In this episode, host Andrew sits down with adventure travel writer Michelle to discuss her expedition to the Yemeni island of Socotra. Sparked by a photograph of a blooming bottle tree, Michelle joined a guided group to explore the island's rare flora, including the endangered Dragon's Blood tree. The conversation covers the realities of off-grid desert camping, the memorable connections the group made, and the benefits of stepping out of your comfort zone.

Guest:

• Michelle is an adventure travel writer, content creator, and the founder of the travel blog No Place Like Roam, having explored over 90 countries.
• Born in Nepal and raised in Papua New Guinea and Australia, she developed a deep, lifelong connection to global exploration from a very young age.
• Her writing and travels focus heavily on under-the-radar destinations, sustainability, and the unique logistics of adventuring alongside her 13-year-old son.

Chapters:

1. Growing up across the globe and early travel roots 00:00:01
2. Balancing a corporate career with international adventures 00:07:35
3. Raising a global citizen and traveling with kids 00:09:56
4. Discovering Socotra through a photograph 00:15:04
5. The logistics of flying to a remote Yemeni island 00:20:15
6. Embracing the challenges of off-grid desert camping 00:24:27
7. Breathtaking landscapes and the endangered Dragon's Blood trees 00:33:14
8. Stargazing under one of the world's darkest skies 00:40:44
9. Experiencing local hospitality and bonding during Ramadan 00:44:58
10. Upcoming diving adventures off the coast of Borneo 00:48:25

Resources and Links:

• No Place Like Roam - Michelle's official travel blog.
• Destination Chaser - Andi's Instagram and travel group that organized the Socotra expedition.
• One-Off Travel Stories - The podcast's official home on the web.

Speaker 1

[00.00.01]

So here's the thing. I had seen, you know, after I when I started researching the place and gone down this rabbit hole and, you know, you start to see these just stunning images of Socotra on the internet that you honestly can't believe this is real.

Speaker 2

[00.00.19]

Hello, and welcome to one off Travel Stories. I'm your host, Andrew Towers journo. Here each episode I chat with someone about one of their favorite travel stories, that one story they've told countless times to friends and family around the dinner table. Today we're joined by Michelle. Eric. Michelle is an adventure travel writer, blogger, and content creator who has explored over 90 countries. She's based in Texas in the United States, but she's got international ties to Papua New Guinea, India and Nepal, so home is varied for her. Her writing focuses on adventure, sustainability, solo female and family travel, and under the radar Destinations and experiences. You can find her work at her website. No place like Rome. With that in mind, today Michelle is going to tell us about her trip to Socotra. Socotra is an Yemeni island in the Indian Ocean. It kind of sits off the tip, the northeast tip of Somalia and then south of Yemen. But it is a Yemeni island. It's becoming more and more well known for its, uh, amazing and beautiful landscapes, but also for its trees. They've got a sort of often described as otherworldly or even surrealistic, uh, trees on the island. I think the dragon's blood tree comes to mind, but Michelle will talk about more. So I'm really excited that, uh, we've got someone on the podcast that's been there and is going to tell us about their experience. Uh, without further ado, let's jump into it. Hey, Michelle, welcome to the podcast.

Speaker 1

[00.02.07]

Thank you Andrew. I'm so excited to be here today.

Speaker 2

[00.02.11]

Excited to have you. Thanks for making the time. Um, how are you doing today? Where are you? Where are you? Uh, I'd say calling in from, but, like, maybe a bit old school there. Yeah. Where are you calling from?

Speaker 1

[00.02.23]

In from Dallas, Texas, which is home. Um, it's where I've been living for the last several years, so I'm actually, like, at home for a change. Uh, you know, typically spend quite a bit of time on the road, but, um, actually, I'm home today.

Speaker 2

[00.02.38]

Great. Yeah, that's what I like to ask, because I'm talking to two travelers, mostly, and a lot of times they're living or, you know, living abroad or living wherever, just on the road. So you're home. That's nice, actually. That's good. It's good to be home every once in a while. Um, yeah, I mean, I before we get into your story, um, your travel story, I'd love to hear a little bit about, you know, what got you into traveling originally? Have you been doing this sort of your whole life? But, um. Yeah. Like your your profile and all the traveling you've done. I know you do a lot of travel with your with your son. Um, and I know, uh, you seem to be into scuba diving and the ocean, but, um, that might be more recent. So where did it all begin?

Speaker 1

[00.03.25]

Yeah. Thanks, Andrew. So, um, I kind of. I feel like I've been traveling right from the get go. I was actually born overseas. I am what's called a third culture kid. So, um, I was born, you know, my parents are from two different places, uh, to very different places. And then I'm born in a third. Um, so I was born in Nepal and then spent a lot of my formative years, um, living in Papua New Guinea and Australia. So, um, I think travel has very much been in my DNA. I think I've been very, very blessed and privileged that, um, you know, when my father got posted overseas, um, during the course of my formative years, uh, part of his, his, uh, recruitment package was airfares back home to the States. And my parents were able to take advantage of these, like, round the world tickets that, um, are a little bit less common now. But they were really awesome back in the day. Um, and so we would travel around the world every year over our summer holidays, which for the southern hemisphere is the December January period. My mom was a teacher, so we would have, you know, eight solid weeks of traveling every single year, even while we were living in a place that was, um, foreign to us, theoretically. Right. So, um, this is really just part of who I am, and, and, uh, I feel really lucky to have had that experience that has made it it actually, for me is very, um, a little bit uncomfortable to be home for too long. I start to get itchy, very itchy feet to get back on the road and see something new.

Speaker 2

[00.05.20]

Wow, that's really neat. Those are especially Papua New Guinea, quite a place to to grow up living. But then you also, apparently it sounds like you had to go back to the US. So you had to, you know, keep keep your connection, uh, back there over time as well, which is great. Uh, very, very cool. How many did you have you lived then in a in a bunch of different places, or did you kind of go from there back to the US, or were there other stops in between?

Speaker 1

[00.05.49]

Um, mostly, uh, lived overseas until I finished high school. And then once I was starting university, returned back to the States? Yeah. Did my undergrad and graduate school in the States before, um, joining the Foreign Service and then went to Cambodia. So kind of started the overseas journey again at that point and sort of, um, my career path is taking me in several different directions, but it's not been uncommon for me to have a job that I'm also able to leverage, sort of, um, the concept of the workstation. I know that that terminology is a little bit more recent. Um, but I've been doing that for a long time. And so, um, it's also enabled me to keep ties, um, with folks that I've met all over the world. Classmates. I went to an international high school, and my graduating class was like 60 kids from something like 45 countries. And that was at a time, you know, before the internet, before email existed. So, you know, there was a lot of old school letter writing that happened before we then, um, you know, before. Getting to university and having email and sort of rediscovering each other. So I've been really lucky to, to logged a lot of miles.

Speaker 2

[00.07.14]

Um, okay. So like you're, you're handling no place like Rome is, is really hitting hitting home here for me. Uh, making

Speaker 1

[00.07.23]

making a very much is. Yes, yes.

Speaker 2

[00.07.26]

When did you start, um, sort of creating content and talking about travel a little bit, a bit more?

Speaker 1

[00.07.35]

Speaker 2

[00.09.04]

Very cool. I a couple a couple of threads there. Um, one is the as you said, you've got a corporate job. I feel like I always find it interesting talking to folks through this podcast and hearing about how they keep up with their travel, if that makes sense, like there's just so many ways to do it. But one of the prominent ones is like, hey, most people have a job and then they are needing to figure out, how do I keep traveling? Um, even though I've got this job. And actually I'll bring in the second one, which is, um, yeah. You talk about a lot about traveling as a mom, uh, with your kids, and I feel like that that adds another layer. Like, a lot of people are younger with a job, and they don't have kids or anything, and they travel when they can on vacation. But then when you have kids, a lot of people stop, um, even if they used to. Right?

Speaker 1

[00.09.56]

It's so crazy because when, you know, I had been traveled with such a an integral part of who I am, and it's really not about the travel, I think it's more about like this. Maybe adrenaline junkie sense of adventure and a curiosity about the world. Um, travel just was. Maybe travel is more just the, um. What gets me there? It's the vehicle to to help me expand on those pieces of me that really need to be, you know, consistently like fed, if you will. Um, but when I was having my kid and I had him a little later in life, a lot of people were like, oh, good. We're really glad that you're having a baby now, because we're really tired of, like, being jealous of all of your travel posts. And because I grew up in a family where we did that, that was part of who we were, um, like, you know, like I said, eight weeks. It was four kids, 14 pieces of luggage, and off we went. Mhm. That wasn't a very like it was very strange to me that people would think that would stop. And so I didn't I don't think I actually realized that people did stop when they had kids. Um, I also think that tends to be a bit of a more American point of view, because I do find in my travels, like all of my a lot of my friends who live in in other places, particularly if they grew up with the type of third culture kid lifestyle that I did, more of an expat background. This is not a foreign thing to do. So, um, you know, my kid got on his first flight at six months. Um. And that was very intentional. The six months part because I did want him to have like vaccinations and things like that before we got on a flight. But, um, you know, and off we went. And, and he's been to like 40 some countries at this point. He's now 13. Um, but the irony of that is more about, I think the the places that he's been are less expected for the most part. Like he's not been to Italy. He's only, you know, there's a lot of more common, I think, destinations that he hasn't been. But then he has been to like Tunisia and, uh, you know, we. So it's just I think I like to visit less expected destinations. Um, and I've kind of started to expose him to that so that at least he doesn't feel like there's particular places you can and can't go to. You know, the the world really is your oyster and go for it. That's a great way to think about it. Completely agree. I think, um, you know, if you follow just the what is it, the website with the warnings about which countries. Yeah.

Speaker 2

[00.12.52]

Well, you'll never end up going to

Speaker 1

[00.12.53]

any who I worked for, so you'll

Speaker 2

[00.12.57]

get nervous. I think people get very nervous because it's a very careful like these, you know, you got to be careful out there. But there's a lot of countries out there that that have warnings that you'll be fine. You just have to, you know, pay attention and b b use your common sense. But that's great to hear. I mean, as a as a like that's a lot of it's a lot of countries by 13. So he's he's got a huge head start on most people with their travel and probably the knowledge around kind of how to do it to your point as well and being comfortable. Yeah it does. It takes a little while to to feel that way and to understand that like. You don't speak the language, you don't know what's going on, but you'll figure it out. You know, it's it's fine. Um, going

Speaker 1

[00.13.40]

back to school. So feed off of you. Because as a parent, approach that experience with. Okay. I don't fully know what I'm getting into or I don't, like, have it all figured out. I this is a new place to me too. But we're going to go into this with a positive attitude and, you know, doing some homework and research appropriately. Um, but they kids will feed off of that energy from you. And so I think, you know, and now he's at 13, he does a lot of the research and has a lot of opinions about the itinerary and, you know, things he's interested in. And that's really opened up a whole nother fun part of the travel journey, I think

Speaker 2

[00.14.21]

so. Oh, that's so cool. Um, and yeah, I think that's a great point. That energy, that sort of problem solving mentality that you need great thing to pass along. Um, and to role model to your point. Getting back to the what you said about crazy stories and starting, you know, starting the blog. I think that's a good a good transition or a segue, um, to what we're, you know, the story we're going to talk through, uh, today. So I guess give us a little background about the travel story that, that, that, that you want to talk about. Um, you know, things like what year it was, why were you going there? Where are we going? That kind of

Speaker 1

[00.15.04]

Speaker 2

[00.21.47]

um, I've been down this rabbit path, so, uh, at least I've got some idea. Where did you. Um, yeah. I don't like. As far as I could tell, getting there without a group is extremely difficult. Like, that's the way to do it. Where did you also have to fly from?

Speaker 1

[00.22.05]

Um, so we flew from Abu Dhabi. Yeah. So you didn't land on mainland Yemen at all? It was a direct flight coming. Yeah, they did it twice a week out of Abu Dhabi, directly into, um, directly to to, uh, sorry to Socotra. And. Um, yeah, it's it definitely. There's like, the thing is, it's a very untouched, undeveloped place and in absolutely the best way possible. So. But that lack of infrastructure means that, like you said, you really do need to go with an organized tour group. Um, because you cannot there aren't roads that you can navigate. There aren't street names. You know, this is very out in the wilderness. There aren't things that can hurt you per se. Like it's not like there's, um, big game wildlife that, you know, you could, um, have an attack or something like that, but more, um, just getting lost. And how on earth do you find your way back? Yeah. Also, at the time that I went, um, you were completely off the grid. There was no satellite phone. There was no phone or or internet access whatsoever. And I'd only done something like that once before when I had been up in the Arctic. And so. But that was, um, a little bit safer concept, I think, for my family, as opposed to I'm going to an island off the coast of Yemen, and you're not going to be able to reach me at all for one week. Um, yeah. That ended up, I think, being one of the greatest gifts. But you do have to make peace with that. Now, what I understand is I've seen recent posts from people who've gone in the last year, and I think there is actually like satellite access. I don't know how spotty it is, and I don't know that it's available over the whole island, but generally speaking, I don't think it's particularly great reception. Um, you might get a little bit though, but we we were had to accept the fact we were not going to be reachable for a week. Um, yeah, that was wild.

Speaker 2

[00.24.27]

All right. Well, uh, I guess let's let's take us there. Yeah, yeah. So, you know, I think for me, in addition, I'm not a big camper. And this is really what came down to the the catch for me, I have I been camping? Sure. You know, you go camping in the United States. You for the most part, like my camping experiences were at, you know, um, organized campgrounds. Sometimes you may have to go out in the woods while you're hiking and use the bathroom there, but oftentimes there are facilities. Um, even here in the States, you know, national parks have designated, um, latrines. I mean, so I really didn't have a lot of exposure to really, really roughing it. And, and, you know, also typically when I've been camping, it's a night or two. It wasn't a solid week where I'm, um, relocating almost every day. And. Sleeping out in very remote areas. Like I said, no phone access. Like, really? Um, Michelle needs to go find, you know, your behind one bush and your new best friend is behind the bush next to you. And, I mean, this was really, um, like, I didn't I didn't have the skill set for this. Despite all of that traveling I told you about. This was not in in my toolbox. Yeah.

Speaker 1

[00.25.57]

And so, um, even the, the first night, the the place that we had stopped it did, um, have a quote unquote bathroom that you could use. And I think there was, uh, a, uh, shower of some sort potentially in there, too, I will tell you that, um, that first night was that first place I walked in. I looked around at a lot of bugs and things, and I walked back out and I was like, I can't do this. And I was like, I don't know how I'm gonna make it through a week like this. But most places did not even have that. And, um, after two days, so I there were 11 of us in our group, including, um, our, our tour leader. And then you have like a local on the ground tour, uh, organized tour group that there's. Sorry. You're going to ask me a question. No.

Speaker 2

[00.26.58]

It's okay. Finish up.

Speaker 1

[00.26.59]

I'll ask. Yeah. So these guys, um, the, the local, uh, tour company would set up our tents every day. The the guys, um, did the cooking for us, you know, they really did the heavy lifting. Um, and in terms of the travelers, there was 11 of us. Mostly women. Ironically, we only had one man on our trip. Most of us solo female travelers. Wow. And after two days of trying to navigate this whole, like, out in the bush thing, I had to, you know, we're starting to bond your. You really are learning a lot about each other because in addition to the fact that you don't have internet, the flip side of that is you have a lot more conversations, and the conversations become very quickly like, you know, you're sitting around the fire at night and you're spending hours traveling through like bumpy roads in this SUV or, you know, over the course of the day. And we would rotate who we hadn't ridden in a car with yet so that we could get to know them better. And I feel like not being able to, you know, we weren't sitting and checking email, we weren't trying to text people. And as a result, we really came together as a group. Um, so within a day or two, these newfound friends were like family. And, uh, these women I have bonded with for life. We still, two years later, have an ongoing daily, uh, WhatsApp text thread. We live on all different continents. Um, we're from half a dozen different countries, and we have been on more trips together since the Socotra trip also. So this really brought us together. But they.

Speaker 2

[00.28.50]

I said, wow, that's. That's great.

Speaker 1

[00.28.52]

That's amazing. It's been amazing. Um, but 2 or 3 days into the trip, what I realized was every time I was trying to pee behind a bush. Andrew. Uh, this this this was not good. I was I was peeing on my on my boots. I was peeing on just. It was a disaster. And so finally, by, like, the second or third night, we're around the campfire and I'm like, listen, somebody needs to tell me, what am I doing wrong here? Because this cannot go on for the rest of the week. And so you haven't lived until you've got women showing you how to appropriately squat. Um, I had one friend like, she's like, listen, the key is you need to look at the angle of the ground under. You need to go uphill. So you need to be standing uphill so that everything else goes downhill from where you are, clearly like. That's like point A I had missed. Um, Ben, they're like showing me, like, the right squatting moves. Like, you know how I mean, there were there were skills learned here in Andrew. Like.

Speaker 2

[00.30.08]

And, like hilarious

Speaker 1

[00.30.10]

friends. You're like, damn, I can go out there. I can do any trip now, like I am ready after this. Um, so, yeah, I mean, I think it really was, um, taking the girl out of the city. Even this well-traveled girl who thought she really could do it all had seen all the things. No, no, Socotra was a test that, um, I, I clearly didn't have all the skills. For now, I do.

Speaker 2

[00.30.41]

Were you guys cooking, uh, over a fire to, like, what was the food situation? So the food situation was all organized by the the tour company. And, um, you know, it was fantastic. Uh, I was not cooking over a fire. We had a lovely cook. He did all of our meals, um, three meals a day. Plus he would spoil us. Um, there's this fantastic Yemeni bread. It's kind of, um, like a puffed sort of non similar to that. And he. That would be our afternoon snack and, um. Oh, it was delicious. I really still missed that bread very much. Is it a fried

Speaker 1

[00.31.23]

bread. It is a fried bread. Nice. Um, and you know, you want to eat it warm. I will tell you that it disappeared very quickly when it would be presented to us in the afternoon. Um, the food was kind of a, you know, like I said, because of where it's located, that flavor is. It's not spicy, but it's. It's it's not spicy in a hot way, but it is spicy in a flavorful way. And it was delicious. You know, you had a lot of, like, chickpeas and, um, we had a lot of sort of egg related things. Um, not all of us. Some of some of my fellow travelers were vegetarians. Um, and, uh, so we we did have some fish. Um, we had some lamb. It was mostly a lot of legumes and, you know, rice type of things really didn't. I mean, we fell very we felt very well fed for the week. I will tell you.

Speaker 2

[00.32.25]

And look, that part sounds quite nice. Yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 1

[00.32.28]

But, Andrew, the other thing is I will tell you, for me, as a as a working mom with the side hustle, it doesn't take a lot if I don't have to cook the meal. I'm pretty easy going about it. So that is just a gift in itself. Someone else cooking for me is like a love language. So yeah, that part. They could have served me something a lot less wonderful and I would have been a happy camper. Pretty

Speaker 2

[00.32.53]

easy. Okay, so, uh, you're roughing it a little bit, uh, a lot. You're learning, you're learning. You're learning a little bit about handling yourselves in the outdoor or handling yourself in the outdoors. Um, but you're you're well-fed. Uh, how? Okay, so how about how about the island and what you're seeing? How's the trip going?

Speaker 1

[00.33.14]

So here's the thing. I had seen, you know, after I, when I started researching the place and gone down this rabbit hole and, you know, you start to see these just stunning images of Socotra on the internet that you honestly can't believe this is real. I promise you, this tiny little island, it is real. You've got like, um, you know, these sweeping plateaus with rocky cliffs and then you, you know, you get out to the coast with pristine sand dunes that, um, if you, you know, do the workout. Which PS climbing a sand dune really, really much harder than it looks if you've never done it. So get your quads ready because it is it is work, but it is absolutely worth the effort. You get to the top, and these views of the ocean that are just like out of a painting and then, you know, you we'd be out into, um, there's like a national park area that, um, is where you find not just 1 or 2 of what is the famous dragon's blood tree. This is probably the most famous image of Socotra. In fact, the tree itself appears on there. Um, on the money. If you get yourself some of the, um. The local currency. While you're there. They have the dragon's blood tree on it, and it kind of for people who are listening and haven't seen, it's a tree that looks like if you took an umbrella outside and the wind caught under it and flipped it up, the tree's branches are going like that and creating like this upward motion when it's fully grown. But it's, um, there are, uh, cousins of that species in other parts of the world, particularly around the African peninsula. But really, this particular species that you find there in Socotra, it only exists there and it is quite endangered. Um, they have a problem where there's a lot of goats on the island. Um, they are not endemic to the island. They were brought, you know, during early seafaring days. Um, and they are a core part of people's diets there. But these goats go and eat the baby dragon's blood trees when they start to sprout. And, you know, I mean, goats are quite prolific eaters. And so as a result, they are eating up. They take a long time to grow this tree. And so with the goats just eating them up, there's not enough to replace the trees as they age. So they're starting to, um, like we visited a nursery where they are growing them until they get to like a certain particular size to transplant them now just to make sure they they don't lose them entirely. But, um, you know, so the landscapes are really what take your breath away here and everything is a landscape on steroids. And because you don't have this infrastructure, you also are just seeing it at its most raw and its most untouched. And your little tent that when you wake up and you unzip that tent, you just can't even believe the vision that you see, like it was worth like either sweating all night in my tent, um, or like there was the night that I had a little, um, eight legged visitor in my tent. Um, I did have a roommate, um, my buddy Pyle, who we traveled together frequently. She was sharing my tent with me. Um, there is to this day still a debate about the size of that eight legged friend. I believe it was much larger and scarier than she, um, believes it to be, but all of that was worth it. When you unzip that tent in the morning and saw these views and, like, it wasn't like you looked out in the ocean, you saw, you know, big, um. You know, boats or even big ships. You really looked around and saw no one else except the folks that you were traveling with. And that was day after day. And I don't think there's a lot of other places in the world that you can do that so

Speaker 2

[00.37.44]

well, unless you're out in the wilderness somewhere for camping. But at least you know North America here, typically that's tres, tres, maybe some lakes green. It's very different scenery, very different landscape, for sure. Very

Speaker 1

[00.38.01]

different. Yeah, yeah. And I think to back, you know, the wildlife piece of that. Right. So if you're going to go do that kind of off the grid camping in North America, you know, parts of Africa, there's serious wildlife you need to take into account. That's where you're really lucky in Socotra. That's not happening. So you can really do this. And maybe the scariest things are the eight legged friends, which I only saw the one time. Or, um, maybe you know, some other reptiles, small reptiles, but there's not like, you know, big mammals that, um, could potentially attack.

Speaker 2

[00.38.44]

Yeah. You're not running into grizzly bears.

Speaker 1

[00.38.47]

Exactly, exactly. Yeah. Yeah. So

Speaker 2

[00.38.50]

from from. Um, from then on, you know, eight legged friends, outdoor issues. How did everything was everything smooth? Any highlight? Did you see the bottle tree picture that you were talking about?

Speaker 1

[00.39.04]

You did. Now, that particular spot that Andy took, that picture, um, that she has kept a secret unto herself is, um. It's just this perfectly positioned tree that has grown at the top of a ridge with this sweeping view of the ocean beyond it. Um, and and so you got to go on Andy's trip specifically if you want to see that particular tree, but, uh,

Speaker 2

[00.39.32]

and, of course, send me the link. Yeah, yeah, I can post I can post it with the podcast

Speaker 1

[00.39.40]

as well. The, the thing about this tree, they are all over. It blooms for just a particular window in the spring. And, um, it's the flowers look similar to like if you've ever seen a frangipani flower. They're kind of a delicate flower like that. The tree itself, it's similar. Like the trunk is shaped like a baobab tree. Yeah. Like what you would see in Madagascar, right? Um, but it's smaller. And so you've got this tubular, uh, trunk. You've got this kind of, um, rather, uh, you know, not a lot of leaves on it, but it really, it really shows up when it's blooming this tree and just spectacular. Um, and so we got to see them, you know, all over the place blooming.

Speaker 2

[00.40.30]

That's so cool. And for those who haven't seen these trees, definitely look them up. It's almost like a surrealistic kind of painting of trees. Sometimes the way they look, uh, very different. Very different.

Speaker 1

[00.40.44]

Mhm. And then I think, you know, the other thing is I know that there's really a big, um, one of the, the travel trends I've sort of seen in the last year or two is there's been a lot of uptick in dark sky travel, and you haven't seen a dark sky until you've been to Socotra, because really, there's only a handful of other places I've been because you are so away from any, um, light pollution this Milky Way was I mean, it was every night to write this. You've got a week straight of amazing landscapes by day and then glorious nights where you. I mean, just shooting stars from every corner. And, um, you know, you don't even have to try. You don't have to be a fancy photographer. You're getting the Milky Way on your, you know, um, my little iPhone without a lot of effort. So. Just exquisite. And, um, it was worth not showering for, like, five days. And it was worth, um, you know, learning appropriate peeing techniques and, uh, you know, getting really comfortable with, um, you know, hanging out behind a bush on my own. These were just not things I had done. Um, I'm definitely ready, uh, to embrace my my role as a scout mom now.

Speaker 2

[00.42.18]

Good for you. It's, uh. Yeah, I've been, uh. It feels like sometimes, no matter how much you travel, there's always some circumstance that will be brand new at some point, which is great because you just don't want to. You want to keep having those, right? Or at least I do. I

Speaker 1

[00.42.37]

think so, and I think like really, it's those moments that you are so outside of your comfort zone. Those are the ones you really don't forget, right? Um, you know, I know that my Socotra gals are going to listen to this podcast and they are going to be giggling to themselves about demonstrating that peeing technique for me, but also just the laughs, the stories like, you know, we we are hanging out of an SUV, like out the windows, taking pictures of each other. You're you're climbing. Um, they're they have these wadis that you can go swimming. Yeah. And, um, very similar. I've seen I've seen similar wadis, like in Oman, for example.

Speaker 2

[00.43.26]

That's like an oasis. Correct?

Speaker 1

[00.43.28]

Exactly. It's kind of an oasis, but inside, like a rocky area. Almost. So you got to do the work to hike in to the wadi. Um, and then you go down into what is this beautiful, um, fresh water? Uh, usually pretty clear water. And, um, we had a couple of gals who were not confident swimmers, and it was really like, um, a bonding of the women, like, well, we're going to make sure you're still in the water and have this experience and lift each other up. And I think that that's why we're still, you know, to this day. So, um. You know, like this sisterhood that we all grew together on that trip. Um, that made it just so incredibly special. Beyond the the the landscapes and, um, the night sky.

Speaker 2

[00.44.26]

Well, it's so nice and so lucky to have that, honestly. Um, you just don't you don't find it on every trip. And I know I, I haven't taken a lot of group trips, and I feel like it's because of the opposite reason that you're explaining, which is you could end up with a bunch of people that you don't connect with for whatever reason. And then you're in this, like group. I'm very used to just being alone, solving my problems and meeting people along the way. Right. Which which I love, but this sounds amazing too.

Speaker 1

[00.44.58]

Well, you know, I'm sure that not every group trip that goes to Socotra has the, you know, this, uh, this bonding experience that we had. But but I do think there's something to be said about, you know, the type of person that will put themselves out there for that. Um, really out of your comfort zone experience? Yeah. And I think, um, there is plenty of opportunity for solo time here, too. Um, you know, whether you wanted to go for a dip in the ocean, bring your snorkeling gear? Um, some people would go on a hike and some people would not. You. There were. You weren't required. It wasn't, you know, mandatory participation in everything. The other thing is, I really think, um, the Yemeni, uh. The Yemeni people who were our guides, we really bonded with them. You know, we had nights around the fire and they didn't speak a lot of English. Um, so there was a lot of sort of hand communication. But we had nights around the fire with dancing and just very celebratory, really warm. We were also there during Ramadan. And so these guys, I just can't believe they would cook our meals and prepare this for us every day. So we did have our meals and eat at regular times of the day. Um, but they would not. And then when, you know, they would break their fast at night. Um, it was like such a joyful time. And I felt really privileged to be able to be witnessed to to what that was like. I'm not Muslim. And so, um, to sort of see how that was experienced. I mean, that was incredible. We also had an experience where, um, in a small town, one of the guides, we were able to go visit his home, and the women were, um, um, doing, uh, the henna sort of, uh, party, if you will. And welcome to all of us in. Because we were all women. And in we went. Um, and did these beautiful henna designs on our our hands and our feet. Um, you know, it was really most of the women couldn't speak English, but it was just this moment of, I see you. I, you know, you are someone who matters. And I mean, particularly with what's going on in the world right now, I feel like it's moments like that that really make you feel more connected to that place. And now you care about what's happening in the news in a in a different way.

Speaker 2

[00.47.51]

Well, what a what a fulfilling week. I gotta say, it just sounds lovely.

Speaker 1

[00.47.57]

Yeah. Um, I gotta do it. Andrew telling you it's March. So next year you got to book this for 27.

Speaker 2

[00.48.04]

Ah it's on my I. Yeah. As I said I've been down this rabbit hole but this is definitely driving at home. Um, speaking of which, uh, taking us uh, taking us back, back post Socotra and today or to today. Um, yeah. Like, what's what do you go what do you have in store coming up?

Speaker 1

[00.48.25]

Well, as I mentioned, I, I've been, um, really focused in on, uh, some writing for some publications. And so hopefully there's a few things cooking that I hope transpire, opportunities there. Um, but I do have a really excited, uh, diving trip coming up. There is a woman owned there. It's a former oil rig off the coast of Malaysia, off of Borneo. Um, on the east coast. Uh, there's a beautiful marine wildlife reserve or, uh, wildlife park or sanctuary, um, in Sweden. And it's one of the places that still have really, um, mind blowing, like large schools of fish and, and, um, you know, the, the reef there is still in really good condition. And so I'm going out to this former oil rig that has been turned into a dive resort, and I'll be out there diving for a week at the end of April. Um. Can't wait. It's been a it's been a couple of months since I've been underwater, and so, um, that's my honest favorite place to be. Uh, I would, um, unfortunately, living in Dallas, I my accessibility to spending time underwater is a little bit more challenging. So, uh, you know, I'm really looking forward to doing that. And, uh, and chatting with the woman who started that, that business. Because the dive industry is such a male dominated industry overall. And then for her to be the owner of this in Asia in particular, it's it's really quite um. Her story is really interesting. So I'm looking forward to to chatting with her and hopefully getting some stories about that experience published. So we'll see how that

Speaker 2

[00.50.17]

goes. That sounds like an amazing trip. Super interesting. Um, yeah. Yeah, I'd love to do that as well as well someday. Very cool. Are you

Speaker 1

[00.50.28]

a diver? Uh,

Speaker 2

[00.50.30]

I would not call myself a diver. I am licensed. Okay. To dive. I have been on maybe like, six or so. Uh, but not not my particular passion, but it's it's it's it's also just a it's a very cool experience. Um, well, maybe you'll have more stories to tell. It feels like you've got lots, actually. So maybe I'll get you back on someday. Um, um, to tell about your trip to Malaysia, but, um. Yeah, it'd be just a big thank you for coming on. Um, thank you for sharing your experiences more broadly as well. I think this is just. Yeah, it's a very positive, very, very, um, interesting way to look at the world. Also, traveling with your son and giving people the confidence to travel with their kids, that's that's really that's really special.

Speaker 1

[00.51.16]

Thank you. Thank you. It's been such a pleasure chatting with you today, Andrew. It was so fun and, like, taking myself back to that. Really? Um. You know, it was really quite a a life changing type of a trip and mostly in like a wow, I can do this type of way. Right? So yeah, well,

Speaker 2

[00.51.38]

I'm glad you got to reflect on it and yeah, thanks. Hopefully, uh, people listening, you know, if they don't get to Socotra, they get out of their comfort zone one way or another, right? Yeah.

Speaker 1

[00.51.49]

Yeah. Yes. Thank you. And, um. Yeah, they can find I mean, I write a lot about unexpected destinations on my website. So if they're looking for and something they're not quite sure where to go, they can check that out.

Speaker 2

[00.52.04]

Well, I'll be linking it to the podcast as well so you can find it there. Awesome. Well, have a great rest of your day.

Speaker 1

[00.52.10]

Thank you. Andrew,

Speaker 2

[00.52.13]

a big thank you to Michelle for joining us on the podcast today and telling us about her amazing trip to Socotra, an island that I know I really want to visit someday. Yeah. If you'd like to check out more of her work and her writing, you can find her at no place like romcom. And of course, if you've got a amazing story you'd like to tell, you can find me at one off Travel stories.com.