Compass Dispatch: New Year, New Episode, Same Cosmic Bartender
In which your correspondents return from holiday breaks with stories of pyramids, proper spicing, and a 16-year-old who saved Lewis and Clark from themselves
Good morning from wherever you happen to be recovering from the holidays and contemplating the reality that it is now 2026. We have weight loss pills, robot taxis, AI dogs, but still no way to predict airport delays at Heathrow, the only place on earth where you can pay forty pounds for a mediocre burger while watching your flight vanish from the board in real time.
Sarah and Jeremiah are back from their respective breaks. Does anyone else feel that every year seems absolutely shnookered before March? We thought 2024 and 2025 were both drunk off their arses, but here we are in 2026, and the cosmic barman is lining up bourbon shots with beer backs for every month on the calendar.
Although we may all be stuck in this particular timeline, that doesn’t mean we have to give in to the restrictions of geography. Sarah has returned from an epic end-of-year adventure to Egypt to see the pyramids and dodge aggressive alabaster salesmen.
Jeremiah is back in Asia after a two-year sojourn in Geneva, where “spicy” means “we’ve added a bit of black pepper and a sprig of parsley.”
Thailand has not disappointed. Not only are there excellent markets, stalls, and seaside joints within walking distance, but cities like Bangkok have become proper international destinations with food options from across Asia.
In other news, it’s almost lunchtime at the By Their Own Compass Asia office.
New Episode: Sacagawea
Our first episode of 2026 drops on Thursday. We’re following the journey of Sacagawea, one of the most famous—and misunderstood—figures in American history. She was a 16-year-old Shoshone woman who, with her newborn baby, travelled with Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery on their expedition to explore the Louisiana Purchase and find a water route from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean.
The expedition played a crucial role in the early history of the United States and America’s westward expansion. Sacagawea didn’t sign up for the journey, but without her, it’s quite possible neither Lewis nor Clark would have made it to the Pacific.
We also discuss some of the less pleasant realities of cross-continental travel in 1805.
By Their Own Compass: Sacagawea will be available for download starting January 8 on Substack, Apple Podcasts, and now also Spotify.
That’s all from your correspondents, who remain committed to exploring history whilst 2026 gets escorted off the premises by the bar staff until it sobers up sufficient to make it to February.