INTRO: This is part two of my interview with Dianni Hall. If you have not yet listened to part one, I highly recommend you go back and do that first because it provides some very important context for this episode. That was episode #274 of The Maverick Show. And if you have already listened to part one, then please enjoy the conclusion of my interview with Dianni Hall.

Matt Bowles: Can you talk a little bit about your experience traveling to other places? You’ve been to a lot of countries on a lot of continents as a queer traveler and seeking out queer travel spaces or navigating different countries as a queer traveler and what your experience and perhaps lessons have been so far.

Dianni Hall: I think because in the beginning of my travels, it was also still the beginning of my journey into queerness. I had just. left that relationship that I was with the first woman that I’d ever been in a relationship with. We’d lived together and all these things, but I had never really been a part of like queer communities.

So, it’s interesting, the intersectionality between those two, because I’ve discovered my queerness as a traveler and it’s become a bigger part of my travels as I grow into my own queerness, if that makes sense. As while traveling, I’ve, in the beginning, not really sought out those spaces, but if they happened by happenstance, I was happy to be like, “Oh my god, fellow gay”, like, you know, “let’s be friends and chat about this”.

But I think now, I actively want it to become a part of my travels because it’s actively a big part of who I am. Not that queerness looks different in other countries, but I love now to see what it does look like in other countries and what it doesn’t look like, you know, because I think the biggest question that I always get related to like being a queer traveler is, does it feel safe for you to be queer in other countries?

Or does it feel safe to, whatever the case may be as a queer person, because it’s always, this, rightfully so, this idea of like, it’s not safe to be queer or to show queerness in other places. And I think a lot of my experiences have negated that, but I think I also say that from a place of privilege who like is straight passing.

Like, I think not a lot of times that people immediately look at me and think that is a queer female. Whereas I have friends who actively present queer and they approach their travels a little bit differently because they have to be a bit more careful. Or I have friends who are non-binary who also have to like, have those things in mind when traveling in a way that I don’t have to.

So, I love to answer this question about like, being in queer spaces and stuff, but I also have to always preface with the fact that like, it depends on ‘Who’. Because not everyone on the LGBTQ spectrum is going to look the same, and present the same, and feel the same level of safety in those spaces.

With that being said, I think I now look for a queer community, and I think there are two kinds of online platforms. Being someone who’s like actively online all the time, I always kind of try and find spaces where I can connect with people before I arrive somewhere. So that way it’s like I’ve already got some connections within the queer space. 6:08

One of my favorites that I did use when I was in Brazil, when I was in Sao Paulo was Quouch, which is if you’re familiar with couch surfing, as I think most of us in this community would be, is you being able to like go on this platform, look at profiles, find someone in the city that you’re in and stay with them while you’re traveling, stay with them for free.

A lot of budget travelers use it. And Quouch is the same thing, but it’s specifically for women and LGBTQ folks and BIPOC folks as well to allow spaces for us to couch surf in a way that feels safe. And I didn’t share about this, but one time when I was in Germany and I was couch surfing, I had an experience that felt unsafe.

Nothing specifically happened to me, but I. Ended up leaving quite in a panic. It was very icky, you know, you just, there’s a lot of moments as travelers where you get this kind of gut feelings and you’re like, this is not, not it. So, I left that situation and that was kind of the ending of me using couchsurfing.

Cause I was like, I don’t want anything like that to happen again. And that’s why I admire people and. that start things like Quouch because it allows for you to still continue to travel in that way, like other people would, but in a way that feels safe. So Quouch is, like I said, Quouch surfing for queers.

And when I was in Sao Paulo, I was looking at it and there was actually a lot of people in Sao Paulo on Quouch. And I found this one girl and we’d went to one festival together. And then after that hung out some more and like our friend groups kind of intermeshed and she was able to like to introduce me to other Brazilian friends.

And I was introducing her to my friend. from the hostel, which is really lovely. So that is one absolutely great resource that I would 100 percent recommend to any queer travelers who are looking to kind of find ways that feel safer because you can also stay with them. And if like, you don’t maybe want to stay in a hostel because you don’t know if it’s going to feel safe, this is another alternative to that.

Then, there is LGBTQ Backpackers. It’s like this Facebook group that I’m active in and have used and It’s like I said another way. They also have WhatsApp groups So you’re able to like to find a WhatsApp group depending on where you are in the world. So, say you’re in South America There’s a specific LGBTQ backpackers’ group for South America where you can be like, oh, I’m in here.

I’m in Brazil, since we’ll keep using Brazil. I’m in Rio for the next like 10 days or whatever the case may be and connect with other people that way that allows you to kind of build community in a way that feels safe. For me, it’s a combination of utilizing these different resources and Making it a priority when I am in not necessarily, like, queer spaces to actively talk about my queerness, if it feels like a safe place because there’s the likelihood that you’re going to meet other queers who are also, like, iffy about sharing, you know, I think I’ve said before that hostiles always feel, like, very hetero spaces.

So being able to walk in and like say that you’re queer and attract other queers is something that I’ve just learned to kind of vocalize more and then actively go to more queer spaces. I just did a house sit in Houston and instantly started looking up gay bars or whatever or these kinds of spaces or being on Lex, which is this app for I call it Craigslist for queers, which is kind of what it is, but it’s like a way to meet people.

But there’s also people being like, I’m selling this, you know, it’s a hodgepodge of different things. I was on there and wrote a few things and I was like, oh, I’m in Houston for this amount of time, like looking for queer spaces, whatever. And they’d recommended this bar called Pearl, which is a lesbian bar.

So, I went to a lesbian night there by myself, ended up meeting like a bunch of different people. I always like to say, as a queer person, I’ve loved queer people. being able to connect with other people that are also queer and see like what their life looks like in these spaces and how maybe it’s different or has been challenging or hasn’t been challenging and I think as queer people we all have our very like individual story of what it looks like to come out and figure it out and to enter those spaces and so being able to find those while traveling has been one of the best parts of my travels for me because it allows me to create that.

community around the world. I don’t have just queer community here in New Jersey, but now I have it in Brazil. Now I have it in London because some of the girls that I’d met when I was in Sao Paulo celebrating pride, I went and visited when I was in London and then they took me to other spaces, just continuing to connect and not being afraid.

To connect and I say that with a grain of salt because like I said, it can be scary because it’s not always safe to do so, but that’s why I say prioritizing, finding those communities prior can make all the difference for you to have travels that make you feel included and not just feeling like you’re masking or you’re trying to present more hetero because you feel like you have to.

You don’t have to. There are options for you to be yourself as you’re traveling. So, sorry, I could ramble about that one because it feels so important. It feels so, so important to me.

Matt Bowles: Yeah, I wanted to ask for your tips for queer digital nomads that might be at the earlier stage of their journey and wondering about everything from safety to things like dating as a queer person in the digital nomad lifestyle, finding love and partnership and all of those.

How does that work in this? Lifestyle and so forth. So, for any folks that are kind of at the earlier part of their journey, what tips might you have for them?

Dianni Hall: I will preface with, I am not a love guru and finding love as a digital nomad is hard. Like no matter what. Okay. I was just having a chat with some friends about this yesterday who are also like fellow travelers and queer.

It’s complex, whether you’re straight, whether you’re gay, like whatever the case may be. But in terms of actively dating, I would always say dating apps. Dating apps don’t just cater to straight people, they also, like, you can change the settings. Put on there that you’re looking for women only, or you’re looking for men only, or you’re looking for both, or whatever you’re looking for, and seek and you will find, basically.

So, I have used and utilized a lot of dating apps while traveling, and it’s been a great way for me to, like, meet locals, but also, like, feel safe. So maybe you get to a city, you know, there’s lesbian bars, but you’re solo traveling and like, you don’t want to go alone. Or as a digital nomad, maybe like you said, you’re new.

So maybe you’re just appearing in this community. You maybe don’t feel comfortable outing yourself just yet, or. Telling other people or asking people to like go to this gay bar with you or there’s this event. I would instantly hop onto a dating app, set it to whatever it is that you’re looking for and scroll through and see what you find.

And a lot of times you’ll find a local who’s also queer and like you can meet up and enjoy a good time. And I mean, that’s part of what I did in Houston too, where I was like looking for women only. I did meet a girl on Tinder that we ended up like going to the bar to, or I met her there later on and like had a great time with her and we hung out a lot.

And it can be kind of like intimidating and scary to approach these spaces, but sometimes you have to put yourself out there and sometimes it’s a little bit easier to do from behind a screen versus like just right away in person. So, if you can get on apps and start looking that way. That’s what I would recommend.

And that’s what I’ve done with caution, because if you fall in love and then you’re leaving in two months, it’s something to keep in mind. And it’s always a little bit difficult navigating relationships in general as a traveler, because there’s just so much nuance to it. It’s like, you meet someone, they’re planning to go here.

You’re planning to go there, or you meet someone here in your hometown. And you’re like, I’m going to be leaving in a few months. And then there’s. Conversations about long distances and you have to figure out what it is that you’re willing to do just as a person. What is it that you want as a person, whether it’s someone who also travels with you, if it’s someone you’re willing to do long distance with.

Love is really hard, and I think it’s kind of one of the things that we tend to, at least I, or other travelers that I know tend to sacrifice in the name of being able to live the life that we live.

Matt Bowles: Well, the other thing, of course, that I want to ask you about is the amazing podcast that you host, While She’s Away.

I am a big fan. I have listened to podcast A lot of your episodes; you are a super talented interviewer. You also select really substantive and thoughtful guests. And the conversations are consistently amazing, in my opinion, as a listener. I want you to let folks know, though, just have never heard of your podcast.

Maybe just give us a little background and talk about the origin story. Why you created it and what folks can expect from the podcast.

Dianni Hall: Thank you so much. That’s such a huge compliment as a podcaster to know that people listen and can feel the thoughtfulness and curiosity and intrigue that I have behind the mic asking questions to the guests that I’m having on because I think that’s where that comes from being a great interviewer.

It literally just comes from this place of I’m curious about you and your story and I think it has value and I think you have value in what you share with the listener. So, Thank you. I really appreciate that. While She’s Away, it was born from that time that I was in India where I told you that like I was at that ashram and had met all these amazing women.

I had been an avid, really avid podcast listener at that time because it was kind of also facilitating my spiritual journey. And I was like learning a lot from different interviews and listening to podcasts. And I’d kind of had this spark of like, well, I’m meeting all these amazing women, and I can also share these stories with.

other women who were like me and didn’t know this was a thing that you could do, and they could learn how to do this thing. And we can just all do this together. Maybe from a very naive place, but a very exciting place to share this, like, newfound thing that I’d discovered. It started as that, and I was interviewing friends that I’d met in Spain, and I was interviewing friends that I’d met on that trip when I was in India, which involved into, like, me reaching out to other women on social media to interview, and also trying my best to make it a very inclusive space from India.

interviewing other Latina women, other black women, other variations of not just the typical, which we’d seen for a while of white solo female traveler, but different facets of that and about what those different experiences look like. And also, being a queer traveler, which I don’t think we always see a ton of specifically in podcasting.

I think more and more it just in travel in general, yes, but not always at that intersection of podcasting and travel. It’s grown. It’s just a passion project that has grown into my whole career somehow as a freelancer that just really stems from a passion and excitement about seeing the world and wanting other people to be able to do it and wanting other people to feel like they can do it and that there are ways to do it.

And I think I would always say, anyone can do it. If I can do it, anyone can do it. And I think in recent months, my privilege has been checked really hard with that kind of statement because they’re specifically, and not to like to veer off into another subject, but I told you I had went to a movie screening by a Palestinian.

movie director in New York, the People’s Forum, they share movies. And it was a movie called Between Two Lines, I’m pretty sure. And it was about this young woman’s journey of getting accepted into a university in the U.S. and her journey of, like, trying to get out of Gaza. To the U.S. This was filmed back in like 2017, uh, trying to get out of Gaza into the U.S. to go to school. And it documents her journey of like going to the border, the Rafah border, and the crossing, and there’s another crossing every day, literally just trying to get through so she can go to university in the U.S. And, uh, it failed one time. She couldn’t get through because there were so many people just there waiting.

And then the next time she comes back again and eventually she is able to. And I had always for so long been like, it’s really as simple as just like wanting to, you know, it’s really as simple as just not having the resources. Like here are the resources to make it free or make it cheaper so that you can do it because usually the barrier is money.

But that had never considered the fact that sometimes the barrier is not money. And now it’s like, I present all of the resources and all of the things that I’ve learned for you to be able to use, but it’s no longer from that place of like, this is accessible to everyone, because since then I have learned that that’s not necessarily the case.

So not to veer off your question about my podcast, but if you want to go listen, if you want to hear from other women, other diverse women, about different aspects of being a digital nomad, of being a traveler, you Either how to start or how to make it sustainable and just really honest accounts of what it looks like from my own perspective, then that is a place that I would love for you to come.

Matt Bowles: Well, I think that is directly related to your podcast. Everything that you were talking about, I listened to a incredible episode of your podcast where you platformed a Palestinian woman to talk exactly about All of the things that you are describing in terms of the day-to-day life in occupied Palestine and what’s happening now during the genocide and everything else.

And it was one of my favorite episodes that you have made. And my heart was warmed just how kind. And how thoughtful and how empathetic you were as a host in your role. And I mean, your guest was fantastic, of course, and she, you know, really, really, really important that you platformed her, but your role as the host.

Also, in being so thoughtful in the questions that you asked and the way that you engaged in that conversation was just incredibly heartwarming for me to listen to the entire discussion. So of course we are going to link up your podcast in the show notes and I want to encourage everybody to go listen to your show, listen to that episode, listen to other episodes because I think that’s really consistent about you as a person and as a podcast host and how you engage with people and engage with the world.

And I actually want too maybe it. Use that to open up a little bit of a discussion about Palestine, and maybe you could share a little bit about your journey in learning about the situation and the advocacy that you’re now doing. You were at a protest just yesterday about trying to stop the genocide in Palestine.

So, can you share a little bit about what your journey has been on that?

Dianni Hall: I mean it. Almost shamefully, I hate admitting, I just learned about this as of a few months ago. But I think, as Americans, it’s not really like open information unless you seek it out. So, it wasn’t something that I was very aware of until that attack on October 7th.

Somehow since then, I have learned a ton. from either documentaries or talking to people or just consuming from journalists who are on the ground and listening to podcasts as well and taking the time to really learn about the history and about what’s happened to the Palestinian people before this and to realize that like there’s context to this.

There was not just simply An attack that happened on October 7th, but there’s also years and years and years of occupation of oppression of all of these things that have happened before then, and I don’t think you can have a conversation. about October 7th without that context. That is an extremely important context.

And I think that’s what my journey has been because on that day it was like, okay, this is what happened and that’s awful. And then it became an unfolding of like learning all of these different facets of what else has happened between the Nakba and Gaza being occupied and like all of these different things that have happened.

And that journey has led me to, which we talked about earlier as well, Of learning all of these things, having also basic empathy when it comes to learning about what an oppressed people is going through and what an occupied people are dealing with and feeling all of the hurt and the sadness and the frustration that comes along with that, specifically as an American, which we touched on because we’ve also learned that even before now, like.

The U.S. has funded Israel and sent them billions of dollars on a yearly basis to support their military efforts and to support the IOF and, and all of these things. I’ve done a lot of discovering, which has come with painful realizations about the U.S., about the world in general, because we’re now going on over, I think it’s 112 days, with attempts at intervening, but nothing fully panning out in a way that has called for like an immediate ceasefire and an actual stop to the bombing that’s happening and an actual entrance of aid in the way that it needs to happen.

And I was having this conversation with friends yesterday because I went to a protest yesterday in New York. I’ve gone to several and it’s the same group of friends that I went to a protest within October, which was four months ago. And at times it can feel really. frustrating and isolating and exhausting and just heartbreaking to continue to watch on a daily basis.

Consume all of these images and videos of things of people being starved to death or going through the most horrific things possible and still have your country be like, no, We’re going to fund this and there’s so much like grappling internally that goes on with that of like being American and seeing your part of the problem and we were just talking about like how it’s been four months and we’ve continued to be active, whether it’s posting, whether it’s attending protest, whether it’s boycotting all of these different things, calling your representatives, emailing your representatives, whatever, signing petitions, whatever way that looks like.

But to not see like immediate active change happen can be extremely disheartening, but it has not deferred people from continuing to be active and continuing to be out on the streets protesting on a weekly basis in New York and around the world, everywhere. It gives me a sense of hope to like have people in my community that I can go to these protests with, and we can see other people who.

Still care, who are not saying like, oh, this has happened for four months. Like we’re done. Like I just, there’s nothing else that we can do. I’m going to give up now who are like, no, we will be out here until something is done. We will continue until something is done. But it’s been a lot of unlearning, a lot of learning and realizing like, I want to be on the right side of history.

When eventually things do come down and we are able to see. The end of the occupation, and I want to be able to proudly say I was out there, I cared, I was sharing, I was talking about these things because it mattered.

Matt Bowles: Well, I will say this as somebody who’s been doing Palestine activist work for 25 years, I’ve probably been involved in doing advocacy around this struggle in some capacity.

Seeing. your content over the last few months. And for me, just listening to your interview and understanding that this was a new thing for you that you recently learned about, and you were so empathetic to the situation that you have been posting on this on your social media so consistently going out to protests doing these things that for me is where the hope lies in this entire thing because you in turn then are creating a ripple effect right like the hope is that human beings like yourself who can be made aware of the situation and once they’re aware of Wow.

They’re really empathetic about it and they’re motivated to take action. And that then in turns other people to get educated and motivate them and to take action. And it creates this ripple effect. So, hearing your story and the way that you came to consciousness about this and the way that you have been conducting yourself since then, and the priorities that you’ve had and the content that you’ve put out there for me has just been incredibly heartwarming. And I think that is for me where hope lies.

Dianni Hall: Thank you. That means a lot. And I think it’s also been where the hope lies, I think partially for me as well, outside of protesting, but being in those spaces online where having those conversations in your DMS, because I’ve actively posted about being pro Palestine and calling for a cease fire and all these aspects.

And then seeing, People come into my DMs with like, hey, I listened to your episode, and I hadn’t thought about it in this way before. Or I listened to your episode, and I didn’t know XYZ. Or I listened to your episode, and I didn’t realize how important it was for me to share on my own story. I had other travelers be like, I know about what’s happening and I think it’s fucked up or whatever the case.

But I didn’t think me posting myself would matter. So I had seen the, Personal impact of what creating content around this meant because I had other fellow travelers come into my DMs after listening to the episode and saying just how impactful, things like you were saying, how impactful and meaningful it was and how much they’d learned from it when they didn’t know, but also the impact of Deciding to post the content themselves.

Like I had travelers, friends who were just posting regular content at kind of the height of this in October, November. And I don’t know how you can post things like how to become a digital nomad right now, while this is actively happening. And they’d listen to the episode and come back and been like, you know what?

This made me realize how important it is for me to post. And it opened up conversations of how that is important and how it made me like, Maybe I have 2, 000 followers and maybe a hundred something, 200 people are watching my stories. But that’s a hundred something, 200 people who are watching my story and seeing something related to this and then taking that and possibly Reposting or possibly it leading to a conversation or possibly it leading to them doing more research.

For me, I think what it was is like you never know what the domino effect of what you’re sharing is going to be. And those are just people who reached out to me. So, I don’t even know if people who listened to it and didn’t reach out to me, and it still had some impact on them. My biggest thing would be like, don’t be afraid of sharing about this because you think no one’s listening and you feel like you’re screaming in the void.

You have no idea who’s listening in that void and on the other side of that, especially with podcasting, because we don’t have the same metrics that you have on like Instagram or TikTok where it’s like, it got this many likes, like, you know, how many listeners, but you don’t know about direct impact because no one can actually comment.

So sharing is still so, so valuable, whether it’s an Instagram story, whether it’s a TikTok, whether it’s a post, whether it’s a podcast episode in whatever capacity. Sharing is meaningful and it is the least that we can do and people on the ground in Gaza have actively said are continuing to share and are continuing to talk about this is what gives them hope because they see that we care.

And so if that’s all we can show them, if we can’t get our government to change their minds, if we can’t make impact on that level, if the least we can do is like give them hope by showing them that we care over here, even if our government doesn’t, that is still meaningful impactful on a Personal human level.

Matt Bowles: Yeah. And if folks are interested in more of the historical and political context, as well as the details of what is happening now in the genocide, I did an episode on this specific topic, which I will link up in the show notes. And I’m also going to link up Dianni’s excellent episode that she did on this topic in the show notes.

So, you can go listen to both of those, which are a great primer on just background and context for understanding this. Thanks. And then moving forward to take action and raise your voice and all of those things. Dianni, let me ask you one more question and then we’ll wrap this up and move into the lightning round.

When you think back about the impact that all of these travel experiences have had on you as a person, why do you continue to travel? What does travel mean to you today?

Dianni Hall: Travel means so many things. to me. I don’t want to answer this from a cliche. You know, I’ve changed it up, but it’s truly been the most important part of my life.

From the perspectives it’s allowed me to gain, from the way I’ve been able to learn from people, from the way people have been able to learn from me, from the friendships I’ve been able to develop with different people around the world who have different experiences, it’s expanded. my mind and my life in a way that, as someone who’s an immigrant child living in New Jersey in a lower to middle class family, like those things, like you never think that you’ll be able to grow and be a part of the world in the way that you want to be.

that I have been able to. And maybe it’s not like huge impact on a giant scale, but I think having friends in Germany and having friends in Brazil and having friends in Spain and having friends in Portugal and having conversations with those friends about important topics and them being able to like to influence my life and me being able to influence their life.

And those small things would never have happened if I hadn’t like decided to get on the plane and go somewhere else. And it’s, it’s maybe sounds, I don’t know, but it’s, there’s just so many facets of how this has been, travel itself has been impactful in my life, but it’s, the reason that I keep doing it because I know there are more people to meet and more community to build and more ways for me to learn about the world and for other people to learn from me and just more interaction to have I think is like the most basic level of it like just so much more community to be had in all the places.

Why stay here when I can create a community in other places in a really, really beautiful, connected way.

Matt Bowles: That’s an amazing answer. I think you are amazing, Dianni. And I think that’s a wonderful place to end the main portion of this interview. And at this point, are you ready to move into the lightning round?

Dianni Hall: Not necessarily, but yes.

Matt Bowles: Let’s do it

Dianni Hall: lightning round.

Matt Bowles: Alright. Dianni, what is one book maybe that’s have a significant impact on you that you would most recommend people should read?

Dianni Hall: Okay. I can I give two? Don’t hate me. You may. Okay. So, one of ’em just travel related fun, silly, funny is called What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding, and I think it’s a beautiful story of a woman who’s just rediscovered herself through travel and discovered the world and she tells it in such a.

funny relatable way through all of her stories. So, what I was doing while you were breeding is one of them. And there’s another book that I’m reading right now called Against the Loveless World, and it’s written by a Palestinian author. And it’s the story of this woman’s experience going from Israeli solitary confinement and her whole story and experience.

So definitely worth a read. This author is amazing, Suzanne Abulaha. So those are two books that are great that I would highly recommend.

Matt Bowles: We are going to link all of this up in the show notes. So, folks can just go to one place at themaverickshow.com. Go to the show notes for this episode.

You’re going to have direct links to every book and everything that Dianni has recommended. Perfect. And that we have discussed in this interview. So that is easy. Dianni, who is one person currently alive today that you’ve never met, that you’d most love to have dinner with just you and that person for an evening of dinner and conversation.

Dianni Hall: There’s this artist that I really love Kehlani and she’s been pivotal in, she’s a queer woman and she’s been pivotal in my own queer journey when I was coming out. And she’s also been very actively supporting Palestine in protests and coming and being out there, and I’ve just adored her from her music to her content and every aspect, and I think being able to sit down with her and have a really thoughtful conversation about queerness, about oppression, about decolonization, about all of the aspects would be amazing.

So Kehlani, I love her.

Matt Bowles: All right, Dianni, knowing everything that you know now. If you could go back in time and give one piece of advice to your 18-year-old self, what would you say to 18-year-old Dianni?

Dianni Hall: You can do so much more than you think you can. I would have never thought that the life that I’ve created for myself right now was possible.

And the fact that I’ve done it is like, insane and it’s never something that I would thought I could do at 18. So, I would just tell her, You Have so much more to offer and you are capable of doing so much more than you think you are. So just try Because you can do amazing things

Matt Bowles: Awesome advice. All right of all the places that you have now traveled ,what are three of your favorite destinations you would most recommend, other people should definitely check out?

Dianni Hall: Okay, I’m going to name three countries not like specific cities.

Matt Bowles: Okay,

Dianni Hall: but Spain, of course, because you’ve heard me talk about Spain and it’s just, the people are lovely, food’s amazing, it’s a gorgeous country, all the aspects, Spain, Brazil, because we both will fangirl the fuck over Brazil, it’s an insanely incredible, I can just say incredible country for every country, but it is, it’s beautiful, I’ve never seen nature like I have there, the people have a charisma about them that I’ve never experienced anywhere else, and the food is also amazing, so.

Brazil and also Vietnam. I’m a huge fan of Vietnamese food, so we’ll eat pho all day long, every day of my life. They’ve got incredible, if you’re vegan or vegetarian, they’ve got incredible vegan and veggie food. I would just go to these little places and say like, these little vegan veggie restaurants and say, Com Chai, and it’s like, you get a plate of the day with, I don’t even know what’s on that plate, but I know it’s vegetarian and it’s delicious.

So, Vietnam’s another place, and I think those would be like my three big recommendations.

Matt Bowles: All right, last question, Dianni, what are your top three bucket list destinations, places you have not yet been highest on your list you’d most love to see?

Dianni Hall: I really want to go to Japan. I love places that are like extremely culturally different than what I’ve experienced in the US or just in general.

And I feel like Japan would be that. So really want to experience Japan, Guatemala, just because of the family history that I have there and wanting to visit those family spaces and meet family that I’ve never met before. I think a third would be, let’s say Palestine. Once it’s, I’ve never been to, I’ve never been to Israel, never been to Palestine, and I would love to experience Palestine for all that is and see the people have been so incredibly resilient and I would love to actually get to experience that firsthand. So, Palestine there we go.

Matt Bowles: That is a really beautiful choice and an amazing way to end this interview. Dianni, I want you to let folks know how they can find you, how they can follow you on social media, how they can listen to your podcast, how they can come into your world.

Dianni Hall: First of all, so much for having me. We’ve been chatting for like hours at this point, and it’s been truly lovely. So, I love any opportunity to connect with other people. Travelers in the community, but it’s been different with you because we’ve had really thoughtful conversations that haven’t just been surface level. So being able to connect with you on that level has been really, I’m so grateful.

And I’m going to thank Janessa after this for connecting us. So first of all, thank you for that to come find me and hang out with me on Instagram, it’s at whileshesawaypod, on TikTok at whileshesaway, and the podcast is called While She’s Away. So, you put that in just about anywhere and you’ll probably find me and I’m always happy to have more people come and chat and connect.

Matt Bowles: Well, I am a huge fan of you as a human being. I am a huge fan of your work and your content. We are going to link up your podcast, your TikTok, your Instagram. And everything else that we have discussed on this episode, it’s all going to be in one place folks. So just go to themaverickshow.com.

Definitely please go check out Dianni’s podcast. Please leave her a rating and review wherever you are listening to this podcast. You can find While She’s Away, just type it in and then please leave her a rating and review. She is doing incredible work, and I definitely want you to get into her ecosystem, learn what she’s about.

She’s doing amazing things. Dianni. This was incredible. Thank you so much for coming to the show.

Dianni Hall: Thank you so much.

Matt Bowles: All right. Goodnight, everybody.