Hitchhiking for pastries: The art of structuring a journey with an obsession

“”Curiosity is contagious.”  –Sophia Bentaher

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Sophia talk about structuring journey around specific passions and obsessions, and her own decision to hitchhike Europe in search of pastry recipes (2:00); how your national or ethnic identity affects how you are seen as a traveler (13:00); Sophia’s experiences as a woman hitchhiker in places like France, Switzerland and Italy, and how she documented her experiences on a spreadsheet (21:00); how the quest for pastry transformed the journey (38:00); how the travel experience led her to open a pastry business in Marrakesh (49:00); and how processes and stories are sometimes more essential than outcomes (57:30).

Sophia Bentaher (@sophiabnthr) is a food traveler and writer, with a French-Moroccan background. Her obsession for food, specifically desserts, led her to drop a 9-5 lifestyle and go explore Europe to learn a traditional cake recipe in each country.

Notable Links:

• The Wet and the Dry, by Laurence Osborne (book)
• American Chinatown, by Bonnie Tsui (book)
• Excel (spreadsheet software)
• Hero’s journey (mythology template)
• Wanderjahre or Compagnons du Devoir (learning journey)
• Third culture kid (cross-cultural identity)
• Crostata (Italian tart)
• Cornes de Gazelle (Moroccan cookie)
• The Alchemist (novel)

The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber.

Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we’re happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.