From Route 66 to roadside diners - what drives America's love affair with the road? Allen Pietrobon, a road trip historian and professor at Trinity Washington University challenges our romanticization of the American road trip and reveals why it's not always like the movie Cars.

The holidays are upon us, but we’re still in the middle of a pandemic. Tariro Mzezewa, a travel reporter at the New York Times helps us navigate whether or not to travel this season, as well as how to be a more considerate traveler in general. 

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From a small San Francisco counterculture beach party to a mega gathering in the Black Rock Desert, Burning Man has become a cultural force. But what exactly is Burning Man? How has it actually changed over the years? And in the midst of a pandemic, what did this utopian gathering look like in 2020? 

At age 23, Andrew Forsthoefel was feeling a little lost and so he decided to walk out of his mother's house and just keep walking until he felt called to stop or until he hit the pacific ocean. 4,000 miles of walking, 5 pairs of shoes, and nearly a year later, he had walked clear across the country. Andrew joins me to discuss what he learned about himself and people along the way. 

What comes to mind when you think of Joshua Tree? Is it psychedelic drugs, or weird Dr. Seuss looking trees and the wide-open desert landscape? Maybe it's a place for bands like The Eagles and U2 or even influencers with big hats who just wanna escape from LA for the weekend and take selfies. Or maybe, it's a place where people come to heal or to make something, or both.

For our final episode of the season, I'm joined by my friend, collaborator, and engineer Dan Tureck. Together we respond to listener questions and discuss our favorite moments of the season, how 'Greetings from Somewhere' came to be, and reveal what comes next for the show. 

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