Robert Kelly’s Travel Tape

Veteran Lonely Planet writer Robert Kelly has launched a fantastic podcast called Travel Tape. These podcast episodes are thoroughly researched and beautifully produced; as good as any audio content put out by the BBC or NPR.

Robert’s first two releases are on Kenya (Walking with the Maasai) and China (The Borderlands: The Korean Corner of China).

Episode One – Walking with the Maasai – follows writer and photographer Stuart Butler on a five-week walk across southern Kenya. This 30-minute podcast really showcases the sound quality of Travel Tape. As well as intelligent narrative, there is music, wildlife sounds, and at times you can even hear the footsteps – it’s very atmospheric. It’s professionally done yet gritty and authentic. Robert’s narration is clear and never intrudes on the stories – he lets the storytellers tell their tales.

In Episode Two, The Borderlands: The Korean Corner of China, journalist David Eimer takes us to the little-known Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in the northeast of China. There are more than two million ethnic Koreans living as citizens of the PRC (People’s Republic of China). Among the nuggets is a story about Kim Il-sung, the first Supreme Leader of North Korea. He grew up in China and later spent time in Russia. His Korean was bad and he spoke it with a strong Chinese accent. When he returned to Korea he had to spent a lot of time working on his Korean in order to give speeches.

You can listen to the Travel Tape podcast on Robert’s website, iTunes or Stitcher.