Armchair Explorer

Crossed Off the Map: Bolivia from the Andes to the Amazon with Travel Writer Shafik Meghji

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Episode notes

Follow travel writer Shafik Meghji from the Andes to the Amazon on a journey across one of Latin America’s most spectacular countries – Bolivia. 

We’re  going to travel from the stark white plains of the Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat in the world, to the most biodiverse place in the entire amazon rainforest, we’re going to discover a lost city and a mountain that eats men … but we’re also going to do what all good explorers do and dig deeper.

While traveling up and down to every corner of the country, Shafik realized there was a bigger story to be told – not just about Bolivia, but about us too. Everywhere he went he found a contrast between the ancient and the modern – the unchanging and the acceleration of the new. Bolivia, he realized, lived on the cusp of the past and the future, that knife edge dynamic of push and pull that shapes our world. And the more he traveled, the more he realized that we live on that cusp too.

This is a story for travelers, and it will take you to some of the most spectacular and awe-inspiring places on the planet.  But it's also a story for explorers who like to dig down, ask questions and discover the deeper threads of history and society that define a country and our world today.

Who’s the guest?
Shafik Menghji is an award-winning travel writer, author, broadcaster and photographer. His book of this journey is called ‘Crossed off the Map: Travels in Bolivia’. It’s an incredibly well researched and written book and an essential read for anyone visiting or dreaming about a trip to Bolivia. You can find it here or go to www.shafikmeghji.com to find out more. You can also connect with Shafik on Twitter and Instagram @shafikmeghji … Go and hang out, he’s an awesome bloke to travel with.

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