Around the World in 80 Days: The Travel Mindset That Makes Retirement Bigger (SB1811)

Summary

Episode Summary: Stacking Benjamins Show
Episode: "Around the World in 80 Days: The Travel Mindset That Makes Retirement Bigger" (SB1811)
Date: March 4, 2026

---

Overview:

In this engaging and wide-ranging episode, Joe Saul-Sehy and Crystal Hammond (co-hosting the "Stacking Adventures" crossover) chat with guest George Georgian, a retirement mindset coach from London. George recounts his epic global journey undertaken at 69, weaving together incredible travel stories and profound lessons on reframing retirement. The conversation focuses on how intentional travel can ignite personal growth, help retirees (and all of us) find new purpose, and dispel limiting beliefs about age, adventure, and identity.

---

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The DARE Method & Reframing Retirement

Timestamp: 15:00–18:30

• DARE Method:

  • George explains: “The DARE method is really… another word for courage, because you need courage to unretire. Most people just drift into oblivion… I’ve reframed it. I’ve been teaching this.” (16:08, George)
  • The method encourages people aged 55–75 to embrace courage, clarity, and purpose as they approach or experience retirement.

• Travel as a Mindset Shifter:

  • George: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” (Mark Twain quote; 17:08)
  • Travel’s real value is its capacity for creating humility, shifting perspectives, and expanding one’s sense of self.

---

2. Traveling with Intention in Retirement

Timestamp: 18:10–30:00

• Entertainment vs. Transformative Travel

  • George distinguishes between travel for “entertainment and pure fun” vs. travel “with intention” – to learn and transform. (18:11, George)

• Overcoming Inner Critic & Age Barriers

  • At 69, George intentionally selected destinations he’d never visited before: “I wanted to experience new things, which means I need to go to places that will make me maybe a little uncomfortable at first.” (19:37, George)

• Loss of Identity in Retirement

  • “The first casualty in retirement that people don’t realize… is loss of identity. Who am I now?” (22:03, George)
  • Travel becomes a tool for reinventing oneself and discovering a new identity after leaving the workforce.

---

3. Highlights from George’s “Around the World” Journey

A. South Africa

21:30–28:00

• Must-See: Robben Island and Safari
  • Robben Island for its spiritual significance: “He comes out of that place not hating people. For me, that is a massive transcendence.” (21:39, George)
  • The safari experience in Timbavati: “Waking up at 5:30 in the morning… seeing nature, its beauty—well, the beauty and the brutality of nature.” (24:08, George)

B. Australia

31:40–37:54

• Bucket List Experiences:

  • Visiting Sydney, Melbourne, the Great Barrier Reef; serendipitous discovery of the Museum of Immigration in Melbourne:
    “My journey was planned, but it left a lot of room open for pivoting and changing plans… I fell on another museum half a mile away called the Museum of Immigration. Oh, now that was an eye opener.” (33:35, George)

• Lessons in Identity:

  • “Identity is not just how we see ourselves, it’s how others see us… It’s a mosaic. Identity is.” (35:29, George)

C. New Zealand

49:45–58:25

• Natural Wonders:
  • North Island’s Coromandel Peninsula and hot water beach, South Island’s mountains and Milford Sound.
  • Notable quote:“The beauty is so powerful that your eyes hurt.” (51:53, George)
• Maori Culture:
  • “Maori dancing… the woman who led this troop of Maori dancers said, please do not applaud us… we don’t do applause… shake your wrists like this… Our entire culture, educational system is about approval… where can we find that generative spirit to become who we want to be without seeking approval?” (56:26–57:47, George)

D. Japan

58:32–62:57

• Lessons from Samurai Ethos and Hiroshima
  • “The word samurai means to serve.” (58:41, George)
  • Respect as a societal value (“the conductor comes in, he bows…”)
  • Hiroshima’s message: “The Japanese have moved on and said we don’t want this to happen to anybody else… we think crises are the end of us when actually it’s the making of us.” (62:57, George)

E. Canada

63:40–70:53

• Rocky Mountains Awe:

  • “The majesty and awe of the Rocky Mountains, it’s just mind blowing… You wake up in the morning and there’s caribou out by the railroad tracks…” (64:23–68:07, George & Joe)
  • Recommendation: Train ride from Vancouver to Jasper & the Icefields Parkway.

• On ‘Awe’ and Transformation:

  • “Awe is beyond language, beyond thoughts, beyond religion. Isn’t that amazing? Captures the essence of how I felt on those Rocky Mountains.” (66:52, George)

---

4. Final Reflections on Transformation and Mindset

Timestamp: 72:12–74:41

• George’s transformation:

  • “Maybe the journey isn’t about becoming anything. Maybe it’s about unbecoming everything that is not really you so that you can become who you were meant to be in the first place.” —Paulo Coelho (73:10, George)
  • “I felt I was more me after this trip because I had shed some of the artifices and the personas that we put out into the world… You know, who am I, who do I want to be and what makes me happy, what gives me joy?” (73:47, George)

• Main Lesson for Retirees:

  • The world is far less dangerous—and far more welcoming—than most assume, especially when approached with a growth-oriented mindset.
  • “Why sort of make your playground smaller and smaller… instead of bigger and bigger and bigger?” (74:35, George)

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” (17:08, George, quoting Mark Twain)
• "The first casualty in retirement… is loss of identity. Who am I now?" (22:03, George)
• “The beauty is so powerful that your eyes hurt.” (51:53, George, on New Zealand)
• "Maybe the journey isn’t about becoming anything. Maybe it’s about unbecoming everything that is not really you so that you can become who you were meant to be in the first place." (73:10, George, quoting Paulo Coelho)
• "You gotta stop ticking boxes. Nobody’s checking on you… You just have to have fun." (50:33, George)

---

Essential Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction and Why Travel Matters in Retirement – 15:00–19:24
• South Africa: Robben Island and Safari – 21:30–28:00
• Australia: Museum of Immigration and Identity – 31:40–37:54
• New Zealand: Beauty, Maori Culture, Letting Go of Approval – 49:45–58:25
• Japan: Samurai, Service, Hiroshima, Forgiveness – 58:32–62:57
• Canada: Rockies, Awe, Summing Up Transformation – 63:40–74:41
• Closing Thoughts & Book Mention ("Odyssey of an Elder") – 75:30–76:48

---

Resource and Book Mentioned

• Book: "Odyssey of an Elder: Around the World in 80 Days" by George Georgian—stories and lessons from his journey.

---

Overall Tone & Language

As always with Stacking Benjamins, the conversation is informal, friendly, and sprinkled with humor (dad jokes, travel mishaps, and beach-themed banter). Yet, the episode shines with candid, often profound, reflections from George—balancing storytelling and practical advice for making both retirement and travel more meaningful.

---

Summary for New Listeners

Even if you haven’t listened, this episode is a masterclass in how travel—especially undertaken later in life with curiosity and intention—can reshape your outlook, reinvigorate your sense of identity, and help you enjoy a more expansive, joyful retirement. George’s globe-spanning odyssey is not merely a travelogue, but a rallying call to never stop adventuring, no matter your age.

---

Further Calls to Action:

• For more travel inspiration or to join in games like "Where in the World is Crystal?," check out stackingadventures.com/mystory.
• Find George’s book and “Gear of the Day” at stackingadventures.com/gotd.

---

Transcript

[A]

On December 12, Disney invites you to

[B]

go behind the scenes with Taylor Swift

[A]

in an exclusive six episode docuseries.

[C]

I wanted to give something to the fans that they didn't expect. The only thing left is to close

[B]

the book the end of an era

[A]

and don't miss Taylor Swift. The Eras Tour. The final show featuring for the first time the tortured poets department. Streaming December 12th only on Disney Plus. Well, hey there. This is gonna be such a fun one. On today's show we're talking travel. You might not know that we have a sister show or is it brother show, I don't know, called Stacking Adventures. And on that podcast we just had a topic that's at the intersection of retirement planning and travel. Which is why I wanted to include it this week on Greatest Hits Week. George Georgean is the guy we talked to. He's a retirement mindset coach from London and he traveled around the world. He share his best tips and what he learned about retirement along the way. So it's perfect for this Wednesday episode. By the way, Stacking Adventures is, if you've never heard it, it's a user created show for the most part. Most of our guests are you regular people finding out the good, the bad and the ugly as they travel around the world. We kind of learn from each other all of our adventures. We love it because it's so unpolished. It's like this group of friends sitting around chatting about their latest trip. It also by the is a labor of love. It kind of comes out when it comes out, but generally it's every week. I should say nearly every week. We also play a different game there. You know, we have trivia here at Stacking Benjamin's, but there we play a game. Where in the world is Crystal Hammond? Like where in the world is Carmen Sandiego? If you played that as a kid. Crystal's my co host. She's got this place that she's been dreaming about and people call in and number one, they make a statement to narrow it down. So a couple weeks ago it was well, and you'll hear it actually on this episode. The question is, is are you in the continental United States? And I won't share what Crystal said, but every week we narrow it down a little bit. And by the way, don't worry about episodes that you missed because we'll give you the list so far every episode in and we play for a backpack and of course the bragging rights to your friends so you can brag to everybody that you've won the stacking Benjamin's where where is Crystal Competition. But subscribe to that show if you like. Travel and also play the game with us by submitting your guests. And that's it. Stackheaton advent.com My Story all right, a couple notes before we hit play on this episode from last week on Stacking Adventures. First, I will be in Seattle on Thursday. That is tomorrow. If you're listening today, it comes out. Or if you're not, well, it's March 5th. So it's after March 5th. You missed us. We had a great time. Well, we cried the whole time because you weren't there. But you don't want us to cry. So show up. 6:30 Elysian Brewing in Capitol Hill. That's on Pike Street. To tell us you're coming, go to stackybenjamins.com meetup up. That'll also take you to our Benjamin's After Dark Seattle Facebook group that meets in person monthly. You can sign up. You can also join a great group of local people. We're going to give away stuff tomorrow night with Doug's Trivia. We'll talk money, we'll talk better living, Maybe have a foamy beverage or two or non foamy if that's more your thing. Thursday 6:30pm Elysian Brewing, Capitol Hill in Seattle. Also on our community calendar. I just love this. Our shiny new Boston group. They are up and rolling March 11th right around the corner, man. Next week my my daughter Autumn lives in Boston. She's already signed up for the group. But on March 11th, James, Carolina, Susan have this great first meeting agenda plan. They're going to be at Hannah's Brewing at 6 o' clock that is in Melrose. So 6pm Hannah's Brewing in Melrose. For details go to stacky benjamins.com meetup and be part people that got it going. You know, southern Minnesota I think might have had 40 people there. And I've been to Boston, I've been to Seattle. You guys can crush 40 people. By the way, southern Minnesota, that is not, not at all. That was a big meeting and by the way, their second meeting. No, no smaller still a great group of people meeting in southern Minnesota like we have also in the Twin Cities and in Seattle and now in Boston. But anyway, be a part of that big first event. Wednesday March 11, 6pm Hannah's Brewing and it's stacking Benjamins.com meetup to get there. So exciting. And finally one thing that you don't want traveling is your credit without you as somebody stole it and is sending it across the dark web. That's not cool. Well, to help you there, the Vault is alive and working for a bunch of our stackers. Not only does it protect your privacy getting you off those email and text list, but it monitors your credit, cut your subscriptions, helps you bump up your credit score, create a better debt pay down strategy and more. Cheryl and I use it in our weekly meeting. Other tools do a piece of this using pieces of all over. But why have seven different ones when you could have just one? And one that works with the credit bureaus themselves and was also built by some of the top developers in the land. Stacking benjamin.com vault to check it out, you can watch my walkthrough video and more. So many people doing cool things with the Vault. I think I'm getting an email

[B]

almost

[A]

every day about somebody with a cool success story using the Vault.

[C]

All right.

[A]

I am so excited to have this intersection of retirement planning and travel. Lifestyle design is what I'm going to be talking about in Seattle on Saturday at Retirement. I'm one of the speakers at Retirement. Come join me there. I don't even know if tickets are still available, but I hope so and if so, you'll see me talk about designing a better retirement life. My talk's actually called how to Make a Miserable Retirement and we'll definitely try to help you do exactly the opposite of that. Right. Anyway, for a preview of that and a guy singing off my song, she George Georgian. And in just a moment, stacking Adventures. But we've got a couple of sponsors who help us keep on keeping on. We're going to hear from them. And then it's Crystal, me and George Georgian talking about his travel around the world. Well, here's a game changer. If you're in back to back meetings like I often am, or you walk out of a meeting and you're like, how do I summarize all this? All these takeaways and you always feel like something's going to fall through the cracks, right? Or that you didn't pick up the big point or everybody in the room didn't even get the same takeaways and three weeks later you're like, no, remember we all agreed on X thing. Well, if that's you and then you're like me, granola is your solution. Granola is an AI powered notepad built for the way real people actually meet. It's really cool when I started diving into granola because you take rough notes the same way that you normally would and it also transcribes in the background. It turns the combination of your notes and the transcription into this beautiful, clean, structured, and actually useful set of notes when the meeting ends. The best part? It works through your device's audio, which means it integrates seamlessly into the video conferencing tools you already use, so you don't have to worry about any setup. No awkward bots. I literally just downloaded it and I was off and running. Here's the coolest part though. It's like you're in the meeting, but instead of going, wait, let me write that down, let me take a moment. You can stay focused on the meeting and take just very brief notes. You're not going to miss something because you were frantically writing something down while the whole team went on to the new point, whatever it might be. Before Granola I'm half in, I'm half out. Don't remember what happened in my 8am meeting by the time I get to the 3pm meeting and the first time I used it, what a game changer. I was present, I came out and everything organized so that I was ready to take action and move forward. So if meetings are eating up your day, Granola is a no brainer. Try it totally free stackers by heading to Granola AI sb put the SB on there and then they know that we sent you because this is a tool I want to be associated with for a long time. Go to Granola AI sb, get your time back. Once again, try for free Granola AI sp. You never know how much life insurance really matters until you see it in action. As a guy that was a financial planner for 16 years and also I've had some family members that have passed away, you just notice how things change and how transformative life is for those people who need help after you're gone. Two things I think stop people from getting life insurance. Number one is just the thought of it. Well, we all know that we're going to die someday, right? None of us makes it out here alive. But the second one is just this application process and it just seems like it's going to be so onerous that we don't do anything about it. Well, Ethos makes getting life insurance fast and easy. It's 100% online. You get a quote in seconds, apply admittance and get same day coverage. No medical exam. You just answer a few simple health questions. You get up to $3 million in coverage. Some policies are as low as $30 a month. That is of March of 2025. Business Insider named Ethos the number one no medical exam. Instant life insurance provider Ethos has 4.8 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot. Over 3,000 reviews. Protect your family with life insurance from Ethos. Now by going to ethos.comsb in as little as 10 minutes, you get your free quote and up to $3 million in [e-mail] that's E T H O S.comsb ethos.comsb application times and rates may vary. Crystal, what's the furthest from home you've ever been?

[C]

Okay, we know geography is my strong suit, so I'm gonna go with Hawaii. I think Hawaii or Dubai.

[A]

Oh, I think it would be Dubai, wouldn't it?

[C]

Dubai. Yeah. I think that was the long.

[A]

Oh, you've been to Ireland as well?

[C]

Oh, yep. So, yep. Geography's kicking my tail right now. How about you?

[A]

Have you circled the entire world?

[C]

Yes, because when we went to Switzerland, we went above coming home. We went over the equator, which was cool. Or not the equator. The North Pole.

[A]

Over the North Pole. Wow.

[C]

We went. Yeah, we. We went across. So we went and came back a different direction.

[A]

Welcome to Crystal's Adventure in Geography. I would have thought, like, you know, well, Dubai, you might go one way across Europe and then the other way to get to, like, Thailand, you might go across the Pacific.

[C]

I don't know. I wasn't driving.

[A]

She's no idea.

[C]

Piloting.

[A]

I feel like. I feel like it's that Jerry Seinfeld joke where, you know, the pilot, Crystal, always comes on and they go, hey, we're going to be flying you over. Blah, blah, blah, and blah, blah, blah. And Jerry's like, hey, as long as we land on where it says on my ticket, you can go whichever way you want.

[C]

There we go.

[A]

Well, today we're going to hear stories from a man who hit the road for an epic trip around the world. We'll hear about exotic places, beautiful locations you're going to want to add to your bike bucket list. And. And this is, I think, the biggest part. The important lessons that he learned about life, about retirement while he was on the trip.

[C]

Wasn't it in 80 days? Around the world in 80 days. I know that's a cliche.

[A]

I wonder how many days it took George. Okay, well, we'll find out.

[C]

I know we're about to. And then, let's be real. Most travel gear out there is just plain awful. That's why we share our gear of the day at the end of. Well, we don't share it at the end anymore, but we do share our gear of the day. So you can head to our [e-mail] where you can see all the gear that we've talked about in past episodes. And these are tried and true pieces and items that not only come recommended from us, but also from you from other people that have been on the show. So we want you to adventure betterer. I love saying adventurer betterer, but you'll set yourself up with some gear. That's Crystal Joe Alicious at our [e-mail] GOTD once again. And now let's get this show on the road.

[A]

Ready for adventure.

[B]

From vacation to staycation and from the mountains to the beach, this is the Stacking Adventures podcast.

[A]

Welcome back, Adventures, to the Stacking Venture Podcast. Every adventure has a story, and this is where we hear yours. And today, Crystal, we're hearing George's story. And, man, what a story this is going to be.

[C]

I'm excited to hear from it. And also the thing that's going to shock you is he did all this traveling and he waited till like a. What would we say around age number? Like the perfect age for traveling. And you'll see.

[A]

Is there a perfect age?

[C]

No. Any age.

[A]

Well, and that's what I like. I like it when we learn some lessons just from the people that we meet around the world, from the things that we dare ourselves to do, maybe some of the places that we go that we wouldn't have ever expected that we would go, the people that we meet that might be different from us. Like, that's the fun of this whole thing. And I think this is what encapsulates George's adventure.

[C]

And the food that we eat and the souvenirs that we buy, those are my two favorites.

[A]

Shock of all shocks, Crystal has some favorites. Well, speaking of favorites, ready to meet our favorite guest?

[C]

Yes, he is.

[A]

He is. Is the man who is a retirement mindset matter mentor. He's also the creator of the DARE method. He guides people age 55 to 75 to reframe aging with courage, clarity, and purpose. We're super excited. He's on the line from London, I believe today, George Georgian joins us. How are you, man?

[B]

Great. Great to be on your show, Crystal. And Joe, this is wonderful.

[A]

I am. Well, we are. Yeah. We are so happy that you're here. And what's it like in London today?

[B]

It's not as cold as where you are.

[A]

I'm in Texas, so. Okay.

[B]

Yes. Didn't you get snow recently?

[A]

We did.

[C]

We did a ton.

[A]

Crystal, in Our nation's capital got more than we did, George, but a lot more.

[C]

We still have those piles of snow and ice, like they're really tall, but now they're extra dirty, so it's beautiful.

[B]

Did you not have sent it to Colorado? They needed something.

[A]

They did. Let's. Let's talk. George, first of all, about your bigger mission, because this trip was part of your bigger mission. Can you speak briefly about the DARE method and about this idea of reframing retirement?

[B]

Yeah. Wow, big topic. How can I bring it to two sentences? Essentially, I went through a situation where retirement didn't serve me. And so I've been on this journey. I've learned a lot about it, and I'm now teaching it. And the DARE method is really. Is another word for courage, because you need courage to unretire. Most people just drift into oblivion. I mean, if you remember that Disney movie where the moths go to the. Go to the flame, and one is trying to help the other, and it's like, I can't help it.

[C]

Gone.

[B]

That's what retirement is, because we've got another 20 years to go. And so I've reframed it. I've been teaching this. And one of the things I discovered in my teaching, because I'm learning as well in the process, is that the only way to get people to pivot their minds is travel. Travel, yes. Wait for this. In a nutshell, I think it was Mark Twain who said, travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness. And many of our people need it sorely on these accounts, and I think more so today than in the last 30, 40 years. And so it's about changing perspective. And you only get that when you travel because travel makes you humble. You need other people to help you. So like it or not, it makes you humble.

[C]

So then how did you prepare? Like, how did. Where did you even start on this. This mind shift? Because let's maintain honestly, people after retirement or even in their 70s, they're like, okay, it's time to relax. I don't want to go through the trouble of, you know, find a new place. My back hurts, my knee hurts. How do you even mentally prepare and physically prepare for, okay, I'm just gonna travel?

[B]

Okay, there's two types of travel. There's the travel for entertainment and pure fun. And then you come back untransformed. And then there's another form of travel where you travel with intention. I want to learn. I want to discover new things. I want to experience new things. Right. And you need to try things and not like them so that you can find what you actually end up liking. You're not going to find it sitting down, thinking about it. And so to answer your question, it took me about three months to prepare.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

And for the first time, I actually used a travel agent. I haven't used one in 20 years. I used the travel agent because I realized this is an epic adventure, and I need the assistance of people who've been to these places and know what it's about, and they understand that I can only cover a small percentage of what I'd like to. How do I focus on the things I want to see and I want to experience?

[A]

Do you start off then with. With a bucket list, George, or do you start off with, these are the feelings I want to feel. These are the. The. The conditions I want to put myself in? Like, where did you begin?

[B]

Well, I. That's a really good question. I began with saying I want to visit countries I've never visited before. So this is a whole new plan. I'm not playing safe. I want to experience new things, which means I need to go to places that will make me maybe a little uncomfortable at first, because I don't know it. And at the age of 69, which is when I started planning this, you know, you kind of think, what if I stumble and fall? Am I going to be shipped back and my trip's going to be complete, you know, a complete lost cause.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And if I had listened to my inner voice, my inner critic saying, oh, it's too long. It's too long a journey. It's too expensive, too much time consuming, I would have just given up and sat in front of the TV and withered away. But I wanted this challenge. And so one of the things I did was I chose countries I'd never been to before. And the countries that I chose to go, I forced myself to focus on the areas and the places that I wanted to visit. So, for example, in South Africa, I wanted to visit Cape Town because it's notoriously a beautiful place to visit. The vineyards, the ocean. I wanted to go and see Robben Island, Nelson Mandela's place. Right now, I'm not looking at this from a political perspective. I'm looking at this from a personal journey. He was a young man, a lawyer, an activist, who ends up in jail, spending 27 years with a pickaxe in a limestone quarry. And he comes out of that place not hating people. For me, that is a massive transcendence. And I wanted to know how he did it not for historical reasons or political reasons, but from the human element of how do you transcend a situation that you find yourself in? So, for example, retirement is situation, but it's not Robben Island. Let's be very clear.

[C]

I'm ready to retire today.

[A]

Trust me.

[B]

Retirement is not what you think it is.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

You know, once you take the glossy glasses off the rose tinted glasses, okay, retirement is the end. You're in God's waiting room, essentially. Right. It's not. And after the honeymoon period, it sucks. And that's why you have to reinvent yourself. And the biggest, the, the, the first casualty in retirement that people don't realize and don't recognize is loss of identity. Who am I now? And so I've created this whole new thing out of nothing.

[A]

Well, and if you go to the, and if you go to the vineyard too, I mean, hey, you're, you know, you're not only creating a whole new identity, George, you're doing it with a glass of wine in your hand, which is even better.

[B]

Oh my God, you have no idea. It was, I mean, South African wine is exceptional. And the food they give you with it. And just to give you an idea, the cost of a dinner in South Africa in Cape Town is a quarter of what it would be in London or in New York or, or in Austin, Texas. Believe me, it's a quarter of the price. And the food is fresher, the wines are crispier. It's. It. I, in none of the other countries I went to could you experience that.

[A]

Is, is there a must do in South Africa? We're going to ask you about a few must dos. But, but you know, and we have a wide audience. But I'm wondering if Robben island is a must do for people no matter where they are journey, or if there's another place that you really, really love that maybe is a little off the beaten path.

[B]

Great question, Robin. Island definitely is worth a visit. And I think it's really more to, to recognize how one man managed to go through a really experience and come

[A]

out

[B]

with that anger, resentment and bitterness and vengeance in his heart. That is really amazing. But the other place in South Africa which is a must do is a glorious safari. Oh my God. The. I mean, being in nature for five days, I was doing three. Sorry. Each. I was there for five days. It was in the Timbervati game Reserve, which is north of the Kruger national park and on the border with Mozambique. But of course, as you know, these animals don't have passports, they don't need to travel. They can travel.

[A]

How do they get away with that?

[B]

Now you don't know if the line you're looking at is from Mozambique or whether, you know, he's a native South African. The point I'm making is, is that it's just so glorious. Waking up at 6 and 5:30 in the morning for a 6 o' clock safari. So it was, yeah, three hours, six to nine and then breakfast. So you get up in the morning when it's still dark, you know, you have a coffee and a muffin and you're on the Jeep and it's a Toyota Land Cruiser, open, open back, you know, with all sorts of attachments for, for the tracker and race. I mean, it's just an amazing experience driving at that time in the morning as you see the sun rising over the African landscape. Just unbelievable. And the animals, you know, you kind of, we got so close to these animals at every turn and they're all on walkie talkies, these guides, so if they spot something, everybody else comes around. And how they know how to get there, I have no idea because there's no road markings as far as I could see. Oh, and they can see stuff that I can't see if I'm real close up even because their synapses and neurons are wired in such a way. They've been watching and seeing this. And again, because I'm a mindset mentor, I, I recognize the, you know, how people's minds are dictated by how, how and what they want to see. So the safari, I, we saw a lion who just killed a wildebeest. One of these large. I mean, it's a lot of meat on that thing. And this line, male, okay. Very different to the females. A male line is selfish. They just eat for themselves. The female will kill to feed her children. I mean, yeah, the, the cubs, but typical. Yep. The male eats this entire thing over three days until it's just a skeleton, literally. And the vultures are sitting on the tree going, come on, mate, get off. It's our turn now. You know, you can actually see the dialogue going on here. And it's just, but it was, for me, it was seeing nature, its beauty. Well, the, the beauty and the brutality of nature. You know, seeing the kind of offspring of a kudu left on its own. And I say, I say to the driver, do we take them into the. He goes, we can't do that. We'd have a zoo if we did that. Nature has to take its course. And I said, so is it lunch or dinner? The guy Goes very likely lunch. Interesting. So you kind of have to accept this is the way it is. And I think myself, how do I bring this back in terms of philosophy to our human lives?

[A]

Right.

[B]

You know, things happen. Yeah, but yeah, it's just, it gave me a, a new balanced way of looking at things. Just watching nature, how it plays out. There's nothing it's not about good or bad.

[A]

I do even, I do even. George, want to go back to something you said earlier because I think this is so important for people is that, you know, some of these experiences you might not like. I can imagine Crystal, Cheryl, my spouse just watching this, this lion eating wildebeest and just going, no thank you. Like, gross. But I love this idea, George, of pushing yourself to find things that you don't like. Because we had on the Stacking Benjamin show a certified financial planner, Benjamin Brandt on. He was talking about this idea of melding pre retirement with retirement. Because too often people have this idea in retirement of things they think they quote, might want to do and then they get to retirement and it's this big disappointment because it turns out you didn't like all the stuff you thought you were going to like. And you never placed, tested, you never put yourself out there to actually see if you like it or not. What I love about what you're saying is this play testing, this playfulness around. I might not like it. Big deal that continues through retirement. And it's not only okay, that's, that's what we're looking for.

[B]

You hit the hammer on the nail here because you've actually added another layer to this. One of the things that people don't recognize is that who they are now in retirement is not who they were. Who they were is gone. But we've spent 40 years chiseling at making this person that we are the Persona.

[C]

Right?

[B]

Which is really, it's a mental construct. It's not even real. And we think that's who we are. And it's not. It's that that almost sort of disappears with your work because you, who you are is connected to your work essentially for most people. And when the work goes who am I now? And you're not going to find the answer to that sitting at home. You need to be out and travel is the sort of the shortcut to find out who you want to be in this next stage of life. And you have to have the curiosity of a child. So when I was thinking about doing this 80 days around the world, my alter ego, my was. It's mad it's laughable. You're being childish. Yep. You need to have curiosity. You need to have. And also. But comparison is the thief of joy. We always compare ourselves to the people around us, the people that we've been with. There's a kind of competition on your deathbed. What's that? How's that going to play out for you? Do you know what I mean? We're so dependent on what other people think about us or of us. If you knew how little time people spent thinking about you, you'd soon get rid of that thought.

[C]

I like crystal.

[A]

Where are we? Where are we headed next with George?

[C]

Yeah. So what was next? You said Australia is next.

[B]

Yes, next was Australia and I kind of visited Sydney again. Lots of wineries obviously. Sydney, Melbourne.

[A]

You had to. It was, it was play testing.

[B]

Totally, totally. And, and I went to the Great Barrier Reef because it's again another one of these wonders of nature. You know when you're 69 you're thinking I may not be coming this way again. So I thought I wanted to see the Great Barrier Reef. So I went up to the north of Australia to Hamilton island, which is kind of like on the edge of the Great Barrier Reef and stunning silica white beaches, amazing water, sadly a lot of lemon sharks. And what are those things that bite you? Jellyfishes or.

[A]

Jellyfish. Yeah.

[B]

So you have to go with.

[C]

Are they sharks?

[B]

Well, they're small sharks but I don't want them taking a chunk out of me. And, and so I had to go in with one of these wetsuits, which isn't fun when you want to swim in the ocean. You know, you want to be at one with the ocean. You've got this things stopping you. Whereas in Hawaii for example, that has the best waters in terms of non threatening creatures around you. But Australia was beautiful. It's. But just on one note on Australia, I was in Melbourne and it was pure serendipity. My, my journey was planned but it left a lot of room open for pivoting and changing plans. I couldn't get into the museum I wanted to go into because it wasn't opening for another two hours. And I thought what am I going to do now? For two hours I walked around and I fell on another museum half a mile away called the Museum of Immigration. Oh, now that was an eye opener. You. I wouldn't have thought that. But seeing the evolution of Australia from the kind of the 1800s to what it is now from a pure Anglo Saxon English population after the second World War they had to open the floodgates, because it was. I think they called it populate or perish.

[C]

Wow.

[B]

So they started inviting the rest of the Europeans in, and then eventually today it's kind of open worldwide. But the character and personality of Australia has evolved because of immigration. And I never really quite saw it that way. You kind of have to go. You can see it happening in another country. You don't see it happening in yours so much. And the UK is the same. It's transformed in terms of immigration. Although it's not an immigrant country, immigration has transformed it. And needless to say, the US is an experiment in immigration. It's pivoting the other way now, but essentially it's a. It's still. And I have no doubt it will continue to be, because this is just the blip. But the immigration. The museum had a temporary exhibition on identity, and that blew me away because it broke it down to. Identity is not just how we see ourselves, it's how others see us, how others pigeonhole us by the way we dress, the way we talk, where we were educated, the color of our skin, our physiognomy. Everything plays into this. It's such a. It's a mosaic. Identity is. And I'm trying to find a new identity for retirees. I'm thinking, wow, this is such a huge topic. And an identity is crucially important because what you believe, you become. So if you believe you know your identity is not helping you. There are some things in your identity you can change to make you feel better. Some things you can't change, but a great deal of important aspects you can change that will change how you think, how you feel, and how you live your life.

[C]

Well said. So is there anything.

[A]

Yeah, Crystal.

[C]

Yeah. Any. Any other must see, because it sounds like the. The Museum of Immigration is one must see.

[A]

And I love how it was just kind of random.

[B]

It was not random.

[C]

Not planned. Yeah, Planned.

[B]

Not planned. The other thing that I. I enjoyed was traveling from Melbourne on the Great Ocean Road. It's.

[A]

Oh, cool.

[B]

It's a long journey through all types of landscape till you reach a place called the twelve Apostles, which is twelve rock formations. It's now down to eight. The other four have eroded, sadly. But it just shows you the expanse of Australia. And, you know, on the map, we'd only moved about a centimeter. Australia is a continent. There were so many other places I wanted to see, but with two weeks, you can only do so much. There's. There's Uluru, which is right in the middle of the Australian continent used to be called Alice Springs. There's Perth. I'd love to have seen that. Another place is Tasmania, the island of Tasmania. I'd love to have seen that. But what I saw was a vibrant young country and again, its identity evolving.

[A]

That's cool. In the second half of today's discussion with George, we're going to hear about New Zealand, which I don't think Crystal. We ever talked about New Zealand. I don't think we.

[C]

No, we have not.

[B]

No.

[A]

Then we will. We will circle back to Japan, a place we've been. But George went to some places that we have not yet talked about on the show. And then we are also going to talk about Canada. Hey. Hey. And we're going to ask George if he learned the language. And as a guy that grew up on the border, like, you know the language. Well, George, you know. And by the way, Canadians. It was a Canadian friend of mine who told me this, so don't get angry at me. It was one of your countrymen. But, George, you know the word Canada was created by Canadians, don't you?

[B]

No.

[A]

Well, you can tell by the way it's spelled. C A N A D A.

[C]

Man.

[A]

Okay, I'm here all week.

[C]

Landed.

[B]

Joe, that's called the dad joke.

[C]

Yes, yes. And it landed so flat.

[A]

Crystal knows. I may be familiar with that joke. On that great note, by the way, don't blame me. Blame Bernie. My friend Bernie.

[C]

Okay, we owe you one, Bernie. Yes, we owe you one.

[A]

And maybe not in a good way. At the halfway point of the show, we have this contest, George, where our adventures are. Trying to figure out where Crystal is hiding. She is somewhere, either in a place that she went to that she absolutely loved, or in a place that she's always wanted to go. And, Crystal, we have found out a couple things so far about your trip. We have found out that, number one, you are not in the mountains. So we know you are not in the mountains. Second thing, we know you are not in a country that's along the Mediterranean coast.

[C]

Nope, I am not. But we know. Yep.

[A]

For the guesses, we know those two things. And today we're super excited because Adventure Amanda joins us with her guests. Amanda, where do you think Crystal is? Let's ask Crystal a question first.

[C]

Good day, Adventures.

[B]

This is adventure.

[C]

Amanda and I have a question and a guess for where in the world is Crystal?

[B]

San Diego.

[C]

My question is, is she within the 50 United States?

[A]

Oh, there's a good question.

[C]

That is. That's a very good question.

[A]

We can narrow this to a much smaller piece of the world. Still, like George you were talking about, you know, Australia is a huge place. You see it on the map, you think, oh, it's Australia. How big? It's huge. US still huge. But that will knock it down if it's right.

[B]

So.

[A]

So we're going to find out in just a moment. Is Crystal in the usa? We'll be right back. You and I both know there's those days when you just don't have time to cook. It's cold. You got big goals. And you know what you do? You jump in the car and you go have a meal that you're going to regret the next day. Or you do something far better. Which is Factor. Factor makes healthy eating easy with fully prepared meals designed by dietitians and crafted by chefs. So eat well without the planning or cooking. Here's what goes inside. Quality, functional ingredients like lean proteins, colorful veggies, whole food ingredients and healthy fats. There's zero refined sugars, no artificial sweeteners, no refined seed oils. Meals that fit your goals and your schedule. Healthier eating, calorie management, more protein. There's a ton of variety. A hundred rotating weekly meals to keep things fresh and delicious through winter with options which include High Protein Calorie smart Mediterranean diet, GLP1 support and ready to Eat salads. And plus the new MusclePro collection supports strength and recovery. Always fresh, never frozen. Ready in about two minutes. No prep, no stress. If you've been here a while, you know what a fan I am of Factor. It saves me from restaurantitis on those busy days and it's also perfect for lunch. Head to factor meals.com sb50off and use code sb50off. And you know what that means. You're going to get 50% off and free breakfast for a year. Eat like a pro this month with Factor New subscribers only. Varies by plan. One free breakfast item per box for one year while your subscription is active. I just ordered some new pants, which everyone around here appreciates. When you work from mom's basement, people don't know if there's no that you still want to look good. We do video now, so you gotta look good. You usually can't see my pants, but you can see the cashmere sweater that I got recently. And as you may not know, a thoughtfully built wardrobe comes down to pieces that mix well and last. That's where I got to tell you. This is where Quince shines. These pants that I just purchased. Premium fabrics Consider design and everyday essentials to feel effortless, to wear and dependable even as the seasons change. Quince has the everyday essentials that I love and quality that last. When I bought the cashmere sweater, I was asked immediately where I got it because it looks so good and it pairs with so many different things in my closet. Lightweight cashmere sweaters, short sleeve Mongolian cashmere polos, linen bottoms and shorts, tees and 100% Pima cotton and European jersey linen. These are the versatile pieces that make a wardrobe actually work season after season. Quince works directly with top factories and cuts out the middlemen. You're not paying for brand markup or fancy retail stores, just quality clothing. Cashmere is 100 Mongolian same stuff luxury brands use. The Pima cotton is long staple which means it stays soft. It doesn't pill up. The European jersey linens breathable, lightweight, everything is built, hold up to regular wear and still look good. Their clothing's rated four and a half and five stars by thousands of people wearing it every day and they only partner with factories that meet rigorous standards for craftsmanship and ethical production. This sweater has become my go to and these pants? Absolutely the same Right now go to quince.comsb and you're going to get free shipping and 365 day returns. That's a full year to build your wardrobe and love it and you will love it. Now available in Canada too. Don't keep settling for clothes that don't last. Go to Q U I n c e.comsb for free shipping. 365 day returns. Quince.comsb I had a breakfast mentoring meeting yesterday with a young woman who was just amazing. She is graduating from college with a degree in wealth management and she reached out hoping for some pointers. And listen, if somebody's in Texarkana and wants to go into this beautiful field of personal finance and helping people get their money together, that is incredible. But even more incredible is how she reached out, how she was trying to network and I was having a discussion that finding the right person and avoiding the wrong person for a role, that's what can make or break an organization. And we just don't see that many qualified people. So how do you find them? Well indeed sponsored jobs is a boost whenever you need to find quality talent. If you're hiring indeed is all you need. You can stop struggling to get your job post even seen on other sites you'll match with quality candidates with indeed sponsored jobs get matched with and higher quality candidates who can drive the results you need. Reach candidates who meet your specific criteria like skill, certifications or location. Drives me crazy when I'm matched with with all kinds of people who aren't a fit. I don't have that kind of time. People are finding quality hires on Indeed right now in the minute I've been talking to you. Companies like yours made 27 hires on Indeed. According to Indeed data worldwide, sponsored jobs posted directly on indeed are 95% more likely to report a higher than non sponsored jobs. Spend less time searching and more time actually interviewing candidates who check all the boxes. Less stress, less time, more results when you need the right person to cut through the chaos. This is a job for Indeed. Sponsored job. And here's what's cool. Stackers. You're going to get $75 in sponsored job credit to help get your job the premium status it deserves@ Indeed.com podcast just go to Indeed.com podcast right now and support Stacking Benjamins by saying you heard about Indeed right here at stacking Benjamins. Indeed.com podcast terms and conditions apply. Hiring. Do it the right way with Indeed. All right. Crystal, Amanda wonders, are you inside the continental United States?

[C]

I am not. No.

[A]

Is not.

[C]

Not. No.

[A]

Which also narrows it. Not as much as had you been ins the US But. But narrows it. So she is outside of the usa. And sadly, Amanda, I bet you're gonna guess someplace inside the usa. But let's. Let's hear where Amanda guesses that you

[B]

are not including any outlying.

[C]

Right.

[A]

Territories.

[C]

Island.

[B]

My assumption is no.

[C]

Oh. So I will be guessing Aruba so that she can sit on the beach.

[A]

You can tell Amanda's heard this show before because she knows Crystal likes the beach. But is Amanda correct? Are you in Aruba?

[C]

No, but I do love the beach. That was a great guess. No Aruba, but it's on my list. That is 100% Aruba.

[A]

Not that far from Barbados where you have been.

[C]

Ah, right. Yep.

[A]

Yeah. So Amanda, maybe it's a trip you and Crystal to.

[C]

Yeah, let's do it.

[A]

All right. So adventures. Now we know she's not in Aruba and she's not in the contiguous United States. Crystal, where do people go for their guests? You can guess once per quarter and that's a calendar quarter. So we still have what we still got about six weeks left in this quarter. So where do they go to guess?

[C]

Head to stackingadventures.com my story. One word and you'll hear yourself. Yay. That gets us so excited. It's the little things, you guys. We want to hear from you. George is going to call in too, with his Guests.

[A]

He is. He feels like he's got it narrowed down now. Now he knows. George, let's get back to your epic adventure. Yeah. And I, I love this idea of, this is a mindset shift for people going into retirement. You've now been on, on this tour, what, for at least a few weeks. How's your mindset as you're leaving Australia, headed to New Zealand?

[B]

I, I think one of the adjectives I, I would use is elated. You know, when you're on a sort of a high, you're on a high vibration, a high frequency. Everything that in the past you would use negative stuff to sort of make you go like trudging through mud. This was the opposite. This was like, I, nothing I could do was wrong. And, and the reason was if there was something that I felt, I, I listened to my body. If my body felt, I really don't want to go on that tour today, I just don't want to go. In the past, I would, I would definitely go because I had to tick the box. Right? You got to stop ticking boxes.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Nobody's checking on you. You're not. You don't need to pass any exams or tests. You just have to have fun. And so I didn't do some of the things that I was scheduled to do.

[C]

Oh, nice.

[B]

Yeah. Because I'm thinking, oh, my God, I just spent money on this. I feel I have to go on it. No, I'm worth it. I don't need to go. So again, it's a mindset thing in the plane, in the airline, sitting in the middle seat. I've never sat in the middle seat all my life, but I went on a world tour trip, which meant that it was economy. So I got sat three times on 12 hour flights in the middle seat. And the only way to get through that isn't to get angry, upset, is to go Zen. All right? That's the only way through this. But to answer your question, Joe, I was excited about New Zealand because it's known for its natural beauty. So I went to Coromandel Peninsula, which is in the north island, which is a cycling circuit. I mean, the beauty is so powerful that your eyes hurt. Your eyes actually hurt because you think, how can I capture this in my mind? So when I'm having shitty days, I just think of this and I go, zen, go back.

[A]

Is this the mountainous part? Is that what was beautiful?

[B]

No, the seriously mountainous part is in the South Island. This is the north island, which is quite hilly. I wouldn't say mountainous.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

But I mean, there was a hot water beach where you literally, they give you a spade and bucket and you dig a hole in the, in the beach and you go into this and it's like warm water, but it's got all these sort of salty chemicals and whatever that keep, you know, and it's just. You come out of it revitalized.

[C]

Wow.

[B]

But you, when I was digging, I hit cold water, as I do and I hit scalding water that's gonna burn you until there was a very nice South African couple that invited me into their little swimming pool and I popped in there and it was just perfect.

[C]

Wow.

[B]

Again, friendliness, humility attributes that really help you when you're aging instead of getting grumpy.

[A]

Right.

[B]

State of mind.

[A]

The New Zealand people, I've heard, by the way, George, just generally, just wonderful people to be around.

[B]

Yeah, I mean they are. And I, I met a lot of great people, some of whom I'm still friends with. I went to the South Island. South island was, was extraordinary. I took a train ride across the south island from Christchurch to Graymouth. And the train snakes through mountains and lakes. Lakes are sort of ice blue and gushing rivers, ice blue gushing rivers. It's just so beautiful. Lots of lakes. I drove six hours from Christchurch down to the south southern point, Queenstown. Again, incredibly beautiful landscape. And down there I took a tour to Milford Sound, which is like a fjord, a Norwegian fuel, very mountainous. In fact, the, the mountains that are called the Southern Alps, as in the Swiss Alps. And on the way back I thought, damn it, I've got to fly over these. I'm never going to see this again. And so I flew over the Southern Alps. It was a 300 a ticket. And I, you know, in the past it would be in. Should I, should I not? Should I, should I not? And I thought, I'm doing this. And I flew over on a single engine plane going over the Southern Alps and it was just majestic.

[A]

Look at the look on Crystal's face.

[C]

She's like, I know I'm there.

[A]

Oh, you are there.

[C]

Like I'm picturing myself like, wow.

[B]

Oh yeah.

[A]

I thought that, I thought that look, I thought that look on Crystal's face was no, thank you, single engine plane, I'm gone.

[B]

Well, actually it was exciting because again, you know, if I put on my city hat, it'd be like, too risky. I need a two, two engine plane minimum nap. But as Charles Lindbergh said when he was, he was told he's mad not to take a one of These vests, what do they call them? Yeah, life jackets. Right. Not even life jacket. Parachute. He didn't take, he didn't take a parachute because he said, what's the point? I'm gonna drop into the Atlantic, which is freezing and die within five minutes. And he saved himself 5kg on the plane because, you know, his plane was. Had to be light.

[C]

Light. Oh, interesting.

[A]

Who said there's a comedian, I think it's Ron White who talks about whenever he's flying across the, the western part of the United States where there are no major. You know, there's no ocean, there's no sea. And they always talk about how your, your seat cushion will turn into a flotation device. Yes. And he's like, I have no idea why they tell us that. Apparently when they find our bodies later, it's so that archaeologists will think that there was a sea here at one point or river. I don't, I don't know. Just a little morbid humor. One thing we have to see in New Zealand. What's our must do? New Zealand style

[B]

Maori dancing.

[C]

Oh.

[B]

Now the reason I say that is because I learned something there. I mean there's obviously lots of things to see in New Zealand. There's the Milford Sound, there's Coromandel Peninsula, this Kaikoura where I swam half a day with dolphins. Started off with 20 dolphins, ended up with 200.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

Unbelievable. Unbelievable. And I even saw a couple mates, a couple of dolphins made right in front of my eyes. And I had it on camera. My video is going. And I was like, I can't believe this is happening. I'm capturing this.

[A]

You're making X rated dolphin video.

[B]

You don't want to know about the sex life of dolphins. Trust me. I think you're missing out. But let me share with you what the Maori dance taught me. The woman who led this troop of Maori dancers said, please do not applaud us. Yeah, do not applaud. We don't do applause. We don't need your approval. If you like what you see, shake your wrists like this. And the reason is I discovered that we're so.

[A]

We're.

[B]

Our entire culture educational system is about approval. Well done. Competition. And we don't look inside ourselves as to do we need somebody else's approval to be doing something we want to do. Nope. Where can we find that gen regenerative spirit to become who we want to be without seeking approval or needing approval to make it worse. And so that's wonderful. Letting go of that approval. There's A form of independence.

[A]

That's super. We are gonna unfortunately leave New Zealand because I feel like I could stay in New Zealand.

[C]

I know.

[A]

And you had nearby to Japan, but you went to a couple places in Japan, George, that we haven't spoken about unstacking adventures before.

[B]

Okay. The first one was I went to Kanazawa and I specifically wanted to meet a samurai. And I met this samurai historian who actually traces his own family's history back 600 years to when the samurai was. Were effectively created. And it's their ethos and the way they think it's about. I mean, the word samurai means service. Now, of course, they were eliminated over 100 years ago because they were too. They kept Japan backwards, technically, and Japan wanted to move into modernity, but with it, they kind of lost something. But what I recognized in Japan was that the whole ethos of service, serving others is. Is so bred into their. Their culture because of the samurai. The word samurai means to serve. And I love the ethos with which the Japanese do things. They do things to excel. There's obviously the. The dark side of trying to be excelling in things, but for the most part, they're incredibly helpful people. And they're very. They're so respectful. It's like a breath of fresh air. I'm not sure I could take it for more than four weeks, but you know what I'm saying?

[A]

Yeah, too much fresh air. You're too used to London.

[B]

Yeah, we're not so respectful. But the. The point I'm making is it's so nice to see that. That it's so refreshing to see people respecting another human being. And even on the trains, I traveled by train the whole time on the trains. The conductor comes in, he comes in, he bows. Literally. He bends like 90 degrees, he bows to the passengers, he walks through the cabin, gets to the end, turns around, does another bow. And I'm like. I was left thinking, wow, that's absolutely stunning. And, you know, but as I said, you know, my mind goes to what's the opposite of that? You know, it could be too much, but it was just amazing watching that. The second part was when I went to Hiroshima. I went to Hiroshima for a reason. I'd read John Hersey's book Hiroshima, which depicted the lives of six people before the bomb, during the bomb, and after the bomb. And so I was fascinated to see how that city had resurrected itself from literally total annihilation, virtually. And now it's three times the population it was before the bomb fell on it. And it's like the 11th largest city in Japan and there's no radioactivity to any more than anywhere else. But there was a thing the Japanese have done which a lot of other peoples who've been through that kind of terrible episode in their lives is that the Japanese have moved on. They've forgiven. Moved on and said we don't want this to happen to anybody else. So they've got a. A really sort of interesting view on it. I met some Australians there who said, well, if the bomb hadn't gone down, the war wouldn't have ended. And which. Which is partly true, but also I learned a lot of personal stories about people who lived through that time. And I'm all. I'm a sucker for great stories, particularly love stories in, in those. In these kind of times. It's such an uplifting stories of people helping each other. So that was the thing about Japan. I wanted to know, you know, how do you come back from an atom bomb falling on you? And I'm not comparing retirement to an atom bomb falling on you, but you get the gist.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

We think crises are. Is the end of us when actually it's the making of us.

[A]

Yeah. What is that. What is that phrase that life happens to all of us. It's really what you do about it that matters, you know.

[B]

Yeah. There's another one which sort of is a Corey to that, Joe, is life isn't what happens to us, is it what it happens for us. Isn't that interesting? Again, it's a pivot, isn't it? It's a mindset. Pivot it.

[A]

Yeah. Y.

[C]

That is a good one. And then we're pivoting back home to Canada. Canada. Well, not home, but home stretch. Home stretch.

[B]

Stretch. Yes.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

Vancouver. Flight from Tokyo to Vancouver. Another middle seat. Zen. And Vancouver's beautiful. A bit too much rain as a. From. As a Londoner. They're worse than us. They get so much rain. But that's also why it's so green and so beautiful. So I took the, the the Canadian, which is a train from Vancouver, it's a sleeper train all the way to Jasper.

[C]

Nice.

[B]

To the Rocky Mountains.

[C]

Cool.

[B]

And talk about feeling like you're in the middle of nowhere. But you know, Jasper's a little place, you know, surrounded by these giant Rockies. And I have to tell you, you know, you go to Japan, you go to Mount Fuji, it's one mountain. You know, you go to the Southern Alps in, in New Zealand on the south island and, and it's European style mountains, you know. Medium, moderate. You get to the Rockies, and there's nothing but a sense of awe at the vastness of these mountains. And these damn mountains each have names. Each of them have names that nobody will ever remember. You know, there was only one. I'm struggling to remember that one, and that was the biggest one. But my point is, is that as a. As a unit, these mountains leave you with a sense of awe at how small we are. And. And again, it. This is why travel opens our minds to an extent that I. I kind of want to mention you. A quote from Paulo Coelho, the. The guy who wrote the Alchemist about takes. Takes the journey, comes back home. He's changed. He feels the town's change, but he's also changed how he sees his place, because that's what travel does to you. But in Canada, it was a question of awe. And I. I kind of want to bring in something that a guy by the name of Daka Keltner who wrote a book called Or. And it's about feeling of being in the presence of something vast and transcendent. And that's how you feel. I didn't know that's how I felt, but I recognized when I read this, that's exactly how I felt. And it allows you to ponder on the big questions of your life when you are in that state. And that's the beauty of travel to these places that just blow your mind by. By their beauty and vastness. And he actually gets it down to a science he calls all releases dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward. OR is beyond language, beyond thoughts, beyond religion. Isn't that amazing? Captures the essence of how I felt on those Rocky Mountains, looking at these things.

[A]

Did you stop, by the way, because. Because you said you went to Jasper. And by the way, the. Something that struck me, because this is now Georgia place that I've been. What struck me about Jasper is how I can feel like I'm in this little nothing town in the middle of this vast place. Like it. It truly feels like I am in the middle of nowhere. Yeah, I am, clearly. Which was beautiful. I mean, you wake up in the morning and there's caribou out by the railroad tracks, which was incredible. Did you also stop at Lake Louise or Banff while you were.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

On that trip? Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. I mean. Mean, again, the mountains, the. The lakes. I. I cycled around the lakes. I mean, it's just so beautiful. I also went to Quebec. Final. This is the final place. Quebec is a very interesting place.

[A]

Much different than Vancouver. Much different.

[B]

Oh yeah, yeah. But I think it's different from any other place in Canada.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

Apart from Montreal.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

The French flavor is still very strongly there. And I think that I love the history. Apparently the Americans tried to take over Canada twice before. This is the third attempt.

[C]

Interesting.

[B]

It is interesting. And how. In fact, it was the Quebec, the people of Quebec that stopped them. Without Quebec, Canada would have been the 51st state way back.

[C]

Didn't know that.

[B]

Yeah. So yeah, that was interesting. But they have great food in Canada, particularly in Quebec. And you almost feel you're in Europe. It's the only place in North America that you have a sense you could be walking the streets of a French town in the south. Except the weather, of course.

[A]

It certainly looks like it up there on the hill in Chateau. Chateau Front Lanac. I think it's it.

[B]

Yes, that's right. That's exactly it. Yes.

[A]

Just, just beautiful French style architecture and I, I can't imagine. I have heard, by the way, that if you go in the winter, they have a wonderful winter festival where you can ride a sled, George, all the way down the hill. Forever and ever down that hill. And I heard it's really fun.

[B]

I'll pass on that one.

[C]

One.

[A]

Stick with the, stick with the summer. If, if someone is headed to Canada, this is like asking somebody's headed to the U.S. what's the one thing you need to do? But is there one you got to what in Canada?

[B]

Yes, I think it has to be the Rocky Mountains because a city is a city and food is food. But the Rocky Mountains, I mean the majesty and awe of the Rocky Mountains, it's just mind blowing.

[C]

Interesting.

[B]

I'd do the train. I'd do the train from Vancouver to Jasper and then explore. Oh, one final thing. The road from Jasper to Lake Louise passes through Route 30 93, Icefields Parkway. It was a three hour journey in a luxury coach. But I couldn't get my eyes off the mountains, the forests and the lakes. And it felt like when it was over, it felt like I'd been on that journey for 15 minutes. I couldn't get enough of it.

[A]

I will second that emotion, George. In fact, where the, the visitor center is for the ice fields, the mountain directly behind it, directly across the high from the ice field, was maybe my favorite hike. When we did the Rockies. You hike up and it's, and it's, you know, you're hiking up a mountain, so it's not the world's easiest hike, but it also wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. And we got this wonderful picture of the Canadians have put these red chairs, these Adirondack style chairs up on the mountain in the middle of nowhere, over overlooking the ice field. But we got this picture of this ram standing next to this bighorn sheep standing next to the red chair that looks like a postcard. But we took it ourselves. It was. It was so, so amazing, just that I. I would go back to the Rockies in a heartbeat. That just what a great way to finish off the trip when you went home. You know, you mentioned that you kind of see home differently, right? You see everything a little differently after you've traveled the world. How did you see the world differently after this trip?

[B]

That's such a good question. I think I transformed. And actually that segues beautifully into the quote, I want to leave you, because sometimes, you know, these quotes actually capture the essence of what you want to say in the fewest possible words. And it's the. It's the Paolo Coelho quote, because that's exactly how I felt. And he said, maybe the journey isn't about becoming anything. Maybe it's about unbecoming everything that is not really you so that you can become who you were meant to be in the first place. So in a sense, I felt I was more me after the strip because I had shed some of the artifices and the. The Personas that we put out into the world. You know, I'm smart, I'm successful, I'm this, I'm that, blah, blah, blah. And it's all stuff that you really need to tear out to come to the essential. You know, who am I, who do I want to be and what makes me happy, what makes. What gives me joy? And. And I think I also slew a lot of fears in my travels about the stranger, the outsider. And the world is not. Well, the world is a dangerous place, but it's also a very friendly place. And I think how you see the world, how you pivot your mind to see the world, is what makes a difference. So if you think the world is a dangerous place, trust me, those dangerous things will come to you because you've just attracted them right? Now, I'm not saying that bad things don't happen to people, even to good people, but the number of times that's going to happen is so insignificant. Why would you deprive yourself of all the joy that you can have, have by being in that correct mindset to attract all the good stuff to come to you, particularly when you Reach retirement and you have another 20 years to go. Why sort of make your playground smaller and smaller and smaller instead of bigger and bigger and bigger.

[A]

I feel like we have our own Sir George slaying his own retirement dragon here, Crystal.

[B]

Thank you, Joe.

[C]

At a time. Yes.

[B]

That is.

[A]

That was a fantastic story. If only, Crystal, we know somebody who has written a book about this topic. Maybe about the transformation and the.

[C]

The Odyssey.

[A]

Yeah, the. This, this Odyssey. If only somebody, George, had written a book about this, like, that would make this perfect.

[B]

It would. We would.

[C]

We wouldn't mention it now. We would mention it on the Amazon page. We would mention it.

[A]

Right. We wouldn't put it in our show notes. None of that. Tell us, George, there's a book about this where we can dive in even more because I think we just. We just crypt. Yeah, the crust.

[B]

Yeah. All these stories are in there. And there's lots more. It's called Odyssey of an Elder, around the world in 80 days. Why around the world in 80 days? Because when I was a kid, I read that book, fell in love with it, it. And then life took over and I forgot until I had an opportunity to resurrect it and say, I'm gonna do this. And the more I started looking into doing it, the more I got excited and I thought, this, I have to follow this. If this feels good, I gotta go with it. And the result was I wrote Odyssey of an Elder, around the world in 80 days. And I had great fun writing it because I actually wrote it in the way that you're traveling with me, sitting next to me.

[C]

Nice.

[A]

Fabulous. And by the way, speaking of, of sitting in the middle seat, if you're in the middle seat in economy, what a better way to spend the time. But there's no better way to spend the time, I think, than reading about George's odyssey, sitting in the middle seat and thinking Zen. George Georgian, thank you so much for helping our adventures. Adventure better. What a great, great, great story. Thank you for sharing the tale.

[B]

Thank you.

[C]

Pleasure.

[B]

Thanks, Crystal. I had fun with this too. Thank you.

[A]

Yay, George, hang out for just a minute with us while we say goodbye to everybody. Thank you for hanging out with us live. We do these live generally on Friday mornings, 9am Eastern Time on many Fridays. So come join us and say hi, Crystal, if people want to call in for our game. To find out where Crystal is, where

[C]

do they do that, head to stackingadventures.com my story. We would love to hear from you. And we are so grateful for all the people that have called in already. This is a lot of fun and I hope you really get tickled when you hear yourself on the radio.

[A]

Absolutely. And if you'd like to share your story of going anywhere around the world, share those with us too. Amanda, by the way, called in not only with this, she also shared a story that we're going to play on a future episode. So if people want to share their story of trips around the world like George did today, where do they get touch with us?

[C]

Hint is the same place Hansa Stacking Adventures say it ain't so stacking adventures.com my story awesome.

[A]

And George's book Odyssey of an Elder is going into our into our gear of the day picks because it's a perfect travel read and if people want that it's stackingventures.com got that's gonna do it Crystal that's a rep that is

[C]

fun Joe Joe this is always fun. So she she is Crystal and I'm Joe.

[A]

Keep on adventuring everybody.

[C]

Byebye.