Dani Dirks shares her experience at Carnival in Rio and talks about the legendary street parties, the main event at the Samba Drome, and the unique level of gender fluidity throughout the event. She also talks about her first skydiving experience in Floripa, Brazil. Dani then talks about her trip to the Komodo Islands in Indonesia and tells stories about interacting with the Komodo Dragons. She then shares her experience of free diving with sperm whales in Sri Lanka and attending a free diving retreat in Phuket, Thailand. Dani explains some of the skills, techniques, and lessons she has learned from free diving, and why she loves it so much. She then talks about her lifestyle choices and reflects on her willingness to seize opportunities and make spontaneous decisions. Dani also reflects on how her world travel experiences have impacted her personal growth and share her tips on maintaining a fulfilling nomad lifestyle over the long term. She then performs her original song “The Moon and More” and discusses her new musical project “This is Everyday Love”. FULL SHOW NOTES AVAILABLE AT: www.TheMaverickShow.com
Episode #188: Komodo Dragons in Indonesia, Free Diving with Sperm Whales in Sri Lanka, and Gender Bending at Carnival in Rio 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
- Techniques, Lessons and Reflections on Free Diving Around the World
- Tips for Sustaining an Exciting, Fulfilling Nomadic Lifestyle Over the Long Term
- Tips on Seizing Opportunities and Making Spontaneous Decisions in Life
Links From the Episode
Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. If you click through any links and make a purchase, you should assume that Maverick will receive financial compensation (at no additional cost to you). We greatly appreciate you using our affiliate links because it helps to support the show and cover production costs of the podcast.
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.
[1:18] Street Parties at Carnival in Rio
[3:23] Gender Fluidity and Inclusivity at Carnival in Rio
[5:34] The Main Event at the Samba Drome During Carnival
[8:01] Beach Life in Florianopolis, Brazil
[10:00] Dani’s First Skydiving Experience
[12:25] Seeing Komodo Dragons in Indonesia
[16:48] Free Diving with Sperm Whales in Sri Lanka
[21:49] Skills, Techniques, and Life Lessons from Free Diving
[26:24] Spontaneous Decision Making and Seizing Opportunities
[31:39] How Travel Has Impacted Dani
[34:16] How Dani Sustains a Fulfilling Nomadic Lifestyle over the Long Term
[39:12] Dani Shares the Background of One of Her Original Songs
[40:58] Dani Performs Her Original Number “The Moon and More”
[46:40] Dani’s “This is Everyday Love” Project
[48:54] Dani’s YouTube Channel
[51:12] The Lightning Round
[1:00:06] Contact and Follow Dani
