About Next Chapter, Anywhere - Field Notes on Culture, Travel, and Starting Again
A former diplomat and longtime educator explore what it looks like to reinvent your life and follow new paths, through the lens of culture, travel, and the ways we experience and come back to ourselves along the way. Together, they reflect on how stepping outside familiar roles can reshape how we see the world and ourselves. Follow us on Instagram: @sojournandsoiree and @embodybyantonina
Nina and I just got back from a weekend in Napa, and somewhere afterward in Amador County, sitting in the sun with a glass of wine, she said something that turned into this whole episode — a year ago she couldn’t have pictured any of this.
So we went back to the beginning. Why she left the math classroom, what actually pushed her out the door, and the part nobody puts on Instagram: that when you leave one version of yourself, the people who knew that version have to catch up. Some of them don’t.
We get into the friends who go quiet, the ones who tell you flat out not to do it, and why I keep my circle small on purpose. Marie Kondo your friend circle. Clean it out.
Also whether either of us actually knows we’re on the right path. Neither of us has that one figured out yet.
Nina’s put some forms up on our Instagram — tell us where you want to go and what you want us to talk about. And if you’re somewhere in the middle of your own next chapter, the
Field Guide is here: https://www.sojournandsoiree.com/field-guide?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=2026-10-20 (https://www.sojournandsoiree.com/field-guide?utm_source=spotify&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=2026-10-20)
6 Oct 2026
Potholes Pave the Way
A year in, with no paycheck and no profit and loss to tell her she's making progress, Cynthia wants to know how anyone is supposed to work out whether they're on the right path. Nina's answer is that you never know. Cynthia disagrees, loudly, for most of the episode.
It starts as a business conversation and turns into an honest one. Cynthia on having gone so far down the road that turning back would take longer than she has left, so forward is the only direction available. Nina on emotional whiplash, and on why she doesn't post the hard days.
Also covered: why "the world is your oyster" is the phrase that gets people into trouble, what it means when the best thing you can say about your day is that you managed to post, and the fact that people who tell you they can't afford to travel overseas will happily book Disneyland.
Tell us how you measure a good day. Comment or send a DM — @sojournandsoiree and @embodybyantonina.
If you are a year into something new and nobody is telling you whether it is working, I wrote the Field Guide for exactly that stretch. It is free: https://www.sojournandsoiree.com/field-guide?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=2026-10-06 (https://www.sojournandsoiree.com/field-guide?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=2026-10-06)
22 Sept 2026
Rapid Fire: Hostel at 25, St. Regis at 50
Three seconds, two options, no thinking. Nina and Cynthia go head to head on carry-on or checked, big leap or slow exit, being impressive or being understood.
It starts superficial and doesn't stay that way. By the reinvention round they're admitting things neither of them planned to say out loud — Cynthia on hitchhiking across the Egyptian desert at 25 and refusing to fly economy at 50, and the thing that actually worries her about that. Nina on why she'd rather regret what she did.
Also covered: Cynthia's supplement stack takes up half a carry-on, Nina forgot to press "book" on a hotel in Quebec City, and neither of them can answer a two-option question without negotiating.
Tell us how your travel changed from your 20s. Comment or send a DM — @sojournandsoiree and @embodybyantonina.
8 Sept 2026
No Anchor, No Problem
Exciting news for everyone ready to redefine their personal journey! Join us on the latest episode of "Next Chapter Anywhere" for an inspiring dialogue about transformation and adaptability. Season 2 kicks off with stories about embracing change, from career pivots to exploring new cultures. Tune in to hear how Cynthia and Nina navigate their transitions and what surprises fall has in store.
28 Jul 2026
On the "Edge" of Success
NIna and I talk about what we've learned the last six months and whether or not we think we're on the edge, or on the edge of success!
14 Jul 2026
What's Your Biggest Fear Right Now
What if the path you chose is the wrong one? And how long are you willing to sit with uncertainty before deciding it is not working?
In this episode, Nina and Cynthia have an honest conversation about the fears that surface when you leave a familiar career and try to build something of your own. Cynthia shares her fear that she may be investing her time, energy, and money in the wrong direction, while Nina reflects on the fear that drives many of her choices: reaching the end of life and realizing she never fully believed in herself or tried.
They talk about the discomfort of slow progress, comparing yourself to other businesses online, missing the confidence and financial security of a former identity, and learning to recognize success before it looks the way you expected.
This conversation is part business reality check, part identity crisis, and part accidental therapy session between two women building their next chapters in real time.
What fear is shaping the decisions you are making right now?
30 Jun 2026
So… What Do You Do All Day?
So… what do we do all day?
This week, we’re pulling back the curtain on the invisible labor of entrepreneurship and reinvention. From marketing, websites, content, networking, events, travel planning, and endless tiny decisions, building something from scratch is a lot more than people see from the outside.
We talk about leaving behind old identities, navigating self-doubt, dealing with unsolicited advice, and explaining your work to people who only understand a traditional 9-to-5. We also get honest about the peaks and valleys of chasing a dream before the success is fully visible.
For the entrepreneurs, creatives, career changers, and anyone in the messy middle: we see you.
16 Jun 2026
You’re Not Afraid of Change, You’re Afraid of the Waiting Room
Hosts Cynthia (a former diplomat building a new chapter through travel and wellness) and Nina (a curator focused on place, people, and shared moments) record from Portland, Maine and discuss “the waiting room” as the in-between space of life transitions. Nina shares how multiple friends divorcing and her own career upheaval have highlighted how the brain resists change to stay safe, and how fear and resistance can feel harder than the action itself. They compare being pushed into change versus choosing it, explore doubts about being on the right path, and debate failure, pivoting, and how to define success as entrepreneurs. They emphasize living in the present, listening to intuition, surrounding yourself with supportive people, and remembering past resilience, while looking ahead to travel plans, taking the podcast on the road, and future retreats.
2 Jun 2026
Instagram vs Reality
We just got back from Italy and we have thoughts.
In this episode, Antonina and Cynthia reflect on leading their first group trips to Sicily and Tuscany and get honest about the gap between what travel looks like on Instagram and what it actually feels like on the ground. Spoiler: you cannot do pilates in a vineyard. You should not try.
But beyond the highlights and the laughs, this episode is really about what happens when you slow down enough to actually be somewhere. The woman at the vineyard who moved people to tears talking about springtime. The conversation at the long table that nobody wanted to end. The moments that don't photograph well but stay with you for years.
We talk about what worked, what we would do differently, and why "Instagram is inspirational, not aspirational" should be on a t-shirt. We also get into the pressure to perform the perfect trip versus the deeper thing people are actually hungry for when they travel.
If you have ever looked at someone's travel feed and thought, I want that feeling, this episode is for you.
Next Chapter Anywhere is hosted by Cynthia of Sojourn & Soirée and Antonina of EMBODY by Antonina.
19 May 2026
What Travel Actually Teaches You
What does travel really teach you that you can’t learn the same way at home?
In this episode, we move beyond surface-level takeaways and talk about how travel shifts your perspective in a deeper way. Nina shares a powerful experience traveling through Israel and the West Bank, and what it revealed about identity, place, and the common threads that connect people across cultures. Cynthia reflects on how travel strips away your usual context, and what happens when you are no longer defined by your role, your title, or your routine.
A conversation about perspective, discomfort, and the quiet ways travel changes how you see the world and yourself.
5 May 2026
Leaving Career Identity Behind
What happens when the thing that defined you no longer fits?
Cynthia reflects on leaving a decades-long career in government and diplomacy, and the identity that came with it. Nina shares what it feels like to build something new while still holding onto a more traditional path.
This is a conversation about transition, uncertainty, and learning to answer the question “what do you do?” in a new way.
21 Apr 2026
Trips That Changed Us
Hosts Cynthia (former diplomat) and Nina (curator and founder of Embodied by Antonina) discuss travel experiences that truly changed them. Cynthia shares how a semester abroad in Cairo became four to five years, sparked her love of Arabic and the city’s energy, led to formative travel in the Middle East including visiting the West Bank during Palestinian elections, and ultimately inspired her to join the Foreign Service after meeting a diplomat. Nina reflects on traveling to Poland with her mother, connecting with her heritage through Krakow and Warsaw, visiting Auschwitz, and experiencing unexpected hospitality from locals they met on a train, which reinforced the idea that being open to human connection creates meaningful experiences. They invite listeners to share trips that changed them and to follow along for future conversations and travel.
21 Apr 2026
Welcome to Next Chapter Anywhere
A former diplomat and longtime educator explore what it looks like to reinvent your life and follow new paths, through the lens of culture, travel, and the ways we experience and come back to ourselves along the way. Together, they reflect on how stepping outside familiar roles can reshape how we see the world and ourselves. Follow us on Instagram: @sojournandsoiree and @embodybyantonina
9 Apr 2026
Teaser - Next Chapter Anywhere
A former diplomat and longtime educator explore what it looks like to reinvent your life and follow new paths, through the lens of culture, travel, and the ways we experience and come back to ourselves along the way. Together, they reflect on how stepping outside familiar roles can reshape how we see the world and ourselves. Follow us on Instagram: @sojournandsoiree and @embodybyantonina
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
4 ratings
Spotify
4.6 / 5
11 ratings
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