent a Car? 25:44 Affording the Slow Travel Lifestyle 29:47 Visas, Dual Citizenship, the Schengen Shuffle 32:51 Digital Nomad World Schooler 34:54 Making Friends in a New Home Country 35:58 School Culture in Spain 39:31 Water Pistolas in the Plaza 41:39 Adapting to the Seasons in Southern Spain 43:38 Certified Financial Educator, Money Coach and Travel Mom 45:45 Endless Opportunities for Slow Travel 49:05 Resources 52:59 Waiting for the Bus   Contact Information Suzy’s email: [email protected] Wander Worldschool Podcast: https://www.wanderworldschool.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/suzymay.wander/ Boundless Life: https://boundless.life Servas International: Connecting for Peace (short-term stays) - https://servas.org/ TrustedHouseSitters: https://www.trustedhousesitters.com/ Furnished Finder: https://www.furnishedfinder.com/     CREDITSHost and creator: Christi CassidyContact: [email protected] by Phyllis BusellMusic by Eve’s Blue. Post-production help from Auphonic.com.Show notes written with assistance from Descript and Claude.ai. LINKS:More information and to listen to past episodes: https://movingalongpodcast.comPast episodes are here too: https://moving-along.simplecast.com/Tag and like Moving Along episodes on Facebook and Instagram

Moving Along talks with podcaster/blogger Craig Constantine during the final week of his and wife Tracy’s five-week Ford Transit van (“Panda”) trip across Newfoundland. Craig shares how childhood camping and Caribbean sailing—with heavy navigation and planning—shaped his approach to travel, watching his mom plan trips with paper and pencil, and why Newfoundland appealed as a place to “depressurize,” despite being more developed than expected. He explains balancing “non-negotiables” (especially prebooked ferry dates) with flexibility, using Crown land, campgrounds and the iOverlander app for overnight spots, and coping with variable terrain and weather.    Craig describes year-long preparation after buying the van, outfitting it with fold-down bed/table systems, organized crates, Starlink and a cellular booster for remote work, and on-trip improvements built from a local hardware store run. To avoid constant status updates, he built a microblog with AI that became travelog.place, and reflects on tight-space communication, driving too much and planning next year’s journey to Tuolumne Meadows near Yosemite.    00:00 Introduction to Craig Constantine 02:21 No Lighthouse 03:59 Growing Up in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania 09:59 Boondocking in Newfoundland 11:39 It's a Big Van But... 12:55 Finding the Nuts 13:25 Finding Places to Sleep 15:57 Not Much Grows Here 17:09 Planning the Trip 19:50 This Is Like a Sabbatical 20:54 The Van Named Panda 21:49 Jerry-rigging the Van  25:14 Clever Solutions: Crafting a Wall of Storage 28:20 Make It Better, Have Fun, That's the Whole Point 29:59 Pecking Order at the Campground 32:09 What You Do Defines Who You Are 34:14 You Have to Make the Ferry 35:58 Type A List Maker 39:03 From the Paper Tablet to the Travel Microblog 41:58 Builder 43:05 You Can Do This 44:38 Newfoundland Is an Hour and a Half... 45:07 Where to Next? 47:14 Any Oops? 48:31 Planning All the Problems Out of the Trip 49:06 It's Birds 50:57 Shorthand: A Different Kind of Mindfulness 53:02 Books I Didn't Touch 53:52 That's Not How the Id Works   Links https://constantine.name https://travelog.place https://temenos.place/ https://ioverlander.com/   CREDITSHost and creator: Christi CassidyContact: [email protected] by Phyllis BusellMusic by Eve’s Blue. Post-production help from Auphonic.com.Show notes written with assistance from Descript and Claude.ai. LINKS:More information and to listen to past episodes: https://movingalongpodcast.comPast episodes are here too: https://moving-along.simplecast.com/Tag and like Moving Along episodes on Facebook and Instagram