Best Migratory Patterns Podcasts (2025)

1
Philosopher SmackDown | Terms of Art | Patrick Swayze 32:03

22d ago32:03

32:03

WOW! This is our lucky 13th Episode of rabbitHOLE. Today's Holes: Philosopher Smackdown Terms of Art Patrick Swayze Flannery explains why analytic philosophers rule and post-structuralism is B.S. Some of them even make cameos. By the end of the episode, you may wonder if time exists, what's real, if there is beauty, and why is there so much "accide…

1
Your Spotify Year | D.J. Granny | 80 is the New 25 | Leisure Suit Larry 33:41

2M ago33:41

33:41

Welcome back to SEASON TWO and our 12th Episode of rabbitHOLE. We are told publishing 12 episodes is a big deal and we're running with it! Today's Holes: Your Spotify Year D.J. Granny 80 is the New 25 Leisure Suit Larry Yeuhan outs a colleague who tried to pass off his family's listening hours as his own. She also might highlight the dark side of S…

1
Improvised Shakespeare | Waiting for Gal Gadot | Scary Kids' Shows 31:18

3M ago31:18

31:18

Welcome to the second HOLE of SEASON TWO. Today's Holes: Improvised Shakespeare Waiting for Godot, Guffman, Lefty, etc. Unintentionally Scary Children's T.V. Shows BIT player Amber takes us on a journey that opens on Improvised Shakespeare and culminates with Twin Peak's pain and suffering symbol - creamed corn. Who knew? Flannery confesses her lov…

1
Stuff Astronauts Like | Accentuating the Positive | Faking Your Religion 29:04

4M ago29:04

29:04

Welcome to SEASON TWO of rabbitHOLE!!! Please resolve to listen and share every episode (please, please, pretty please)! Today's Holes: Stuff Astronauts Like Accentuating the Positive Faking Your Religion BIT Founder/Director/Leader BILLY MERRITT takes the helm by painting a vivid and endlessly hilarious picture of Florida's "SPACE COAST." Please h…

1
Crime Families | Line Cutting | Pickleball Gangs | Beekeeping Age 31:52

4M ago31:52

31:52

Welcome to rabbitHOLE's Season One Finale/New Year's Eve Bonus Episode. The last rabbit holes of 2024 include: Archaic Japanese Crime Families Theater Hopping + Line Cutting Pickleball Gangs Bee Keeping Age Konrad visits Kobe, Japan, and delves into the very expensive (and ultra-marbled) beef for which it is known. He discovers the "real Kobe's" cr…

1
Charlie Chaplin | Fabric Power Rankings | Mascot Abuse | The Great Muppet Caper 26:41

5M ago26:41

26:41

In rabbitHOLE's eighth episode, the BIT CREW heads down some interesting holes, including: Charlie Chaplin Fabric Power Rankings Mascot Abuse The Great Muppet Caper Luke starts us off with a twisty tale beginning with the 1089 albums you must listen to before you die, (Anyone else a fan of Ogden Nuts Gone Flake? What about Stanley Unwin? Nope? Mayb…

1
Freddie Mercury’s Diet | Skinny Jeans | CA Dancing Raisins 28:27

6M ago28:27

28:27

In rabbitHOLE's seventh episode, the BIT CREW heads down some interesting holes, including: Freddie Mercury + Queen Skinny Jeans Dancing Raisins Recitals Katya explains how she grew up in a pop culture void and only recently educated herself on the band Queen and its frontman. The troupe has a lively discussion on who should and should NOT wear ski…

1
Haunted by Crowley | Laundromat Rap | Dead Animal Furniture 26:29

6M ago26:29

26:29

This is a BONUS Spooky Season episode of rabbitHOLE. It's only fitting to start with a cast member's haunting story*. Of course, in proper rabbitHOLE form, the BIT CREW A-Zs it to dead animal furniture. In episode six, you'll hear about hauntings, signs from beyond the grave, random appearances in rap videos, ironic award show categories, daytime d…

1
Googlie Wooglie | Mc Dojo | Grammar Police 25:55

7M ago25:55

25:55

In rabbitHOLE's fifth episode, the BIT CREW educates listeners about some critical issues, including: Googlie Wooglie Mc Dojo Grammar Police Konrad takes a deep dive into the origins of the term GOOGOL (a one with a hundred zeroes) and starts the BIT CREW off on an improv adventure of surf lingo, organized crime involving unsuspecting UK co-eds, “r…

1
Priest Holes | Violent Childhood Games | The Castle in Bishop, CO | Wikipedia 29:18

8M ago29:18

29:18

In rabbitHOLE's fourth episode, the BIT CREW educates listeners about some critical issues, including: Priest Holes Violent Childhood Games A Colorado Castle built by a crazy man, and Wikipedia If you have ever wondered about the year the U.S. had eight presidents, Baller Priest Hunters, or the pitfalls of capitalism and nepotism…you have come to t…

1
Getting Ducked | European Vacation | Yard Sale-ing 25:47

9M ago25:47

25:47

In rabbitHOLE's third episode, the BIT CREW reminisces about their first duck, the forced vacation policy in Scandinavian countries (we admit it, we're envious), no one noticing when you leave work to take classes, and selling everything you own after experiencing minimalist culture (even the clothes on your child's back). This episode was quite an…

1
As Seen on T.V. | Surströmming | Cool Smokers 26:16

9M ago26:16

26:16

In rabbitHOLE's sophmore episode, the BIT CREW delves into fermented herring, cigarette smoking/quitting/weapons, unsafe kitchen gadgets, and other things that aren't "that bad" for you. As always, rabbitHOLE is unscripted and inspired by the cast's real-life rabbit hole adventures. If you enjoy rabbitHOLE, please follow, rate, and share rabbitHOLE…

1
Ex Presidents | Couch Surfing | Spontaneous Poetry 26:02

11M ago26:02

26:02

Join The BIT Comedy Network's rabbitHOLE cast as they explore scope-creeping projects, couch surfing with Craig's List, and the politics of grade school popularity. rabbitHOLE is unscripted and inspired by the cast's real-life rabbit hole adventures. If you enjoy our debut episode, follow, rate, and share rabbitHOLE with your friends! APOLOGIES: Ja…

1
#059: Trapped In Wuhan During COVID-19 | Jen Knight 37:19

5y ago37:19

37:19

Jen Knight says that she "won the in-laws lottery" when it comes to her Chinese husband's parents. But luck wasn't on her side this past January, when a day after she arrived in her husband's hometown just outside of Wuhan for a Spring Festival celebration, the Chinese government started shutting down all transit links into and out of the area, eff…

1
#058: Studying Anxiety In Expats In the Time of COVID-19 | Chris Barnhart 44:03

5y ago44:03

44:03

This week we're kicking off Season 4 with part 1 of a special 2-part series focusing on a pair of international migrants who have written a study on how the initial outbreak of COVID-19 in China effected foreign nationals living there. The lead researcher, Chris Barnhart, was a high school teacher in Florida who'd been laid off during a round of bu…

1
#057: Emergency Pod with Coronavirus Expats 35:31

5y ago35:31

35:31

We're interrupting our inter-season interregnum to bring you a discussion with a group of expats who live in China but who have found themselves "stuck" in Bali after the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan shut down virtually all businesses and most travel into the country. It's estimated that there are close to 1 million foreigners living in China, and…

1
#056: The Expats Are Alright | Dr. Sonia Jaeger 42:50

5+ y ago42:50

42:50

It's part 2 of the two-part Season 3 finale, wherein Mike & Alisa take a look at the issues and problems that have come up for the in their move from Beijing to Bali with a professional. Dr. Sonia Jaeger is a clinical psychologist & psychotherapist who is one of the growing number of location independent professionals who choose to live and work fr…

1
#055: Big Trouble On the Little Island of the Gods | Alisa Rutherford-Fortunati IV 45:58

5+ y ago45:58

45:58

Season 3 is coming to a close, and in part 1 of the two-part season finale I'm joined by my wife, Alisa Rutherford-Fortunati, to talk about our move from Beijing to Bali, which is our first transition between locations as a couple. There have been lots of unexpected twists and turns, from trouble finding a house, to developing new routines, to just…

1
#054: Mental Health In A 'Global Nomad's World' | Daniela Tomer 44:24

5+ y ago44:24

44:24

Daniela Tomer, founder of Global Nomad's World, knows something about migration. Not only is she a clinical psychologist who specializes in helping families deal with the issues surrounding migration, but she's the product of migration herself. Born to parents who had fled from Eastern Europe to Argentina in the early days of WWII, Daniela migrated…

1
#053: "The Immigrant Story's Not Dead." | Dr. Victoria T. 43:20

5+ y ago43:20

43:20

As Victoria sees it, "To become an American, you have to put in a lot of work." After all, that's been her story. Victoria's path to the U.S. started with a stroke of luck: Her mother won the visa lottery, granting her and her daughter entry to the country; but as many immigrants soon learn after they arrive, the streets in America are not paved wi…

1
#052: A Passion for Naked Nut Butters | Meredith Sides 33:40

5+ y ago33:40

33:40

Nut butters were never supposed to be a part of Meredith Sides' life; but, then again, neither was living abroad. Not wanting to choose the path that most other people in her small town followed - moving from high school into the trades, farming or beauty school - she moved to Philadelphia for college, did a semester abroad in Europe, and then, on …

1
#051: Building Community with Qmmunity | Gabby Gabriel 38:08

5+ y ago38:08

38:08

We all need community. And nobody needs community more than people who move overseas; we leave family and friends behind when we move, and building new networks and support systems is vital for us. This can be an especially fraught process for members of the LGBTQ community. This week, we're collaborating with our sister podcast Pop Abroad to take …

1
#050: Thriving In the Expat Music Scene | Steven McKinney 41:57

5+ y ago41:57

41:57

Wherever people gather, you'll find music. This certainly holds true for migrant communities. But that doesn't necessarily mean that the music being made in the places finds its way into popular culture. In a world of streaming and niche audiences, you can find an an amazing variety of musical styles and cross-cultural mashups to tickle your ears w…

1
#049: The Challenge of Caring for Elder Family While Abroad | Shannon Martin 35:12

5+ y ago35:12

35:12

Shannon Martin thinks a lot about life stages- of podcasts and of people. Currently the Director of Communications at Podbean, the hosting platform for all of Migration Media's shows, she has a bird's eye view of the rapidly-changing world of on-demand audio and often helps shows just starting out to grow and endure. She also works with Aging Wisel…

1
BONUS 04: The Bittersweet Life #270, "STATES" 34:46

5+ y ago34:46

34:46

This week I've got some more bonus content to share with you: a recent episode of The Bittersweet Life podcast. On my last episode I spoke with co-host Katy Sewall about her journey from a safe career with NPR to expat, to podcasting entrepreneur, and we touched on some of the themes that come up often in her show. In essence, I tried to do in abou…

1
#048: Documenting Her 'Bittersweet Life' | Katy Sewall 47:22

5+ y ago47:22

47:22

Katy Sewall used to be, as she says, one of those "get-a-great-job-and-hang-onto-it" kind of people. That is, until she got an opportunity to move to Rome where her best friend from childhood, Tiffany Parks, had been living for several years. A senior producer at NPR's Seattle affiliate, Katy decided to jump at the chance for adventure and turn her…

1
#047: Her Grades Made Her Do It & Plant-based Consulting | Chaniece Brackeen 36:23

5+ y ago36:23

36:23

Chaniece started her journey towards life overseas when she was deciding which foreign language to take in college. As it turned out, the professor with the highest satisfaction ratings from students taught Chinese, so that's what she chose. After scoring consistently high grades in her classes, she decided to make it her major and her fate was sea…

1
BONUS 03: Ricci Scholars Special 14:08

5+ y ago14:08

14:08

This week I've got a bonus mini-pod for you! Both before and after my interviews with Olivia Muszynski & Alaina Miller - the Ricci Scholars featured in my previous two episodes - we had fun, engaging conversations about a lot of topics that I couldn't fit into their podcasts, which is a pity because they're both brilliant, driven people who are end…

1
#046: Ricci Scholars 2 - Examining Migrant Housing | Alaina Miller 31:46

5+ y ago31:46

31:46

While the small town in Michigan where she grew up is the place that she goes back to whenever she "needs a safe haven," Alaina Miller doesn't think of it as "Home" anymore. Not since she set off for school in Chicago- and especially not since she spent the last year studying abroad as part of the Ricci Scholars program at Loyola College. What's dr…

1
#045: Ricci Scholars 1 - Contrasting Cultures Thru Real Estate | Olivia Muszynski 34:30

5+ y ago34:30

34:30

This week I'm sharing the first of my conversations with two recipients of the 2018-2019 Ricci Scholarship. This Loyola University program offers scholarships to highly qualified students to spend their junior year studying abroad in 2 countries and conducting cross-cultural research. Olivia Muszynski owns the fact that she's still figuring things …

1
#044: Uncovering the Untold Story of 'The Six' | Steven Schwankert 48:02

5+ y ago48:02

48:02

Steve Schwankert is one of the proudest and most committed expats that I've ever met. Originally from "the part of New Jersey that loves Spingsteen, and not the part that loves Bon Jovi," Steven had his eyes set on moving to China as early as high school. Now, 23 years after making the leap, he's sick and tired of people asking him when he's going …

1
BONUS 02: The Stoop #07 - Coming to America 26:15

5+ y ago26:15

26:15

This week we're sharing a little something extra with you: The episode of The Stoop that got me hooked on the show! As I discussed with her during our interview earlier this week, co-host Hana Baba has explored and discovered new things about her heritage through her work producing her podcast. One of the things that she talked about with me are th…

1
#043: From Sudan to America to 'The Stoop' | Hana Baba 41:08

5+ y ago41:08

41:08

Hana Baba, the award-winning host of Crosscurrents on KALW & co-host of the groundbreaking podcast, The Stoop, grew up in much the same way as her baby sister, Ethar (see previous episode)- by splitting her time between Khartoum, Sudan, and the U.S. Now that she's all grown up with a family of her own, the concept of "Home" is complicated, as it st…

1
#042: The Sudan-America Two-step | Ethar Baba 36:58

5+ y ago36:58

36:58

This week I'm bringing you the first of my conversations with two sisters who've shared a similar globe-spanning bi-cultural upbringing. Ethar Baba is the youngest in a family of 6 Sudanese-American children who all split their time between their parents' hometown of Khartoum and Washington, D.C. Moving back and forth between cultures during her ch…

1
#041: Pop Abroad | Michelle Ibarra 40:16

5+ y ago40:16

40:16

We kick off Season 3 of the show by welcoming our newest team member to Migration Media, Michelle Ibarra! Her show, Pop Abroad, explores the keys to finding success and living your best life overseas. The show's first season explores the importance of community in our lives and how successful people have built theirs. Her own desire for community l…

1
Season 3 Is Coming! 2:52

5+ y ago2:52

2:52

Welcome to Season 3 of Migratory Patterns! After dozens of conversations across 2 seasons I'm more passionate than ever about exploring the lives of international migrants. What drives us to move away from home? What makes us stay overseas? And how does it change us? As an expat myself, I'm exploring these ideas within my own life, and I'm thrilled…

1
BONUS 01: Podcast Brunch Club Beijing - June 2019 1:03:09

6y ago1:03:09

1:03:09

Season 2 has wrapped, but I'm dropping this special bonus episode as a "Going On Hiatus" present. This past spring, I organized a Beijing chapter of Podcast Brunch Club, a global community of podcast enthusiasts who gather each month to talk about what they're listening to and share recommendations. To help things along, leaders provide a Listening…

1
#040: Leaving Beijing Behind - Season 2 Finale | Alisa Rutherford-Fortunati III 50:25

6y ago50:25

50:25

This is it dear listeners. We've come to the end of yet another season- and what a ride it's been! When I began this experiment last summer I was searching for community. I was thinking a lot about the changes that I have gone through as I have spent more and more time overseas, and I was wondering if anybody else out there was going through the sa…

1
#039: Feeling Out Of Place At Home? Try Stardom Abroad! | Brian O'shea 41:09

6y ago41:09

41:09

While growing up in his native Argentina, Brian O'shea never quite felt like he belonged, so it's no surprise that his idea of where "Home" is boils down the sum of an equation with ever-shifting values that works out to something like Home = Where You Are + Where Your family Is + Where the People You Care About Are. It's probably one of the most a…

1
#038: From Tourist to Line Cook to Restaurateur to TV Star: A Migrant's Journey | Jun Trinh 34:17

6y ago34:17

34:17

Jun Trinh never thought he'd be in China. As a half-Chinese kid growing up in Toronto he refused offers to take trips there with his family. He never went to Mandarin class. But now, 11 years after a detour during an around-the-world trip all but marooned him in Beijing, he's thinking about his next steps and reflecting on the internal voyage of se…

1
#037: Always Moving Forward... Because There's Nowhere To 'Go Back' To | Alex Sherr 42:51

6y ago42:51

42:51

Alex Sherr didn't choose the #ExpatLife. His parents brought him from his native New York to Hong Kong while he was in high school, but he's taken to life as a foreigner with gusto. After graduation, he spent a gap year in Beijing learning Chinese, and never left. A year of college prep was followed by enrollment in Peking University's prestigious …

1
#036: Privilege In the Face Of Challenge | Gabriel Clermont, Part 2 37:06

6y ago37:06

37:06

What it's like to want it all, to be able to live in 2 worlds at once? Like several other people who I've spoken with,, Gabe Clermont often feels like he's rooted in two worlds: His hometown of New York, and the place where he's been able to thrive professionally. In part 2 of our conversation, we touch on the challenges that feeling at home in mul…

1
#035: Challenges In the Face Of Privilege | Gabriel Clermont, Part 1 34:07

6y ago34:07

34:07

Gabriel Clermont has a deep affinity for his hometown of New York, yet feels that it was kind of inevitable that he made the leap to living overseas, trading one global media hub for another. Each of his parents has an extraordinary #MigrationStory, and he "Didn't want to be the least adventurous person in [his] family." As familiar as living in a …

1
#034: Migrating Before they Migrate: Serving Cross-Culture Students Overseas | Barbara Chen 54:17

6y ago54:17

54:17

Barbara Chen got her first taste of China in 1989 (what timing!), fell in love, got married, and after a stint back in the US, has called Beijing home for the last 18 years. During that time she's raised a bi-cultural family and now works as a recruiter for an American university, helping Chinese kids make the leap to the west for their education. …

1
#033: Coming of Age As A TCK... And Then What? | Mio Rudnicki 47:41

6y ago47:41

47:41

Born in America, Mio Rudnicki grew up as a TCK, bouncing around the world as part of a multicultural family. In essence, she's been a migrant all of her life. So when she ended up in the US for high school and college, the experience that most of us take for granted was a huge culture shock for her. How do you navigate your daily life when you're s…

1
#032: What Migration Hath Wrought: Moroccan-Rum-Sports Bars In Hutongs | Badr Benjelloun 54:25

6y ago54:25

54:25

I've often described Badr Benjelloun as the quintessential example of a "Renaissance Expat," and this was never more obvious than when he opened Cu Ju, Beijing's first (and only) Moroccan/Rum/Sports Bar in one of the city's 1,000 year-old hutongs (alleyways). It was seen by many as a living example of the unique cultural mash-up that can only happe…

1
#031: When Does Migration Trump National Identity? | Margarita Lukavenko 47:51

6y ago47:51

47:51

Born and raised on Russia's "Fish Tail" island of Sakhalin, Margarita Lukavenko got her first taste of foreign culture when she went to Malaysia as part of an exchange program at 16. Save for her final year of high school, she's been a migrant ever since- first as a student in far-off (and practically foreign) Moscow, and then as an educator and en…

1
#030: A Grown-up TCK Raising TCKs & Searching for Community | Dr. Kate Bailey Gardner 44:34

6y ago44:34

44:34

When I met Dr. Kate Bailey Gardner in Boston in the mid-1990s she felt, as she says, "Like a bit of a social outcast." The term "TCK" was still new and she was coming to terms with her identity as a kid raised overseas who had moved back to her passport country for college. She's been on a journey to find herself and what "Home" means for her ever …

1
#029: Building Community with Moishe House and Global Shapers & Becoming Yourself | Abe Sorock 44:14

6y ago44:14

44:14

We humans have a deep need for community- none more so than we humans who are living outside of our places of origin. The power of community organizing is twofold: We not only make ourselves feel like we fit and belong in a place, but it also helps us discover more about ourselves. The overseas journey of my guest this week, Abe Sorock, began as a …

1
#028: When Being Your Best Self Requires Being On the Road | Adriana T. 37:22

6y ago37:22

37:22

My good friend Adriana, who I have known since she first moved to China from her native Romania back in 2011, is a person I've always admired. From an early age she stood out from her cohort- people who came of age just as their country emerged from behind the Iron Curtain. She discovered Couchsurfing in its early days and was an active member of t…

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Migratory Patterns Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen