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Best things to do in Guadeloupe

“Most people, they think we’re in f**king Mexico,” my guide laughs over rum punches on my first night in Guadeloupe. “Like we’re gwa-da-LOOP-ay or something.”

Such is the struggle of Guadeloupe (pronounced gwa-da-LOOP), the French Caribbean island that sits smack in the middle of the Lesser Antilles near St. Maarten and Dominica. AKA nowhere near Mexico. Though it’s one of the larger Caribbean territories, it somehow gets forgotten in North America’s collective consciousness. Which is a shame, because while it doesn’t boast a ton of sprawling all-inclusives or draw glamorous celebrities, it is the perfect way to experience both France and the Caribbean. Here are seven reasons you should make this your next tropical vacation.

1. You’ll feel like you’re hitting multiple destinations at once.

Photo: Oliver Hoffmann/Shutterstock

Guadeloupe is not one island but in fact five major islands, with a smattering of other little islands around it. Each one has a distinct feel and experience that makes a trip here feel like multiple vacations in one.

The two most populated are Basse Terre and Grande Terre, close enough together that they need only a small bridge to connect them. Grand Terre is home to Point-a-Pitre, the islands’ commercial center, where you’ll stroll through colonial French architecture to Caribbean spice markets. It’s a busy coastal hub with a warm tropical breeze. From there, head out to the easternmost point of the island at the Pointe de Châteaux, where a short, 10-minute walk brings you to the top of sweeping cliffs with views over the island.

Although it’s home to Guadeloupe’s capital of the same name, Basse Terre island is a UNESCO biosphere reserve mostly made up of Guadeloupe National Park. It’s a formidable volcanic island of jagged green mountains and golden coastline, with tropical waterfalls and rainforest covering the landscape.

The smaller islands are Les Saintes, La Desirade, and Marie-Galante. Les Saintes is reminiscent of fishing villages in the south of France, where you can spend hours at a café watching the boats come in. La Desirade has much of the same feel but is even smaller. The fourth “destination” is Marie-Galante. It’s perfect for secluded beaches, with an hour-long boat ride bringing you to palm-lined stretches of sand at the base of emerald mountains.

2. It’s more French than France.

Photo: Marco Gazzato/Shutterstock

Your first indication that Guadeloupe has adopted the grand French custom of making absolutely no effort to speak English is at the airport, where few if any signs are in anything other than French. Nobody really speaks to you in English, but when you find more bakeries than bars you really don’t mind. Sampling croissants, baguettes, or any kind of irresistible carb is as good as you’ll find in Paris.

Because the island is a French Overseas Department, and therefore part of the European Union, roads are also kept to EU standards, a welcome change for anyone who’s spent a week bouncing over potholes on windy island roads. Guadeloupe also uses the euro, which makes price conversions pretty easy. And even though the islands are only a few hours south of Miami, the television and radio all come from France, so you’ll feel like you’ve crossed the Atlantic every time you turn on the TV.

But the French attitude extends to more than road signs and radio programs. It’s the leisurely, bon vivant pace at which everything on this island is done. Seaside lunches are taken slowly, sipping wine at waterside cafes while waiters casually bring you seafood caught that day. It’s relaxing days tied up on boats near Gosier Island, a tiny island of beaches with a single lighthouse off Basse Terre. Unlike other islands plagued by spring breakers and bachelor parties from the US, drinking in Guadeloupe is actually peaceful.

3. It’s still mostly ignored by Americans.

Photo: Jakob Fischer/Shutterstock

Speaking of those debaucherous select group of Americans who love turning beautiful destinations into their personal cruise deck, you’ll be pleased to know they haven’t gotten their hands on Guadeloupe yet. While you’ll find no shortage of carefree French folks flaunting their bodies on the beaches of Guadeloupe, I went three days without hearing a stranger with an American accent. Not to knock my countrymen, mind you, but the lack of anything familiar is precisely why Guadeloupe is such a unique Caribbean getaway. Despite Norwegian Air running direct flights here for the better part of two years, the throngs of Americans haven’t descended on the place yet. So the experience of doing something completely foreign is stronger here than in other islands.

4. Basse Terre is the tropical waterfall island of your fantasies.

Photo: ThomasLENNE/Shutterstock

Driving the main highway through Guadeloupe National Park, we wound past two tall waterfalls dropping right next to the side of the road. As is customary in the Caribbean, a dreadlocked man was taking his daily shower under it, which seemed to me like the picture of beautiful island life. Our guide pulled the van over.

“Come on,” he said. “We’re going for a walk.”

We jumped a stream by the side of the road and tucked into a small opening that led into a tropical clearing where the sun peeked through banana plants and elephant ears. Ten minutes up the path we heard another waterfall and peeked behind a tree to find a group of Germans sitting at the base of the fall in a natural pool.

“You want some fruit?” One asked, seemingly unphased by our group’s interruption of their afternoon soak. “I think this is mango.”

This was but one of countless “baths” on Basse Terre, a volcanic island of lush tropical valleys, waterfalls, and even an active volcano at Soufriere. On a given weekend you’ll find locals frolicking in the rivers that run from the waterfalls, then barbecuing fish and goat for an afternoon meal. The locals are welcoming to anyone who comes by though tourists don’t often make it this far.

“All the tourists, they go to the beaches,” my guide said as we joined another swimming hole near the national park’s visitor’s center. “The locals? We all come here.”

5. The art culture is beyond classy.

Photo: Villa Jeanisette/Facebook

In America, you’d be hard-pressed to get more than a dozen people under the age of 50 to attend a chamber music concert. In Guadeloupe, classical music is part of the culture in the way reggae is in Jamaica. This is in large part due to Saint George, the 18th-century composer often called “The Black Mozart” and was once described to John Adams as “the most accomplished man in Europe.”

In March, the island holds a weeklong festival honoring his music, where islanders pack theaters, churches, and makeshift seaside amphitheaters to listen to his operas and concertos. Nary a seat was available at the opening night concert in Basse Terre’s historic church, and even a small concert in the seaside town of Bailiff had those wandering by standing to observe, as no chairs were left.

At the same time, the islands hold the Nouveaux Regards Film Festival where independent films from the US and Europe show in the theater at Pont-a-Pitre’s sleek Memorial ACTe center. You’ll also find touches of renaissance architecture throughout the city, giving it an overwhelming aura of culture and class that one doesn’t always find in this region.

6. You’ll take pictures on beaches your friends haven’t seen.

Photo: Filip Fuxa/Shutterstock

Before Guadeloupe, I visited Curacao, where I took a picture from Kenepa Grandi Beach and posted it on Instagram.

“Duuuude, I have that same pic!” one friend commented.

“My favorite beach in the world!” commented another.

I felt like the last guy to send around a funny meme.

This does not happen in Guadeloupe, where every beach you happen upon feels like some great secret none of your friends are hip to. Even along the golden shores of Grande Anse beach, where tanned French bodies line the shore in front of swaying palms and royal blue water, you get the thrill of seeing something you haven’t 100 times before. Posting a picture of a canal leading from a saltwater lake to the ocean along this beach, at least three people asked me “Where is THAT?”

Not that we should live our lives for social media reactions, but Guadeloupe gives you the opportunity to be a bit of a trailblazer. It’s a chance to go home and tell your friends about the deserted white-sand beach you spent a day on in Marie Galante. Or the waterfall you swam under in Basse Terre. Or the steak au poivre you enjoyed for two hours seaside in Deshais, where the BBC’s Death in Paradise is filmed. Every story you have in Guadeloupe will be a new story to everyone, making your vacation tales ones people actually want to listen to.

7. It’s perfectly imperfect, and if you embrace that, you’ll never want to leave.

Photo: Heli G/Shutterstock

In the fancy French Caribbean, Guadeloupe is still the rough, rugged little brother. It’s the Oakland to bougie Martinique’s San Francisco and celeb-soaked St. Barth’s Napa Valley. That’s not to say it’s rundown or dingy, but it’s not filled with luxury resorts, inaccessible fine-dining restaurants, and private-jet-loads of the super-rich. It has stunning beaches and lush jungles, but it also has traffic and smells like car exhaust in the cities. You’ll see litter on the roads and run-down apartment buildings by the sparkling blue water.

Service is generally terrible everywhere, meticulously combining island languor with a French haughtiness. A curt, “We don’t have that,” seems to be waiters’ preferred response to anything you order.

But this is what gives Guadeloupe its charm.

As the seventh-largest Caribbean territory by population, it’s very much a place that feels real, but safe at the same time. You’ll never get the impression the island was set up for tourists, and your experience is more one of dropping in on another culture than being pampered on a tropical island. It’s not perfect, and that’s why it’s so beautiful. If you’re not expecting a seamless, mass-produced vacation, you’ll want to stay weeks longer than you’d planned.


More like this: How Curacao’s people fight to keep their island the most colorful island in the Caribbean

The post 7 reasons you should be visiting Guadeloupe, France’s Caribbean jungle paradise appeared first on Matador Network.

Influential black women in travel

From hosts on well-known travel programs to popular travel bloggers on Instagram, the travel industry has not been representative of people of color. Over the past few years, there has been a surge of black millennial travelers documenting their travels online known as the Black Travel Movement. Now, there are many prominent black travel bloggers, tour operators, travel photographers, and communities online.

These black women are the movers and shakers, the tastemakers and innovators of the movement. They are award-winning journalists, entrepreneurs, pilots, and hoteliers who are directly influencing how mainstream media represents black people in the travel world. We’ve gone from not being able to travel after dark in sundown towns across America’s deep south to flying all over the world. These eight black women are the epitome of black girl magic and they are steering the ship to help change the narrative around blackness in travel.

1. Kelle Edwards — the first black woman with a show on the Travel Channel

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For years, there has been a stereotype placed upon the black community that we aren’t adventurous, don’t indulge in watersports, and only travel to destinations within our comfort zones — think Miami or Vegas. Kelle Edwards is an adventure travel journalist known online as Kelle Set Go and she defies each of those stereotypes. From her days in the newsrooms as a travel editor to being an on-air personality for a travel news segment, Kelle is changing the narrative around black adventure travel.

Kelle is paving the way for other black media professionals as the first black woman to host a show on the Travel Channel. On Mysterious Islands, Kelle explores some of the worlds lesser-known remote destinations. A licensed pilot and expert scuba diver, Kelle visits places like Sapelo Islands in Georgia where she introduces the audience to the culture of the Gullah Geechee people — direct descendants of West African slaves. In another episode, she takes viewers to Sulawesi, Indonesia, where she explores caves in which the locals live amongst their dead ancestors.

If you’re an adrenaline junkie, as Kelle often refers to herself, you’ll enjoy watching her travel the world by land, air, and sea. Historically travel media has been dominated by white men, and Kelle Edwards is helping to redefine what black travel looks like.

2. Evita Robinson — CEO & Founder of Nomadness

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A post shared by Evita Turquoise Robinson (@evierobbie) on Mar 26, 2019 at 6:07pm PDT

Over the last few years, the online black travel movement has bloomed. Black people have been traveling, and mainstream media is just starting to take notice. Evita Robison’s travel community, Nomadness Travel Tribe, was a catalyst for sparking the surge in black millennials documenting their travels online.

Nomadness Travel Tribe was founded in 2011 by Evita and was the first digital travel community for black millennials. Nomadness came out of the gate swinging with thousands of members within the first few years of the company’s existence. Evita led Nomadness group trips to places like India and Brazil. She has been instrumental in influencing other black millennials to travel with projects like the Nomadness college RV tour to various HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) across the country and a travel web series co-produced by Issa Rae of HBO’s Insecure.

Evita has consistently done work that brings awareness to the underrepresented demographic that is black travelers. In 2017, she gave a powerful Ted Talk aptly named “Reclaiming The Globe” where she poetically told the story of how black travel has evolved. She explains how black people survived the horrors of sundown towns in the Southern United States to literally being able to fly all over the world.

Her innovation in the travel industry doesn’t end there. Last year, Evita created the first festival designed with POC travelers in mind. AUDACITY Fest was held in Oakland — a city that’s known for its history with the Black Panthers — a bold statement in itself. The festival featured panels with industry experts and well-known black travel bloggers. AUDACITY also addressed other pillars of travel including wellness, culinary, self-care, budget, adventure, and luxury travel. This year, AUDACITY Fest will be held in Memphis, Tennessee, September 27-29, and any black travelers looking to find their travel tribe should be there.

3. Joanna Franco — created her own YouTube travel show

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Black women are multifaceted as depicted in our list thus far. Joanna Franco of the popular online empire Damon & Jo is no different. The 20-something black traveler originates from Brazil, grew up in Connecticut, studied abroad in Paris, and travels all over the world. Jo’s global identity and love for travel have helped her learn six languages, and she can often be seen on her YouTube channel switching between English, Portuguese, French, and Italian all in the same video.

The motto of Damon & Jo’s YouTube channel has been “Shut Up & Go” for a few years, and Jo’s content inspires her million-plus subscribers to do just that. She has produced content on topics like getting shot during Brazil’s carnival and tips for conquering the fear of flying. Last year, she and her cofounder launched an official Shut Up and Go travel platform, which is home to articles on topics from STI testing abroad to language learning. The brand has grown quickly and now has contributing authors from all over the world and even its own Shut Up and Go merch.

Jo often talks about her childhood as an immigrant growing up in the states and the struggles she and her family faced. She is a triumphant black example of the American dream that we’ve all heard about our whole lives.

4. Jessica Nabongo — set to become the first black woman to visit every country in the world

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History of West African food

For the finale of season 16 of Top Chef, Eric Adjepong announced that his final meal on the show would “tell the story of the transatlantic slave trade and how those flavors migrated to the South.” No small feat, especially when compared to the other contestants, Kelsey Barnard Clark from Alabama and Sara Bradley from Kentucky, who set out to cook the Southern food they grew up loving.

Southern food, however, is forever tied to the story that Adjepong wants to tell about West African food. Grits and cornbread, for example, came from techniques slaves used to stretch meager rations. Cornbread was Barnard Clark’s first dish.

“My story is an unfortunate story, but it’s a story that needs to be told,” Adjepong told the Top Chef judges after serving his first course of jerk steak tartare and lotus chips. “I really wanted to capture all the flavors that happened, starting from Portugal and Europe, down to West Africa and South Africa, over to the Caribbean and the South.”

Photo: Eric Adjepong

Adjepong never had a chance to tell the story as planned. He was eliminated after his first course because the chips were burnt and the tartare had too many spices for the judges’ liking (Barnard Clark won the season). That doesn’t mean he’s done telling the story of West African cuisine and the cuisines that it’s influenced, though. Top Chef helped give Adjepong a voice, and there’s still a lot Adjepong has to say. To start, there’s the question of why it’s taken so long for West African food to be recognized in Western cultures.

“That’s a question that I’m still a little perplexed by myself,” Adjepong tells me over the phone. “I think about Africa being the second biggest continent in the world and still being underrepresented. The dishes are so unfamiliar, especially in the Western world. It might go into a deeper conversation as far as how the culinary world views Africa and African food, but it’s kind of amazing where we start off with the storyline of traditional West African foods.”

How understanding food helps you understand people.

Food tells a story and opens the door for conversation in ways that nothing else can.

“Culinary arts is the only artistic medium that uses all five senses,” Adjepong says. “There are so many ways to tell a story [through food], especially when you have a chef letting you know, ‘Hey this is the background of what you’re eating.’ Food is not just about the eating; it’s about the sight, it’s about the smells, it’s about the communal aspect around the table, it’s about the sound of the things sizzling.”

Adjepong was born shortly after his parents moved from Ghana to New York City and grew up in the Bronx in the late ‘80s and ‘90s. They cooked traditional Ghanian food at home and were able to source many of the ingredients they were familiar with. Adjepong “had that dichotomy of growing up with West African parents in a very traditional home,” he says, as well as the chance to try food from other cultures thanks to being in a diverse neighborhood.

His upbringing was the starting point to understanding how the world is connected through what we eat, and he’s been tracing those connections throughout his career. He earned a degree in culinary arts from Johnson & Wales in Providence, Rhode Island, and worked in New York restaurants before studying international public health at the University of Westminster in London. For the latter, he traveled to Ghana and wrote his thesis about Maggi bouillon cubes in West African cooking. The Nestle product replaced the traditional, slow-cooked broths in Ghana in the ‘80s and ‘90s during a period of increased industrialization and also coincided with an increase in noncommunicable diseases like heart disease and hypertension. Maggi cubes have become an indispensable ingredient for chefs in the country, though, and there was even a bouillon cube Quickfire challenge on Top Chef this season, in which Adjepong placed in the top three.

Photo: Chef Eric Adjepong/Facebook

It’s impossible to ignore foods taken from the African diaspora when you start to look. Take jambalaya, for example, which can be traced back to jollof rice. Ingredients vary based on which region you’re in, but Adjepong has compared it to the paella of West Africa. Jollof changed when interpreted by African slaves in the Caribbean, then changed again in the Southern US. The reason it’s here, however, goes back to the transatlantic slave trade.

“All this returns back to West Africa and the African diaspora,” Adjepong says. “You don’t realize that a lot of things we have here, the tradition comes from [Africa].”

Learning about West African cuisine is, for many Americans, learning about the origins of some of their own food they grew up with. It opens the door to talk about how we came to eat what we eat and why, which can jump-start conversations about history and culture and people in general. At least, as long as people are open to having those conversations.

“Chefs are always here to tell a story and teach you their food,” Adjepong says but adds, “You’ve got to seek knowledge yourself” too.

Continuing to tell the story of West African food

Photo: Chef Eric Adjepong/Facebook

Adjepong came in third in Top Chef, much to the consternation of fans. His appearance, however, has given him a platform for his cooking and the stories he wants to tell.

Shortly after the final episode aired, Adjepong went to the Washington Post offices and cooked the rest of what his last meal about the transatlantic slave trade would have included. He made lobster tail with yassa onion jam, puffed black rice, and palm wine nage. Another course had scallops and goat with a tamarind glaze, cassava pave, and piri piri jus. For dessert, he made goat milk and corn pudding. The dishes and ingredients were inspired by those from Senegal, Portugal, Nigeria, Angola, Mozambique, America, and the Caribbean.

If anyone can help start a conversation about West African food and its role in contemporary American cuisine, it’s Adjepong. He’s charismatic and attractive (People magazine named him a finalist for sexiest chef alive in 2018) and has developed his ideas through extensive travel and education. Plus, as proven by his Top Chef run, he’s willing to address big themes and topics head-on.

Outside of media appearances, Adjepong is continuing to work on his business Pinch & Plate, which he runs with his wife, Janell. He’s in the early stages of a restaurant that is set to open sometime in 2020, and the dishes he never had a chance to serve on Top Chef will be on the menu along with other items that continue to tell the same story.

“It’s up to me to keep spreading that gospel,” Adjepong says over the phone. “And that’s something I’m willing to do.”


More like this: This African country is a bread lover’s paradise

The post Top Chef’s Eric Adjepong on the importance of recognizing West African food appeared first on Matador Network.

Mexican border avocado shortage

Regardless of your political affiliations, you might want to seriously consider where you stand on President Trump’s threat to shut own the US–Mexico border, as the consequences won’t just relate to immigration. A border shutdown could quickly cause an avocado shortage — Mexico supplies 44 percent of the imported produce in the US.

According to Steve Barnard, president and chief executive of Mission Produce, the largest distributor and grower of avocados in the world, and as reported by NBC News if imports from Mexico are shut down, Americans would run out of avocados in three weeks — a nightmare scenario for many millennials.

On Friday, President Trump threatened to close the border this week if Mexico did not “stop all illegal immigration coming to the US” through the southern border. In addition to totally disrupting border crossings for just about everyone, it would also totally derail the food import industry. “You couldn’t pick a worse time,” said Barnard. “Mexico supplies virtually 100 percent of the avocados in the US right now.”

And it’s not just avocados that would take a hit, either. Many of the imported tomatoes, cucumbers, blackberries, and raspberries also come from Mexico, and so does mezcal in case you forgot.

H/T: NBC News

More like this: Why avocado toast obsessions are better in Australia than the US

The post If the Mexican border shuts down, the US would run out of avocados in three weeks appeared first on Matador Network.

Best music festivals this spring

Spring break season might be over, but spring is just getting into full swing. That means warmer weather, higher spirits, and, of course, drinking outside. To combine all three and ring in the season right, you need to figure out your spring music festival lineup. You probably know all about Coachella, Ultra, and the Governor’s Ball, but those behemoths of the concert scene aren’t always the best value, or the most fun — especially when it comes to actually securing tickets. From the Stagecoach Country Music Festival in Indigo, California, to the quirky Great Escape in the UK, there are several festivals around the world that are well worth the price of admission. Here are the music festivals you can, and should, get tickets to this spring.

1. Stagecoach Country Music Festival — Indio, CA

April 26-28

Photo: Stagecoach Festival‎/Facebook

Country enthusiasts will want to make this festival a priority this spring. Although it might be held on the West Coast — which isn’t typically associated with country music — the Stagecoach Country Music Festival brings some serious southern charm to Indio after the Coachella dust has settled. With a diverse lineup of established and up-and-coming acts, the festival introduces fans to new talent as well as their radio favorites. Located at the Empire Polo Club, the festival features dozens of artists including Bret Michaels, Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, Old Dominion, and Sam Hunt. General admission passes start at $349 and can be purchased on the website.

2. New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival — New Orleans

April 25-28 and May 2-5

Photo: New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival/Facebook

If jazz is your thing, New Orleans is probably already calling your name. Dating back to 1970, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is one of the country’s oldest continuously running music festivals and one in which New Orleans takes great pride. More than simply a music festival, this is a complete cultural experience with local crafts, Cajun food, and even exhibits run by Louisiana’s indigenous peoples educating visitors on their history and traditions. The music covers a wide range of genres, from rock & roll to pop, with legendary performers like The Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, Alanis Morissette, Jimmy Buffet & The Coral Reefer Band, Pitbull, and dozens of jazz musicians playing this year. The festival takes place at New Orleans’ Fair Grounds Race Course, and tickets cost $75 in advance and $85 at the gate.

3. Lost & Found Festival — Malta

May 2-5

Photo: Lost & Found Festival‎/Facebook

Just because it’s spring, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s tank top weather here in the US. For a festival where you’re sure to be bathed in sunlight, head to Malta, a small island in the Mediterranean, for the Lost & Found Festival. Taking place on St. Paul’s Bay, the event is hosted by BBC Radio 1 DJ Annie Mac and features some of the top electronic artists in a variety of settings — from pool, beach, and boat parties to a castle rave. This year’s lineup features artists like Jaguar, Black Coffee, Mostack, and Tiffany Calver. Tickets are an affordable $170, and you can check out the website for more details on the range of venues and the itinerary.

4. The Great Escape — UK

May 9-11

Photo: The Great Escape Festival/Facebook

Over 450 musicians will invade England’s seaside city of Brighton this May for The Great Escape. Featuring a broad range of pop and alternative music, the festival is perfect for discovering new artists and genres. Indeed, the event even bills itself as “the festival for new music.” According to the event website, this crazy beach party will be “jam-packed with the most, sizzling, sought after upcoming artists,” and there is also a convention “alongside the gigs featuring insightful panels, topical debates, keynote speeches, and networking opportunities.” The purpose of the festival is truly to introduce a host of new, talented artists to the world and provide a platform for music lovers to connect over the next big thing. A full lineup of artists is available on the website, and tickets start at $100.

5. Electric Daisy Carnival — Las Vegas

May 17-19

Photo: Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC)/Facebook

If you’re looking to combine your seasonal EDM fix with a weekend of gambling and other debauchery, the Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas is a perfect choice. The festival regularly hosts some of the biggest names in EDM and is being hosted at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, outfitted with an abundance of LED-infused flora and fauna and other interactive art installations. In addition to the music, the carnival’s venue will also function as a massive adult playground, with a variety of rides designed to take your fist-pumping adrenaline boost to the next level. Although the 2019 lineup hasn’t been revealed yet, last year’s show featured Martin Garrix, Armin van Burren, Diplo, and other top artists. Tickets are being sold online starting at $359.

6. Nuits Sonores — France

May 28-June 2

Photo: Nuits sonores/Facebook

Sure, the Nuits Sonores is an epic electronic music festival, but it’s also a celebration of graphic design and contemporary art. The festival is spread over 40 public spaces in Lyon, highlighting both world-renowned artists and underground talent. This year’s theme is “panorama,” and according to the website, “This year’s scenography is all about reinventing notions of togetherness and sociability around — among other things — food and culture and the various ‘canteen’ areas dotted throughout the festival’s three main sites.”

The lighting is also purported to be more immersive than ever, with the main hall defined by the Magic Square, a “feature made up of interconnected LED panels forming a pixelated matrix and enabling the creation of immersive waves of lighting.” Even if underground electronic music isn’t your thing, this festival might just be worth it for the futuristic visual spectacle. Artists include Mystic Jungle, Laurent Garnier, J-Zbel, and De Dupe. Ticket prices vary depending on your date of attendance, with full information available on the ticket page.

7. Primavera Sound, Spain

May 30-June 1

Photo: Primavera Sound/Facebook

Attending a music festival in Barcelona is probably on many people’s bucket lists, and Primavera Sound is the perfect way to cross it off. Although Europe is known for its wild EDM festivals, Primavera Sound is actually an indie rock event, with electronic music playing a more minor role. Headliners this year include Future, Nas, Janelle Monáe, and a host of other artists.

Alongside the festival, there is also a Primavera Pro Conference with speakers, workshops, and showcases, which has become an international staple of the independent music industry. The event takes place in three venues — the Parc Del Forum, Primavera Als Clubs, and Primavera Al Raval. Festival tickets cost $220 and are available for purchase on the website.


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The post The 7 best music festivals you can still get tickets to this spring appeared first on Matador Network.

Shoe made of gum found on the street

If you’ve been looking for a sustainable alternative to your regular footwear, these shoes may be for you. Gumshoe is the first-ever shoe made from recycled chewing gum.

Anna Bullus is the British designer at the heart of the chewing gum recycling movement. She found that chewing gum is made from synthetic rubber similar to plastic that could be turned into a new material called Gumtec to create new objects. She founded Gumdrop and launched gum bins all over the UK to facilitate the recycling of chewing gum.

Photo: Gumdrop ltd/Facebook

This time around, Bullus is collaborating with the city of Amsterdam and the fashion brand Explicit to recycle the 3.3 million pounds of gum litter found on the city’s pavements each year, which costs the city millions to clean. The Gumshoe’s sole is composed of recyclable compounds, which are 20 percent gum collected from the streets of Amsterdam, while the rest of the shoe is made of leather.

Photo: Gumdrop ltd/Facebook

They are currently being sold in bubblegum pink or black and red, for about $225. Check the Explicit website to get a pair.


More like this: 7 sunscreens you can wear this summer that won’t harm coral reefs

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New Stranger Things mazes coming

Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Orlando Resort are already gearing up for the release of the latest season of Stranger Things on July 4 by announcing a creepy haunted house inspired by the show’s season two and three to be featured during Halloween Horror Nights.

Last year’s haunted houses featured the Hawkins National Laboratory, the Byers family living room, Will’s bedroom, “Castle Byers” fort, and the Hawkins Middle School hallway. The exact details of this year’s mazes haven’t been released yet — to avoid spoilers, obviously — but you can bet that they will stay true to the show and creep you right out.

According to the Orlando Halloween Horror Nights website, “This year, you’ll experience an all-new haunted house where you will travel back to the small town of Hawkins, Indiana and walk-through some of the most terrifying scenes from Stranger Things. Not only will you come face-to-face with snarling Demodogs, but you will also make your way through iconic scenes and locations, from Chief Hopper’s cabin to Starcourt Mall.

Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights will run from September 6 to November 2 in Orlando. Ticket offers and packages are already available.

H/T: Lonely Planet

More like this: 8 horror movie locations you can visit in real life

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300 million butterflies in Texas

Everyone has been talking about the super blooms this spring, whether it’s in California or Texas, but flowers don’t have the monopoly of amazing natural events. Experts are predicting that following Texas’ biggest wildflower bloom in a decade, a massive number of monarch butterflies are going to descend upon the state. According to Texas A&M Today, director of the USDA Future Scientist Program and senior research associate in the Center for Mathematics and Science Education at Texas A&M Craig Wilson is forecasting a dramatic rise in the number of monarch butterflies this year — an increase from last year by as much as 144 percent.

Wilson said, “Figures show the highest number of hectares covered since at least 2006. That’s a really positive sign, especially since their numbers have been down in recent years.” While an exact count would be impossible to predict, around 300 million butterflies are expected to make their annual journey from northern Mexico to Texas this spring.

“Texas is a crucial place for them,” Wilson explained. “They have to pass through the state on their way north in the spring and lay eggs,” and they feed on milkweed, which is abundant in Texas. To ensure that the monarchs show up in record numbers, Wilson said Texans can improve the odds by planting milkweed in their gardens. At the moment, there are plenty of bluebonnets in Big Bend National Park for them to enjoy.

And this isn’t the first butterfly invasion this year, either. Last month, huge swarms of painted lady butterflies made their way across California.

H/T: Travel & Leisure

More like this: The most spectacular animal migrations around the world and where to see them

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Japan’s emperor abdicates

This is a historic moment for Japan. For the first time in over 200 years, the emperor, Akihito, will relinquish the Chrysanthemum throne in favor of his son, Prince Naruhito.

Each emperor of Japan is thought to usher in a new era in the country’s history, with the current imperial era known as Heisei, i.e. “achieving peace.” The new era will be called Reiwa, i.e. “fortunate harmony.” The name of the new imperial era (or gengo) is extremely important to the Japanese as it’s used just about everywhere in Japan: on coins, official paperwork, newspapers, and on calendars as a way of marking time.

Yoshihide Suga, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, revealed the gengo made of two Kanji characters live on TV and announced, “We hope the new era name will be widely accepted by the public and become deeply rooted in the lives of the Japanese people.”

Picking the gengo carries a great deal of responsibility and is a secretive affair. The panel of nine tasked with choosing the name out of five options was kept in a bug-free room at the prime minister’s office, and members were required to hand in their phones and other electronic devices to prevent leaks.

Akihito, who is 85 years old, was motivated to abdicate largely due to his fear that his advanced years would prevent him from carrying out his official duties. The new era will officially begin on May 1.

H/T: The Guardian

More like this: The 5 most breathtaking shrines and temples in Kyoto, Japan

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Louvre paper collage shredded

The artworks at the Louvre are not usually victims of the trampling visitors, but this piece by muralist JR sure was. The artist’s paper trompe l’oeil pasted in the museum’s courtyard was dramatically destroyed by the very audience it was designed to move. The amazing collage was intended to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the museum’s glass pyramid; the 183,000-square-foot work made the pyramid appear, from a certain angle, to be sunken and rising from a quarry of white rock.

The images, like life, are ephemeral. Once pasted, the art piece lives on its own. The sun dries the light glue and with every step, people tear pieces of the fragile paper. The process is all about participation of volunteers, visitors, and souvenir catchers. pic.twitter.com/vNArYszXxo

— JR (@JRart) 31 mars 2019

Can’t believe this happened