Blog - Rolf Potts

What museums reveal about places (and what they have to offer travelers) 27.06.2023 ↓

A look at how museums work (live from a presidential museum and a Barbie doll museum)

Vagabonding audio companion: How to study abroad (even if you aren’t a student) 13.06.2023 ↓

A "Vagabonding Audio Companion" remix of a GFU study-abroad podcast.

Fear, family, and walking the Camino de Santiago (live with Andrew McCarthy) 30.05.2023 ↓

Author and actor Andrew McCarthy on walking across Spain with his son.

Travel burnout is a real thing (and it’s OK to feel it sometimes), with Matt Kepnes 16.05.2023 ↓

Matt Kepnes on how to preempt (and deal with) travel burnout on the road

The Mystical High Church of Luck: Decoding Las Vegas (with Ari Shaffir) 02.05.2023 ↓

Ari Shaffir and Rolf discuss the power of luck (and the peculiarities of Las Vegas)

How travelers create quests and find community (online book club remix) 18.04.2023 ↓

Rolf and his online book club discuss quests, guidebooks, and other issues from The Vagabond's Way.

Art introduces us to places before we go there (live from the Faroe Islands) 04.04.2023 ↓

From the Faroe Islands: translator Matthew Landrum on how place informs art

Travel can be a way to see the future (and experience the past), with Kevin Kelly 21.03.2023 ↓

“”I wasn’t partying. I wasn’t relaxing on the beach. I was photographing – working – every minute of the day. That was a means to see as much as I possibly could. And to keep looking.”  –Kevin Kelly In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Kevin discuss the ambitions and connections that led Kevin to Asia…

The best age to travel is whatever age you are now (an online book club remix) 07.03.2023 ↓

A remix of Rolf's first discussion of The Vagabond's Way with The Nomadic Network book club

Seek out global connections while you’re still at home (with Kristin Van Tassel) 21.02.2023 ↓

On the joys of getting lost, learning languages, and interacting with distant cultures at home.

A Native American football team beat the 1927 NFL Giants: The story of John Levi 07.02.2023 ↓

Native American football star John Levi takes on the 1927 New York Giants

Why you go someplace is less important than just going (with Tony Perrottet) 31.01.2023 ↓

Travel writer Tony Perrottet on the idiosyncrasies of ancient Roman tourists.

Integrating love of travel & love of home (with philosopher Chloe Cooper Jones) 17.01.2023 ↓

"Easy beauty" versus "difficult beauty," and how it affects the way we see things on the road.

Travel contracts your possessions and expands your life (with Eric Weiner) 03.01.2023 ↓

Author Eric Weiner on the joys of slowing down and being open to uncertainty on the road

Travelers create their own distinct global culture (with anthropologist Pegi Vail) 20.12.2022 ↓

Filmmaker and anthropologist Pegi Vail on global traveler culture

The travel industry is here to help you; feel free to ignore it (with Seth Kugel) 06.12.2022 ↓

NYT travel writer Seth Kugel on travel experiences that go beyond what you can buy

Deviate Live in NYC: The Vagabond’s Way (onstage at KGB Bar with Ari Shaffir) 24.11.2022 ↓

Ari Shaffir and Rolf discuss "The Vagabond's Way" onstage at KGB Bar in NYC.

Reinvent what it means to be an “explorer” (with Kate Harris) 20.11.2022 ↓

Kate Harris on reinventing the notion of exploration

The subtler risks of travel carry rich rewards (with Carl Hoffman) 13.11.2022 ↓

"Lunatic Express" writer Carl Hoffman on the merits of traveling on local buses, ferries, and trains.

Uncertainty makes for the truest adventures (aka Tim Cahill’s Travel 101) 08.11.2022 ↓

Travel-writing icon Tim Cahill on the counterintuitive rules of adventure travel.

Traveling solo opens up new possibilities in a place (with Stephanie Rosenbloom) 01.11.2022 ↓

Author Stephanie Rosenbloom on going solo, and savoring travel experiences.

Keeping a journal helps you make sense of the journey (with Lavinia Spalding) 25.10.2022 ↓

"Writing Away" author Lavinia Spalding on why you should journal when you travel

Paul Theroux on the merits of travel and the paradoxes of the global economy 18.10.2022 ↓

Paul Theroux on his novel "The Bad Angel Brothers," and the contradictions of the global economy.

Seeking real crowds beats crowdsourcing (from The Vagabond’s Way book launch) 11.10.2022 ↓

Rolf and Ernest White II talk about using what money you have to create the life you want.

Preconceptions can blur what you see firsthand on the road (with Eddy Harris) 04.10.2022 ↓

Legendary travel writer Eddy L. Harris on why an attitude of "let's go find out" is a great travel ethos.