Talking Travel – Our Tribe Travels

Hello and welcome to Talking Travel with myself, Kay on women's radio station. This is your weekly show for travel tips and inspiration and fascinating guests from around the world. Now on today's show, we'll be talking to Susanna Carey. Now, Susannah is the founder of our Tribe Travels, an online community for families who love independent travel. So no five star hotels or cookie clutter experiences. This is getting off the beaten track. So if you're listening to the show and you're itching to overcome your fears and take your own tribe off the beaten track, perhaps you've got a question for Susanna. So why not tweet us? Womensradiostn before we welcome Susanna to Talking Travel, let's hear a song. So today I've picked a very appropriate tune for us all to listen to. An absolute classic, it's Paul Young with Wherever I Lay My Hat. By the look in your eye I can tell you're gonna cry. Is it over. If it is, save your tears for I'm not worth it, you see. For I'm the type of boy who is always on the road. Wherever I lay my hat that's my home. I'm telling you that's my home. You had romance did you break it by chance over me? And so I'd like for you to know that I'm not worth it, you see For I'm the type of boy who has always, always on the road. Wherever I lay my hand that's my home. That's my home. Oh, you keep telling me, you keep telling me I'm your man. What do I have to do to make you understand? For I'm the type of guy who gives a girl the eye? Everybody knows but I love them and I leave them Break their hearts and deceive them everywhere I go. Don't you know that I'm the type of man who's always on the wrong? Wherever I lay my hand that's my home. Wherever I lay my hand, oh, that's my home. That's my home and I like it. You know I can't make it all alone sometimes. I'm not saying, I'm not saying I don't love you. Just gotta do. What a tune that was. Paul Young with Wherever I Lay My Hat. Welcome back to Talking Travel with myself, Kay on women's radio station today we're talking to Susanna, the founder of our tribe, Travels. Welcome, Susanna. Hello. How are you? Good, thank you. Good. Thanks for joining us today on Talking Travel. Thank you for having me. So, Susanna, first question for you. How did you come about with the idea for our tribe travels. Well, the idea first came to me actually back in 2011, quite a long time ago actually, when my husband and I left to go backpacking around Southeast Asia with our baby, who at the time was 11 months old. And I was getting all my packing lists together and trying to work out what to take and it was really hard to know whether I was going to get certain nappies somewhere or the best accommodation recommendations for traveling with a little one in tow. And also we, you know, when you go off on these big trips and people start to question, you know, whether you're, are you doing the right thing? Are you being crazy going off like this, especially with a young baby? Well, I guess in the UK it's just not the done thing, is it, to go off backpacking with an 11 month year old? Not really, no. And so, and so you start to question yourself, but you know, there must be other people out there doing it, but you're not quite sure how to connect with them. So I started a travel blog just to document our adventure from friends and family. And people started to contact me through it actually, and I'd help them and give them advice. And one Australian family who I connected with on a number of occasions, they actually decided to go traveling off the back of reading the blog, which I was really happy about because I felt like I'd sort of given a positive influence to somebody. What an endorsement. I know. And they actually set off on their trip and then we invited them to stay because we settled them by that point in Malaysia. And so when they got to the end of their trip and they were traveling around Southeast Asia, they came and stayed with us and it was lovely to actually meet them. So I think at that point I realized, wouldn't it be great to have a meeting point, an online meeting point for people to be able to ask questions about family travel, to share recommendations with other people, but also to meet up whilst they're traveling the world. Because actually when you're traveling the world as a family, you don't meet as many people as you'd like to. And it's just a really great way of connecting in person. Absolutely. You mentioned there that, you know, you wondered if you were crazy, if people thought you were crazy for doing something so different. But what would you say to people who think that you can't travel slow and by this I guess I mean travel for longer than your typical two week holiday in a resort with children? I think that a lot of people get put off by long Term travel with kids because they sort of envisage their hectic day to day life in their normal home. And then add on top of that the stresses of traveling and maybe. Or potentially doing it on a budget, and that scares them off. But actually when you're traveling long term, you can slow it down a lot. And you don't have any cleaning or cooking or, you know, all the distractions that you normally have when you're trying to engage with your children. So actually it's a really. It is feasible to have really good quality time together. And the everyday stresses that you have at home just don't exist. So it's a lot easier than you actually think. And also when you're staying on a typical two week holiday, your children can get sort of. They lose interest or they're hard to entertain. But what we found is if you're traveling on public transport, whether that be a train or a minibus or I guess every day is an adventure. Every day is an adventure. So your kids are totally entertained by what's going on around them. And actually you don't have to entertain them that much at all. And when you're traveling long term, you don't take many toys, but there's always something new to see. There's, you know, interesting animals. People engage with you a lot more when you're traveling as a family. I think that was the biggest surprise as I sort of started traveling well, once we'd had our son, is that people come up to you and they want to talk to you and they want to help you. So you're never on your own, you're never stuck. There's always a friendly face or, you know, a friendly local who will help you. And it's a lot easier than you think it is. And I think people are put off, but once they've tried it, that's it, you're hooked. No going, there's no going back. Yeah, great to hear. So what would you say was the catalyst, Susanna, that made you decide to live life a little differently perhaps, and travel the world with your family? I just think life's too short. And I guess I've always had the attitude that if you really love something, you should try and incorporate it into your life. Because we don't have that long around on Earth, so. And I think it really broadens the mind. And I think once you have children, it's brilliant as an education for them, actually. It really opens their mind to different cultures, to the environment. So there are benefits all around. I think as they say travel is the best education. Definitely. And also, don't be put off by thinking it's expensive because there are ways of doing it on a shoestring budget and we always travel on a shoestring budget. I don't think finances should ever be something that should put you off. Great. Good tip. Good point, Good point. 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Henrietta Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer when she was 30. A doctor took a sample of her cervical cells, unbeknownst to her, and sent them to some researchers in her hospital who had been trying and failing to grow human tissue in the lab. For some unknown reason, still unknown to this day, her cells never died and thrived in even the hardiest of conditions. Her cells, which in the scientific world are called HeLa cells after the first two letters of her first name and surname are used in scientific and medical research. And for that reason, she could also be considered the largest human on earth. But the origin of HeLa cells was not revealed to the public or even many of the researchers using them until the 1970s. Not even her family knew. They reacted in different ways when they found out. Her daughter thought she could finally learn something about her mother that had died when she was was so young. Could the scientists look at the cells and tell her her mother's favourite color? Henrietta's husband didn't really understand what was happening. Henrietta's sons were angry when they learned that their mother's tissue was the first ever human biological samples to be bought and sold. One of them was living on the streets when they learned that these scientists were profiting off their mother's illness. HELA cells have been used to create the first polio vaccine for research into cancer and AIDS and countless other important scientific projects and medical discoveries. But one can only wish that that first doctor had at least asked Henrietta, can I take a sample? Welcome back to Talking Travel with me, Kay Holland on Women's Radio Station. Today we're talking with Susannah, the founder of our Tribe Travels, an online community for families who love independent travel. Welcome back. Susanna. Hello. Just we were talking there about how you've been traveling the world with your family. I Wondered if you also travelled a lot as a youngster. Actually funny enough, no I didn't and I don't know whether that has actually made me want to travel more as I've got older. But I'm one of four children and I guess as we grow up, I didn't realize at the time but our parents didn't really have as much money as they probably wanted to have to spend on holidays. So we used to go camping for two weeks in South Wales to the same campsite every year. I did that until I was 16. Right. Similar, similar to my family experiences. Dorset every week, same week in August, same place until I was 16. So maybe it's a generational thing too. Well, yeah, I guess travel is a lot easier and it's a lot more affordable now. But I think I did my first backpacking trip when I was 17. I went, saved up and went to Italy with a friend. We took a tent with us and we didn't have much money. We just went, bought one of those one month train passes and off we went. And it was 1992, pre mobile phone. So we would phone our parents once a week from a call box to say, you're safe. That was it, we were still alive and that was it. I was hooked from that point actually. And I suddenly realized. And that was actually. You actually mentioned earlier about the catalyst for traveling. I remember waking up one morning, we slept out to save money on sort of a pathway overlooking the sea in our sleeping bags. And I woke up at about half five in the morning and there were some people already snorkeling down there. And I looked over the fence and I just thought, wow, isn't this amazing? And I made a little mental note to myself that I must travel and see the world. And I sent myself a postcard from that trip, which I still have. Oh. As a memo. As a memo to say, never forget, keep traveling. And so that was a long time ago now, but I've, I've always kept that little memory alive and yeah, that's why I think I still keep going and still love it so much. And fulfilled your promise to yourself. Yeah, exactly. Life's too short. Great stuff. What would you say is your top tip for family travel, Susanna? Don't panic before you get there. I think a lot of people get stressed about the country that they're visiting and they already start putting mental blocks in place. Actually once you arrive somewhere you always find that it's friendlier or more relaxed or less intimidating than you originally think. And to try and go with the flow and slow down as much as possible. I think we've made the mistake before actually, where we've tried to cram in too much because we like to move from place to place rather than staying in one location. And sometimes you can go too quickly and then it becomes you get too tired and children don't really like that when you're moving every day or every other day. So I guess it's just on and off buses and trains as well then. Yeah. And you're not actually enjoying the place, you are just getting from place to place. So slow it down, slow it down a bit. Lower your expectation levels. That's always good. And actually just, just try and enjoy it as much as possible because the things that go wrong, you forget or they end up being funny stories. So just, just go with the flow. Excellent. And any advice on what you should pack when you're traveling with children? I've got a few. Yeah. Any key items? Well, I've got a few things that I found really useful over the years. One of them is it's like a compressor bag which looks like a sleeping bag cover actually, which is. It compresses clothes down to tiny, a tiny size. And I find that I can still pack pretty much my son's who travel wardrobe in it. And once you've pulled it down and compressed it, you can. It only takes up a tiny area of your rucksack. I also take, you know, the bag clips that you put on the top of snacks. Ah yes. So you know, when you're buying snacks on the go, it's a great way of buying something and then clipping them closed that the ants can't get in or they stay fresh. And I also take small plastic airtight pots for a similar reason for any leftover food or if you've got a baby, for milk powder so they're safe from ants or you know, it doesn't ruin while you're traveling. Hat clips always very useful for boats. Otherwise we've lost a few hats early on from blowing off in the wind. Hat clips always very handy. I always take balloons actually because they don't take up much room, but blow a balloon up. Most children are quite happy with instant entertainment. Exactly. It's quite handy and something I'm thinking of taking next time, which I haven't. Someone in the group had recommended was if you're somewhere that's going to be really busy, you can get these like little rubber wristbands for children now where you have your contact details printed on the inside. And so they're quite. I think as a safety sort of travel device, it's quite handy. They're only about £10 for your child to be wearing one, just in case you're somewhere really hectic and you're worried about, you know, what happens if you lose them. I mean, hopefully that wouldn't happen, but you feel a bit more confident that they've got all their contact details and you will be found. Top tips. Thank you very much. You mentioned a little earlier, Susanna, about the Australian family you'd met. How do you generally, or how do family travellers generally find community on the road? I think it's been. It's harder as a family to meet people on the road because you want to gravitate towards other families and meet people who are having a similar experience. But with the. I mean, social media is obviously a great starting point. There's lots of families who are traveling the world and they have Instagram accounts. So I can see a lot of people meeting up or arranging to meet up on that. But that's why I've sort of cultivated Our Tribe Travels the platform, the Facebook group platform, because that's a lot of people post on there and say they're going to see reap in a couple of days time. Would you like to meet up or. We're going to Japan, heading to Tokyo. So a lot of families are actually meeting up through. Through the Our Tribe Travels Facebook group as well. Fantastic. How rewarding for you as well for that. I'm so happy. It's like one of those things, every time someone posts a little meetup picture, I have a little silly dance in my head on my heart. I feel like it just makes me so happy because that's. That's what I envisaged happening when I set it up, but I didn't know how long it would take or whether it would take off or whether it would actually really happen. And it has, and it just makes me. It's brilliant. I love it. Great to hear. If you want to get in touch with talking travel and any questions for Susanna, don't forget, you can email us@presentersomensradiostation.com so, Susanna, one thing that I really want to know, I guess, is there anything you wish you'd known before you started out on your traveling lifestyle? This is a really tough one, you know, I don't know if there's anything in particular that I wish I had known. Is half the fun been learning, I guess, on the journey, then? I think so. I think. I mean, originally When I went on that trip when I was 17, I wanted to travel the world and then I remember starting my first proper job aged 21 and being filled with dread that this was it. I've got 20 days holiday a year for the rest of my life and I think I was a bit panicked about that and I think probably if I'd realized that actually you can live a more flexible lifestyle then I would have saved me a few years of stressing about never being able to go away again. So I think that's probably one thing. But yeah, yeah, I can't think of anything else. That's a good point. Producer Natalie and I, we've been looking at your website and it clearly you and your family have been pretty much most places in the world. So the next question might be a bit of a tough one for you, but what would you say has been your favourite family travel destination so far? And of course, why? Yeah, that is a really tough one. I'm. Every experience you've had has been really different but the one that I feel stands out and I think was again a bit of a turning point in our family travel was when we went to Nepal and our son was three and a half at the time and it was actually a friend who said to us, oh, did you know that it's actually quite easy to do the full treks when your child's or a toddler because they can go in these little baskets called a doco, which is a traditional Nepalese basket and they get carried all the way up the mountain on the back of the Sherpa. Oh, I see, your husband doesn't have to carry them, I thought. No, no, oh no, he wouldn't have got up the mountain otherwise. Well, the Sherpas usually carry up to 70 kilos on their back so if they're carrying a 17, 18 kilo child, they think it's actually quite a breeze. So we, yeah, we booked to go on this five day trek and it's the Poon Hill trek in the Annapurna Range in Nepal and you trek up 10,000ft and it was a real turning point I think because I suddenly realized that actually most things are possible. There is a way around doing things that you might think are off limits for a family. And actually once you start sharing knowledge and speaking to people, other people have done it and that's when you can start, you know, learning about that destination and realizing what is actually achievable. I've never been to Nepal actually, so it's now firmly on the Bucket list. Definitely highly recommend and perhaps you'd like to share as a final note, Susanna, perhaps you'd like to share your social channels and website details with our listeners so they can check out our tribe travels for themselves. Yes, absolutely. Thank you. Well, the Facebook group is at our tribe travels and that's got nearly 6,000 families in it. So that's a really busy, active group. And then the website is is www.ourtribetravels.com and same I'm on Instagram and Twitter at our TribeTravels2. So many, many ways to connect with you. Yes, thank you. Well, thank you so much for joining us today on talking travel. It's been great to hear all about our tribe travels and get your tips. So appreciate you taking the time out. We'll see you on the road very soon. Thank you very much for having me. Have a lovely night. Thank you, Susanna and yourself. Thank you. Bye bye. I listen to women's radio station women. The possibilities are endless. That's what makes us different. I'm Isabelle Manavy, an executive coach. Do you want to change a negative into a positive? We can do this by coaching you to rewire your brain using simple visualization techniques. In 20 years of practice, I seen this transform lives. For more information, look on women's radio website call me on 07-984-422171. With over 35 presenters, we have something for everyone on women's radio station. Women's radio station is a not for profit, community interest company. Supporting women is our passion. We're currently welcoming donations to help towards our running costs to keep this important initiative alive. To donate simply head to our website. Every little will help.