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<iframe title="Embed Player" src="https://play.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/34129961/height/192/theme/modern/size/large/thumbnail/yes/custom-color/87A93A/time-start/00:00:00/playlist-height/200/direction/backward/download/yes/font-color/FFFFFF" height="192" width="100%" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="" webkitallowfullscreen="true" mozallowfullscreen="true" oallowfullscreen="true" msallowfullscreen="true" style="border: none;"></iframe> Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian.  Well not really.  Today I am sharing an interview of me hosted by Matt Bowles who hosts the Maverick Show Podcast.  Matt and I had great conversation and wanted to share it with my listeners.  So, please check out this conversation and also make sure you subscribe to the Maverick Show Podcast.  He has over 300 episodes to binge.  A ton of interesting people.  Including the 2nd part of our conversation on our feed. The other reason I don’t have one of my typical interviews is things were a bit overwhelming with the production of the Extraordinary Travel Festival in Bangkok on November 15th.  I will recap the event at a later point, but I am guessing many of you have seen tons of photos flying around social media.  So make sure you are following ETF on FB and IG.   I would like to thank everyone for their support of Counting Countries, especially my Patrons.  [...]

Hey now! This is it, the last episode before the Extraordinary Travel Festival in Bangkok. Still a little time left to join. Use code BANGKOK. My special guest is speaker and sponsor Charles Veley, founder of the Most Traveled People, and considered one of the most traveled people in the world. Charles teases some of the updates he will be sharing in Bangkok, from updates on the App to next location of the MTP Summitt. Please listen in and enjoy. www.extraordinarytravelfest.com

Phillips has traveled to every country in the world   Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian.  Today, we are speaking with Phillips Connor.  I had the pleasure of meeting PC in Singapore with a group of extreme travelers and I am very pleased that he will be attending the ETF in Bangkok.  Phillips is extremely well traveled, nearing 1000 regions on the NomadMania list.  Phillips shares it all on this episode … starting travel early with a corporate job, moving to Singapore and Chasing 193.    Time is definitely running out!  Don’t get #FOMO with over 225 extreme travelers attending this event.  The Extraordinary Travel Festival will be held on November 15, 2024 in Bangkok.  Use discount code BANGKOK for $60, so please purchase your ticket today to lock in your savings at the Extraordinary Travel Fest. I’ll give an ETF recap at the end of this episode. I would like to thank everyone for their support of Counting Countries, especially my Patrons.  You know them, you love them!  Bisa Myles, Ted Nims, Adam “one-away” Hickman, [...]

Hey now, I am your host Ric Gazarian on the 10th update for the Extraordinary Travel Festival.  We have a lot of news to share with you today.  So grab that coffee of if in Thailand, grab a chamanow and please listen in. The event is now about a month and a half a way.  But still time to join, use code BANGKOK to save at www.extraordinarytravelfest.com. Some quick updates ... we have added three new speakers, Luisa Yu, Matt Bowles and Sabbatical Tommy.  Luisa is well known in the community for her determination and her multi-decade quest to visit every country in the world.  She finished at age 79! So impressive.  Matt is the host of the super entertaining the Maverick Show Podcast, where he speaks with amazing travelers from around the world.  He will be speaking on his 10 plus years of being a digital nomad.  Tommy is a travel content creator on YouTube and also a polyglot!  That's cool. Are you scared of ghosts?  Did you know that ghosts play a cental role in [...]

Andy Hicks Counting Countries has traveled to 120 countries Hey now, I am your host, Ric Gazarian.  Today, we are speaking with Andy Hicks.  I have had the pleasure of meeting Andy at the first ETF in Armenia and the TCC meeting in May in the Azores.  Andy was raised in a non-travel environment, but a couple of pivotal trips propelled him into the 193 community and with his stated goal of every country by 50.   If you want to meet Andy Hicks and 206 other travelers join us in Bangkok. The Extraordinary Travel Festival will be held on November 15, 2024 in Bangkok.  Use discount code BANGKOK for $60, so please purchase your ticket today to lock in your savings at the Extraordinary Travel Fest. I’ll give an ETF recap at the end of this episode. I would like to thank everyone for their support of Counting Countries, especially my Patrons: Bisa Myles, Ted Nims, Adam “one-away” Hickman, Steph “Phuket” Rowe, Simen Flotvik Mathisen, Ed Hotchkiss, Barry Hoffner, Katelyn Jarvis, Philippe “JL” Izedian, Gin Liutkeviciute, Sunir [...]

 I am excited to introduce to you two partners of the Extraordinary Travel Festival, Matt Bowles and Ian Cumming. Matt is a 10 year plus digital nomad, who hosts the very successful The Maverick Show With Matt Bowles as well as a real estate investment company.  Matt can be found around the globe setting up shop in cities as diverse as Nairobi, Lagos or Luanda.  I am pleased to announce that Matt will be one of the speakers at the ETF.  You can connect with him here on Instagram. Ian Cumming is the founder of Travel Massive, a global networking platform for people who work in travel or are passionate travelers.  There are scores of chapters around the globe hosting events or meet people on the network whether they be entrepreneurs or content creators.  Travel Massive is also hosting our meetup on Thursday, November 14.  You can RSVP here. I believe there are 3 main pillars of why you might want to consider attending the ETF, this November in Bangkok. First is the destination. Maybe BKK [...]