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GoNOMAD Travel Podcast

GoNOMAD Travel Podcast

By: Voyascape Media
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Take a few minutes to travel the world with The GoNOMAD Travel Podcast. Brought to you by the long-running GoNOMAD travel website, The GoNOMAD Travel Podcast brings you audio stories from destinations around the globe. It's short-form... 3-7 minute long episodes. No jarring AM radio-style theme songs, no ads, just an interesting short travel story and some food for thought, from editor Max Hartshorne. Fun! While you're planning your next trip or travel adventure, download and listen to The GoNOMAD Travel Podcast. GoNomad is part of the Voyascape Travel Network & you can find more of our travel podcasts from around the world at https://voyascape.com/ https://www.voyascape.com/ ()385914 Art Social Sciences Travel Writing & Commentary
Episodes
  • Hammond Castle on Cape Ann, Massachusetts

    Hammond Castle on Cape Ann, Massachusetts
    Jun 25 2026
    GONOMAD TRAVEL PODCAST — SHOW NOTESExploring the Quirky Hammond Castle of Gloucester, MassachusettsOn this episode of the GoNOMAD Travel Podcast, contributor Susmita Sengupta takes us to the rugged, wave‑carved coastline of Cape Ann, Massachusetts — home to one of New England’s most eccentric landmarks: Hammond Castle.Built between 1926 and 1929 by inventor John Hays Hammond Jr., the castle rises dramatically above the Atlantic, its stone towers and arched windows overlooking the crashing surf. Hammond, known as the Father of Radio Control, held hundreds of patents and transformed his seaside home into both a medieval fantasy and a working laboratory.The drive from Boston to Gloucester is a scenic hour along winding coastal roads, with ocean views that beg for photo stops. Arrive mid‑morning, and head straight to the lookout point — a rocky perch framing the open sea through stone arches.Inside, the castle feels like stepping into another century. Visitors wander beneath Gothic archways, climb narrow towers, and explore rooms filled with Renaissance art and ancient artifacts Hammond collected from Europe.The Great Hall is the showstopper — a cathedral‑like space with a massive fireplace, a stained‑glass window, and Hammond’s own pipe organ. From there, the tour leads to the glass‑roofed courtyard, lush with tropical plants and a pool dyed bright green to disguise its nine‑foot depth. Inspired by the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, this space blends art, science, and whimsy.The library holds over two thousand books and features the famous Whisper Ceiling, an acoustic marvel that amplifies a whisper at its center while keeping it inaudible elsewhere. Hammond’s mischievous streak appears in the Room Without Doors, where seamless wallpaper hides the entrance so well that guests often found themselves trapped until they called for help.In the Inventions Room, exhibits showcase Hammond’s pioneering work in radio control, FM broadcasting, and early sound amplification — including his World War I radio‑guided torpedo. His friendships with Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell are chronicled here, revealing the scientific network that shaped his career.After touring the castle, Susmita suggests extending your day trip to nearby Manchester‑by‑the‑Sea, just fifteen minutes away. Relax at Masconomo Park overlooking the harbor, or visit Singing Beach, where the sand hums beneath your feet.End your day at Lobsta Land, a Gloucester favorite for more than thirty years. Enjoy fresh seafood while watching herons and egrets glide across the salt marshes — just remember, they’re closed on Mondays.Hammond Castle is more than a museum; it’s a glimpse into the mind of a man who fused invention with imagination. Combining its history with the natural beauty of Cape Ann makes for a perfect New England adventure.CALLS TO ACTIONListen to more episodes of the GoNOMAD Travel Podcast: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gonomad-travel-podcast/id1525960132 (podcasts.apple.com in Bing) Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4xXGq5yRvCNrI6VsgGAaZp (open.spotify.com in Bing)Read more travel stories on GoNOMAD: https://www.gonomad.comFollow GoNOMAD on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gonomadtravel (instagram.com in Bing)Cape Ann, MASusmita Sengupta, an architect by background, from New York City, loves to travel with her family. Her articles have been published frequently in GoNOMAD, Go World Travel, In The Know Traveler, and other travel websites. Mentioned in this episode:Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the worldThis podcast is part of the Voyascape Travel Network, that brings together the world's best travel podcasts. You can find all of our podcasts from around the world at Voyascape.com. If you are interested in advertising or sponsored content on any of our shows you can find out more at the link below.Voyascape Podcast Network
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    6 mins
  • Irish By Descent, or How to Become an Irish Citizen

    Irish By Descent, or How to Become an Irish Citizen
    Jun 12 2026

    How an Irish‑Born Grandparent Could Change Your Life

    On this episode of the GoNOMAD Travel Podcast, we explore a story that begins with a simple family rumor — the kind told at holiday tables and half‑remembered over generations. What if that old tale about your Irish grandmother isn’t just nostalgia, but a key that could change where you’re allowed to live, work, and travel for the rest of your life?

    This episode dives into the emotional and practical power of discovering that one of your grandparents was born on the island of Ireland. For many Americans, Ireland is a place of cliffs, pubs, music, and mist — a beautiful destination. But for some, it’s something much more: a doorway.

    We follow the journey from curiosity to revelation, beginning with the moment you learn about Foreign Birth Registration, the Irish law that allows people with one Irish‑born grandparent to apply for Irish citizenship. One grandparent — that’s all it takes to unlock the possibility of holding an Irish passport and becoming a citizen of the European Union.

    The episode explores what that means in real life: the freedom to live anywhere in the EU, to spend a summer in Greece without counting Schengen days, to take a job in Copenhagen, to rent an apartment in Lisbon long enough to learn your neighbors’ names. And uniquely, Irish citizens also retain the right to live and work in the United Kingdom — a privilege most EU citizens lost after Brexit.

    But this isn’t just a legal process. It’s a deeply personal one. The search for your grandparent’s Irish birth records becomes a detective story through family Bibles, naturalization papers, draft cards, and old boxes of documents. It’s a journey that connects you to the landscapes your ancestors walked, the parishes where they were baptized, and the villages they left behind.

    We walk through the Foreign Birth Registration process, the documents required, the timeline, and the surprising simplicity of the application once the records are in hand. And we look at the long‑term impact: the options you give your future self, your children, and the generations that follow.

    This episode is an invitation to explore your family history, to reconnect with a place you may never have realized you belonged to, and to consider how one grandparent’s birthplace could open an entire continent of possibility.

    CALLS TO ACTION

    Listen to more episodes of the GoNOMAD Travel Podcast: Apple Podcasts: Spotify:

    Read more travel stories on GoNOMAD: https://www.gonomad.com

    Follow GoNOMAD on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gonomad_travel

    For more information about Irish citizenship by descent, contact Jack: https://www.irishbydescent.com

    Mentioned in this episode:

    Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

    This podcast is part of the Voyascape Travel Network, that brings together the world's best travel podcasts. You can find all of our podcasts from around the world at Voyascape.com. If you are interested in advertising or sponsored content on any of our shows you can find out more at the link below.

    Voyascape Podcast Network
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    7 mins
  • Baguio: The Cool Mountain Capital of the Philippines

    Baguio: The Cool Mountain Capital of the Philippines
    Jun 11 2026
    SHOW NOTES Baguio: An American Hill Station in the Philippine HighlandsToday on the GoNOMAD Travel Podcast, Senior Writer Chin Liang takes us up into the cool, mist‑wrapped mountains of northern Luzon to explore Baguio (BAG‑ee‑oh), the Philippines’ original highland escape. While most of the country swelters in tropical heat, Baguio sits comfortably below 70°F year‑round — a climate that first drew American colonizers here in the early 1900s and still lures travelers today.Chin begins his day in Burnham Park, the century‑old civic park designed by famed American planner Daniel Burnham. A man‑made lake sits at its center, ringed with weeping willows and bright yellow daisies, where families paddle small boats across the water. The lawns, rose gardens, and skate ramps echo the classic American park style Burnham brought to cities across the world.Just across the street, Chin stops at Café by the Ruins, a beloved Baguio institution. Their signature crispy tapa — thin slices of beef marinated in local spices and served with mountain rice, eggs, tomatoes, and onions — fuels the morning’s adventures.Baguio’s nickname, City of Pines, becomes clear at Camp John Hay, once an American military recreation facility and now a sprawling eco‑tourism resort. Visitors can stay in forest cabins, ride horses, play golf, or wander the pine‑scented trails. Chin highlights the Yellow Trail, a favorite for shinrin‑yoku, the Japanese practice of forest bathing: feeling the bark of a tree, breathing in the pine needles, and walking slowly with a 5‑step inhale, 5‑step exhale rhythm.Inside the camp sits the historic Bell House, named for U.S. Army General Franklin Bell. Its polished wood floors and broad veranda preserve the atmosphere of early 20th‑century American life in the Philippines. Right next door, Chin discovers one of Baguio’s quirkiest attractions — the Cemetery of Negativism, a playful lawn of cartoonish “gravestones” where visitors symbolically bury their bad thoughts.Back in the city, Session Road buzzes with life. Pastel‑colored American‑era buildings now house cafés, shops, and bakeries. When Chin visited, a full county‑fair‑style festival was underway: line‑dancing girls stomping in rhythm, locals in cowboy hats riding ponies, a beauty pageant beside an arm‑wrestling contest, and a singer belting out “Sweet Caroline” as the entire crowd — kids, parents, grandparents — sang along in perfect chorus.To understand the region’s Indigenous heritage, Chin visits the Igorot Stone Kingdom, a massive stone fortress built without cement, echoing the engineering of the Cordillera rice terraces. Towers, terraces, and walls rise like life‑sized sandcastles — a tribute to the Igorot people and the builder’s mother, a Cordilleran woman.Just north of Baguio lies La Trinidad, the strawberry capital of the Philippines. From November to May, visitors can pick their own berries and try local favorites like strawberry taho — warm soft tofu sweetened with brown sugar and topped with fresh berries — and strawberry ice cream. Nearby, the Valley of Colors bursts across the mountainside, hundreds of homes painted in bright hues like a giant mural. Locals say it looks as if “God spilled paint over the hillside.”With its cool air, drifting fog, pine forests, and blend of American history and Indigenous culture, Baguio remains the Philippines’ beloved Summer Capital — a place to breathe, wander, and escape the heat.Listen to more episodes of the GoNOMAD Travel Podcast: Apple Podcasts: Spotify:Read more travel stories on GoNOMAD: https://www.gonomad.comFollow GoNOMAD on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gonomad_travel Mentioned in this episode:Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the worldThis podcast is part of the Voyascape Travel Network, that brings together the world's best travel podcasts. You can find all of our podcasts from around the world at Voyascape.com. If you are interested in advertising or sponsored content on any of our shows you can find out more at the link below.Voyascape Podcast Network
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    7 mins
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