Traveling Culturati

Croatia Is A Pleasant Surprise

This week, Ja'Vonne is taking you on tour to Croatia. During my 

site inspection in April to Croatia, I traveled from Split to Dubrovnik and found Croatia to be a "pleasant surprise"

 

This young country with rich history and culture that spans centuries on the Adriatic Sea is a jewel. The clear waters, Mediterranean cuisine, authentic experiences like abandoned towns whose descendants still own, small farms and estates that produce local products like grappa, olive oil, wine, and honey, etc., old town history befitting of the Game Of Thrones.

 

I collected some wonderful interviews on my tour from Split to Dubrovnik from the guides that showed me their towns. Journey with me this week!

It's Been A Year Since The Pandemic

While state-by-state shutdowns happened at different times, by April, travel restrictions and travel bans were in full effect around the world.

We’re reviewing these events and along with our social media audiences, we’re recalling where we were when it happened, how we were impacted, and what our travel experience has been since.

The Culture Report – The National Museum of African American Music

“Culture is forever changing and reflecting what’s happening in the society and with its people. It can be born from the arts, music, food, and sometimes politics and strife.”Music is one of the most influential and immersive cultural experiences. I’m excited to chat with Tuwisha D. Rogers-Simpson, Vice President of Brand and Partnerships at the National Museum of African American Music. The National Museum of African American Music, located in Nashville, Tennessee showcases the musical genres inspired, created, or influenced by African-Americans. I can’t wait to visit the museum and explore the seven galleries, more than 25 interactive touchpoints, and more than 1500 artifacts!

Travel Impacts Your Mental Health

I took my first vacation and international trip at the end of January this year. On my last day as I had my last breakfast in the Maldives, I looked out into the ocean, took a deep breath, and began to cry. It was at that moment I realized how much I needed that time, that vacation, that travel experience, and how much I had missed it.

 

The feeling overwhelmed me and I knew at that moment how travel and the lack of it had impacted and affected my mental health.

 

This week I’m joined by David Levine, author of "The Hudson Valley: The First 250 Million Years" and travel writer who wrote The Many Ways Travel Is Good for Your Mental Health, and Dr. Jean Kim, a psychiatrist who has not only written about "Why Travel Is Good For Your Mental Health", in Psychology Today but certainly understands it from a clinical perspective.

Traveling In The time Of Covid

Host, Ja'Vonne Harley is joined by Executive Producer, Gene Harley to revisit Travel In The Time Of COVID!

If you’re considering travel or have planned travel in the near future, get your pen and paper or notepad ready. Today we’re revisiting and updating our Traveling In The time of Covid from our show of the same title November show.

The CDC has released updated COVID guidelines with regards to vaccines. 

While it’s not recommended by the CDC, travel is NOT prohibited so, Whether you should or shouldn’t is up to you. We’re providing information and resources for travel preparation, steps to take during your travels, types of travel to consider, what travel restrictions you can expect, and what to do after you travel.

There are things we learned and experienced during our travel experience that we didn't know in advance. Even after doing much research! This is why we make sure we have first-hand experience for our Advantage International clients and Traveling Culturati listeners.

Ahhh ... The Maldives

Our first international trip since the pandemic lockdowns and travel restrictions was to the Maldives. I like to say Ahhh... the Maldives because that's exactly how I felt during and after. It had been nearly a year since our last international trip which was February 2020.

What a difference 11 months makes. Gene and I (Ja'Vonne) are sharing our experience of traveling during the pandemic and the wonderful destination of the Maldives. Listen in and take this journey with us.

In The Culture Report

"Culture is forever changing and reflecting what’s happening in the society and with its people. It can be born from the arts, music, food, and sometimes politics and strife."

The Maldivian culture. So often the Maldives is seen as the destination for water safaris, pristine beaches, and fabulous over-the-water accommodations. Often overlooked is the rich and diverse culture of the Maldivians. Listen for the traditions, food, music, and diverse culture.

Women In Travel

Throughout the month we’ll highlight women in travel. We’ll address their roles, those who have paved the way, and those who are charting new courses.

We’re kicking off the month with Jamie-Lee Abtar, executive Director of Women In Travel for their BAME Programe and a marketing and business development consultant with an emphasis on helping brands to engage and attract BAME/BIPOC brands and consumers.

BAME stands for Black Asian Minority Ethnic and BIPOC, as you may know, is Black Indigenous, People Of Color.

In The Culture Report

"Culture is forever changing and reflecting what’s happening in the society and with its people. It can be born from the arts, music, food, and sometimes politics and strife."

I'm chatting with Rocky Bucano, Executive Director and one of the founding members of the Universal Hip Hop Museum.

One music genre that has taken the industry by storm and cemented its place forever is Hip Hop.

The New York City Universal Hip-hop Museum (UHHM) is slated to open in 2022 in the Bronx, the place where it all began

Murals and Street Art

On TRAVELING CULTURATI this week: Murals & Street Art!

Murals and street art are globally accepted forms of contemporary art. They are expressive, reflective of society and social events. At various times in history they have found their way front and center to not only the public at large but also the art world.

In the age of social media and Instagram-worthy shots, I thought it prudent to talk about this art form and its impact.

Two excellent guests join host, Ja'Vonne Harley providing a better understanding of Murals & Street Art in the art world and the impact this contemporary form of art has on society, especially as we deal with social justice and injustice.

It’s really the art imitates life and life imitates art Yin and Yang

Rebecca Zorach teaches in the art history department of Northwestern University as the Mary Jane Crowe Professor of Art and Art History. She has written on early modern European art, the Black Arts Movement, contemporary activist art, and art and ecology. She co-edited the 2017 book The Wall of Respect: Public Art and Black Liberation in 1960s Chicago with Abdul Alkalimat and Romi Crawford. In 2019, she published Art for People's Sake: Artists and Community in Black Chicago, 1965–1975. 

Dorian Sylvain is a painter whose color and texture explore ornamentation, pattern, and design as identifiers of cultural and historical foundations. Her art reflects, connects, and strengthens Black Chicago and for the past four decades, she has been committed to educating youth and creating public art that elevates neighborhoods and environmental aesthetics through collective art-making.

Plus Travel News with the latest travel news, and Ja'Vonne's Travel Minute.

U.S. Civil Rights Trail with Deborah Douglas

There are so many historic sites related to the Civil Rights movement. Many cities significant to the movement have trails with monuments, memorials, museums, and the historic sites themselves. Deciding where to go and putting together an itinerary can be time-consuming and without prior knowledge can be incomplete. Deborah Douglas has curated a U.S. Civil Rights Trail in a guidebook that is complete with planning tools, personal experiences, and general tourism elements.

In The Culture Report

In the Culture Report, I’m having a conversation with Elijah Heyward III, the Chief Operating Officer of the International African American Museum that is scheduled to open in 2022 in Charleston, SC, a city at the center of the African slave trade between 1783 and 1808 and located at the port where many enslaved Africans arrived.

Tourism's Impact On Gentrification

In the second week of Black History Month, and in our theme of Traveling While Black To The Future, we’re going to have a very thought-provoking conversation in this episode about tourism and gentrification. Yes, it’s a thing. What impact does tourism have on communities, how tourism can gentrify and change the landscape of a community and what tourists and communities can do for a more inclusive and diverse experience?

 

Aristotle Theresa, a Civil Rights attorney focusing on Zoning and Administrative Law. He is a principal partner of "Stoop Law" which is located in the Anacostia neighborhood of Southeast Washington DC and Sonya Grier, Ph.D., Professor of Marketing at the Kogod School of Business, American University, and Co-editor of Race in the Marketplace: Crossing Critical Boundaries are my guests.

TRAVELING CULTURATI: Black Historic Sites to Know And Visit

On TRAVELING CULTURATI this week: Black history is 24/7/365 and in February, Black History Month, we celebrate!
There are numerous Black historic sites including monuments, memorials, museums, and trails across the United States. This week we’re exploring a few and giving you ways you can celebrate the month!

On The Culture Report: There’s a new dining app created by, and for Black Restaurant Hunters Mobile app EatOkra is the first smartphone application to curate over 6500 black-owned restaurants and food establishments throughout the United States.

Plus Travel News with the latest travel news, and Ja'Vonne's Travel Minute on Stretches Before, During & After A Long Flight.