S3E1: Laura Bingham - '7000 Km, No Money, What Now?'

Welcome to Travel Stories Podcast, bringing you Immersive, Inspiring & International travel stories of freedom and adventure from world travelers as well as actionable travel tips. Let's dive in!

 

Sometimes, you have to take a leap of faith when you travel. Oftentimes, that faith has to be in humanity itself, and in the humans who inhabit the places you are traveling to. Those people are the ones who can make or break your trip - and, sometimes, they are the ones who prove that humanity really is not all that bad.

Laura Bingham visits Hayden and proves to be not only “incredibly fun to talk to,” to quote Hayden, but also incredibly brave and strong in her faith in humanity. Laura traveled from one side of South America to the other, on a bicycle, with no money, in six months. She depended on the kindness of strangers to help her survive. Laura discusses not only this trip, but also her documentary, how she learned to be patient, and “imposter syndrome” - believing you are an imposter because you feel like you do not deserve something you have or something you are doing.

Laura’s story, titled “7000 Kilometers, No Money, What Now?”, starts in Peru, and proves Laura’s faith in humanity correct when she meets people who prove to be the best of her entire journey. Laura and Hayden also discuss trusting strangers, and Laura goes on to discuss Operation South America. Operation South America is a charity based in Paraguay, created by an Englishman named Phil Granger who met a married couple who had lost their nine-year-old son to a rare type of leukemia because they did not have the money or the treatment to save him. After they met, they started this organization for young girls that are from broken, violent, or poor backgrounds.

A leap of faith is required when you travel, but if you just take that leap, your adventure might turn out to be something you never expected - and prove to reveal the best of the people around you.

 

3:19 - Hayden introduces Laura Bingham, who happened to have been born in the same hospital as him. 5:48 - Laura discusses her documentary, in which she is trying to showcase the kindness of strangers and of humanity by crossing South America with no money. 9:06 - Hayden and Laura talk about “imposter syndrome” - believing you are an imposter because you feel like you do not deserve something you have or something you are doing. 12:48 - Hayden and Laura discuss how Laura decided not to return not to England, even when she earned enough money to return home, and then had to take a boat home over two months, which forced her to learn patience. 16:25 - Laura begins to tell her story, which started in Peru, which she calls “7000 Kilometers, No Money, What Now?” Once Laura was with people who showed her kindness, she did not want to return to life all by herself again, but she knew she had to finish her journey. The relationships she made there were so strong that they still exist today.