Dani Dirks talks about growing up in Northern California, moving to a rural village in Uganda, and then becoming a full time nomad and traveling the world for 5 years with no base. Matt and Dani talk about their recent wine tasting experience in Portugal, and how they originally met in Vietnam when Dani was a program lead for Hacker Paradise. Dani then reflects on navigating the power dynamics of “voluntourism” and shares some of her personal experiences. She then talks about “the canoe theory” and shares her relationship lessons learned on a white water kayaking trip in Namibia. She opens up about some of her dating experiences and reflects on finding connection and love in the nomadic lifestyle. Dani also talks about the central role of songwriting in her life, especially in processing her experiences and expressing her emotions. She plays “The Traveling Song” on the guitar, an original number that she wrote, and then talks about her current musical project “This is Everyday Love”. Dani also talks about her experiences in South Africa, from block parties in the Townships to bungee jumping, and from cage-diving with sharks to attending AfrikaBurn. FULL SHOW NOTES AVAILABLE AT: www.TheMaverickShow.com
Episode #187: Block Parties in South Africa, Village Life in Uganda, and Relationship Lessons from White Water Kayaking in Namibia with Dani Dirks
Episode Summary
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About the Guest
Dani Dirks
Dani Dirks is a product manager, song writer, adventure seeker and full time digital nomad who has had no permanent base for the last 5 years and has lived in 35 different countries. Originally from Northern California, she spent two of the last 5 years as a program lead for Hacker Paradise—the world’s first international work-travel program for remote professionals. She is Passionate about trauma informed design and the intersection of social innovation, regeneration, systems change, and technology and now works as the fully remote Staff Product Manager at the mental health care company, Cerebral. She spent the pandemic in Bali, Indonesia where she discovered her passions for free-diving, surfing, and sparkly costumes. She has also been writing music since she was 4 years old, currently has a catalogue of over 100 unrecorded songs, and recently started a project called “this is everyday love” with the goal of capturing real love stories from around the world and turning them into songs.
What You'll Learn
- Tips for navigating the pitfalls of “voluntourism” and charitable work
- Tips for dating and finding connection as a nomad
- The power of songwriting for processing emotions relating to travel and love
Links From the Episode
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JOIN MATT AND DANI ON THEIR REMOTE YEAR PROGRAM (Use this link to get a $100 Credit)
JOIN A HACKER PARADISE PROGRAM (Use this link to get a $100 discount)
#1 BOOK THAT DANI RECOMMENDS
OTHER BOOK MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
#1 PERSON WITH WHOM DANI MOST WANTS TO HAVE DINNER
TOP 3 FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATIONS
TOP 3 BUCKET LIST TRAVEL DESTINATIONS
LOCATION WHERE THE INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE
WINE SHARED IN THIS EPISODE
CRYPTOCURRENCY SOFTWARE WALLET MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
NFT COLLECTION THAT INCLUDES ADMISSION TO A GALA IN GHANA:
OTHER COMPANY MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
OTHER PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
OTHER PLACES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
- Barrio del Lago
- Brazil
- Cape Town
- Caribbean Region
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Ghana
- Greece
- Bali, Indonesia
- Israel
- Jordan
- Nairobi, Kenya
- London
- Mexico
- Namibia
- Northern California
- Nile River
- Orange River
- Peru
- Puerto Rico
- Phuket, Thailand
- Moscow, Russia
- Senegal
- South Africa
- Valencia, Spain
- Sri Lanka
- Tanzania
- Chiang Mai, Thailand
- Jinja/Kampala, Uganda
- Da Nang, Vietnam
CONNECT WITH DANI
Time Stamped Show Notes
**Click the time stamp to jump directly to that point in the episode.
[2:41] Wine Tasting in Alentejo for Matt’s Birthday
[7:10] How Matt and Dani Met on Hacker Paradise
[10:07] Buying NFTs from the Portuguese Wine Country
[13:05] Matt and Dani’s 2022 Upcoming Travel Plans in Africa
[14:40] Growing Up and the Impact of Traveling to Thailand at Age 16
[16:56] Living in a Ugandan Village
[24:32] Navigating the Ethics and Power Dynamics of “Voluntourism”
[31:24] White Water Kayaking in Namibia
[33:20] The Canoe Philosophy
[34:15] Dating and Finding Love as a Nomad
[37:05] The Role of Songwriting in Dani’s Life
[44:25] Dani Plays Her Original Number “The Traveling Song”
[51:20] Block Parties in South African Townships
[55:24] Shark Cage Diving in South Africa
[56:56] Bungee Jumping in South Africa
[58:12] AfrikaBurn
