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Age: 40 as of June 15th

Belt: Blue

Profession: Senior business writer/editor for a global telecommunications company

How many years in BJJ: 4

Other martial arts: None

Where do you live: Madrid, Spain

Where are you from: London, UK

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I love diving, and am in the process of learning underwater photography.

Matt Young – BJJ Globetrotters

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
I was a proper gym rat when I moved to Spain, but after a few years of trying to get “swole”, I realised that I didn’t have the frame for it and just looked a bit puffy instead. So I took a summer off from “working out” and wanted to still do something that pushed me physically, so got my PADI licence in the Cabo de Gata national park on the south coast of Spain.

Once I got back to Madrid after summer, I wanted to do something to get myself active (fear of desk belly is a constant thing), and as I had an interest in MMA decided to go the route of taking up a martial art. Getting punched or kicked wasn’t something I felt like doing in my late 30s, so I decided on BJJ. There was an academy walking distance from my apartment at the time, so I went down there one evening for an introductory class and the rest is history.

Incidentally, my training partner that first night is now one of my best and closest friends.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
As of time of writing, my last trip was to Riga in Latvia. Explored the old town at length, and did some hiking in Gauja National Park about an hour outside the city by train.

My next trips planned are Italy for Castle Camp 2022, then Sevilla in June, London in July for my mum’s 80th, then August will be going hiking in Montenegro to explore the Durmitor National Park and Tara River canyon.

Matt Young – BJJ Globetrotters

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
Going to new places, meeting new people, trying new food, experiencing new mindsets. I’m a firm believer in travelling with an open mind, an empty stomach, and a notebook.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
For the travelling side of things, it’s the street food. I’m a big fan (particularly in South and Central America) of just wandering up to street food vendors and asking for whatever the person next to me has a bowl of. Sometimes I’ve gotten some stuff I wouldn’t have considered usually (eyeball tacos in CDMX, for example).

I also love archaeological sites, so I will go out of my way to visit as many as I can. Again, South and Central America are a haven for these. I recommend Tikal in Guatemala (used in the first Star Wars as Yavin 4), as well as Monte Alban in Oaxaca, and Teotihuacan in Mexico.

Training-wise, it’s meeting different people and seeing just how wide the BJJ path is across the world. My exposure to different techniques, mindsets, interpretations of BJJ is just awesome.

The BJJ Globetrotters camps are the best example of these. Aside from the training itself, it’s the conversations outside the training that stick with me. Concepts and ways of thinking, recommendations of things I’ve never heard of before, ideas that come about after some random chat sets off a spark of inspiration or opens up a new path between hitherto unconnected thoughts.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
The friendliness and openness of people. I feel that Western media has a habit of demonising places a little too frequently, so to visit those places, meet the locals, try their food, and realise it’s not like that at all.

Matt Young – BJJ Globetrotters Camp in St. Barths

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
Definitely a budget traveller. I help look after the r/Shoestring group on Reddit which focuses on budget travel assistance and travelling tips, so am firmly rooted in the money-saving side of things.

I’m a prodigious note taker, and have various text files with interesting points about certain places and countries. These can come from a YouTube video I’ve watched, travel program I’ve seen, food I’ve tried, maybe I read a book and they mentioned a cool stone pyramid somewhere etc.

My first stop is usually Skyscanner using the “Everywhere” functionality to see where I can get a cheap flight to. I’ll then cross check anywhere that is particularly cheap against places I’ve flagged in my notes as being somewhere I want to visit.

I’ll sketch out a rough itinerary over how long I intend to travel, and flag cities or places I want to stay, how I’ll get there internally, opening hours of any museums or sites I want to visit etc.

Once I’ve got the itinerary and flights, I’ll move onto accommodation. If it’s a shorter trips (<7 days) then I’ll try and get accommodation sorted ahead of time so that I can focus on activities whilst I’m travelling. For longer trips, I’ll get the first night booked then will take it from there as I’m less concerned about whether to move around or not.

AirBnB, Booking, Hostelworld are my go-to sites for accommodation. I’ll sometimes use Agoda depending on where I am in the world. I’ll do searches for the approx city/area/dates I want to stay, then will refine based on availability and personal preference (private room, hostel, includes a buffet breakfast etc).

Once I’ve got the ‘best’ price that fits what I want, I’ll contact the accommodation directly to see if I can save a little bit more. For example, Hostelworld around South and Central America I was saving a couple of dollars per night booking direct with the hostels themselves, which all added up over a month or so of travel.

I’ll keep a budget of what I’ve spent via the TriCount app on my phone, which is also good for showing expense splits if you’re travelling with someone.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Plan ahead, but don’t have those plans be so rigid that you can’t adapt to changes or anything that can (and will) go wrong. Also learning a few local words always helps – I keep a notes file on my phone with the phonetic pronunciations of any words that I’ll need to use, such as “Fally Men Dare It” (“thank you” in Albanian).

Don’t be afraid of going old school and getting yourself a guidebook. They’re always good to have at hand, and don’t go out of date as quickly as the companies that print them would have you believe. I’ve got a Canary Islands LP from 2016 that is still getting regular use. They also contain good information about local customs and the aforementioned phonetic pronunciations of useful words and phrases. eBay or second-hand bookstores are a good place to find them for cheap.

If you’re unsure about travelling, then I heartily recommend Vagabonding by Rolf Potts. It’s a travel guide that deals with the philosophical side of things rather than stuff like how to pack your socks so they take up less room. Comedian Ari Shaffir has a great podcast with Rolf where they talk about long term, low cost travel for around 4hrs which is worth a listen: https://shaffir1.libsyn.com/298-vagabonder-rolfpotts

For YouTubers, Gabriel Traveler is a fantastic resource, as he often shows low-cost options and will do full breakdowns of how much accomodation/transport/food is in a location, as well as giving a street-level feel of what a place is like. His series of videos in Oaxaca in Mexico were the main reason why I ended up going there myself a few years ago.

I would also always suggest a hostel if budget is a factor. You can get cheap private rooms if you’re not a fan of dorms, and the morning discussions over breakfast are essential in getting a lay of the land and finding out what’s worth visiting or doing whilst you’re in a place.

Other than that, smile, seek out adventure, and don’t be afraid to try the street food.

Thank you to Matt Young – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Age: 40

Belt: Purple

Profession: Student / hospitality (hotels)

How many years in BJJ: 10

Other martial arts: Green belt in Japanese Jiu Jitsu, experience in various other wrestling/grappling arts I picked up while travelling

Where do you live: Currently living in Perth, Western Australia

Where are you from: Petawawa, Ontario, Canada

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I have over 200 hours of tattoo work covering my body… everyone fixates on my beard or moustache.

Robert Barker – BJJ Globetrotters

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
When I first started my travels and the Panda’s Odyssey blog, it spawned from my childhood conversations with friends about where to travel and what styles to train in, based on the Street Fighter V cartoon series. There was also a Canadian series hosted by an Aikido black belt who travelled and trained for a week in different martial arts, called “World’s Deadliest Arts”, that my friends and I would talk about.

This past year, however, has been fuelled by a different urge. I travelled across Canada (again) and then over to Australia because of school and work. I’m currently studying a double major Bachelor of Commerce at Curtin University, and I decided to come here because I have friends to train with and I hope to set up shop near a beach one day.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
This past year, I took a road trip across Canada as I moved from the west coast back to my hometown. That’s a 5000 km road trip. I took my time, visited friends and family along the way, and drove the whole distance in two weeks. I would have loved to take two months to visit and train with more people along the way, but COVID put a stop to that. I was lucky enough to be able to drop into a new school, as well as meet up and train at two schools I first visited in 2017 when I began Panda’s Odyssey. It was great to meet up with friends I made along the first trip, and catch up on what’s been going on the past five years since we last trained. Of course, talking BJJ and COVID politics came up, and I was able to see how everyone has dealt with the lockdowns across Canada, both as members of the sport looking to train, and as gym owners looking to keep their business alive.

Once I was re-situated back in my hometown to begin my first semester of university online (I do not recommend taking classes on a 12hr time difference), I began teaching and training at a gym there, Evolution BJJ Pembroke. I’ve been close friends with the Evolution guys while travelling all over Canada, and now I was able to be a part of the club and not just a drop-in visitor. Teaching and training on an army base is a different animal – there’s a noticeably higher level of aggression. It was quite the experience to apply my teaching style and knowledge to a different audience. Part of learning as you move up the ranks I guess, but I must have done well enough, since during my time there I was awarded two stripes on my purple belt.

Just before the holidays, I was surprised with good news that I could finally move to Australia. So I began my plans to move to Perth, Western Australia, 18,000km away from home. Why Perth? Short answer is because I can. I want to work in hotels and run tourist events in a warm place, preferably near or on a beach. Long answer is this: since first putting together the idea of my world backpacking experience, maybe even before coming up with the name Panda’s Odyssey, the first person to reach out to me online was Luke Docherty, who invited me out to Perth. As I went on my Odyssey, Luke began his own travel experience, Free Rollers, where a small group of people holds a 2-week training camp at a top-level gym somewhere in the world. I finally met him on his first trip to San Diego where we trained two, sometimes even three times a day at University of Jiu-Jitsu. We also dropped by Victory MMA, Atos BJJ, and 10th Planet. Ever since then we talked a lot about running camps, with a gym and a hotel to tie it all together.

Over the past two years, COVID shut down Luke’s Free Rollers plans, so he opened a gym, Taurus BJJ. On weekends, when I don’t have my head in the books or at work, I head 90 mins south of Perth on public transport to his gym to have some great rolls with the guys. Once my schedule allows I’ll be there more often and may even teach a class. I might also check out some open mats closer to me once in a while, but Taurus will be my home gym while I’m here, so if anyone makes the trek all this way, come visit us!

Robert Barker – BJJ Globetrotters

What are the things you enjoy about travelling?
I love the experience of seeing new places, and being able to travel and explore a city I’ve never been to before. I also love trying new foods. While I’m not the most open to trying anything when it comes to food, I do love to eat. Of course I also love meeting new people – new friends to share stories with, to train with on the mats, and to show me the city and where it’s good to eat.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
Sunsets and sunrises at a new view are always worth travelling for. I think the coolest thing that I enjoy about travelling is being able to find common ground and connect with people all over the world. Sometimes it’s not always easy to make that first icebreaker, but usually I end up with a new friend anywhere I go.

As far as training goes, I’ve gained a collection of tidbits of knowledge from my travels, and they have proven to be quite useful when teaching at a new place. I’m able to relate a different view of the technique, or concept, or whatever we’re talking about, and it tends to resonate and set off fireworks. Helping someone make the connections to finally make sense of Jiu Jitsu is worth travelling for, to gain that knowledge and share it to others along the way.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
I always expect things to go unexpectedly while travelling, I see it all as an adventure, or a series of adventures, good or bad. But the most surprising thing is that I still run into people who follow me on IG and have read my blog/watched my videos. Speaking of my blog, I should probably update that…

Robert Barker – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
I would like to think I’ve found ways to travel cheaply, or at least stay within a budget, but I know people who are way better at it then me and are more deserving of the term “budget traveller”. As far as planning a budget, Google is a valuable tool. Look up the prices of things, hostel/hotel stays, restaurants, even the flyer to the local grocery store of where you plan on visiting. From that you can estimate how much accommodation and food will cost.

For my backpacking trip around the world, Panda’s Odyssey, I used spreadsheets to track all my expenses and keep within budget on my stays. It was more just monitoring finances than anything – it was quite basic really. For my trip across Canada I stepped up the spreadsheet skills. I had a budget I wanted to keep within, but also really wanted to travel in comfort within that budget. So not only was I tracking daily expenses, separated into categories like food, gas, lodgings etc., but I also had a total tally for each category, a total for all expenses, and a “budget remaining” total. So basically I could enter my breakfast receipt into a cell, and in turn all the totals would add up and show me how much I’ve spent for food that day, over the total trip so far, and how much money I had in my budget for the remaining trip. That was a lot of fun to come up with, and it really helped monitor my daily spending.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Take every chance you get. Even if it fails, you had an adventure and gained experience, and now you have a story to tell. Do nothing and you have nothing to learn or share. Nobody wants to listen to stories about chances you didn’t take.

Thank you to Robert Barker – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Where is the gym located?
Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico. We are located in the northern part of Mexico, a 2.5 hour drive from Texas.

How many people train there?
Around 40 – 55 (40 regulars).

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
Yes! Seven years ago we opened the first location, and since then we now have 4 locations. Each academy has a different number of new students. For instance, our first place has more new students. It’s been hard since the other 3 locations opened during the Covid pandemic.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
We currently have around 50 students. The highest ranked are 2 brown belts, and there are 7 consistent purple belts that keep a good training level at the academy. Mostly blue belts (15) and white belts (29) make up the team.

When did Rino Academy, BJJ Mexico open?
It started in August 2015, founded by our lead coach Aaron Fernández when he was a purple belt. Aaron is now currently a brown belt 4 degrees, under the guidance of Professor Bruno Mendes.

Some facts about you:

Name: Aaron Fernandez
Age: 31 years old
Belt: brown belt 4 stripes
Profession: Chemical Engineer
Years in BJJ: 15 years
Other martial arts: Muay Thai
Currently living in: Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
Originally from: Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
Rino Academy was founded by Aaron Fernandez due to the necessity of integrating a competitive team downtown in Monterrey, Nuevo León. The main objective of founding the team was to win state local tournaments, prestigious tournaments in the country, and worldwide.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
It’s a random mix of personalities from teens to people in their 40s, everyone united by Jiu Jitsu. We have two types of classes: for newcomers and for advanced. Newcomers classes range from learning to fall, to specific movements. The advanced class ranges from competition-specific exercises with some conditioning and sparring.

Why do they train in Rino Academy, BJJ Mexico?
To learn self defence and conditioning, and the sense of belonging.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
In Mexico specifically, people are not very conscious of a combat sport culture based on ground fighting. Grappling involves too much body contact and people tend to think of it as something sexual. The greatest challenge is explaining and convincing folks that Jiu Jitsu has nothing sexual about it. The UFC and MMA in general have helped change this perception.

Another challenge we faced in the past was not having matching ideas or values. In 2019 we joined the Soul Fighters Association and we were a perfect match.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
The BJJ and grappling community is growing. In 2015 the first Rino Academy was founded; today there are 4 training facilities in different parts of the city. The future plan is to expand in all towns in the state, and we would love to have an academy in every state in Mexico, with the sole purpose of teaching Jiu Jitsu everywhere in the country.

What’s the best thing about Rino Academy, BJJ Mexico?
Brotherhood. From the moment you step on the mat you can notice that there is a brotherhood in the team. We always seek to integrate and incorporate all our colleagues to create a good experience for them.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
Monterrey is a beautiful city surrounded by mountains which make for exceptional natural sightseeing adventures and easy day trips. There are also plenty of museums and delicious restaurants to enjoy. Come and roll with us, we would love to show you around!

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Rino Academy, BJJ Mexico, you can find them here.

Where is the gym located?
Yogyakarta, Indonesia. You can find us on Google Maps here.

How many people train there?
About 15-30.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
The members come and go because most of them are college students or travellers who visit Jogja for a while.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
Our coach is a purple belt and the students are white belts. We often have guests from other dojos or affiliations, with all belt grades from all around the world. In our opinion it doesn’t matter, because we always open the door to feel the joy of rolling time on the mat.

When did Jogja Top Team, BJJ Indonesia open?
The Jiu Jitsu schedule is every Monday and Thursday at 7pm, but we open every day and any time you want (by request if you want to train together with us).

Some facts about you:

Name: Pintoko Darupito
Age: I’ll be 30 in March
Belt: Purple belt
Profession: Business owner
Years in BJJ: Officially started learning BJJ in 2014
Other martial arts: Judo, Wrestling, Sambo, Kurash, and a little bit striking
Currently living in: Yogyakarta
Originally from: Yogyakarta

Please tell us the story of how Jogja Top Team, BJJ Indonesia came into existence
We grew up as a community who love martial arts. Over time we adjusted to be a semi-conventional gym who have regular classes and athlete classes. We also arranged BJJ events so that we could engage with other enthusiasts in Indonesia, especially in the Yogyakarta area like Jogja Friendly Grappling Tournament, Jogja Outdoor Rolling, and may more. We also participate in BJJ competitions like Indonesia Super Grappler, BJJ Jakarta Open FBJJI, Nerium Invitation Match, Titan BJJ Challenge, and other tournaments.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
Most of them are college students who love BJJ or martial arts as their lifestyle, and we also have students who fall in love with BJJ and martial arts as their way of life, so they are excited to train and to compete.

Why do they train in Jogja Top Team, BJJ Indonesia?
They train to do something fresh, for friends, and for fun!

What are some of the challenges of running a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gym in general, and in your area specifically?
Jiu Jitsu is still unfamiliar in Jogja. That’s why we create outdoor events to introduce Ji to the public. But in the capital, Jakarta, BJJ is growing up so fast and there are a lot of BJJ gyms and dojos with different affiliations.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
A bright future, we guess, because Yogyakarta is such a favourite place for students and travellers.

What’s the best thing about your gym?
“The Unity of Fight Cultures” is our motto. We really welcome everyone with different martial arts backgrounds, and you can find a new family with our brotherhood here!

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
The landscape, the food, and the people for sure! Yogyakarta is the breathtaking destination in Indonesia!

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Jogja Top Team, BJJ Indonesia, you can find them here.

Age: 35

Belt: Black Belt 1st Degree

Profession: Jiu Jitsu Instructor

How many years in BJJ: I’ve been saying 15 years for a few years now

Other martial arts: Tae Kwon Do, American Kenpo, Kickboxing, Judo, Submission Wrestling, Kung Fu, Kali

Where do you live: Gainesville, Florida, USA

Where are you from: Palm Beach, Florida, USA

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I stopped training martial arts for a few years in college and took up breaking (breakdance), and I honestly think it is the thing that helped my Jiu Jitsu more than anything else. I also was a Physics major and definitely see Jiu Jitsu through lense of simple machines (levers, wedges, etc.) and relative motion (lines and circles).

Charles Harriott – BJJ Globetrotters

Tell us what inspired you to become a “full-time traveling coach”?
I honestly kind of fell into it. At first I was just trying to see the world and train for a year as an adventure. I was at a point in my life where I felt if I didn’t do it now I would put it off forever. After a year of traveling, making friends and teaching, I got home and thought “I think I would rather just keep traveling.” I got a little bit more organized… sometimes. I wouldn’t actually say I am full-time traveling anymore since Covid. I am probably travelling more than a lot of people, but I spend most of the year in Gainesville, FL with my partner Natasha Collazos.

How do you find new academies to coach at?
A bit of everything. I meet a lot of people at BJJ Globetrotters camps. Sometimes they tell their coaches back home about me or they themselves own a gym and invite me to teach. Some people have found me via my Instagram (@charlesharriott). After I did an instructional with BJJ Fanatics (Leglocks101), I had a few people that liked it reach out to me and book a seminar or two.
However, my first substitute teacher opportunity came at Octopus Academy in Tel Aviv. One of the students there (Johnny Axelrod) was an American Kenpo student of my friend and first blue belt Alexander Perez. I had been sparring with his elder brothers and him back when he was a teenager. Fast forward almost a decade and he had seen me on social media and he reached out and said I should come visit Israel. I get asked how many classes I can handle by the gym owners Saul and Gidon, and I say all of them. The first visit was for two weeks, and I ended up loving it there so much that in 2019 between the visits I spent more time in Tel Aviv than any other single city including my home in Gainesville.

The second location I got to play substitute teacher was in Mallorca, Spain. My friend Yogi Jack had a job as an instructor at a gym and wanted to take some vacation time to handle some things back home. We were talking about it and I just said hey I can cover for you. I hopped on a plane to Mallorca and got to live almost on the beach for a week and learn about Mallorca and get to know the gym owner Joe and the cool students that trained there or were just passing through.

My most recent and longest stay in New Mexico at Binder BJJ was literally due to a fellow Globetrotter named Rich telling his coach that there was a guy at camp whose personality and teaching style reminded them of him. From there he told me that his coach was going to need shoulder surgery and was looking for blackbelts to fill in. We spoke on the phone and got along and the rest is history.

Charles Harriott – BJJ Globetrotters

What are some challenges of jumping in and covering for another coach for an extended period of time? Do you stick entirely to their curriculum or do you try and add some stuff of your own too?
The main challenge is that the students there are accustomed to the culture and methods of their coach. They love their coach – that’s why they go to their gym. So at first there can be a little “who the hell is this guy?”, but it generally shifts into curiosity and by the end friendship and/or mutual respect.

Another challenge is striking the right balance between technique drilling and rolling. I recently learned that lesson. Some gyms want to roll way more than others. On one hand, students need and want to roll; on the other I am being paid to instruct. If they just wanted to roll, they wouldn’t need me and just have an open mat for that right??? Wrong. Putting myself in the shoes of students and knowing that some people come to BJJ for the stress relief and need those rolls every class has definitely improved my balance and class planning.

I am lucky that no one has ever asked me to teach a curriculum on my travels. I think the reason people hire me is because there is something I do that they like that they want their students to learn. Or at the very minimum they respect what I do and how I do it. I am usually given general guidelines like “Teach the beginners defense” or “Can you show them your approach to single x and leglocks.” Even in the case of those prompts, I don’t think the coaches would have expected Priit-style Defensive Jiu Jitsu postures being taught when they gave me that cue.

I have been so lucky that I have always been supported and embraced by the gyms that host me. At Octopus in Tel Aviv, I taught some of what Chris Paines taught me and they had him come out with me on my next visit. At Binder, they allowed me to teach a special seminar and put on mini-events while I was there.

What are the things you enjoy about traveling?
My favorite thing about travelling is the people I meet and then getting to experience what they deem special about their town and their view of the world. I have traveled alone and with company and every small change adds a little spice to the experience. I love food and locals always know where to take you. In Tel Aviv, all the guys at the gym would take me to their special spots. This is the spot for Sabich, that is the spot for the best hummus, or falafel. I also love nature and museums so if I am lucky to be hosted by people who love that stuff then I get to see that. I learned early on that hotels are lonely, so I always try to stay in a guest room or couch in order to get to know people and learn something while I am there.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training (and coaching)?
In Berlin, Yogi Jack showed Natasha and I Wartenburg, the launching of a barge, a shipping container party, family breakfast, and a street market all in a few days. In Sioux Falls, we were hosted by Rich, who took us to natural history museums, cooked us amazing keto food, and gave us insight into his time as a police officer. In Enschede, Leah and Marwin took us on a beautiful walk and we sat around talking about hip hop, anime, and BJJ until I fell asleep on the couch, and Natasha and Leah bonded over all kinds of spiritual stuff. In Albuquerque, I was able to enjoy the beautiful nature by day and then really get to enjoy watching the students grow by night. On top of that, each student gave me advice on which nature trails or volcanoes or mountains to see. On top of this a few students (Matthew and Dan) and Natasha set up a camera and made a bunch of funny informative videos together. The icing on the cake was my roommate Gannon, who is a firefighter and cowboy. I got to get to know him and learn from his immense experience for his young age, and he took me to where he works on a Native Reservation and ate some fried bread.

Pre-pandemic in Köln, I got to teach one of Sven’s students a flying armbar at CAGE MMA. I got a video a month later of Sven telling me that he managed to hit it on him, only to get thrown into the cage fence à la Crazy Horse. In Köln this past year, I returned and got to see they now have their own gym, and it is thriving and they still have a good relationship with the owners at CAGE. I got to introduce Nelson and his wife Annelen to Natasha and they immediately asked if this is the one you were on the phone with last time. I laughed and said yes. That is, in a nutshell, what I love. I have this loose extended family all over the world of people I see infrequently, but when I see them we pick right up where we left off.

Charles Harriott – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
Yes sir, I just take care of airfare and lodging first. They are the ones that are the most variable in price. I use Skyscanner for international flights and Frontier for inside the USA. I heavily utilize the “to anywhere” feature and just figure out where the cheapest place to go from a given airport is. If I need to get to a particular place, then I will always look to go on an off-day, or leave my departure and return dates flexible. I will often take the cheapest flight into Europe then take a small flight, train, or bus to my final destination. I highly recommend Skyscanner and rome2rio. I also travel light with a backpack as a personal item. I avoid taking a checked bag for both the size and cost, unless I am bringing a large amount of gis for a long stay. In general, I can travel for 6+ weeks with just a backpack.

For lodging, I use the “Members of BJJ Globetrotters” Facebook group and matsurfing. First, it is free or costs me trade like cooking or teaching some Jiu Jitsu or breakdance. If you don’t have anything like that to trade, bring something from home to share your culture or passion with them. Second, as stated before, I love the people and find hotel rooms lonely.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Always bring an extra charger – they will break at the worst time. Portable chargers are your best friend. Take some photos and videos that you don’t share on social media. It’s nice to share them in person with friends and loved ones, family photo-style.

“Things will either go well or you will have data material for a great story”
I keep this in mind at all times. Anything that goes wrong in your travel will, in enough time, make for a great story. So don’t get mad, just pay attention and try to remember everything, especially if it is ludicrous.

“Don’t waste time trying to figure out whose fault anything is; just focus on moving forward and solving the problem”
This is something I learned from travelling both alone and with people. I noticed when I was alone I made just as many errors and had just as many setbacks as when I had company, but I never had anyone to complain to, so I just solved the problem. This helped prepare me for traveling with a partner as I currently do. It doesn’t matter who forgot something at home; we can always borrow or buy it when we are there. It doesn’t matter why we are running late; having a scapegoat doesn’t get us there any faster. Once you free yourself from finding someone to blame, you have all of your energy to work together to find a way forward and a much happier trip. I try really hard not to let myself complain. It’s useless and only makes your trip worse.

“You will remember the first, last, and best (most intense) 15 minutes of each experience”
I don’t know if this is true, but I heard it on a podcast and have used it to hack my memories. I don’t need to spend 6 hours on the beach, because I’m not going to remember 6 hours. I’m only going to remember how it started, ended, and what I found most memorable. So because I like to sleep in, I don’t worry that I only have 2 hours or even 45 minutes to do something that people say you need 6 hours for. I just go enjoy what I can and try to leave on a good note. This has allowed me to do more and not be victim to the feeling of “I guess it’s too late.”

“Visiting a gym is about learning and having fun more than establishing dominance”
It’s a fine balance between being nice and just letting everyone wreck you in training. It’s their gym and I always try my best to adopt their culture as long as I find it safe for me and appropriate. I feel comfortable in goofy, serious, intense, and laid back gyms. I can roll super playful, or have an ADCC reenactment. However, if you don’t feel comfortable rolling hard, and this gym has a competition culture, it’s okay to sit out. If you do like to compete with them, enjoy the porrada LMAO.

Conversely, if you roll like a murderer in a super laid-back gym that is trying to “flow”, they probably will not appreciate it. Above all, I try to keep both me and my training partner safe. It is never worth it to get injured or injure your partner when visiting a gym. At a minimum you will be unwelcome, and worse you may put yourself in physical danger from an overzealous mat enforcer. Even if you are so skilled to wreck the whole room, chances are you didn’t make any friends, and for me that’s the best part.

“Make them think you don’t suck at Jiu Jitsu and that you are not an asshole”
…and if you suck at Jiu Jitsu as an underbelt no one actually cares!

Thank you Charles Harriott – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Where is Inverted Gear Academy located?
Bethlehem, PA, United States.

How many people train there?
16 active members as of this morning.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
We opened less than a month ago. We hope to reach 100 members within a year. So shooting for 8 new members per month.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training in ?
Brand new white belts, to second or third degree black belts.

When did the gym open?
December 5th, 2021

Some facts about you:

Name: Nelson Puentes
Age: 35
Belt: 2nd degree Black Belt
Profession: Entrepreneur
Years in BJJ: 15
Academy: Inverted Gear Academy
Other martial arts: Wrestling, Judo, Sambo.
Currently living in: Whitehall, PA. Little town in the Lehigh Valley. An hour north of Philadelphia, 2 hours west of New York City.
Originally from: Quinchamali, Chile.

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
Lehigh Valley PA had 5 schools as of a few months ago; two of them were 10th Planet and did only nogi. The other 3 did both but leaned heavily towards nogi. Nogi has become really popular in the area. So we felt the area needed a gym that dedicated itself to not only gi Jiu Jitsu, but also had a strong fundamentals program.

Tell us about the people that train in Inverted Gear Academy – who are they?
Right now we are in a unique situation for a new gym. We are mostly upper belts. We have more black belts signed up than white belts. A lot of the upper belts in the area that want to focus on the gi have joined the gym. As well as lots of visitors that want to sharpen up their gi skills or add variety to their training.

Why do they train in your gym?
We have mainly hobbyists at this point. They train to stay in shape, to learn how to defend themselves, and for the community aspect of the sport.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
Opening a gym during a pandemic might not be my brightest idea. Starting a gym can be stressful, and it can be months before the gym is profitable. I am in a situation where my main source of income, Inverted Gear, is fairly stable and I will not depend on the gym for income. This allows us to make good long term decisions.

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
The area is having an influx of population. It will be fascinating to see what the future brings. The area is renowned for their wrestling, both at the high school and college level. So if we could get some of those kids interested in grappling, throw a jacket on them early, and teach them some basics as they come up and learn wrestling at the same time, the sky is the limit.

What’s the best thing about Inverted Gear Academy?
We spent a lot of time working on our curriculum. We are also planning on taking a look at it every three months to make adjustments. We hope this allows us to bring up some well rounded grapplers, that are comfortable playing different guards, passing in different styles, and escaping gamut positions. Once they are comfortable with that, they can specialize in whatever game they want, since they have a solid foundation.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
Historic Bethlehem is a must, 5 minutes drive from the academy. Neat restaurants and bars, and lots of amazing historical buildings. Another stop is the Steel Stacks, the remains of Bethlehem Steel, and one of the coolest open air museums I have ever seen.

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Inverted Gear Academy, you can find them here.

Age: 26

Belt: Brown

Profession: Freelance photographer

How many years in BJJ: 8

Other martial arts: None!

Where do you live: Currently living in a tent while travelling around the world on my motorcycle.

Where are you from: Westchester County, New York, USA.

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I’d be remiss NOT to mention my website, www.mikebarrphotography.com, which is where I write about my journey and sell my photography prints!

Mike Barr – BJJ training

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
So this trip – and I say this trip because I actually did another BJJ Globetrotters trip back in 2017 – has been in the works since February/March of 2018.

I graduated from college in May 2017, did a 7-week road trip around the US, and then immediately dove into my first “big boy job”. I was a property manager at a real estate company near where I grew up. It wasn’t a job I’d ever pictured myself doing, but for a 21-year-old kid with student loan payments starting, I couldn’t complain. For the first time in my life, I had a large amount of disposable income, so I went out and bought my first motorcycle – just in time for winter to hit New York. I put the bike into storage for the winter, and pulled it back out of storage the first warm weekend in 2018.

The idea to do a RTW trip (round-the-world) didn’t really come from anywhere special – the idea wasn’t there, and then it was. I’ve come to realize in the last few years during the planning stage that there’s a number of deep-seated reasons for this trip, but they all come back to the same thing: I want to live a life that I’ll be proud to look back on when I’m older. I want to be able to sit my kids down one day and tell them about the crazy journey I experienced when I was in my twenties, and I want to do that journey now, BEFORE I settle down and start a family of my own.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
At the time of writing this, I’ve been on the road for a day shy of two months. I left my hometown in New York on September 10th, and immediately headed up to the Adirondack Mountains for a weekend wedding. I spent a few weeks in the northeast, cutting across Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. While in Maine, I spent four days sleeping on the mats and teaching classes at Acadia Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, an awesome school just outside Acadia National Park run by Kris Douglas, a brown belt under the MassBJJ Banner.

After my time there, I started south, ultimately spending a week in Virginia with my older brother. I had to take a two week intermission for his wedding (which is a whole story in its own right that involved flying to Oklahoma, driving back to New Jersey for the wedding with my father, then driving my father down to Florida, all before flying BACK to Virginia to get my motorcycle.)

After flying back to Virginia, I spent a few days there before riding south. I hit the Blue Ridge Parkway during peak fall foliage, which was AWESOME. These last few days have been spent at Open Source Jiu Jitsu, a small Jiu Jitsu “compound” just outside of Asheville, North Carolina run by Bobby McMasters. It’s the closest thing I’ve ever experienced to a Jiu Jitsu hostel. I love it here!

As for future travels, there’s a really long-winded answer, but ultimately it’s a true “round the world” journey; I’m riding from Alaska to Patagonia in 2022, then from Australia to Portugal in 2023. The entire route is outlined on my website, www.mikebarrphotography.com (shameless plug!)

Mike Barr – BJJ trip

What are the things you enjoy about traveling?
Oof. That’s such a hard question to answer. I really love the freedom of being able to wake up every day and live my life. It’s kind of selfish, but I love not having to wake up and report to a job I hate, working for a boss who doesn’t like me all that much, and with people I don’t particularly see eye-to-eye with.

On the road, I just get to wake up in the morning, pack up camp, look at a map, and think, “Okay Mike, what are we doing today? Where are we going?” It’s unbelievably freeing, and it’s the first time in my life where I feel like I’m doing exactly what I’m supposed to be doing at exactly this point in time.

There’s also the classic answers: seeing new places, collecting experiences, meeting all sorts of new and fun people, etc.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
Training up in Maine was a big one for me. I’d been on the road for about two weeks at that point, and I’d only trained once at a small gym in Concord, New Hampshire. I hadn’t even called ahead like I usually do – I was literally riding down the road, saw a sign that said “Acadia BJJ”, and pulled into the parking lot on a whim.

I walked into the gym, and was greeted by Kris, the owner. He was so unbelievably kind and welcoming, and didn’t even mind that I hadn’t arranged to pop in beforehand. He’s since been promoted to brown belt, but he was only a purple belt when I visited. I only bring this up because after warming up for class with some light rounds, he asked me to teach some of the aspects of my passing game that he wanted more details on. I was surprised by the request, but I was more than happy to oblige and share some knowledge. At the end of class, Kris and I were talking shop – all about Jiu Jitsu, and about my travels. He asked where I was staying, and I told him that I wasn’t all that sure, that I was probably just going to put my tent up somewhere nearby. He didn’t even hesitate – he offered me a corner of the mats to sleep on while I was in town.

I had just met this guy. We only trained for an hour, and he barely knew anything about me, but he was willing to let this total stranger into his home away from home. It’s experiences like that – the ones that totally depend on the kindness of strangers – that make all of the hard travel days worth it.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
Just like I said above: the complete kindness of strangers, and their willingness to help out. This surprised me a lot, and I was kind of shell shocked the first few times it happened. With how divided the world seems to be these days, it’s always really refreshing to have total strangers come into my life to lend a hand.

I’ve had people offer spare beds in their house for me to rest for the night; I stayed with a really kind gentleman named Tom while up in Maine for three days waiting for a motorcycle part to be delivered, and he helped me out of a bind when they sent the wrong part.

Christian G. messaged me after announcing my trip completely unprompted that he’d send me a free gi for my trip, telling me that it made him nostalgic about his trip.

Heck, I met an older guy just two days ago. I was packing up camp when he came up to the bike while walking his dog. He must’ve been in his 60s. We got to talking about my trip, and he wished me luck before continuing on with his dog walking. Five minutes later, he came back and told me that I was welcome to follow him back to his house where I could shower, wash some clothes, all while his wife would cook me some breakfast.

I’ve got a link on my website where people can donate money to keep me on the road – I say that “$15 gets me 200 miles further down the road.” I’ve had total strangers send me $20, $40, $100 here and there. It’s insane to me sometimes, and I find it hard to express how appreciated those little things all are.

Mike Barr – BJJ Globetrotters

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
I’m absolutely a budget traveller. I camp out almost every night – I’ve only paid for two nights accommodation in these first two months: every other night was either spent camped out in a tent, or on someone else’s couch (and/or Jiu Jitsu mats). There’s even been two nights so far where, not being able to find a campsite, I literally threw a tarp down next to my bike and went to sleep on the ground. I’m the definition of “houseless and unemployed.” As for food, I try and cook for myself as much as I can with my camp stove, not to mention some trade-secrets for on-the-road cuisines (e.g. 3/$3 taquitos from 7/11. No, I’m not ashamed. Yes, I do have heartburn sometimes.)

As far as planning for the trip itself, I spent about three years saving up as much money as I could. I’d say the biggest tip I figured out in that time is this: stop focusing on accruing more, and instead focus on spending less.

I realized about a year into my savings journey that by paring my spending down to just a few categories, I could readily be saving $1k a month for my trip. So outside of my living expenses, I only spent money on four things: Jiu Jitsu, my motorcycle, photography gear, and rock climbing.

Part of that comes from also making the decision to go after your dreams. Once you decide that something is GOING to happen, rather than thinking it COULD happen, your brain starts conjuring all sorts of ways to make that thing possible. You stop eating out as much. You stop buying stuff you don’t NEED. You stop buying things to impress other people.

Overall, you stop spending money on THINGS, and start spending money on EXPERIENCES.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Just go for it. Do it. YOLO.

I’m kidding, kind of. This whole experience has taught me that living your dreams is absolutely possible as long as you’re willing to work hard, and work through the hard days. Not every day on the road has been easy; I destroyed my MacBook Pro on the first real day of my trip, and nearly lost $6,000 worth of camera gear in the process. That was hard. But waking up to a misty Adirondack sunrise the next morning made it totally worth it. Swimming in a natural stream the next day made it totally worth it. Seeing the sunset over Acadia National Park made it worth it.

Furthermore, go into every day on the road with an open mind. Slow down. Take the road less travelled (seriously: I avoid interstates like the plague.)

Beyond that, I’d caution everyone to realize this: time is the one thing we never get back. Never. Death doesn’t show up at the end of your life and go, “So I see you worked 30 years at that job you desperately hated: here’s a voucher for 30 more years. Go cuddle some puppies.” No – our clocks are all ticking, and one day they’re going to run out. You don’t want to wake up one day and realize that you let life pass you by because you were afraid to try for what you really wanted.

Thank you to Mike Barr – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!

Where is the gym located?
In Paderborn, North Rhine Westphalia, Germany.

How many people train there?
At the moment we have around 200 members training at our gym. In a normal class there are about 10-25 people. MMA classes tend to get a little bit more crowded.

Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
The gym is steadily growing, but we try to welcome new members in specific assigned months each year so we can focus our attention on them. So sometimes we get zero new members a month, sometimes it’s 30.

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
We have grapplers of all levels at our gym. In luta livre, our practised nogi grappling style, we got a couple of blackbelts and alot more whitebelts (and everything in between). Bjj is slowly catching up with a good group of grapplers from white to brown with one blackbelt.

When did Paderborn Wombats, BJJ Germany?
The team was started in 2007 by our Luta Livre coach Mark Davis.

Some facts about you:

Name: Paul Urbanik
Age: 33
Belt: Black belt in Luta Livre and BJJ
Profession: Schoolteacher for mathematics and physics
Years in BJJ: 9 in BJJ, 12 in Luta Livre
Other martial arts: Luta Livre, MMA, and some Taekwondo back in the day
Currently living in: Paderborn
Originally from: Born in Poland, raised in Germany

Paderborn Wombats, BJJ Germany

Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
In 2007 we started as a nogi and MMA competition team. Later down the road we started to loosen up a little bit and tried to focus on building the sport in our area. At that point, we listed our gym as a non-profit club and rented a bigger place.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
We got people from all walks of life at our gym, with almost every age present. So it’s not unusual to see our 8-year-old kids greet our adult class attendees that work as a policeman, chemist, welder, or teacher.

Why do they train in Paderborn Wombats, BJJ Germany?
Most of the members just enjoy training, sweating, improving, and getting a clear head for a couple of hours. But we also have some strong competitors in grappling, as well as a great group of pro MMA fighters.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
Paderborn is a city with a lot of “big” sports clubs like soccer, American football, and baseball. So the focus for many people are those “ball-sports”, while martial arts is often looked down on. At the beginning there was no one teaching BJJ, Luta Livre, or MMA in the area, so our founder Mark Davis had to build it up from zero. Now we have a strong team of volunteer trainers with great knowledge in their respective styles working together, which we are really happy about and proud of.

Paderborn Wombats, BJJ Germany

How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
BJJ and Luta Livre (no-gi grappling) doesn’t get the same attention as, for example, MMA, but we’ve noticed a steady increase in people who come to us for BJJ only. So kudos to all the celebs who use their reach to promote the sport.

What’s the best thing about your gym?
The team and atmosphere for sure. We’ve got a great mix of people on the mat in Paderborn Wombats, BJJ Germany who always keep the energy light and fun. Also a lot of people worked together to push the team to where it is now. All those times traveling to competitions, rebuilding our gym, and grinding on the mats formed a really tight bond between a lot of members.

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
Paderborn itself has some nice spots with some sights and good places to eat, but the surrounding area has some really cool sights too. The Teutoburg forest is right around the corner, with some great hikes and old historical sights. You can even attend an old German feast like the Germans who fought the Romans back in the day (no need for forks and knives).

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Thanks for sharing! If you’d like to visit Paderborn Wombats, BJJ Germany, you can find them here.

Belt: Brown

Profession: I work for BJJ Globetrotters as Ask Vara!

How many years in BJJ: 8

Other martial arts: Karate for many years, MMA for a couple of years before I did my first BJJ class in a gi.

Where do you live: Right now I am in Thailand

Where are you from: Denmark

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I have been on two different national teams in two different sports.

Vara Poorisrisak – BJJ gym in Bangkok (Bangkok Fight Lab)

Tell us what inspired you to travel and train?
Originally it was my old BJJ coach, Christian, who encouraged us to go train with other people, as you will not only gain experience by training with other people whose game you are not used to, but your training partners back home would also benefit from it if you come back better than before.

Now I am more interested in finding unusual travel destinations that not many people go to. Right now I have two really cool places I want to go to on my travel list!

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
I went to an island called Koh Yao Yai for a 3-day New Years trip to get away from Bangkok, and I wanted to spend New Year’s Eve all alone in my hotel room ordering their lobster soup and watching a movie. After the three days, I decided to just stay in Phuket because I know that the air pollution is really bad in Bangkok from January until around April. Then Bangkok had a really long lockdown with everything shutting down, including the gyms, so I had no rush going back really.

I originally came here for New Years for three days with a small backpack and three sets of clothes, but I am still here haha. I did have to order a gi and belt online so I can train. So I just see it as I am still on a long holiday / travelling.

Vara Poorisrisak – BJJ friends

What are the things you enjoy about traveling?
Seeing my friends! Whenever I’ve been travelling for BJJ camps or I go to competitions alone, I always run into people I’ve met through the BJJ community. Some of the friends I always enjoy seeing are my BeHousing family (a reference to the place we always booked for the BJJ Globetrotters Summer Camps in Belgium). I’ve known these guys since the first camps we did in Copenhagen, so I’ve known them for many years now. I haven’t seen them for a while but hopefully we can have a reunion next year! Let’s make it happen guys!

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
I had a very rewarding experience the last time I travelled to Sangkhlaburi to visit a project that the Danish ladies in Bangkok support. The project helps out kids along the border with Myanmar. I asked my teammate and One Championship fighter Detchadin Sornsirisuphathin from Bangkok Fight Lab to come and teach the kids some Muay Thai.

The kids tried Muay Thai for the first time and they all amazed us with their athleticism and power. They all had so much fun and also picked up the techniques impressively fast. We had three training sessions in three days, and on the last day Detch made a small competition for the kids. The competition for the bigger kids was to kick as many times as possible in 30 sec and the winner kicked 50 times in 30 sec – pretty good for a first-timer! Detch also donated some pads, shin guards, and gloves to the children so they can continue training.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
I went to this beautiful country called Bhutan. Not many people know about Bhutan, but it’s a Buddhist kingdom on the Himalayas’ eastern edge, known for its monasteries, fortresses (or dzongs) and dramatic landscapes that range from subtropical plains to steep mountains and valleys.

The people there and the country is the most awesome place – along with Japan – that I’ve been to so far. I loved everything about Bhutan and I even got to do my first judo class and had the pleasure to teach some BJJ techniques there. They don’t have any BJJ gyms in Bhutan, but they do have judo :)

Vara Poorisrisak – BJJ Globetrotting

Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
I think I’m in between. I’m not a super budget traveller and I am not a high-end traveller either. I try to find cheaper but still nice accommodation, as I prefer to spend money on experiences while I am travelling but I still like a nice place where I can relax after a long day going sightseeing, trying food etc.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Please be open-minded and learn from other cultures while travelling. Please don’t be judgemental or think you are entitled just because you do it differently in your own country which you think is much better. Maybe you can appreciate something they do differently or in a better way that you can reflect over and maybe incorporate in your daily life.

Sometimes a simpler way is a happier way!

Thank you Vara Poorisrisak – BJJ Globetrotters for making this interview!