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Description

Today's interview is with Rita Golden Gelman— an extraordinary world traveler and elder Nav.igator. Now 81 years old, she spent 33 years of her later life without a permanent residence. Author of the New York Times bestseller: Tales of a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the World, she personifies the idea that true wealth is experiential. A prolific children’s book author who wrote while on the road, Rita was a working nomad well before the current “digital nomad” trend.  She also edited and published a collection of stories from women travelers: Female Nomad and Friends: Tales of Breaking Free and Breaking Bread Around the World. She was invited to share her life and travel perspectives in a TEDx talk: The Joy of Connecting.

Rita has lived on five continents and in often rural places in Mexico, Indonesia, Africa, Laos, Thailand, Guatemala, Colombia, India, Tanzania and more. During this conversation, Rita shares stories about how she nav.ed a life of travel (managing logistics from finances to visas) and what her life is like now as she ages (some serious #realtalk).  She also offers her favorite resource for those wanting to dive into a nomadic life. 

What You'll Learn

• How she handled working remotely and staying in touch with family before the age of the internet


• How she found  places to stay throughout her 33 years on the road


• Her main reason for traveling


• How she was able to survive financially during her years abroad


• Some of her experiences from where she lived the longest (Indonesia)


• How she handled some of the logistics like visas and residency


• What her most recent trip to Rwanda was like


• What life is like now at almost 82 years old


• The importance of NOW.


• The #bestpart of a lifetime of travel


• What her most recommended travel resource is

You can follow and learn more about Rita at ritagoldengelman.com

Watch and listen Rita’s TEDx talk: The Joy of Connecting

Pick up copies of her books: Tales of a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the Worldand Female Nomad and Friends: Tales of Breaking Free and Breaking Bread Around the World (Proceeds from the purchase of Female Nomad and Friends goes towards providing school scholarships for children in Delhi, India)

Resources Mentioned

• Servas International – Peace and understanding through travel and hosting


• Servas United States

Real Talk

This week's real talk story from the Nav.it app community is about Bora Bora.

If you want to have your story featured on a future episode, download the Nav.it app and leave your post in the Community section.  We'd love to hear from you! 

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