The Outcan Experience

30/10/2021

Just a quick update - life has been rather hectic for me and I had to put editing the recordings on the back burner - I am slowly getting back to editing interviews. So to all the people Emily and I interviewed between end March and June, I will be getting those episodes up and going in the next few months…..

31/05/2021

Well this is pretty exciting - I have a bunch more episodes that are in the hopper to edit - which is being slowed down a bit by working another job and returning to Canada. Many thanks to listeners for sticking with me and I hope to have the next round of podcasts out ( gotta do something during quarantine!)

The OUTCAN Experience is a podcast that focuses on sharing the stories of Canadian military families who are living in Europe. Though it can seem like a dream and many people think it is an extended vacation, for Canadian Families living so far away from home can be challenging experience. This podc...

14/05/2021

This was a really fun interview that I did in March - the nice thing about falling behind on my editing of the interviews is that I get to listen to them with fresh ears! It was great chatting with Carolyne about living in Scotland and the bucket list of travel in Scotland that they had planned - it certainly made my list of things I would like to do!

Glasgow sounds like an amazing place to live – Carolyne took the time to share her experience moving to and living in Scotland with me. Moving with a family of young children during a global pandemic is not an easy task but Carolyne shares some g...

05/05/2021

New Episode out - learn about Riga Latvia en francais - Anick shares some really great advice about her experiences with housing, schools, medical services and the Latvian pastime of picking mushrooms in the forest!

Anick Masse habite Riga la capitale de la Lettonie, située sur la mer Baltique, à l'embouchure de la Daugava. Cette ville est également réputée pour ses bâtiments en bois, son architecture art nouveau et sa vieille ville médiévale. Passant par les...

23/04/2021

I have not visited Riga - but I think I would like to see it after having a really lovely conversation with Melissa. She shared helpful tips and ideas about living in Riga as well as her favourite travel destination that she has ever had - Morocco! I hope that I get a chance to visit both Riga and Morocco - they are very different but Melissa's enthusiasm for both places makes me want to visit them sooner rather than later!

Riga, Latvia is a place I haven't had a chance to visit while I have been OUTCAN - but friends have told me what a wonderful place it is with an amazing history. Melissa shares her enthusiasm for Riga where she has lived for the last two years....

23/04/2021

If pub life sounds great ( in the before times), Eric lets us know that it is actually as good as it sounds. Though I have visited London many times over the years - I saw it through fresh eyes of someone who is living there. We had a lot of fun talking about this experience and there are some good pointers in there for people who are thinking , going or are living OUTCAN regardless of location. I hope you enjoy our conversation!

The City of London is an amazing place to visit – I have taken advantage of being a Eurostar trip away and gone to visit the city every few months until travel stopped. I have always wondered what it would be like to live there, and was able to ...

30/03/2021

Here is our first episode of this new Season - we are interviewing Canadian military family members in spots form all over Europe! Our first location is Luxembourg ! Brigitte shares her experiences rom her three OUTCAN experiences!

The tiny country of Luxembourg is not what springs to mind when you think of Canadian Armed Forces postings outside of Canada. I was fortunate to be able to sit with Brigitte and talk about what her OUTCAN Experiences have been like. Brigitte ...

05/03/2021

Here is a little bit of our trailer Military Family Services Europe - Services aux familles des militaires

05/03/2021

Welcome to Season 2 of the OUTCAN Experience.

We are starting this new season off with a few changes – I am joined by a Co-host: Émilie Tremblay and also have teamed up with Amanda Agar as a Co-producer! The OUTCAN Experience has partnered with MFS(E) to provide a location based episode on all the various places that Canadian Military Families are living in Europe. Every location has its own unique adventures and until we can all get out and travel safely again, we are going to use the episodes to “travel “ to these locations to see what life is like in that spot!! We are also going to try and provide episodes in French so as to capture some of the experiences that are unique to our francophone community overseas.

So join us on The OUTCAN Experience Season 2 – where we zero in on Location, Location, Location!

05/03/2021

Welcome to Season 2 of the OUTCAN Experience.

We are starting this new season off with a few changes – I am joined by a Co-host: Émilie Tremblay and also have teamed up with Amanda Agar as a Co-producer! The OUTCAN Experience has partnered with MFS(E) to provide a location based episode on all the various places that Canadian Military Families are living in Europe. Every location has its own unique adventures and until we can all get out and travel safely again, we are going to use the episodes to “travel “ to these locations to see what life is like in that spot!! We are also going to try and provide episodes in French so as to capture some of the experiences that are unique to our francophone community overseas.

So join us on The OUTCAN Experience Season 2 – where we zero in on Location, Location, Location!

Welcome to OUTCAN Experience Season Two!This trailer introduces our new co-host Émilie Tremblay and kicks off the podcast's partnership with Military Family Services (Europe). We are going be featuring Canadian military family members in the diff...

15/09/2020

Hi The OUTCAN Experience Friends!
I have been away - back in Canada, moving kids into university with fingers crossed. But now I am back and I am really interested in what people's moving experiences this APS were like. I would love to do an episode on moving OUTCAN or moving back to Canada this last summer - How did it go? or how is it going? If you are open to chatting with me and recording an interview ( it doesn't have to take long and it can all be online - it is painless I promise) - feel free to message me or email me at [email protected]. Your experience may save someone some grief or just let them know they are not alone. And in these days of social distancing, its nice to know that you are not alone in your OUTCAN Experience

Photo: Social distancing Canadian style!

11/08/2020

Hiking in the Ardennes was lovely. This was a loop that included the town of Bouillon. Recommend this spot!

05/08/2020

Many thanks to Maegan for sharing her families COVID - 19 summer vacation. It sounds very cool and makes me curious about some other creative vacations that people have taken!

"We rented a Campiboat and spent 3 nights on the Thames River never more than 20 miles from our home, but felt 1,000,000 a way. sleeping on the boat along the river's edge and exploring our own area lead to many interesting discoveries! We felt a self contained vacation on a boat was the perfect first trip post UK Lockdown as we had maximum control of our environment."

02/08/2020

Here is Fort La Latte - John talks about the yachts that are moored in the bay by the Castle during our chat about traveling in Brittany. There is also a photo beaches in Normandy - it was really sobering to walk the beach and imagine the challenge of trying to fight your way forward as the Allied Forces did 76 years ago.

02/08/2020

Woohoo - got a great new episode on traveling in camper vans this summer. I would love to hear about how families are enjoying the summer while OUTCAN - staycations, mini-breaks or other adventures. Contact me at [email protected] to share your story.
https://www.buzzsprout.com/834805/4817588

This episode focusses on OUTCAN travels to Iceland, Switzerland and France with three different families. I interviewed Krysta and Jenn about their trips and then inspired by their stories, our family rented a camper van and travelled to Normandy...

09/07/2020

We are back with an interview with BGen Quinn about life OUTCAN! General Quinn was able to sit down for a while and chat with me about what life is like for her OUTCAN. She also shared her unique perspective on some challenges Canadian families face while OUTCAN and some of her best experiences. Have a listen and review us on Spotify or Apple Podcasts

Brigadier- General Darlene Quinn, Commander Canadian Forces Europe talks about her OUTCAN Experience from a personal perspective and also from her view as Commander of the Canadian military serving in Europe. In the interview, General Quinn discu...

05/07/2020

As life begins to return to a new normal - The OUTCAN Experience has definitely been impacted. We are going to talk to people who are moving during this uncertainty, talk with people about how they are managing and what OUTCAN life looks like for...

05/07/2020

The OUTCAN Experience is a podcast that focuses on sharing the stories of Canadian military families who are living in Europe. Though it can seem like a dream and many people think it is an extended vacation, for Canadian Families living so far away from home can be challenging experience. This podc...

22/03/2020

Here is the latest episode - its bit different than others but hopefully it is of some interest - If you would like to share your story of how COVID 19 is impacting you - We can talk - on-line of course - or you can e-mail me your story and I or someone else can read it. Sharing experiences can help us understand that we are not alone - even in social isolation.....

This episode is a bit different - its just me talking about how our family is managing the impact COVID - 19. Using Brene Browns advice in her podcast, I talk about how understanding FFTs helps me cope with this uncertainty. Describing the impac...

10/03/2020

Hi Everyone - just an update (Or excuses why I have not produced another episode!)

I have been traveling for the last two weeks - and changing plans on the fly in response to the Corona Virus outbreak -cancelling and rescheduling trips. I feel really lucky to have had a wonderful visit to Budapest last week and to be skiing in Austria this week -- so with all this time on the road it will be a few more days before I get to the next episode out.

I have had some great interviews - and I am hoping to talk a fair bit about education in the next episode as it seems to be a difficult transition for some families. Some folks I have interviewed have talked to me about the IB program transition and the differences in learning environment being really hard for their kids. If you have an experience or some lessons you learned - let me know - there is quite a bit to talk about as the schools that are available is really different in each location.

Also if you are doing education programs while OUTCAN - also let me know - I completed a degree last year while OUTCAN and I know there are lots of others who are using this time OUTCAN to pursue their own education goals. It can be helpful to hear how you are managing this and some of the issues that can emerge.

You can email me at [email protected] or message me. Interviews are easy to do online and can be as short or as long as you like - its like having coffee with a chat.

Keep listening and tell your friends!

28/02/2020

Here is our latest episode about driving while OUTCAN in Europe! We are also on Spotify, Apple podcasts and Google Play.

This episode focussed on what your options are for cars and what its like to drive in Europe as well as GPS misadventures. Guests talk about some of the challenges of shipping your car, insurance, and diplomatic sales. Navigating the road system ...

23/02/2020

Happy weekend to all!

This past week has been really busy with lots of people sharing their stories about OUTCAN life with me - I feel so lucky to get to listen to their experiences - We tend to spend a lot of time laughing together!

I am busy editing my current interviews and learning some new technical skills - that will hopefully improve the listening experience - I intend to have the next podcast dropped in the next two to three days.....

Stay tuned and drop me a line with your thoughts about The OUTCAN Experience at [email protected]

17/02/2020

Here is the latest from The OUTCAN experience! We are on
Apple Podcast, Spotify and Google Play as well.

If you have an idea for an episode or have a story you would like to share, please contact [email protected].

This episode covers making plans for when you move, when you have time and when you don't, to make sure you have a plan for your arrival, planning for your kids education not just while in Europe but after your OUTCAN as well. Guests share storie...

13/02/2020

Next episode should be uploaded by Monday. Stay tuned!

13/02/2020

11/02/2020

I would like to do a segment on cars and driving in Europe. Are you trying to decide to ship your car or not? Have you done an amazing road trip? Did your GPS lead you into the middle of a Christmas market and you had to get a police es**rt out? (Sigh- that was me...) What is your experience? Were there no issues or a big challenge? Message me or send an email to the [email protected] to chat about your experiences driving while OUTCAN