“These dolphins surrounded me and I was hovering above the sand and they were playing with me and I swam up with them and thought I would die for them to be safe, it was like my heart was cracked open and I came up thinking how can I be more impactful in the ocean space,” says freediving champion turned conservationist Hanli Prinsloo.
It was this encounter with dolphins in Mozambique while teaching a freediving course that made Hanli Prinsloo turn conservationist, and now she hosts retreats to teach others how to freedive and educate about marine conservation.
For more about her next retreat in the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve of Baa Atoll while staying at Avani+ Fares Maldives Resort, go to avanihotels.com. For more information about Hanli, go to hanliprinsloo.com
Also, do you ever wonder when and where you should tip? Travelex has put a guide together to help you know which countries you should tip in and how much you should be handing over. For the full tipping guide, go to https://www.travelex.com.au/media/1338/tipping-guide.pdf
And our tip this week is from Travelinsurance.com.au about how to maximise your frequent flyer points. For more, go to https://www.travelinsurance.com.au/
This mini-series is brought to you by Avani Hotels & Resorts. With more than 40 properties across five continents, Avani offers city hotels, tropical resorts and retreats in nature. For more, visit avanihotels.com
Visit us at https://theworldawaits.au
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_02 (00:00):
Welcome to The World Awakes.
Travel tales to inspire yourwanderlust.
Welcome back to The WorldAwakes.
This mini-series is brought toyou by Avani Hotels and Resorts.
With more than 40 propertiesacross five continents, Avani
offers city hotels, tropicalresorts and retreats in nature.
(00:21):
For more, visit avanihotels.com.
Hi everyone.
How are you, Kirsty?
I am fine.
deep in edits on my crimemanuscript and I hope to have
more to be able to tell everyoneabout that really soon because
I've got some exciting news.
But in the meantime, to tip ornot to tip, Belle, I know you
had some strong opinions aboutthis one.
SPEAKER_00 (00:44):
I've got a few strong opinions.
That old treble conundrum.
Yes, like a lot of Australians,I really resent the requirement,
not the choice, to tip in the USeven if the service is bad.
If you are paying somebody awage they cannot live on, is it
up to me to make the shortfall?
That is my question.
I will reward service that goesbeyond.
(01:04):
But tipping someone just becausethey did their job sends the red
mist across my eyes.
I think in Australia, where wagestaff are paid a living wage, it
doesn't mean we get bad service.
In fact, in the majority ofcafes, it's competent and
courteous.
And in our restaurants, it'sfrequently exceptional.
SPEAKER_02 (01:21):
Yeah, that's very true.
Love it or loathe it, everycountry has a unique set of
social customs and tippingetiquette, and it can vary
significantly, obviously,between cultures.
And deciding whether or not totip is probably the easy part.
The real problem is actuallyknowing or deciding how much to
tip because culture Too littlemight be considered as an insult
(01:41):
and too much can actually beconsidered in some countries as
fleshy and arrogant.
Or it might be
SPEAKER_00 (01:46):
broke as well, because in countries too, it's a
completely alien concept.
So Travelex has put a guidetogether to help you know
whether you should or shouldn'ttip.
So let's start with what isundoubtedly one of the most
loved destinations by Aussiesright now, Japan.
So Japan, you do not tip.
The Japanese consider that goodservice is standard and to tip
(02:08):
is an insult.
However, in high-class hotels orryokan, it is acceptable to give
a tip, but never directly.
It should be placed in a smallsealed envelope and given
discreetly with a small bow ofthe head.
Alternatively, you can expressyour appreciation by giving a
gift instead.
Hotel staff in Japan may betrained to say no thank you if
(02:29):
they are offered a tip.
SPEAKER_02 (02:30):
Yeah, we were in Japan a few years ago and they
definitely didn't want tips.
And as you say, and because it'sjust so polite and they want to
provide a good service.
So that's why they just find itquite insulting.
Another reason to love Japan.
And while in Italy, servicecharges are included in most
restaurants, but if not, 10% isactually considered the norm.
No one has to tip on top ofthat, but many do if they think
(02:52):
that the service warrants.
And in bars, Italians oftenleave small change when
purchasing drinks.
Taxi drivers like to be tipped,but it isn't expected.
It's a Probably better practiceto actually agree to a final
fare before the journey begins.
That's not always easy.
And in hotels, the same asanywhere else in the world,
porters, concierge and those whoprovide room service do expect a
(03:14):
few euros.
SPEAKER_00 (03:15):
Yeah, Spain's pretty much the same.
In restaurants, bills alwaysinclude the service.
An extra tip of 5 to 10% on topis customary.
And it's best to leave tips incash, even if you're paying by
credit card.
If you're eating tapas or snacksat a bar, just round the bill up
to the nearest euro.
It definitely helps when it's acash-oriented society.
Taxi drivers expect no tip atall, and they're happy if you
(03:37):
round up the fare, especially ifthey're giving you extra help
with your luggage.
And a tip of 5% of the totalfare is considered very
generous, according to TravelX.
In hotels, porters receive aeuro a bag for room service and
doorman the same.
Tip the maid about a euro anight and the concierge from a
euro for basic help up to fiveeuro if they score that ticket
(04:00):
that you've been hanging outfor.
SPEAKER_02 (04:02):
Yeah, and while in Thailand tipping is not usual,
some tyres will leave loosechange when they go out locally.
And when we were in Thailand, wedid tip and they were very
grateful.
And I also did the Japanesething and put some change in an
envelope for a staff member whoI really thought went above and
beyond for us.
In Bangkok, it says more Westernstandards are adopted here.
(04:23):
So at hotel and upmarketrestaurants, there's a 10%
service charge.
Taxi drivers don't expect a tip,but a small tip is reasonable if
service is good, maybe if it's alonger journey.
And in hotels, you're notexpected to tip.
At high-end hotels, servicecharges are usually included,
but tips of 20 to 50 baht, whichis just a dollar or two, is
still expected, like everywherefor porters and bellboys.
SPEAKER_00 (04:47):
And in Qatar, although Qatar is one of the
richest countries in the world,the workers in the service
industry are rarely Qatari, butfrom third world countries, and
on top of that, are very poorlypaid.
So they rarely see the...
benefits of the usual 10%service charges in places like
hotels and restaurants.
So a tip for good service is anact of generosity.
Even small amounts can make ahuge difference.
(05:09):
But tips are not expected.
If they happen to prove this tous, 10% to 15% in a restaurant
is a nice gesture.
So you can tip doorman quarters,sort of staff at mosques.
A lot of those are volunteers aswell.
Petrol stations, because theypump the gas for you, which I
love, and a little more forhotel housekeepers.
(05:29):
The most important thing here isto be discreet and respectful
when you tip.
And I'll give you a little tipfor this one, Kirsty.
Often what you can do is you canfold up the note because even
the smallest currencies are innote and you put them in the
palm of your hand.
And when you shake that person'shand, that's how you transfer
the money.
From years of living and tippingin the Middle East, that is
often how it's done.
So you're not doing a big flashythrow the money thing.
(05:50):
You just pop it in your hand,shake hands, transfer the money
that way.
And that is the way that it'sdone amongst locals.
Because locals, the thing islocals tip.
as well as foreigners too.
It is a tipping society.
SPEAKER_02 (06:02):
Yeah, and that's what a lot of this Travelex
report's showing to explainingwhat the locals are doing too,
which makes it easy fortravellers to follow in suit.
So in South Africa, tipping iswidely practised and
well-received in restaurants andbars, particularly in
upper-class suburbs.
Service charges likely have beenincluded in the bill, between
10% to 15%.
And this is a standard rate totip in the essence of that
(06:24):
charge.
And hotels leave tips forhousekeeping, same like with
everyone else.
And porters may be paid, buttaxi charges don't include a
tip.
And 10% is the norm.
SPEAKER_00 (06:35):
And look, I think we finished on the one that the
Australians struggle the most,and that is North America.
Tipping is embedded in theculture in Canada.
Expect 15% to 20% to be added torestaurants.
Here's the red mist coming down.
You tip porters, you tip taxidrivers, and when you buy a
drink at the bar, you leavebetween$0.50 and$2.
Down south in the US, the reportsuggests stacking your wallet
(06:57):
full of$1 bills for porters andbellhops at bars, spas, 20% in
the restaurants, to supplement,let's be blunt about it, the
wages, the low wages of theworkers.
But the bottom line, accordingto Travelex, is if the service
wasn't up to scratch, don'tleave a tip.
Don't know how you get aboutthat in the US.
And we will put a link withother advice of other countries
(07:18):
around the world in the shownotes.
UNKNOWN (07:27):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_02 (07:31):
This week, I'm interviewing freediving
champion, ocean conservationist,and founder and director of I Am
Water, Hanley Prince-Lou, abouther remarkable journey from
living on a horse farm in SouthAfrica, where the closest ocean
is more than 10 hours away, tobecoming a freediving world
champion and holding freedivingretreats.
Welcome to the show, Hanley.
(07:53):
Thank you.
Good to be here.
It's so great to have you on theshow.
Let's start by, tell us a bitabout how you went from growing
up on a horse farm, 10 hoursfrom the ocean, to being an
ocean conservationist and a freediving record holder.
SPEAKER_01 (08:08):
I know it doesn't really sound like the most
direct route, does it, Kirsty?
But I grew up on a horse farm ina wild part of South Africa.
And I For me, my love of theocean actually started with a
love of wilderness, of nature.
I think these things are verysimilar when we immerse
ourselves in wild nature.
And growing up on the farm, wehad a river, a dam, a swimming
(08:31):
pool, and my sister and I dreamtof being mermaids.
And we would spend hoursswimming underwater and
practicing our breath hold.
And we used to freak my mom out,completely disappearing below
the surface of a brown farm dam,swimming underwater, pretending
to be mermaids.
So...
In my 20s, actually, I wasstudying in Sweden of all
places.
It gets even more obscure,right?
(08:51):
Because Sweden and freezing coldfjord.
And there I met a freediver whosaid to me, have you heard about
freediving?
And initially I thought it was atranslation error.
I was like, freediving?
Nothing's free.
What is he talking about?
And eventually he explained tome that it was diving down,
holding your breath.
And all those childhood memoriesof holding my breath underwater
in the river and the dam justcame back to me.
(09:12):
And I thought, this is it.
But this is what I've beenwanting to discover.
I got into freediving in coldfjords in Sweden.
and started training there.
And I think that's one of thereasons I actually became a good
competitive freediver because Ilearned to freedive under quite
adverse conditions.
So by the time I was let loosein deep blue water, nothing
could stop me.
But also I have a very deep loveof the African continent and
(09:36):
particularly South Africa.
And I was working at the time asa social political documentary
filmmaker, speaking about socialinjustices and the future of
South Africa.
And so for me, this love of theocean, And this love of the
people of South Africa cametogether in the type of
conservation that I'm mostpassionate about, which is
connecting people to the ocean.
SPEAKER_02 (09:58):
Wow.
So how did you go from doingthat to, and obviously you were
competing competitively, to thenactually holding retreats?
Have you been doing that for awhile?
And how did you make that sortof evolution?
And what's your life like now?
How's it weighted as far as whatyou're doing?
SPEAKER_01 (10:16):
Hmm, good question.
So I really do feel I often getasked by young people, if I
wanted to pursue a career likeyours, should I study marine
biology?
I'm like, you can, but that's asfar as it can be from what I
did.
Should I study tourism?
I didn't study that either.
It's been a bit of a loopy roadto get where we are today.
But in 2010, I started anonprofit, I Am Water Ocean
(10:38):
Conservation, that works withtaking young children from the
townships in South Africa,snorkeling and teaching them
about the ocean.
I really, truly believe that theocean is a place for everyone,
even if there are pockets oftransgenerational fear and lack
of access to the ocean and soon.
And the nonprofit really hasbeen my heart's work to see the
(10:58):
ocean space open up to all SouthAfricans.
As part of the fundraising forthat, actually, my then partner,
now husband, and I started atravel company.
deciding that if we can takepaying clients on
transformational oceanexperiences and funnel the money
from these trips back intogetting children in the water,
(11:18):
then that feels like a veryholistic approach to our belief
in connecting people to the sea.
So we started Ocean Travelaround 2016 and started running
our own expeditions around theworld, teaching people
freediving in beautiful placeswith big animals, with the goal
really being lasting behaviorchange and a love of the ocean.
(11:41):
And then the fundraising elementfor the nonprofit.
So we've done that for severalyears and took a bit of a break
during COVID, became a mom,which was the perfect time to
have a baby during COVID.
All I wanted was to travel lessand should not leave my house.
So our little girl came in 2020.
And since then we had a secondone in 2022 and running our own
(12:06):
expeditions and became harder.
So when you ask about how Isplit my time, I would say three
ways, one child, the secondchild, and then everything else.
And so partnerships withbeautiful properties, tour
operators, other like-mindedorganizations and entities
became a great way for us tokeep a focus on our family while
(12:27):
the kids are small, but stilloffer really beautiful curated
ocean experiences for guests.
So That's where we are rightnow.
We still offer some of our ownretreats here in Cape Town,
where we bring people toexperience the kelp forests and
the nature both above and belowthe water here in Cape Town.
And then we partner withproperties like Avani, which
(12:50):
we're so excited about, to run afreediving and ocean connection
retreat in September this year.
SPEAKER_02 (12:57):
Yes, and the Aldi is amazing, a beautiful part of the
world to do it.
So what do you think it isabout...
freediving that sort ofsurprises people when they do
it?
And do people who've never doneit before give it a go?
SPEAKER_01 (13:09):
It's an interesting one.
I feel that freediving hasreached the mainstream in the
last couple of years throughvarious documentaries, just the
general growth of the sport.
And there's a couple ofdifferent perceptions of it.
I think some people think whenthey think of freediving, they
think of the documentary, TheDeepest Breath on Netflix or The
(13:30):
Big Blue, the old Luc Bessonclassic.
And they think of rope divingand going deep and pushing
limits.
Other people think ofspearfishing or like extraction
from the ocean.
And I think for me personally,having transformed myself from a
competitive freediver to more anocean connection guy, I think
freediving is offers the mostbeautiful, soulful, accessible
(13:55):
way of accessing the ocean, oflearning about your body, about
learning about the ocean anddoing it in a way that really is
accessible to everyone.
And I think for me, that's thebeauty of freediving.
You don't need days and days oftechnical training like you do
with scuba diving because theequipment is inherently so risky
to breathe air underwater.
(14:17):
Freediving is generally justlearning about your breath,
learning about your body andwater, snorkeling, taking a big
breath and going down.
And anyone can do that.
And that's really always mymantra is that anyone can do
freediving and you do it withinwhat's comfortable for you.
And I think when taught andexperienced in this way, it
(14:41):
offers a really beautiful wayfor people to enter the ocean in
a calm way, and non-competitive,non-judgmental way, just using
your breath and your body.
SPEAKER_02 (14:56):
And what do people say after they do it?
What surprises them about it?
What do you think they discoverthe most from doing it?
SPEAKER_01 (15:07):
To begin with, nobody thinks they can hold
their breath for more than 20seconds, which is fascinating
because anyone who can count to20 seconds can try, right?
And everybody has a biggercapacity for holding the breath
than they think they do.
And a lot of that is, I think,having somebody unlock it for
you, talk you through it,explain what your body's
experiencing, and then grow inyour breath hold.
(15:27):
So I always hear, I had no ideaI could hold my breath for that
long.
I didn't know my lungs could bethat big.
And all of that is just basictechniques in lung expansion,
stretching, how to take a bigbreath.
So there's definitely a lot of,I never thought I could hold my
breath for that long.
And then there's also breathing.
The other side, once we get inthe water and actually go down
(15:49):
where people just say, it's sopeaceful.
It's so calm.
I love being down there.
I didn't realize it would be soeasy to get down there.
So on these retreats, we takesomebody from being a total
beginner to holding their breathto anything over one and a half
to four minutes, diving down toif their equalization, their
ears are working fine, anywherefrom five to 20 meters.
(16:11):
So people really have anopportunity to explore
everything.
sport of freediving in a verysafe and curated personal way.
And
SPEAKER_02 (16:25):
what's the, obviously they're getting some
sort of meditative, so there's astrong wellness aspect to it,
but what about theconservational angle?
So are you, are they, are you,is part of this about educating
people about the importance ofconservation and marine
conservation?
SPEAKER_01 (16:41):
Absolutely.
My whole mission with gettingpeople to get in the water is to
fall deeply in love with theocean and I really do believe in
the old saying that we protectwhat we love I think that is a
very true human behavior and Ithink we live in an age of
(17:02):
information we know so muchabout ocean degradation we know
so much about climate change wehave almost all the facts and
statistics we need and yet ourbehavior isn't truly changing
And what has been proven is thatwhen we feel something, when
we're connected to something,when our heart truly opens, that
(17:23):
is when we are compelled tochange our behavior.
And so offering experiences inan ocean environment where
people feel connected tothemselves, they feel a sense of
wellness, a sense of wholenesswith the mindfulness element and
the breath work and thefreediving in these beautiful
places, When we then starttalking about a conservation
(17:46):
message around how our dailyactions affect the ocean, about
how we can support conservationefforts, even just about what
the actual challenges are, one'sso much more perspective to it,
right?
Because you're coming from aplace of caring and we can't
change behavior throughinformation and data and
statistics if we don't care.
(18:07):
So I think for me, that's reallythe golden thread through
everything I do with I Am Water,with the travel company, with
also the gear company.
My husband and I started withsustainable gear for freediving,
is that everything we do, wehave choices and we can be more
ocean and nature minded.
But it has to start with caring.
SPEAKER_02 (18:28):
Yeah, absolutely.
And what particularly is itabout the Maldives that appeals
to you as far as holding thissort of retreat there?
SPEAKER_01 (18:38):
The Maldives is a wildly interesting and beautiful
place.
I remember the first time I flewinto the Maldives, I literally
looked down at those strings ofislands and I just started
crying.
I was so moved by how beautifulit was.
I remember describing it in anarticle I wrote as a string of
pearls.
These islands just strung outthrough the blue Indian ocean.
(19:00):
It's such a There are severalisland nations that are
beautiful, but the Maldives, Iwould say, is just so unique in
having this variety of islandsand atolls.
And then what makes it extraspecial is that one can really
have conversations about thefuture well-being of the ocean
(19:22):
and people near the oceanbecause of what the threats the
Maldives faces when it comes toocean health, but also the how
one small nation can be sodetermined and vigilant in
taking care of its ocean.
There's been such strides madewith marine protected areas,
(19:43):
with shark conservation areas,with the UNESCO Biosphere Site
of Hanifaru Bay, withresearchers looking at the
well-being of those aggregationsof mantas.
It's a very special place.
And what's wonderful with Avani,virus's position within the
Maldives is that it's so closeto the bar, that it's in the bar
atoll and so close to HanifaruBay where you get these
(20:04):
aggregations of manta raysduring this time.
So for me, offering people theopportunity to see such a ocean
oriented, you know, the Maldivesfor me is an ocean nation.
not a land nation that has anocean.
It's an ocean that has someislands and people, right?
(20:24):
So it really is a special placeto experience the ocean because
it's so central to all life andall well-being.
And of course, thrown in theaggregations of hundreds and
hundreds of manta rays and whalesharks and the marine life on
the protected reefs.
It's a very special place.
SPEAKER_02 (20:46):
Yeah, and travellers obviously by doing this can,
like you said, it changes theirperspective on it, but it's
often not the first thingthey're thinking of when they're
going there.
What do you hope and what do youthink travellers can do to be
more marine, concerned about themarine conservation and marine
life?
SPEAKER_01 (21:06):
I think ocean conservation is such an
interesting one because theocean covers everything.
70% of our planet and both givesus the oxygen we breathe, much
of the protein we eat, as wellas the well-being element, which
is why most people would betraveling to a place like the
Maldives for relaxation,exploration, holiday.
(21:27):
It's for me very much thinkingof ocean conservation and ocean
conservation choices is verymuch thinking of lifestyle and
lifestyle choices, which isoften...
the ones that are harder toshift but have the greatest
impact.
So everything from what weconsume on our plate, what we
consume that we wear, how wetravel, how we take
(21:50):
responsibility for our carbonfootprint in different ways, to
the simple things like how wereact around single-use
plastics.
Most islands in the Maldivesdon't allow single-use plastics
anymore.
There's a lot of banning ofplastic bags in the Maldives as
a whole.
But still, there's a huge issuewith plastic pollution.
(22:11):
So making sure, for example,when we're traveling to places
like that, we don't think, oh,let me take this half-empty
shampoo bottle and I'll leave itbehind when I go.
Because there's very little wayof protecting that waste item
when we're there.
It's from those small choices tothe big ones.
How can I support conservationefforts?
How can I learn more about theocean in this place?
So it's really a lifestylechallenge.
(22:33):
holistic lifestyle view of howone wants to live as a more
conscious traveler consciousconsumer and trying to tread a
little lighter was there a
SPEAKER_02 (22:46):
turning point for you when you were doing the free
diving did you was there a pointwhen you were all of a sudden
wow i just i have to protectthis as it was it was there
something specifically was
SPEAKER_01 (22:56):
there a moment I think through the years, there's
been many, but a standout onefor me was when I was still deep
in my competitive years andteaching freediving to pay my
way.
I worked as a documentaryfilmmaker in my 20s, and that
was the social politicalinterests are always at a heart
for people.
But shifting from thefascination with my own body and
(23:18):
competitive freediving toconservation, one standout
moment was in Mozambique on theeast coast of Africa.
teaching a freediving course.
And on the way out, we werelooking for deep water where I
would drop the buoy and the ropeso that we can do our deep
training.
And on the way out, a large partof dolphins surrounded the boat.
And I remember saying to theskipper, can I get in?
(23:39):
I'd never swum with dolphinsbefore.
And I said, can I get in?
And he said, oh no, they'respinner dolphins.
Then I got really interested.
Let's just keep going.
And I just had this like urge.
I was like, please, can you stopthe boat?
I really want.
And he was like, whatever.
And I put on my monofin, whichis like a dolphin or mermaid
tail.
And at that point, luckily I wasvery fit as a competitive
(23:59):
freediver.
And I just went to the side ofthe boat and swam down.
And these dolphins surrounded melike a tornado of bodies
surrounding And they were soclose and they were clicking and
scanning and talking to eachother and looking at me.
And I just swam right down tothe bottom, which was at about
30 meters.
And these dolphins were allaround me, circling and
clicking.
And it was like the swirling offins and flukes and dolphins and
(24:21):
me.
And we hit the bottom and I justhovered there above the sand and
the dolphins were playing withme.
And I saw their interactionswith each other and those
curious, intelligent eyes justmaking such contact.
And I remember swimming up withthem all around me and thinking
to myself, I would die for thisto remain, for them to be safe.
(24:44):
It was such a strong sense of,you know, that what I was
talking about earlier, when yourheart just feels cracked open
and you feel this, I would doanything to keep this safe.
It was a real visceralexperience.
And I came up from that divethinking, already starting to
think of how can I be moreimpactful in the ocean space.
(25:06):
And shortly after I started, Iam water.
SPEAKER_02 (25:08):
Wow, that's amazing.
I love that.
What a beautiful story.
That is just remarkable.
It's incredible, thoselife-changing moments.
And I can only imagine that whenyou see other people having that
moment where you've taken them,that must be just such a
rewarding experience.
Absolutely.
And having children as well mustmake it even stronger because
(25:32):
you're obviously now thinking ofthe next generation and the
importance of ensuring thesustainability for them.
SPEAKER_01 (25:39):
Absolutely.
It really does add a whole newlayer to that urgency, I think.
I had a similar one of thoseother standout moments when I
was pregnant with Ava.
She was I was seven monthspregnant and had the opportunity
to go back to Mozambique andswim with a pot of bottlenose
that I've been swimming with thelast 15 years.
And they're very curious inshore community of wild dolphins
(26:04):
that I'd gotten to know verywell through the years and had
this opportunity to go up therelike just before the pandemic
started, just before Eva wasborn.
And I'm not sure if dolphinswith their echolocation and
almost ultrasound sonarunderwater, they can see the
fetus inside when they scan you,when they click with their
(26:24):
echolocation.
And I got in the water and theycame around and they were
looking at the baby and theywere clicking and scanning.
And they came so close to mybelly that their nostrum, their
nose area was almost on top ofmy belly as they were scanning
and looking at her.
underwater and they name everycreature they encounter.
So they have a click name forme, they'd have a click name for
(26:45):
you.
And so I had this strong sensethat my little girl got her
first name, which was beforewe'd chosen a name for her, that
her first name was in Jolfaclick language.
And that experience also justthat sense of she had this
experience in utero.
Now that she's five, she canswim.
I'm waiting for an opportunityto take her back there and swim
(27:06):
with them by herself, but alsothinking that I want this to
exist for her when she's anadult.
I want these animals and theseenvironments and landscapes to
be healthy.
And it can sound like a selfishmotivation, but if it changes
our behavior to the positive,then I think it has a true root,
so to speak.
And yeah, so I do think thathaving children, you feel that
(27:29):
extra urgency and alsoresponsibility because I chose
to bring two children onto avery overpopulated planet,
right?
So it's both...
because I want to protect forthem what is here, but also take
responsibility for the choice ofhaving had children.
Yes, of
SPEAKER_02 (27:45):
course.
What's something that travellerscan do?
What would be one thing that youwould say to people if you are
going somewhere where there isvast marine life or the
opportunity to connect with theocean?
What's one thing that you wouldsay to people to make sure they
do?
SPEAKER_01 (28:04):
Yeah, I think oftentimes when people travel,
they would instinctively trustthe operators attached to the
property they're staying at, forexample.
And I think it's really worthdoing a little bit of research
and seeing what codes of conductthey follow.
Do they have marine scientistswho work with them?
Is there a sustainability creedattached to how people enter the
(28:30):
ocean?
At so many places, there'sexamples even in the Maldives of
terrible management of swimmingwith whale sharks and manta
rays.
You'll see these videos wherethere's a poor whale shark
swimming along the bottom abovethe reef and three or four boats
of tourists would jump in at thesame time.
And you've got, it feels likeyou've got three soccer teams of
people above this poor whaleshark and the noise and the You
(28:56):
know, people are diving down toit.
There's no code of conduct.
There's no restriction on how toengage with the marine life.
So I would definitely encouragepeople to do a little bit of
research and see that theirocean experience doesn't have a
negative impact.
All the way to things like howwe enter the ocean.
If there's a reef around whereone's staying that we're
touching, we'll step on coral.
It sounds so basic, but youwould be surprised how often
(29:18):
people say, oh, wait, I justneed to put on my water shoes so
I don't hurt my feet when I stepon the coral.
And oh my God, no.
You know, it's taken that coral50 years to grow to that size,
rather float out over it or finda safer place to entry.
So there's those very simpleones, but then there's the more
complex ones, like, for example,thinking of offsetting one's
travel carbon footprint to whatone packs to go to a place like
(29:42):
this, to whether the propertyyou're staying with has a strong
sustainability ethos.
So I think there's a lot ofthings we can do better.
It just takes a little bit ofeffort and care.
SPEAKER_02 (29:54):
Yeah, that's such great advice.
Fantastic advice.
And thank you so much for that.
We are unfortunately running outof time, even though I could
talk to you about this forhours.
So the last question we ask allof our interviewees is what's
the most bizarre thing that'sever happened to you on your
travels besides the remarkableexperience with those dolphins?
SPEAKER_01 (30:14):
I feel like everything is a slew of bizarre
moments, but We definitely hadthis moment where we were in
Baja in Mexico and it's a desertand we would be diving there and
surfing.
And suddenly we found out thatthere had been rain up in the
mountains and we were driving onthis desert road, like just
imagine cactuses and tarantulas,like desert road.
(30:36):
And suddenly we just heard thisnoise and there was this flood
of water coming down thisarroyo.
And we were literally close tothe beach and we had to drive so
fast to get out of this areawhere the water was coming down
to get out of there and thenjust watch this river.
One car got swept totally ontothe beach and just watching this
water coming down to the oceanand just realizing that, you
(31:00):
know, nature and water is themost unpredictable thing.
Even when you're in a desert,you never know what you can
experience.
So that was truly bizarre.
UNKNOWN (31:08):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (31:08):
It's not really funny, but it certainly does
sound bizarre.
It was funny afterwards when wewere having a margarita party.
Yeah, that's it.
Oh, it's been so great chattingwith you.
And we will put all the links toyour website and to your retreat
that you're holding with AvaniPlus and the Maldives in the
show notes.
And thank you for your timetoday.
(31:29):
Thank you so much,
SPEAKER_01 (31:31):
Kirstie.
And I hope to see you in theMaldives.
SPEAKER_00 (31:33):
That was freediving champion, ocean conservationist
and founder and director of IronWater, Hanley Prince-Lew.
If you're enjoying this episodeof The World Awaits, you'll be
glad to know that you can joinHanley Prince-Lew at a
freediving retreat thisSeptember in the UNESCO
Biosphere Reserve of Bar Atollwhile staying at the Avani Plast
(31:54):
Fairs Maldive Resort.
Head to avanihotels.com to findout more.
For more information aboutHanley, go to
hanleyprinceloo.com.
SPEAKER_02 (32:15):
Our tip this week is new research from Travel
Insurance, which has found theaverage Aussie is sitting on
73,000 frequent flyer points.
So this week, the tip is abouthow to maximize your frequent
SPEAKER_00 (32:27):
flyer points.
I have a huge stack of frequentflyer points, so I'm very
interested in this research,which found that while we're
sitting on a lot of points, mostof us are failing to cash in on
them.
And we're talking about pointstypically earned from airline
loyalty programs and rewardcredit cards.
Travelinsurance.com.au CEO SeanMcGowan says that's untapped
(32:49):
value sitting in the averageAussie's reward account.
He said if we took the averageof 73,000 points...
And put a dollar value on that,it could be worth anywhere
between$500 and$3,000, dependingon how you redeem them, which
airline you use, and whether youfly economy or business class.
SPEAKER_02 (33:07):
Yeah, the survey found that 22% of Australians
don't even know their pointsbalanced.
So that's thousands of dollarsin unused travel sitting idle.
And Gen X and Millennials arethe ones who typically cash in,
while Boomers and Gen Z let thetravel points slide.
So Travel Insurance has fivetips to maximise your points,
starting with review yourfrequent flyer points balance
(33:30):
regularly.
It's obvious, right?
But we're obviously not doingit.
And set a reminder to check yourpoints balance at least every
year.
It's a simple way to make sureyou're keeping track of your
earning rate and see how manypoints you've built up so that
you can then redeem them onflights or on other rewards,
depending what you want to dowith them.
And keep in mind that with mosttravel programs, it's a case of
use it or lose it.
(33:51):
You need to be earning andredeeming them regularly or the
points will just expire.
Oh,
SPEAKER_00 (33:56):
absolutely.
Look, we were booking flights toCart Road just the other night
and found a massive pile ofpoints.
So yay, we're going to foolthem.
Secondly, the advice is that youalign your everyday spending.
So if you have a rewards creditcard, You can earn frequent
flyer points on everydaypurchases like groceries, fuel,
insurance, and utility bills,and in some cases, even when
(34:17):
paying rent.
Just be sure to pay the balanceoff in full each month to avoid
those hefty interest charges.
Plus, some rewards credit cardsoffer over 100,000 travel points
when you first sign up.
You just need to pay the annualfee and meet the minimum spend
within the first few months.
SPEAKER_02 (34:35):
Yeah, and while we're talking points and not
status...
I should drop in that by doingthat, linking all of our
spending, I got gold status onVirgin.
So it was actually a colleagueof ours, Sarah Marie Cameron,
who helped me out with that one.
So we were sitting in an airportlounge, courtesy of her, because
I didn't have that gold status.
And she's also a, Sarah Marie'sa presenter and actor and
(34:57):
comedian as well.
You can look her up.
And she gave me this greatadvice.
So she said, split your shoppinginto$100 payments and swipe that
flybys because you get statuspoints.
So you'll get The frequent flyis obviously also, but then also
the status points.
And also the advice is to doubledip on earnings.
So you can earn bonus points bybooking flights, hotels, or car
(35:18):
hire through your airline'sshopping or travel partners.
So on top of the points...
you earn from your credit card.
And these bookings often comewith bonus points promotions.
And when combined with a pointsearning credit card, you can
basically double.
SPEAKER_00 (35:32):
Also, compare redemption values.
Not all points redemptions areequal.
Flights, particularly upgradesor long haul routes, tend to
offer the highest dollar valueper point.
In most cases, using your pointsfor flights beats redeeming them
for merchandise, gift cards orcash fax.
And link your frequent flyernumber to all booking sites.
Always add your frequent flyernumber to your account or
(35:54):
profile when you're bookingflights, hotels, or car hire
through third-party sites likeExpedia or Webjet.
Missing out on points?
Because you forgot to link youraccount is one of the most
common mistakes travellers make.
SPEAKER_02 (36:05):
And fortunately, most airlines allow you to claim
missing points for eligibleflights within a certain period
after travel.
So just log into your frequentflyer account and submit a claim
and make sure you have yourflight details handy and they'll
be listed on your e-ticket orboarding pass.
And for more, just go totravelinsurance.com.au.
If you'd like to help supportour production costs, you can
(36:27):
buy us a coffee at coffee.comslash theworldawakes.
That's ko-fi.com slashtheworldawakes so we can
continue to bring youinspirational travel interviews
with the world's best.
If you've enjoyed this episode,please give us a rating and
review on Apple Podcasts.
Click on our profile.
Scroll down to the bottom toratings and reviews.
(36:48):
And if you're on Spotify, go toour main page and click the
three dots underneath our photo.
Or simply drop us a line athello at theworldawakes.au.
We love nothing more thanhearing from our listeners.
SPEAKER_00 (36:59):
That's a wrap for The World Awaits this week.
Click to subscribe anywhere youlisten to your favourite pods.
Thanks for listening.
See you next week.
UNKNOWN (37:11):
Ah!
Welcome to The World Awakes.
Travel tales to inspire yourwanderlust.
Welcome back to The WorldAwakes.
This mini-series is brought toyou by Avani Hotels and Resorts.
With more than 40 propertiesacross five continents, Avani
offers city hotels, tropicalresorts and retreats in nature.
(00:21):
For more, visit avanihotels.com.
Hi everyone.
How are you, Kirsty?
I am fine.
deep in edits on my crimemanuscript and I hope to have
more to be able to tell everyoneabout that really soon because
I've got some exciting news.
But in the meantime, to tip ornot to tip, Belle, I know you
had some strong opinions aboutthis one.
SPEAKER_00 (00:44):
I've got a few strong opinions.
That old treble conundrum.
Yes, like a lot of Australians,I really resent the requirement,
not the choice, to tip in the USeven if the service is bad.
If you are paying somebody awage they cannot live on, is it
up to me to make the shortfall?
That is my question.
I will reward service that goesbeyond.
(01:04):
But tipping someone just becausethey did their job sends the red
mist across my eyes.
I think in Australia, where wagestaff are paid a living wage, it
doesn't mean we get bad service.
In fact, in the majority ofcafes, it's competent and
courteous.
And in our restaurants, it'sfrequently exceptional.
SPEAKER_02 (01:21):
Yeah, that's very true.
Love it or loathe it, everycountry has a unique set of
social customs and tippingetiquette, and it can vary
significantly, obviously,between cultures.
And deciding whether or not totip is probably the easy part.
The real problem is actuallyknowing or deciding how much to
tip because culture Too littlemight be considered as an insult
(01:41):
and too much can actually beconsidered in some countries as
fleshy and arrogant.
Or it might be
SPEAKER_00 (01:46):
broke as well, because in countries too, it's a
completely alien concept.
So Travelex has put a guidetogether to help you know
whether you should or shouldn'ttip.
So let's start with what isundoubtedly one of the most
loved destinations by Aussiesright now, Japan.
So Japan, you do not tip.
The Japanese consider that goodservice is standard and to tip
(02:08):
is an insult.
However, in high-class hotels orryokan, it is acceptable to give
a tip, but never directly.
It should be placed in a smallsealed envelope and given
discreetly with a small bow ofthe head.
Alternatively, you can expressyour appreciation by giving a
gift instead.
Hotel staff in Japan may betrained to say no thank you if
(02:29):
they are offered a tip.
SPEAKER_02 (02:30):
Yeah, we were in Japan a few years ago and they
definitely didn't want tips.
And as you say, and because it'sjust so polite and they want to
provide a good service.
So that's why they just find itquite insulting.
Another reason to love Japan.
And while in Italy, servicecharges are included in most
restaurants, but if not, 10% isactually considered the norm.
No one has to tip on top ofthat, but many do if they think
(02:52):
that the service warrants.
And in bars, Italians oftenleave small change when
purchasing drinks.
Taxi drivers like to be tipped,but it isn't expected.
It's a Probably better practiceto actually agree to a final
fare before the journey begins.
That's not always easy.
And in hotels, the same asanywhere else in the world,
porters, concierge and those whoprovide room service do expect a
(03:14):
few euros.
SPEAKER_00 (03:15):
Yeah, Spain's pretty much the same.
In restaurants, bills alwaysinclude the service.
An extra tip of 5 to 10% on topis customary.
And it's best to leave tips incash, even if you're paying by
credit card.
If you're eating tapas or snacksat a bar, just round the bill up
to the nearest euro.
It definitely helps when it's acash-oriented society.
Taxi drivers expect no tip atall, and they're happy if you
(03:37):
round up the fare, especially ifthey're giving you extra help
with your luggage.
And a tip of 5% of the totalfare is considered very
generous, according to TravelX.
In hotels, porters receive aeuro a bag for room service and
doorman the same.
Tip the maid about a euro anight and the concierge from a
euro for basic help up to fiveeuro if they score that ticket
(04:00):
that you've been hanging outfor.
SPEAKER_02 (04:02):
Yeah, and while in Thailand tipping is not usual,
some tyres will leave loosechange when they go out locally.
And when we were in Thailand, wedid tip and they were very
grateful.
And I also did the Japanesething and put some change in an
envelope for a staff member whoI really thought went above and
beyond for us.
In Bangkok, it says more Westernstandards are adopted here.
(04:23):
So at hotel and upmarketrestaurants, there's a 10%
service charge.
Taxi drivers don't expect a tip,but a small tip is reasonable if
service is good, maybe if it's alonger journey.
And in hotels, you're notexpected to tip.
At high-end hotels, servicecharges are usually included,
but tips of 20 to 50 baht, whichis just a dollar or two, is
still expected, like everywherefor porters and bellboys.
SPEAKER_00 (04:47):
And in Qatar, although Qatar is one of the
richest countries in the world,the workers in the service
industry are rarely Qatari, butfrom third world countries, and
on top of that, are very poorlypaid.
So they rarely see the...
benefits of the usual 10%service charges in places like
hotels and restaurants.
So a tip for good service is anact of generosity.
Even small amounts can make ahuge difference.
(05:09):
But tips are not expected.
If they happen to prove this tous, 10% to 15% in a restaurant
is a nice gesture.
So you can tip doorman quarters,sort of staff at mosques.
A lot of those are volunteers aswell.
Petrol stations, because theypump the gas for you, which I
love, and a little more forhotel housekeepers.
(05:29):
The most important thing here isto be discreet and respectful
when you tip.
And I'll give you a little tipfor this one, Kirsty.
Often what you can do is you canfold up the note because even
the smallest currencies are innote and you put them in the
palm of your hand.
And when you shake that person'shand, that's how you transfer
the money.
From years of living and tippingin the Middle East, that is
often how it's done.
So you're not doing a big flashythrow the money thing.
(05:50):
You just pop it in your hand,shake hands, transfer the money
that way.
And that is the way that it'sdone amongst locals.
Because locals, the thing islocals tip.
as well as foreigners too.
It is a tipping society.
SPEAKER_02 (06:02):
Yeah, and that's what a lot of this Travelex
report's showing to explainingwhat the locals are doing too,
which makes it easy fortravellers to follow in suit.
So in South Africa, tipping iswidely practised and
well-received in restaurants andbars, particularly in
upper-class suburbs.
Service charges likely have beenincluded in the bill, between
10% to 15%.
And this is a standard rate totip in the essence of that
(06:24):
charge.
And hotels leave tips forhousekeeping, same like with
everyone else.
And porters may be paid, buttaxi charges don't include a
tip.
And 10% is the norm.
SPEAKER_00 (06:35):
And look, I think we finished on the one that the
Australians struggle the most,and that is North America.
Tipping is embedded in theculture in Canada.
Expect 15% to 20% to be added torestaurants.
Here's the red mist coming down.
You tip porters, you tip taxidrivers, and when you buy a
drink at the bar, you leavebetween$0.50 and$2.
Down south in the US, the reportsuggests stacking your wallet
(06:57):
full of$1 bills for porters andbellhops at bars, spas, 20% in
the restaurants, to supplement,let's be blunt about it, the
wages, the low wages of theworkers.
But the bottom line, accordingto Travelex, is if the service
wasn't up to scratch, don'tleave a tip.
Don't know how you get aboutthat in the US.
And we will put a link withother advice of other countries
(07:18):
around the world in the shownotes.
UNKNOWN (07:27):
Thank you.
SPEAKER_02 (07:31):
This week, I'm interviewing freediving
champion, ocean conservationist,and founder and director of I Am
Water, Hanley Prince-Lou, abouther remarkable journey from
living on a horse farm in SouthAfrica, where the closest ocean
is more than 10 hours away, tobecoming a freediving world
champion and holding freedivingretreats.
Welcome to the show, Hanley.
(07:53):
Thank you.
Good to be here.
It's so great to have you on theshow.
Let's start by, tell us a bitabout how you went from growing
up on a horse farm, 10 hoursfrom the ocean, to being an
ocean conservationist and a freediving record holder.
SPEAKER_01 (08:08):
I know it doesn't really sound like the most
direct route, does it, Kirsty?
But I grew up on a horse farm ina wild part of South Africa.
And I For me, my love of theocean actually started with a
love of wilderness, of nature.
I think these things are verysimilar when we immerse
ourselves in wild nature.
And growing up on the farm, wehad a river, a dam, a swimming
(08:31):
pool, and my sister and I dreamtof being mermaids.
And we would spend hoursswimming underwater and
practicing our breath hold.
And we used to freak my mom out,completely disappearing below
the surface of a brown farm dam,swimming underwater, pretending
to be mermaids.
So...
In my 20s, actually, I wasstudying in Sweden of all
places.
It gets even more obscure,right?
(08:51):
Because Sweden and freezing coldfjord.
And there I met a freediver whosaid to me, have you heard about
freediving?
And initially I thought it was atranslation error.
I was like, freediving?
Nothing's free.
What is he talking about?
And eventually he explained tome that it was diving down,
holding your breath.
And all those childhood memoriesof holding my breath underwater
in the river and the dam justcame back to me.
(09:12):
And I thought, this is it.
But this is what I've beenwanting to discover.
I got into freediving in coldfjords in Sweden.
and started training there.
And I think that's one of thereasons I actually became a good
competitive freediver because Ilearned to freedive under quite
adverse conditions.
So by the time I was let loosein deep blue water, nothing
could stop me.
But also I have a very deep loveof the African continent and
(09:36):
particularly South Africa.
And I was working at the time asa social political documentary
filmmaker, speaking about socialinjustices and the future of
South Africa.
And so for me, this love of theocean, And this love of the
people of South Africa cametogether in the type of
conservation that I'm mostpassionate about, which is
connecting people to the ocean.
SPEAKER_02 (09:58):
Wow.
So how did you go from doingthat to, and obviously you were
competing competitively, to thenactually holding retreats?
Have you been doing that for awhile?
And how did you make that sortof evolution?
And what's your life like now?
How's it weighted as far as whatyou're doing?
SPEAKER_01 (10:16):
Hmm, good question.
So I really do feel I often getasked by young people, if I
wanted to pursue a career likeyours, should I study marine
biology?
I'm like, you can, but that's asfar as it can be from what I
did.
Should I study tourism?
I didn't study that either.
It's been a bit of a loopy roadto get where we are today.
But in 2010, I started anonprofit, I Am Water Ocean
(10:38):
Conservation, that works withtaking young children from the
townships in South Africa,snorkeling and teaching them
about the ocean.
I really, truly believe that theocean is a place for everyone,
even if there are pockets oftransgenerational fear and lack
of access to the ocean and soon.
And the nonprofit really hasbeen my heart's work to see the
(10:58):
ocean space open up to all SouthAfricans.
As part of the fundraising forthat, actually, my then partner,
now husband, and I started atravel company.
deciding that if we can takepaying clients on
transformational oceanexperiences and funnel the money
from these trips back intogetting children in the water,
(11:18):
then that feels like a veryholistic approach to our belief
in connecting people to the sea.
So we started Ocean Travelaround 2016 and started running
our own expeditions around theworld, teaching people
freediving in beautiful placeswith big animals, with the goal
really being lasting behaviorchange and a love of the ocean.
(11:41):
And then the fundraising elementfor the nonprofit.
So we've done that for severalyears and took a bit of a break
during COVID, became a mom,which was the perfect time to
have a baby during COVID.
All I wanted was to travel lessand should not leave my house.
So our little girl came in 2020.
And since then we had a secondone in 2022 and running our own
(12:06):
expeditions and became harder.
So when you ask about how Isplit my time, I would say three
ways, one child, the secondchild, and then everything else.
And so partnerships withbeautiful properties, tour
operators, other like-mindedorganizations and entities
became a great way for us tokeep a focus on our family while
(12:27):
the kids are small, but stilloffer really beautiful curated
ocean experiences for guests.
So That's where we are rightnow.
We still offer some of our ownretreats here in Cape Town,
where we bring people toexperience the kelp forests and
the nature both above and belowthe water here in Cape Town.
And then we partner withproperties like Avani, which
(12:50):
we're so excited about, to run afreediving and ocean connection
retreat in September this year.
SPEAKER_02 (12:57):
Yes, and the Aldi is amazing, a beautiful part of the
world to do it.
So what do you think it isabout...
freediving that sort ofsurprises people when they do
it?
And do people who've never doneit before give it a go?
SPEAKER_01 (13:09):
It's an interesting one.
I feel that freediving hasreached the mainstream in the
last couple of years throughvarious documentaries, just the
general growth of the sport.
And there's a couple ofdifferent perceptions of it.
I think some people think whenthey think of freediving, they
think of the documentary, TheDeepest Breath on Netflix or The
(13:30):
Big Blue, the old Luc Bessonclassic.
And they think of rope divingand going deep and pushing
limits.
Other people think ofspearfishing or like extraction
from the ocean.
And I think for me personally,having transformed myself from a
competitive freediver to more anocean connection guy, I think
freediving is offers the mostbeautiful, soulful, accessible
(13:55):
way of accessing the ocean, oflearning about your body, about
learning about the ocean anddoing it in a way that really is
accessible to everyone.
And I think for me, that's thebeauty of freediving.
You don't need days and days oftechnical training like you do
with scuba diving because theequipment is inherently so risky
to breathe air underwater.
(14:17):
Freediving is generally justlearning about your breath,
learning about your body andwater, snorkeling, taking a big
breath and going down.
And anyone can do that.
And that's really always mymantra is that anyone can do
freediving and you do it withinwhat's comfortable for you.
And I think when taught andexperienced in this way, it
(14:41):
offers a really beautiful wayfor people to enter the ocean in
a calm way, and non-competitive,non-judgmental way, just using
your breath and your body.
SPEAKER_02 (14:56):
And what do people say after they do it?
What surprises them about it?
What do you think they discoverthe most from doing it?
SPEAKER_01 (15:07):
To begin with, nobody thinks they can hold
their breath for more than 20seconds, which is fascinating
because anyone who can count to20 seconds can try, right?
And everybody has a biggercapacity for holding the breath
than they think they do.
And a lot of that is, I think,having somebody unlock it for
you, talk you through it,explain what your body's
experiencing, and then grow inyour breath hold.
(15:27):
So I always hear, I had no ideaI could hold my breath for that
long.
I didn't know my lungs could bethat big.
And all of that is just basictechniques in lung expansion,
stretching, how to take a bigbreath.
So there's definitely a lot of,I never thought I could hold my
breath for that long.
And then there's also breathing.
The other side, once we get inthe water and actually go down
(15:49):
where people just say, it's sopeaceful.
It's so calm.
I love being down there.
I didn't realize it would be soeasy to get down there.
So on these retreats, we takesomebody from being a total
beginner to holding their breathto anything over one and a half
to four minutes, diving down toif their equalization, their
ears are working fine, anywherefrom five to 20 meters.
(16:11):
So people really have anopportunity to explore
everything.
sport of freediving in a verysafe and curated personal way.
And
SPEAKER_02 (16:25):
what's the, obviously they're getting some
sort of meditative, so there's astrong wellness aspect to it,
but what about theconservational angle?
So are you, are they, are you,is part of this about educating
people about the importance ofconservation and marine
conservation?
SPEAKER_01 (16:41):
Absolutely.
My whole mission with gettingpeople to get in the water is to
fall deeply in love with theocean and I really do believe in
the old saying that we protectwhat we love I think that is a
very true human behavior and Ithink we live in an age of
(17:02):
information we know so muchabout ocean degradation we know
so much about climate change wehave almost all the facts and
statistics we need and yet ourbehavior isn't truly changing
And what has been proven is thatwhen we feel something, when
we're connected to something,when our heart truly opens, that
(17:23):
is when we are compelled tochange our behavior.
And so offering experiences inan ocean environment where
people feel connected tothemselves, they feel a sense of
wellness, a sense of wholenesswith the mindfulness element and
the breath work and thefreediving in these beautiful
places, When we then starttalking about a conservation
(17:46):
message around how our dailyactions affect the ocean, about
how we can support conservationefforts, even just about what
the actual challenges are, one'sso much more perspective to it,
right?
Because you're coming from aplace of caring and we can't
change behavior throughinformation and data and
statistics if we don't care.
(18:07):
So I think for me, that's reallythe golden thread through
everything I do with I Am Water,with the travel company, with
also the gear company.
My husband and I started withsustainable gear for freediving,
is that everything we do, wehave choices and we can be more
ocean and nature minded.
But it has to start with caring.
SPEAKER_02 (18:28):
Yeah, absolutely.
And what particularly is itabout the Maldives that appeals
to you as far as holding thissort of retreat there?
SPEAKER_01 (18:38):
The Maldives is a wildly interesting and beautiful
place.
I remember the first time I flewinto the Maldives, I literally
looked down at those strings ofislands and I just started
crying.
I was so moved by how beautifulit was.
I remember describing it in anarticle I wrote as a string of
pearls.
These islands just strung outthrough the blue Indian ocean.
(19:00):
It's such a There are severalisland nations that are
beautiful, but the Maldives, Iwould say, is just so unique in
having this variety of islandsand atolls.
And then what makes it extraspecial is that one can really
have conversations about thefuture well-being of the ocean
(19:22):
and people near the oceanbecause of what the threats the
Maldives faces when it comes toocean health, but also the how
one small nation can be sodetermined and vigilant in
taking care of its ocean.
There's been such strides madewith marine protected areas,
(19:43):
with shark conservation areas,with the UNESCO Biosphere Site
of Hanifaru Bay, withresearchers looking at the
well-being of those aggregationsof mantas.
It's a very special place.
And what's wonderful with Avani,virus's position within the
Maldives is that it's so closeto the bar, that it's in the bar
atoll and so close to HanifaruBay where you get these
(20:04):
aggregations of manta raysduring this time.
So for me, offering people theopportunity to see such a ocean
oriented, you know, the Maldivesfor me is an ocean nation.
not a land nation that has anocean.
It's an ocean that has someislands and people, right?
(20:24):
So it really is a special placeto experience the ocean because
it's so central to all life andall well-being.
And of course, thrown in theaggregations of hundreds and
hundreds of manta rays and whalesharks and the marine life on
the protected reefs.
It's a very special place.
SPEAKER_02 (20:46):
Yeah, and travellers obviously by doing this can,
like you said, it changes theirperspective on it, but it's
often not the first thingthey're thinking of when they're
going there.
What do you hope and what do youthink travellers can do to be
more marine, concerned about themarine conservation and marine
life?
SPEAKER_01 (21:06):
I think ocean conservation is such an
interesting one because theocean covers everything.
70% of our planet and both givesus the oxygen we breathe, much
of the protein we eat, as wellas the well-being element, which
is why most people would betraveling to a place like the
Maldives for relaxation,exploration, holiday.
(21:27):
It's for me very much thinkingof ocean conservation and ocean
conservation choices is verymuch thinking of lifestyle and
lifestyle choices, which isoften...
the ones that are harder toshift but have the greatest
impact.
So everything from what weconsume on our plate, what we
consume that we wear, how wetravel, how we take
(21:50):
responsibility for our carbonfootprint in different ways, to
the simple things like how wereact around single-use
plastics.
Most islands in the Maldivesdon't allow single-use plastics
anymore.
There's a lot of banning ofplastic bags in the Maldives as
a whole.
But still, there's a huge issuewith plastic pollution.
(22:11):
So making sure, for example,when we're traveling to places
like that, we don't think, oh,let me take this half-empty
shampoo bottle and I'll leave itbehind when I go.
Because there's very little wayof protecting that waste item
when we're there.
It's from those small choices tothe big ones.
How can I support conservationefforts?
How can I learn more about theocean in this place?
So it's really a lifestylechallenge.
(22:33):
holistic lifestyle view of howone wants to live as a more
conscious traveler consciousconsumer and trying to tread a
little lighter was there a
SPEAKER_02 (22:46):
turning point for you when you were doing the free
diving did you was there a pointwhen you were all of a sudden
wow i just i have to protectthis as it was it was there
something specifically was
SPEAKER_01 (22:56):
there a moment I think through the years, there's
been many, but a standout onefor me was when I was still deep
in my competitive years andteaching freediving to pay my
way.
I worked as a documentaryfilmmaker in my 20s, and that
was the social politicalinterests are always at a heart
for people.
But shifting from thefascination with my own body and
(23:18):
competitive freediving toconservation, one standout
moment was in Mozambique on theeast coast of Africa.
teaching a freediving course.
And on the way out, we werelooking for deep water where I
would drop the buoy and the ropeso that we can do our deep
training.
And on the way out, a large partof dolphins surrounded the boat.
And I remember saying to theskipper, can I get in?
(23:39):
I'd never swum with dolphinsbefore.
And I said, can I get in?
And he said, oh no, they'respinner dolphins.
Then I got really interested.
Let's just keep going.
And I just had this like urge.
I was like, please, can you stopthe boat?
I really want.
And he was like, whatever.
And I put on my monofin, whichis like a dolphin or mermaid
tail.
And at that point, luckily I wasvery fit as a competitive
(23:59):
freediver.
And I just went to the side ofthe boat and swam down.
And these dolphins surrounded melike a tornado of bodies
surrounding And they were soclose and they were clicking and
scanning and talking to eachother and looking at me.
And I just swam right down tothe bottom, which was at about
30 meters.
And these dolphins were allaround me, circling and
clicking.
And it was like the swirling offins and flukes and dolphins and
(24:21):
me.
And we hit the bottom and I justhovered there above the sand and
the dolphins were playing withme.
And I saw their interactionswith each other and those
curious, intelligent eyes justmaking such contact.
And I remember swimming up withthem all around me and thinking
to myself, I would die for thisto remain, for them to be safe.
(24:44):
It was such a strong sense of,you know, that what I was
talking about earlier, when yourheart just feels cracked open
and you feel this, I would doanything to keep this safe.
It was a real visceralexperience.
And I came up from that divethinking, already starting to
think of how can I be moreimpactful in the ocean space.
(25:06):
And shortly after I started, Iam water.
SPEAKER_02 (25:08):
Wow, that's amazing.
I love that.
What a beautiful story.
That is just remarkable.
It's incredible, thoselife-changing moments.
And I can only imagine that whenyou see other people having that
moment where you've taken them,that must be just such a
rewarding experience.
Absolutely.
And having children as well mustmake it even stronger because
(25:32):
you're obviously now thinking ofthe next generation and the
importance of ensuring thesustainability for them.
SPEAKER_01 (25:39):
Absolutely.
It really does add a whole newlayer to that urgency, I think.
I had a similar one of thoseother standout moments when I
was pregnant with Ava.
She was I was seven monthspregnant and had the opportunity
to go back to Mozambique andswim with a pot of bottlenose
that I've been swimming with thelast 15 years.
And they're very curious inshore community of wild dolphins
(26:04):
that I'd gotten to know verywell through the years and had
this opportunity to go up therelike just before the pandemic
started, just before Eva wasborn.
And I'm not sure if dolphinswith their echolocation and
almost ultrasound sonarunderwater, they can see the
fetus inside when they scan you,when they click with their
(26:24):
echolocation.
And I got in the water and theycame around and they were
looking at the baby and theywere clicking and scanning.
And they came so close to mybelly that their nostrum, their
nose area was almost on top ofmy belly as they were scanning
and looking at her.
underwater and they name everycreature they encounter.
So they have a click name forme, they'd have a click name for
(26:45):
you.
And so I had this strong sensethat my little girl got her
first name, which was beforewe'd chosen a name for her, that
her first name was in Jolfaclick language.
And that experience also justthat sense of she had this
experience in utero.
Now that she's five, she canswim.
I'm waiting for an opportunityto take her back there and swim
(27:06):
with them by herself, but alsothinking that I want this to
exist for her when she's anadult.
I want these animals and theseenvironments and landscapes to
be healthy.
And it can sound like a selfishmotivation, but if it changes
our behavior to the positive,then I think it has a true root,
so to speak.
And yeah, so I do think thathaving children, you feel that
(27:29):
extra urgency and alsoresponsibility because I chose
to bring two children onto avery overpopulated planet,
right?
So it's both...
because I want to protect forthem what is here, but also take
responsibility for the choice ofhaving had children.
Yes, of
SPEAKER_02 (27:45):
course.
What's something that travellerscan do?
What would be one thing that youwould say to people if you are
going somewhere where there isvast marine life or the
opportunity to connect with theocean?
What's one thing that you wouldsay to people to make sure they
do?
SPEAKER_01 (28:04):
Yeah, I think oftentimes when people travel,
they would instinctively trustthe operators attached to the
property they're staying at, forexample.
And I think it's really worthdoing a little bit of research
and seeing what codes of conductthey follow.
Do they have marine scientistswho work with them?
Is there a sustainability creedattached to how people enter the
(28:30):
ocean?
At so many places, there'sexamples even in the Maldives of
terrible management of swimmingwith whale sharks and manta
rays.
You'll see these videos wherethere's a poor whale shark
swimming along the bottom abovethe reef and three or four boats
of tourists would jump in at thesame time.
And you've got, it feels likeyou've got three soccer teams of
people above this poor whaleshark and the noise and the You
(28:56):
know, people are diving down toit.
There's no code of conduct.
There's no restriction on how toengage with the marine life.
So I would definitely encouragepeople to do a little bit of
research and see that theirocean experience doesn't have a
negative impact.
All the way to things like howwe enter the ocean.
If there's a reef around whereone's staying that we're
touching, we'll step on coral.
It sounds so basic, but youwould be surprised how often
(29:18):
people say, oh, wait, I justneed to put on my water shoes so
I don't hurt my feet when I stepon the coral.
And oh my God, no.
You know, it's taken that coral50 years to grow to that size,
rather float out over it or finda safer place to entry.
So there's those very simpleones, but then there's the more
complex ones, like, for example,thinking of offsetting one's
travel carbon footprint to whatone packs to go to a place like
(29:42):
this, to whether the propertyyou're staying with has a strong
sustainability ethos.
So I think there's a lot ofthings we can do better.
It just takes a little bit ofeffort and care.
SPEAKER_02 (29:54):
Yeah, that's such great advice.
Fantastic advice.
And thank you so much for that.
We are unfortunately running outof time, even though I could
talk to you about this forhours.
So the last question we ask allof our interviewees is what's
the most bizarre thing that'sever happened to you on your
travels besides the remarkableexperience with those dolphins?
SPEAKER_01 (30:14):
I feel like everything is a slew of bizarre
moments, but We definitely hadthis moment where we were in
Baja in Mexico and it's a desertand we would be diving there and
surfing.
And suddenly we found out thatthere had been rain up in the
mountains and we were driving onthis desert road, like just
imagine cactuses and tarantulas,like desert road.
(30:36):
And suddenly we just heard thisnoise and there was this flood
of water coming down thisarroyo.
And we were literally close tothe beach and we had to drive so
fast to get out of this areawhere the water was coming down
to get out of there and thenjust watch this river.
One car got swept totally ontothe beach and just watching this
water coming down to the oceanand just realizing that, you
(31:00):
know, nature and water is themost unpredictable thing.
Even when you're in a desert,you never know what you can
experience.
So that was truly bizarre.
UNKNOWN (31:08):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (31:08):
It's not really funny, but it certainly does
sound bizarre.
It was funny afterwards when wewere having a margarita party.
Yeah, that's it.
Oh, it's been so great chattingwith you.
And we will put all the links toyour website and to your retreat
that you're holding with AvaniPlus and the Maldives in the
show notes.
And thank you for your timetoday.
(31:29):
Thank you so much,
SPEAKER_01 (31:31):
Kirstie.
And I hope to see you in theMaldives.
SPEAKER_00 (31:33):
That was freediving champion, ocean conservationist
and founder and director of IronWater, Hanley Prince-Lew.
If you're enjoying this episodeof The World Awaits, you'll be
glad to know that you can joinHanley Prince-Lew at a
freediving retreat thisSeptember in the UNESCO
Biosphere Reserve of Bar Atollwhile staying at the Avani Plast
(31:54):
Fairs Maldive Resort.
Head to avanihotels.com to findout more.
For more information aboutHanley, go to
hanleyprinceloo.com.
SPEAKER_02 (32:15):
Our tip this week is new research from Travel
Insurance, which has found theaverage Aussie is sitting on
73,000 frequent flyer points.
So this week, the tip is abouthow to maximize your frequent
SPEAKER_00 (32:27):
flyer points.
I have a huge stack of frequentflyer points, so I'm very
interested in this research,which found that while we're
sitting on a lot of points, mostof us are failing to cash in on
them.
And we're talking about pointstypically earned from airline
loyalty programs and rewardcredit cards.
Travelinsurance.com.au CEO SeanMcGowan says that's untapped
(32:49):
value sitting in the averageAussie's reward account.
He said if we took the averageof 73,000 points...
And put a dollar value on that,it could be worth anywhere
between$500 and$3,000, dependingon how you redeem them, which
airline you use, and whether youfly economy or business class.
SPEAKER_02 (33:07):
Yeah, the survey found that 22% of Australians
don't even know their pointsbalanced.
So that's thousands of dollarsin unused travel sitting idle.
And Gen X and Millennials arethe ones who typically cash in,
while Boomers and Gen Z let thetravel points slide.
So Travel Insurance has fivetips to maximise your points,
starting with review yourfrequent flyer points balance
(33:30):
regularly.
It's obvious, right?
But we're obviously not doingit.
And set a reminder to check yourpoints balance at least every
year.
It's a simple way to make sureyou're keeping track of your
earning rate and see how manypoints you've built up so that
you can then redeem them onflights or on other rewards,
depending what you want to dowith them.
And keep in mind that with mosttravel programs, it's a case of
use it or lose it.
(33:51):
You need to be earning andredeeming them regularly or the
points will just expire.
Oh,
SPEAKER_00 (33:56):
absolutely.
Look, we were booking flights toCart Road just the other night
and found a massive pile ofpoints.
So yay, we're going to foolthem.
Secondly, the advice is that youalign your everyday spending.
So if you have a rewards creditcard, You can earn frequent
flyer points on everydaypurchases like groceries, fuel,
insurance, and utility bills,and in some cases, even when
(34:17):
paying rent.
Just be sure to pay the balanceoff in full each month to avoid
those hefty interest charges.
Plus, some rewards credit cardsoffer over 100,000 travel points
when you first sign up.
You just need to pay the annualfee and meet the minimum spend
within the first few months.
SPEAKER_02 (34:35):
Yeah, and while we're talking points and not
status...
I should drop in that by doingthat, linking all of our
spending, I got gold status onVirgin.
So it was actually a colleagueof ours, Sarah Marie Cameron,
who helped me out with that one.
So we were sitting in an airportlounge, courtesy of her, because
I didn't have that gold status.
And she's also a, Sarah Marie'sa presenter and actor and
(34:57):
comedian as well.
You can look her up.
And she gave me this greatadvice.
So she said, split your shoppinginto$100 payments and swipe that
flybys because you get statuspoints.
So you'll get The frequent flyis obviously also, but then also
the status points.
And also the advice is to doubledip on earnings.
So you can earn bonus points bybooking flights, hotels, or car
(35:18):
hire through your airline'sshopping or travel partners.
So on top of the points...
you earn from your credit card.
And these bookings often comewith bonus points promotions.
And when combined with a pointsearning credit card, you can
basically double.
SPEAKER_00 (35:32):
Also, compare redemption values.
Not all points redemptions areequal.
Flights, particularly upgradesor long haul routes, tend to
offer the highest dollar valueper point.
In most cases, using your pointsfor flights beats redeeming them
for merchandise, gift cards orcash fax.
And link your frequent flyernumber to all booking sites.
Always add your frequent flyernumber to your account or
(35:54):
profile when you're bookingflights, hotels, or car hire
through third-party sites likeExpedia or Webjet.
Missing out on points?
Because you forgot to link youraccount is one of the most
common mistakes travellers make.
SPEAKER_02 (36:05):
And fortunately, most airlines allow you to claim
missing points for eligibleflights within a certain period
after travel.
So just log into your frequentflyer account and submit a claim
and make sure you have yourflight details handy and they'll
be listed on your e-ticket orboarding pass.
And for more, just go totravelinsurance.com.au.
If you'd like to help supportour production costs, you can
(36:27):
buy us a coffee at coffee.comslash theworldawakes.
That's ko-fi.com slashtheworldawakes so we can
continue to bring youinspirational travel interviews
with the world's best.
If you've enjoyed this episode,please give us a rating and
review on Apple Podcasts.
Click on our profile.
Scroll down to the bottom toratings and reviews.
(36:48):
And if you're on Spotify, go toour main page and click the
three dots underneath our photo.
Or simply drop us a line athello at theworldawakes.au.
We love nothing more thanhearing from our listeners.
SPEAKER_00 (36:59):
That's a wrap for The World Awaits this week.
Click to subscribe anywhere youlisten to your favourite pods.
Thanks for listening.
See you next week.
UNKNOWN (37:11):
Ah!
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