NEWEST EPISODE!

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On this episode we spoke with Preston, the Buzzed Biologist who travels the world in one of the more adventurous ways we’ve heard thus far on the show. Making it a point to experience the countries he visits in the most authentic way possible, while searching for exotic wildlife.  

Inside the Episode:   

• Wondering what type of job can help you see the world while getting paid? Preston’s schooling background in Biology paved the way for a career in animal conservation and ultimately traveling the world. After clicking with a Professor in college Preston was connected with organizations in Hawaii and Alaska and jump started his adventures around the planet. 
• As the Buzzed Biologist made his way by motorcycle through Vietnam and Cambodia he was met with the warm welcome of the locals (as we often hear), $2 home stays, and the open roadways of South East Asia. The experience Preston described was hard for us to imagine. Our travels have always been in high tourist areas, so hearing the adventures of someone so far removed from the western world was truly remarkable. 
• Preston takes “off the beaten path” to an entirely new level with the way he seeks his travel experiences. Even remote hostels seemed too touristy for him. Preston often found himself sleeping on the side of the road, or hoping to get accommodations with a local, going out of his way to remove himself from the comforts of his western upbringing and engulf himself in the utterly foreign. 
• “What about feeling it instead of seeing it”, Preston says. This was pretty profound. We’re so motivated to experience travel visually but how often do we just take time to feel the atmosphere around us. Next time we travel, I think we’ll make more of an effort to be mindful of our surroundings. 
• Saying Preston likes to travel on the fly is an understatement. He’s the type of traveler to book a ticket on a good deal and fly out the next morning. No accommodations, no plan, no friends to rely on, and no urgency. On the one hand, it sounds incredibly freeing to be able to pick yourself up and just wander through a new location without any specific timeline. But as we heard throughout our conversation with him, Preston was often left in some sketch situations abroad.  
• Remember when you’d mess around with a globe, spin it, and put your finger down and pretend you’d have to travel wherever your finger was pointing to? Well, as you’ll hear in this clip, Preston did exactly that and ended up in the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE in Bolivia! Haha...to find an Anaconda of course….

In this episode we discuss some of the recent travel related news we found interesting or relevant over the month of April. We break down how our own personal travels have been impacted by COVID-19 and news and travel information related to the pandemic: 

• We break down how our upcoming trips have been impacted by the spread of COVID-19
• We contemplate the future of travel  as it relates to the airport, air travel, and what to expect as you arrive at your new destination. 
• We read through two articles that break down what travel may look like amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The new normal seems bleak and uncertain. It will definitely take some getting used to. 

Jeff Evans is a world renowned adventurer, expedition leader, speaker, facilitator, author, physician assistant, high altitude medic, and humanitarian. As a highly sought after speaker / facilitator with over 20 years delivering engaging and impactful keynotes to hundreds of clients, Jeff has made appearances at dozens of Fortune 500 companies around the world. Jeff takes the audience on a journey to high peaks around the globe, detailing his exciting endeavors as mountain guide, adventurer and philanthropist. These experiences have allowed Jeff to hone his skills of servant leadership, teamwork, communication and handling adversity which he shares in a way that is applicable to everyone in their business and personal lives. 

Inside the Episode:   

• Jeff tells us about how he had to “change his landscape” to meet the needs of his close friend, Erik Weihenmayer with whom he spent countless hours hiking through the Himalayas and around the world. Erik, who went blind at 14 years old taught Jeff how to elevate his own mental toughness and change his focus on helping others over himself. 
• Jeff explains that his decisions to perform medical treatment in high stress and completely chaotic circumstances is hardwired in his DNA. He learned early on what his capabilities are and has dedicated his life to helping those who are left behind under extraordinarily dangerous conditions. 
• When the 7.8 magnitude earthquake claimed the lives of almost 10,000 people in Nepal in 2015, Jeff was on-scene two weeks after the initial quake and during the aftershocks. He tells us that in addition to the trauma, “the real thing we encountered was anxiety, depression, sadness, and PTSD…” It was heartbreaking to hear as he discussed his experiences helping people who lost so much in the blink of an eye. 
• We found this clip pretty profound. In all of Jeff’s experiences performing medical treatment as a Physician Assistant in some of the most chaotic situations, he noticed a common theme, we all just want to know that someone cares for us. We want love, we want compassion, and when things are at their worst people just want raw human connection.
• Jeff spent time conducting Search and Rescue on mountain ranges around the world. He explains with the increase in adventure tourism and a decrease in mountaineering training he pulled off at least a half dozen people who just didn't have the experience to know that they were suffering from severe altitude sickness.
• Jeff has the same knack for travel we all have known to feel in the depths of our souls (albeit a more extreme one). As you hear it from him, some of the defining moments of why he strives to travel the world come from the need to put himself beyond the comforts of his privileged western life and into experiencing the reality of life outside the United States.
• We had a great time with Jeff where we sat back and just absorbed stories of him rescuing hikers on Everest, helping local residents of Nepal, and ultimately taking any opportunity to help people far and wide. Check it out and be blown away by Jeff’s ability to put himself in grave danger and risk his own life to save the lives of those in need. 
• “I like to create impact when I travel” Jeff says. And as he explains, you don't need to save the world with each trip. Sometimes, it can be as simple as making connections to aid those in need, buying someone dinner, or spending time with someone abroad who may just need the company.