The Last Trip

On August 4th, 2019, 15-year-old Nora Anne Quoirin vanished from a remote eco-resort in Malaysia.  She was on vacation with her family at The Dusun, a rainforest retreat meant for rest and quiet. But that morning, her family woke to find her gone. 
The window of her room was open. Nora—who had developmental disabilities and relied heavily on her parents—had disappeared into dense jungle terrain. 
Authorities would later say there were no signs of forced entry, and no evidence of abduction.
For ten days, hundreds of searchers combed the rainforest. They called her name through thick heat and relentless brush. Helicopters circled overhead. Volunteers trekked through ravines and riverbeds.
Then, more than a mile from the resort, Nora’s body was found near a stream. An autopsy concluded she likely died from prolonged stress and starvation.  Officials ruled her death a misadventure. 
But her family has long questioned how a vulnerable teenager could have traveled that far alone—and why certain details have never quite added up.
Listen as we dive into Malaysia, the case of Nora Quoirin, and how to stay alive on vacation.
Do you have a story to share? Send your email to [email protected]
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Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter
Sources:
https://www.strangeoutdoors.com/mysterious-stories-blog/nora-quoirin
https://www.bbc.com/news/topics/cwdzr5dd10kt
https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/06/uk/nora-quoirin-abducted-gbr-scli-intl
https://theweek.com/102615/what-happened-to-nora-quoirin
https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/parents-of-nora-quoirin-utterly-shocked-at-malaysian-documentary-that-contained-exclusive-sensitive-images/a/113557976.html
https://theaseanpost.com/article/mysterious-death-nora-quoirin
https://www.itv.com/news/topic/nora-quoirin
https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/nora-quoirin-how-does-a-vulnerable-british-schoolgirl-just-vanish-into-thin-air-in-the-malaysian-forest_uk_5d4d30a8e4b0066eb70fbd9a
https://news.sky.com/story/nora-quoirin-inquest-police-were-slow-to-act-on-abduction-claims-mother-claims-12129856
https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/asia/nora-anne-quoirin-inquest-abduction-police-malaysia-a9686296.html
https://nypost.com/2019/08/15/nora-quoirin-died-from-starvation-stress-in-malaysia-autopsy/
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/nora-quoirin-funeral-held-for-gentle-and-innocent-girl-found-dead-in-malaysian-jungle-a4233316.html
https://www.lbc.co.uk/article/nora-quoirin-death-not-killed-by-others-malaysia-coroner-rules-DWynzk_2/
https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/reports/a28684418/nora-quoirin-body-found-search/
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/asia-pacific/nora-quoirin-the-unanswered-questions-1.3988206
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7359151/Nora-Quoirin-Schoolgirl-died-intestinal-rupture-caused-starving.html

On March 3, 2011, Rachel Funari - an American woman visiting Tasmania - stepped into that landscape, and vanished.  She was 35, she was alone, and the last confirmed sighting was around 3:30 that afternoon, at a small shack beside the start of the Fluted Cape Walking Track.
Then - nothing.  No phone call. No “made it back safe.” No trace of where she went next.  Days later, when friends realize they hadn’t heard from her, a major search begins - land, sea, air - focused on the trails and steep coastline of Bruny Island.
Searchers comb dense brushland and cliff edges that drop hundreds of metres. 
Still, Rachel doesn’t turn up.
Over time, her disappearance became one of Tasmania’s highest profile missing persons cases. 
Listen as we dive into Bruny Island, the case of Rachel Funari, and how to stay alive on vacation.
Do you have a story to share? Send your email to [email protected]
We're on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

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Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter
Sources:
https://www.magistratescourt.tas.gov.au/coronerscourt/findings/coronialfindings/f/funari,_rachel_-_2012_tascd_124
https://www.police.tas.gov.au/news-events/media-releases/search-for-missing-woman-update-rachel-funari/
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-04/what-happened-to-missing-person-rachel-funari/7898300
https://www.griffithreview.com/contributors/rachel-funari/
https://medium.com/abc-news-australia/what-happened-to-rachel-funari-a0165dff1a7a
https://lizargall.com/2011/03/rachel-funari-in-memorium/
https://rachelfunari.wordpress.com/
https://www.9news.com.au/national/melbourne-journo-s-death-not-suspicious/84ccae9d-2b24-4609-968b-88fa734b6bdb
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/latest-news/cliff-plunge-fears-for-missing-tourist/news-story/c6084a569be8398ec90fd0a1abeffbce
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-03-17/police-divers-to-search-for-missing-backpacker/2653782

Twenty four year old Ryan Chicovsky was living abroad, teaching English in China and spending his free time doing what so many young travelers dream of - exploring Southeast Asia.
In March 2006, he took a vacation to Laos. It was supposed to be a short getaway. Ryan was last seen leaving the Khemkong Guesthouse in Xiangkong - a remote river village in northwestern Laos. 
He walked out… and then - nothing.  No confirmed sightings. No messages. No explanation. Just silence in a place where help is far away and questions are hard to answer.  What happened after Ryan stepped out of that guesthouse door?
Listen as we dive into Laos, the case of Ryan Chicovsky, and how to stay alive on vacation.
Do you have a story to share? Send your email to [email protected]
We're on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter
Sources:
https://ryanchicovsky.blogspot.com/
https://websleuths.com/threads/laos-ryan-braben-chicovsky-25-xiangkok-13-march-2007.77720/
https://www.travelfish.org/board/post/laos/16826_ryan-chicovsky--missing-in-laos-since-2006
https://missingpersonscenter.org/missing-persons-directory/missing-adults/ryan-braden-chicovsky/
https://www.reddit.com/r/NotForgotten/comments/rumtsz/ryan_braden_chicovsky/
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g293949-i9320-k593382-Ryan_Chicovsky_Missing_Person-Laos.html

On April 22, 2010, a 23-year old American hiker, Aubrey Sacco, was last seen on a narrow mountain trail in northern Nepal’s Langtang National Park, a landscape of silent peaks, rushing rivers, and ancient forests.
She was experienced, prepared, and confident - a traveler who had already spent months exploring South Asia, teaching yoga, walking markets and monasteries, 
making plans to return home with stories of the world’s beauty.  But on that late-spring afternoon, she didn’t arrive at her next stop, just a couple hours down the trail from where she was last seen.
There was no body, no sign of a fall, no gear left behind, no distress call. 
Nothing. She shouldn’t have vanished.
Over the years, arrests were even made - then released.  Leads appeared… then evaporated.  An earthquake in 2015 would forever alter the very valley she disappeared in, burying landscape and possibility alike. So what really happened to Aubrey Sacco - a woman on a walk through the woods, with everything to live for and so much life left unwritten?
Listen as we dive into Nepal, the case of Aubrey Sacco, and how to stay alive on vacation.
Do you have a story to share? Send your email to [email protected]
We're on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter
Sources:
https://www.aubreysacco.com/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/AubreySaccoMissing
https://www.backpacker.com/trips/gone-girl-aubrey-saccos-disappearance-hiking-in-nepal/
https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/aubrey-sacco-disappearance-remains-a-mystery/73-284993426
https://www.jungleredwriters.com/2010/11/into-thin-air-aubrey-sacco-age-23is.html
https://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/06/09/colorado.missing.hiker.nepal/index.html
https://websleuths.com/threads/nepal-aubrey-sacco-23-langtang-20-april-2010-arrest.104371/page-8
https://www.summitdaily.com/news/dad-of-missing-nepal-hiker-finds-daughters-laptop/
https://www.ibtimes.com/aubrey-sacco-update-2-suspects-arrested-2010-disappearance-missing-colorado-hiker-nepal-police-say
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/aubrey-sacco-missing_n_1347938
https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/parents-of-missing-greeley-woman-react-after-3-arrested-in-nepal/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fbi-joins-search-for-colo-hiker-in-nepal/
https://www.dailycamera.com/2013/08/03/family-of-missing-cu-boulder-grad-aubrey-sacco-recent-arrests-not-linked-to-murder/

Today, we’re chatting with Azdean Elmounstaquim, founder of Destinations Morocco and host of the Destinations Morocco Podcast - a show with more than 100 episodes dedicated to helping travelers understand Morocco not just as a destination, but as a living, breathing place filled with stories, customs, and contradictions. 
Born and raised in Marrakech, with deep roots in the Berber village of Telouet, Azdean has spent his life moving between worlds - even relocating to the US, while never losing his connection to home.
Let’s dive into the space where curiosity meets caution… about what travelers don’t always see coming.. And why people you meet on the road can change everything - 
for better or for worse.  
Do you have a story to share? Send your email to [email protected]
We're on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheLastTripPodcast

Follow us on IG: https://www.instagram.com/thelasttripcrimepod/

And join our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TheLastTripPodcast

Theme Music by Roger Allen Dexter
Learn more about Azdean and Destinations Morocco:
Website  https://destinationsmorocco.com/
LinkedIn  https://www.linkedin.com/in/azdean/
IG  https://www.instagram.com/destinations.morocco/
YouTube  https://www.youtube.com/@destinationsmorocco