Norm Writes
  • Home
  • Who in the World
  • Blog
  • Postcards
  • Why I write

The Who in the World Podcast #28: Wicced (Part 2)

3/21/2023

0 Comments

 
​In this part two of my podcast with Wicced, or Kalvin Hang, we reunite in Phnom Penh, sitting down in a corner of a bar tucked away in an alley to talk about his story, live from the Kingdom of Cambodia.
 
In episode #26, Wicced and I covered how he was born in a refugee camp in Thailand, made his way across the world to settle in California, and then fell into the street life because of his surroundings. Never a naturalized citizen, he ended up in an immigration prison for years and, post 9/11, was deported back to Cambodia – a country he’d never lived, didn’t know the language, and never even visited.
 
In this podcast, we pick up Wicced’s story when he first arrives to Phnom Penh on “Con Air,” handcuffed and still incarcerated. He eventually is released to family members in the countryside but the transition from modern California to the villages and province life in rural Cambodia is as radical as it gets.
​
​Wicced finds his way to the big city, Phnom Penh, where he settles and immediately starts giving back, helping others, and making an impact. Fast forward almost two decades and Wicced is a community leader, advocate for deportation and immigration reform, social activist who has spoken and attended conferences all over thew world, business man, and family man all the same.
 
It's a great honor to have WIcced as a friend and little brother, and I thoroughly enjoyed our sit down and chat, including a surprise answer to a question I asked him eight years ago.
 
I might just have to move back to Cambodia – a place I’ve lived and really love – just to hang out with Wicced more!

I hope you feel the same after listening to this podcast.
 
-Norm ?️?
 
PS Big-up to the Deportees and my Khmer fam!
Picture
0 Comments

Episode#27: Rafaela

12/13/2022

0 Comments

 
​One of the amazing things about traveling and living abroad is the people you meet in random, chance, and fleeting encounters.

​Even if you just chat at the airport for 5 minutes or run into someone at a café, you form these deep, meaningful connections that stay with you for life.  


And one of those chance encounters occurred for me in the little mountain resort town of La Fortuna in Costa Rica, where I met Rafaela.

I walked down into the lobby of my backpacker’s lodge one day and saw this tall European woman struggling to walk because she’d injured her knee badly in a surfing accident. 

Being everyone’s big brother when I travel, my first instinct was to help her out, of course, and that’s how I met one of the smartest, most positive, and dynamic people I’ve been blessed to know. 

From humble yet gracious beginnings in Communist Romania, she worked her way up in finance, moved abroad to work in other European nations, speaks six languages, and now lives in Paris. 
 
I met Rafaela in the midst of her year traveling around the world, when she focused on reading, exercise, yoga, and fully immersing herself in the moment. But far from your typical stereotypical backpacker, she carried a nice suitcase and told me she loved the high heels that she packed instead of the typical hiking boots - a true sophisticated badass!
 
After months of invitations (and begging), Rafaela finally acquiesced and agreed to hop on the podcast with me, which turned out to be one of my favorite conversations yet!  

-Norm :-)


Picture
0 Comments

Episode #26: Wicced (Part 1)

11/24/2022

0 Comments

 
​I’m honored to introduce you to my great friend and brother, Kalvin Hang, or Wicced as he’s known. Wicced was born in a refugee camp in Thailand as his parents escaped war-torn Cambodia, then emigrated to California, where he grew up in San Diego. 
 
From dire poverty to gang violence to prison, to say Wicced had it tough is an understatement.

​He was even thrown in an immigration prison and deported to Cambodia, never allowed to return to the U.S. - even though he’d never actually lived in Cambodia. 

​But instead of seeing himself as a victim or shying away from adversity, Wicced thrived on it, becoming a community leader and bridge between two worlds: Cambodia and the U.S., the streets and the bustling business world.

Now, Wicced is thriving in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. But never forgets where he’s from, always judging himself on the scales of karma. He’s equal parts fearless and compassionate, a man of furious action while at the same time deeply introspective. 

But one thing is for sure – if Wicced is your friend, he’s always got your back.

Thanks for listening to this part one of my interview with Wicced and look for part two coming very soon. 

And mad love to Cambodia and the Deportees! ????

-Norm Schriever :-)

Picture
0 Comments

Episode #25: An American expat in Qatar

9/12/2022

0 Comments

 
I recently visited Qatar for the first time, the Arabian country set to host the 2022 World Cup.

​Amazed and impressed by what I experienced, I wanted to learn more. So, I enlisted the knowledge and perspective of my new friend, Jennifer, in this podcast, an American who’s lived in Qatar with her family for more than twelve years. 
 
I had so many questions. For instance, what is life like for an American family in a traditional Islamic country? 

How is it possible that Qatar is so safe that you don’t need to lock your doors at night and can keep your car running with your purse or wallet inside it while you run into a store? 
 
What makes an economy boom when 86% of its inhabitants are foreign workers?

Why do most Ivy League schools from the US and England set up satellite campuses and study abroad programs in Qatar?

Or did you know that Qatar Airways is often voted the world’s best airline, and Hamad International Airport also voted number one?
 
How could Qatar’s society be so modern and progressive yet be governed by the world’s longest-ruling royal family?
 
Can a desert nation with no natural rivers or lakes have some of the most scenic marinas, beaches, and man-made islands you’ve ever seen?
 
And why is such a huge deal that Qatar is the first Arab country to host the World Cup – and what’s all the backlash about?
 
Add it all up and hot damn, Qatar is cool!
 
I’m sure you’ll gain a lot of insight from Jennifer in this podcast. And just as I discovered when traveling to one of the world’s most dynamic and unique nations, our talk will probably dispel more than a few myths and preconceptions you may have about life in an Arabian country.
 
Enjoy this episode #25 of the Who in the World podcast and let’s root for Qatar in this World Cup!
 
Your buddy,
 
Norm

PS Thanks again for listening to my humble podcast and your continued support! 
Picture
0 Comments

Episode #24: From Russia with love.

8/2/2022

0 Comments

 
Imagine if you had to leave your country virtually overnight, your home, your job, your friends, most of your savings, and almost everything you owned?

You needed to scramble to find a new, safe country for your entire family to live in and could only bring one suitcase with you – possibly never to return again. 
 
Oh, and you couldn’t tell anyone about it or even let on that anything was out of the ordinary.

One wrong step, one mistake, and you (and your entire family) would most likely be going to prison for ten years.
 
You just had to disappear completely from the only life you’ve ever known in the dead of night. Poof.

​
That was the situation when my guests today fled their homeland of Russia right after their government’s invasion of Ukraine.

Guided by their conscience and torn by the censorship, militarization, and Soviet-era crackdowns they saw around them, their comfortable, modern life in Moscow evaporated almost overnight, descending into a dystopian nightmare. 
 
Now, they are refugees, their future uncertain and not sure when or even if they’ll ever be able to return to their mother land.
 
Today on the Who in the World podcast, you’ll hear their story.
 
Having relocated to Thailand last month, I was chilling with my best buddy here, Scott, at a bar called the Red Brick. Sitting at a table next to us were two sisters from Russia and a few of their family members, and we all got to talking as they admired my friend’s pit bull. (Shout out to Frankie!)
 
The conversation turned to how long each of us had been living in Thailand where we were from, etc., and that’s when I first got to know them. Intrigued, I had to learn more, so I invited them back for dinner and drinks while they told me about their lives – this time with the microphone on.
 
Enjoy this podcast and after listening, I’m sure you’ll feel the same respect, admiration, and genuine care for them as I do. 
 
-Norm Schriever
 
P.S. Names, places, dates, and details have been changed or omitted to keep the sisters and their family safe from retribution by the Russian government. Their security was our utmost concern, so everything you hear has been reviewed and approved by them.
Picture
0 Comments

Episode # 23: Sabine & The Children of Medellin

7/12/2022

0 Comments

 
​Living in Medellin, Colombia for six months, I was invited to go volunteer at a remote center of a social program by a local friend. That’s how I first met Sabine, my new friend and the Program Director at The Children of Medellin, and see firsthand what they do.
 
The trip alone was no joke, as the community of Bello Oriente is the highest in all of greater Medellin, up snaking, winding streets then alleys then dirt paths on the mountain rim of central Medellin below. Bello Oriente is also one of the most dangerous and poorest neighborhoods in all of Medellin, shut off and largely left behind. 

​​For residents, running water, indoor plumbing, and electricity are luxuries for many, as well as a home that isn’t in danger of landslides every time there’s a heavy rain. For the children of this community, there’s little hope and few opportunities, as most fall prey to gangs, drugs, early pregnancy, prostitution, and crime. Within the community, few adults have education or even access to jobs or medical care, so the cycle continues.


That is, except for The Children of Medellin, which is a beacon of hope for the children, families, and community of Bello Oriente.
 
Volunteering there for a half-day, I got to experience the program center in a large, refurbished house with classrooms, gardens, computer labs, a media center, music lessons, job skills, one of the best views of the city below, and, of course, a soccer field.
 
In fact, futbol (soccer) was how the charity started back in the 1990s, when one man from The Netherlands decided to create a social program to help poor and disadvantaged within the city he discovered while traveling, using the game he loved to bring in the kids and build something special.
 
Now, The Children of Medellin is thriving, helping hundreds and hundreds of kids and families every year. Bello Oriente is still poor, dangerous, and plagued with social problems, but now there’s a clear path out to a better life.
 
In this podcast, I sit down with Sabine, a long-time program worker and advocate from The Netherlands, as we talk about the history of The Children of Medellin, the community they fight so hard to help, and her gritty and beautiful human experiences along the way.
 
Enjoy this podcast with Sabine and I encourage you to find out more about The Children of Medellin and make a donation to support their important work!
 
Your friend,
Norm 

The Children of Medellin??
https://childrenofmedellin.com/
Picture
0 Comments

Episode #22: Laura Loaiza & Comuna 13

6/13/2022

0 Comments

 
In this podcast, we take a guided tour of Comuna 13 - the most amazing neighborhood I’ve witnessed anywhere in the world - with my friend and tour guide, Laura Loaiza.
 
A comuna is a zone of the city, and Medellin, Colombia is divided into 16 of them. But Comuna 13 was always plagued by violence since its inception on the steep side of a mountain overlooking central Medellin. 

As a logical access route for drug traffickers coming into and out of the city, it became a war zone in the 1980s and 90s, with rival drug cartels, military operations, paramilitary groups, rebel groups FARC and ELN, and street gangs all shooting it out on a nightly basis.

​The government even had 10 incursions into Comuna 13 in 2002 alone, using helicopters, tanks, machine guns, and bazookas on the local populace! All of this caused indiscriminate killing, disappearances, and terror, putting neighbor against neighbor with the normal, humble residents the true victims.
 
Further isolating the people of Comuna, their neighborhood was built on a steep mountainside with few good roads to get in our out. So, they had to access alleys, paths, and mountain trails to come or go, including 350 stairs! 

Needless to say, it was nearly impossible for the residents to leave for central Medellin on a daily basis, so jobs, schools, medical care, and city life were largely inaccessible to them.
​

Picture
Listen on YouTube
But all of that changed in 2011 when construction was finished on a series of outdoor public escalators in Comuna 13, the first of their kind in the world.
 
As part of an international project as well as investment by a newly elected mayor, the modern new escalators climbed the steepest part of a 384-meter incline through the Comuna, saving residents a difficult 25-minute walk straight up.
 
These escalators are similar to something you’d see in a mall, but open-air with roofs against the rain. Additionally, a cable car system with gondolas was constructed to join the new San Javier Station at the base of Comuna 13 with central Medellin. Soon, a wide paved ramp, Viaducto Media Ladera, was constructed within the Comuna, further connecting smaller barrios within.
 
This sparked a new era of pride and hope in Comuna 13, and residents could now come and go for jobs, education, healthcare, and to enjoy the best Medellin had to offer.
 
It also garnered a good deal of curiosity, as people starting coming to witness the modern marvel for themselves, a stark transformation from the war zone it once was. Tourism began to grow, but Comuna 13’s growth transcendence into a butterfly was fully underway around 2015, when local artists came together to discuss an organized approach to decorating their barrios.
 
Today, Comuna 13 is like a living museum of street and graffiti art, with vibrant colors, grand murals, historical depictions, and symbols of hope and perseverance covering almost every available surface throughout the entire barrio – walls, sides of buildings, front doors of houses, stairways, park benches, and more. 
 
This skyrocketed the tourism industry in Comuna 13, and it’s now one of the safest barrios for foreigners or visitors to walk through in all of Medellin. Of course, it’s still a poor barrio with a lot of social problems – many of them exacerbated by the pandemic. There isn’t even a proper hospital or clinic in the entire Comuna!
 
But now, they are inexorably tied to the modern, outside world (I even saw a working QR code painted on the side of a building and Comuna 13 has its own NFTs!), with plenty of education and social programs involved in bettering the lives of the youth and people there. 
 
I was lucky enough to stumble upon Comuna 13 when I lived in Medellin for six months, and a local guide and resident, Laura Loaiza, was recommended. Laura is the founder of Zippy Tours and was nice enough to get mic’d up as we walked through her home neighborhood, talking about the history, art and people.
 
In this, part 1 of the podcast on Comuna 13, we talk about her memories of the neighborhood as a war zone when she was a child, the early history of the Comuna, as well as the architectural marvel of the escalators, and later the explosion of color and vibrance with street art.
 
In part 2 coming soon, we’ll delve into the artwork of Comuna 13, discussing pieces, painters, significance, and style as we walk through the barrio. (I’ll make sure to offer plenty of photos and videos for that one.
 
Enjoy this guided tour of Comuna 13 with Laura and thanks for listening!
 
-Norm :-)
 
Check out Zippy Tours here.


Picture
0 Comments

Episode #21: Kyle McGee, or "Goo"

5/11/2022

0 Comments

 
In this podcast, you have the pleasure of meeting Kyle McGee or “Goo,” as everyone used to affectionately call him, my best friend since high school. 
 
Goo (also known as “Goo Man,” “Goo Rasta,” or “Goo Monster”) is the son of ministers, a social worker, racial advocate, musician who specializes in West African drums, and traveler.

He also happens to be one of the kindest and most caring human beings you’ll ever know. 

​So, in this trip down memory lane, we talk about meeting in high school and becoming friends, how we found joy and expression in the burgeoning rap music scene, and the racial conflict in our high school that boiled over into a race riot that made national news. 
 
We go deep into his time at Syracuse and leadership in the bi-racial community, his exploration of racial identity, our time as roommates in San Francisco and the work he did there in the schools, his travels to Africa where he lived and studied drumming, and his recent visit to Costa Rica for my 50th birthday. 
Picture
Listen on YouTube

​While that’s a whole lot to chew on and makes a fascinating conversation, there’s still a lot of hilarious stories and memories we didn’t cover – like the time we traveled around Europe together at only 17 years old. 
 
After listening to this podcast, I’m sure you’ll want to get to know Goo even better and hear more, so I promise to get him on the podcast again in the near future. 
 
But until then, enjoy this conversation with Kyle McGee!

-Norm Schriever  :-)

Picture
0 Comments

Episode #20: Molly Ruland

5/1/2022

0 Comments

 
My humble little Who in the World podcast has now hit 20 episodes, with such an eclectic and interesting cast of characters that I’ve been fortunate enough to know in my life.

And you can expect a lot more remarkable people from my journey, starting today with my new-but-great friend, Molly Ruland.

​For many years, Molly was an activist and community organizer in Washington D.C., hosting underground music and artistic events at the iconic One Love Massive space as well and being integral in the “DC as Fuck” scene.

But I first met Molly in Tamarindo, Costa Rica when we both moved there in late 2020 as Covid-refugees (at that time, the only safe choices for expats were pretty much Costa Rica or Nicaragua!).

​Molly was thrilled to be there from the start, living by the beach in the tropics as she ran her thriving podcast production company, HeartCast Media.
Picture
Listen on YouTube

But only a few short weeks after she arrived in the land of pura vida – pure life – she ran into a nightmare when she was drugged and rubbed during a home invasion.
 
Despite that horrific start, Molly bounced back and refused to quit or run – a testament to her strength, character, and no-back-down spirit. Not only did she keep her bags unpacked and remained in Costa Rica, but she found a way to thrive, creating an intentional, balanced, healthy new life.
 
She continues to explore Costa Rica while running HeartCast and other media projects like a bad ass boss, and recently bought an incredibly beautiful property right on lake Arenal in the country’s most underrated region.
 
In this podcast, I catch up with Molly right before she heads back to D.C. to work the National Cannabis Festival and hang out with Wiz Khalifa, so we certainly had a lot to talk about…and celebrate!
 
Enjoy this chat with Molly Ruland and thanks again for listening and sharing this podcast with your homies. 
 
Cheers to 20 more episodes!
 
-Norm  :-)
Picture
0 Comments

Episode #19: Whitey

4/10/2022

0 Comments

 
​In this episode, I chat with my old homie, Stephen White. 
 
Stephen (or just "Whitey" as his friends and coworkers call him) came from the East Coast like me but made his way out west, finding his way to San Francisco, California post-college. 
 
I moved out to San Francisco around 1995-98 as well, and together with our incredibly eclectic but tight-knit crew, we ripped up the city.

​But more than just partying and experiencing the music and culture the city had to offer, Stephen was like a big brother to me, guiding me socially, artistically, and professionally. 

(In fact, it was Whitey who gave me my first chance at a writing gig for his e-zine, Lifted, and I was shocked when one of my articles - Deep Drying the American Dream - went viral and made it to the front page of Yahoo.) 

​He always looked out, gave me wise counsel, and rarely would let me pay for a thing...


Picture

Listen on YouTube
 (since I was so broke I'd be lucky just to make rent money every month!). To this day, when I hook so many people up and don't ask for anything in return, I'm passing on the good karma and mentorship that Whitey extended to me. 
 
I haven't lived in San Francisco for a long time, but Whitey is still ripping it up, mostly through his career in the music industry. 
 
He's long been the CEO of music tech companies and startups, and currently works with Empire, a record label that focuses on empowering their artists - something very rare in the record business. 
 
Empire features many notable hip hop artists but is also active with growing Afro Beats and many other genres. 
 
So, I hope you thoroughly enjoy this podcast interview with Whitey as we take a trip down memory lane, talk about how San Francisco has changed, his career and life in the music industry, and still finding that artistic outlet and passion in life. 
 
Let's gooooooo! 
 
-Norm Schriever

PS You can follow the Empire record label on:
Instagram
Facebook
or SunCloud



Picture
0 Comments
<<Previous

    the Who in the World podcast w/
    ​Norm Schriever

    In this podcast, I’m going to chat with the interesting, remarkable, and sometimes downright crazy people I’ve met from my travels and time living abroad. 


    RSS Feed

      Subscribe to The Who in the World podcast

    Join the Tribe

    Archives

    March 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020

    Categories

    All
    Asia
    Cambodia
    Charity

Norm Schriever

Email:     hi@NormSchriever.com