Today, we’re flipping the script and bringing you a conversation I recorded with a dear friend of mine, a longtime Palestinian activist Matt Bowles, for his podcast, The Maverick Show.

On his podcast, Matt interviews people who work at the intersection of travel and activist spaces. On it, you’ll find interviews with people like Imani Bashir, a Black Muslim American who advocates for more Black people in the us to travel with her Passport initiative, and Mari Monsalve, who visited occupied Palestine and uses her platform for Palestinian solidarity.

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Going Places is an audience-supported platform. Become a member for as little as $6 a month and get the perks like getting on a group call with Yulia every month to ask questions, get advice, and be in community with each other.

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Thanks to our Founding Members:

RISE Travel Institute, a nonprofit with a mission to create a more just and equitable world through travel education
Radostina Boseva, a film wedding photographer with an editorial flair based in San Francisco

What you’ll learn in this episode:

Growing up in Soviet Kazakhstan and Estonia
A culture shock of moving to the U.S. at age 16
Yulia explains her decision to join the U.S. Navy
How serving in Iraq and Afghanistan impacted Yulia's politics
How a trip to Morocco took Yulia off a corporate career path
Yulia's stories set in Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Botswana, and Jordan
Yulia explains why Jordan is so close to her heart

Featured on the show:

Check out The Maverick Show with Matt Bowles
Follow @maverickshowpod on Instagram
Listen to Part 2 of the interview, in which we unpack Orientalism and activism for Palestine

Going Places is a reader-supported platform. Get membership perks like a monthly group call with Yulia at goingplacesmedia.com!

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Going Places with Yulia Denisyuk is a show that sparks a better understanding of people and places near and far by fostering a space for real conversations to occur. Each week, we sit down with travelers, journalists, creators, and people living and working in destinations around the world. Hosted by Yulia Denisyuk, an award-winning travel journalist, photographer, and writer who's worked with National Geographic, The New York Times, BBC Travel, and more.

Learn more about our show at goingplacesmedia.com.

Yulia Gets Interviewed by Matt Bowles of The Maverick Show