Divya Alter is a certified nutritional consultant, educator, author and chef in the Shaka Vansiya Ayurveda tradition. Divya began her practice over 30 years ago as an intern in the kitchen of a yoga ashram in her native Bulgaria before moving to India where she became captivated by Ayurveda and the notion of prevention and healing through food (it is through Ayurveda that she cured herself from an autoimmune disease).
In 2016, Divya and her husband Prentiss founded Divya’s Kitchen, a plant-based restaurant in New York City that reimagines classic dishes through an Ayurvedic lens. She is also the co-founder of Bhagavat Life, a nonprofit culinary school that offers cooking classes and North America’s first Ayurvedic chef certification program.
Divya is the author of the bestselling cookbook “What to Eat for How You Feel: The New Ayurvedic Kitchen” (Rizzoli, 2017) and the forthcoming “Joy of Balance: An Ayurvedic Guide to Cooking with Healing Ingredients” (Rizzoli, 2022).
On this episode, Divya shares her one way ticket to Vrindavan, India. As she puts it: “It’s a place where people go for inspiration. Sometimes if you feel kind of stuck in your life and you’re like ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, I don’t know where I’m going’. So if you have a kind of existential crisis, Vrindavan can give you the clarity of who you are and what you’re meant to do and be”. For Divya, what she also loves about Vrindavan is that “It has this very special sweetness in the atmosphere. It’s saturated with spiritual energy that you cannot really explain”.
Plus, Divya walks us through the ancient Indian healing system that is Ayurveda, and highlights her books, restaurant and product line. In the course of the conversation, she offers some wonderful tips like how turmeric can stop bleeding, why mung beans are the best beans of all, and why you should add cardamom to your coffee.
Divya Alter is just one of the exceptional individuals featured on the podcast where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; General David H. Petraeus, US Army (Ret.); Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former United States Senator, Joseph I. Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.
Andrew Zimmern is an Emmy-winning and four-time James Beard Award-winning TV personality, chef, writer and social justice advocate. As the creator, executive producer and host of Travel Channel’s Bizarre Foods franchise, Andrew Zimmern’s Driven by Food and Emmy-winning The Zimmern List, he has devoted his life to exploring and promoting cultural acceptance, tolerance and understanding through food.
In 2020, Andrew returned to television with his MSNBC series What's Eating America, and in 2021, he premiered Family Dinner on Chip & Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia Network. In 2022, Andrew Zimmern’s Wild Game Kitchen will premiere on the Outdoor Channel. All three shows were created by Intuitive Content, the full-service television and digital production company that Andrew heads as both founder and CEO. In 2021, Intuitive Content was named one of the top 100 production companies in the world by Realscreen.
Andrew is also the founder and CEO of Passport Hospitality, a restaurant and food service development company. He is passionate about his philanthropic endeavors and sits on the board of directors of Services for the Under Served, Project Explorer/EXPLR, Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project and Soigne Hospitality. He serves on City Harvest’s Food Council, is the International Rescue Committee’s Voice for Nutrition and a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations World Food Programme. Andrew is also a founding member of the Independent Restaurant Coalition, fighting to save restaurants affected by Covid-19.
He resides in Minneapolis.
On this episode, Andrew shares his one way ticket to Samoa. In the course of the conversation, he highlights its food (including the “sweetest most amazing banana you’ve ever had”), its stunning beaches, colorful markets, and general relaxed atmosphere, which all point to him believing he was a Samoan in a previous life.
Plus, Andrew spotlights some of his more memorable food experiences around the world (he’s been to 176 countries!), including the souks in Aleppo and Fez and in Taiwan which he says is “the most underrated food destination on planet earth”. For his (non-exhaustive) global list of selected food experiences, visit his page on our website: www.theonewayticketshow.com.
Andrew Zimmern is just one of the exceptional individuals featured on the podcast where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; General David H. Petraeus, US Army (Ret.); Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former United States Senator, Joseph I. Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.
Our guest on episode 231, Royal Commentator Victoria Arbiter lived her late teens in Kensington Palace and brings to her role a wealth of insider knowledge and expert analysis on the British Royal Family gained from a career that spans both sides of the Atlantic.
She’s provided commentary to CNN, ABC and CBS. She covered William & Catherine and Harry & Meghan’s weddings, The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and has contributed to Entertainment Tonight, Inside Edition, The Today Show, CTV (Canada), Channel 7 (Australia), and ITV (UK).
Victoria writes a weekly royal column for 9 Honey, the digital arm of Channel 9 in Australia, and has been featured in numerous international publications and documentaries.
Her book on Queen Elizabeth II for the Pocket Giants Series was published by the History Press in February 2016.
Victoria shared in our last conversation that her one way ticket was to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe!
Since we’re marking our show’s 10th anniversary, and since it co-insides with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, we’re combining the two occasions and having Victoria return to the podcast to answer 10 questions about HM the Queen.
Victoria Arbiter is just one of the exceptional individuals featured on the podcast where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former United States Senator, Joseph I. Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.
General David H. Petraeus, US Army (Ret.), is a Partner with the global investment firm KKR and the Chairman of the KKR Global Institute, which he established in June 2013. He is also a personal venture capitalist and serves on the boards of KKR companies OneStream and Optiv.
Before joining KKR, he served in government for 38-1/2 years, culminating his 37-year military career with six consecutive commands as a general officer, five of which were in combat – including the Surge in Iraq, US Central Command, and US/Coalition Forces in Afghanistan – and then serving as Director of the CIA, following Senate confirmation by a vote of 94-0.
General Petraeus graduated with distinction from the US Military Academy in 1974 and later earned a Ph.D. at Princeton University.
He has held academic appointments at USMA, the City University of New York’s Macaulay Honors College, Harvard’s Belfer Center, and the University of Southern California. He is currently a Senior Fellow and Lecturer at Yale’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Co-Chairman of the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Global Advisory Council, Senior Vice President of the Royal United Services Institute, and a member of the Trilateral Commission, Council on Foreign Relations, and Aspen Strategy Group.
His many awards include four Defense Distinguished Service Medals, the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award, the Bronze Star Medal for Valor, two NATO Meritorious Service Medals, the Combat Action Badge, the Ranger tab, and master parachutist wings. He has also been decorated by 13 foreign countries and is believed to be the only person who, while in uniform, threw out the first pitch of a World Series game and did the coin toss for a Super Bowl. He was also runner-up for Time Person of the Year in 2007, when Russia’s President Vladimir Putin garnered that honor.
On this episode, General Petraeus shares his journey to the late 19th century for a dinner at the Lotus Club in New York City with then former President and retired General Ulysses S. Grant. He puts forward why and how the conversation would unfold.
During our interview, General Petraeus also provides perspective on cybersecurity, why Iran may be the next big crisis, managing China, the war in Ukraine, and our commitment to Afghan partners and refugees. Plus, he offers what he never travels without, why exercise and reading are critical diversions during grinding experiences, and why social media is another war zone.
General Petraeus is just one of the exceptional individuals featured on the podcast where Host Steven Shalowitz explores with his guests where they would go if given a one way ticket, no coming back. Their destinations may be in the past, present, future, real, imaginary or a state of mind.
Steven's guests have included: Nobel Peace Prize Winner, President Jose Ramos-Horta; Legendary Talk Show Host, Dick Cavett; Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz; Fashion Expert, Tim Gunn; Broadcast Legend, Charles Osgood; International Rescue Committee President & CEO, David Miliband; Former United States Senator, Joseph I. Lieberman; Playwright, David Henry Hwang; Journalist-Humorist-Actor, Mo Rocca; SkyBridge Capital Founder & Co-Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci; Abercrombie & Kent Founder, Geoffrey Kent; Travel Expert, Pauline Frommer, as well as leading photographers, artists, chefs, writers, intellectuals, etc.