Matador Network's Blog, page 2165

What cooks think of your lunch order

Photo: popartichoke

YOU MIGHT THINK you’re just grabbing a quick bite on your lunch break, but you’re actually giving us a reason to make a snap judgment about you. Here’s what a line cook thinks about your orders during the rush.

Cheeseburger with all the fixins – You’re going to need a nap after this. Good luck getting any work done later. If you get a double, you might as well not go back to the office at all.

Tomato soup & grilled cheese – You’re a kindergarten teacher who spends too much time thinking about coloring books and the ABCs.

A side salad – You’re probably dining with your boss, and didn’t feel the meatball sub that you actually wanted to order would make the best impression.

The veggie burger – Kudos to you for trying to be healthy by ordering this oxymoron, but please don’t send it back when you’re disappointed that it doesn’t taste like a real burger.

The French dip – You took the fifteen hints your girlfriend gave you to heart, and ordered the sandwich she really wanted to taste.

Italian sub with banana peppers – You didn’t take the numerous hints your girlfriend gave you, and ordered what you wanted instead. Totally worth it.

BBQ wings – Let’s hope you don’t have any afternoon meetings. We’re not sure how your clients will feel about the red stains on your cheeks, and hands, and shirt, and pants.

Beer – Whether the end of a long week or starting the weekend early, you are just celebrating the fact that you won’t be going back to work after this “meal.”

Turkey sandwich topped with stuffing, gravy, and cranberry sauce – No one has to tell you what the best part of the holiday season is. Leftovers!

Spinach salad, dressing on the side – Are those fries you keep stealing off your friend’s plate a part of your diet, too? Because we are pretty sure ordering the salad doesn’t count unless you actually eat it.

Meatloaf – Please, tell us again how your mom makes it better.

Ham sandwich on white bread – It seems like you could have made this one at home and eaten it at your desk, but we will prepare it since you are paying.

Sushi and sake – Your order is as high end as your job, and you will prove it by always using your chopsticks and paying the entire bill when it comes.

Grilled salmon, brown rice, and broccoli – Since you keep talking about how you get up at 5:30 every day for a workout, it only makes sense that your lunch is as intense as you.

Taco salad – We get it, ordering a salad sounds better than ordering a burrito. But, just so you know, they are one and the same. Especially after you add extra cheese, ground beef, sour cream, and guacamole.

Tuna salad sandwich – Apparently, you don’t want your colleagues to invite you to join them again tomorrow.

Hot buttered lobster roll – Lunch is the perfect time to combine your love for fancy food and sandwiches. Everyone wins. Except, of course, your wallet.

One slice of plain pizza – You’re a college student, it’s almost summer break, and you are out of money on your meal plan. You could do a lot worse than pizza for every meal, though.

Pastrami on rye with spicy mustard – We will find your New York accent charming, and your attitude about the fact that it doesn’t compare to sandwiches from the delis back home, annoying.

All you can eat pasta – You can stretch a dollar and you never miss a good deal. We will see you on Dollar Taco Tuesday and Ten Cent Wing Wednesday, too.

Poutine – You don’t mess around. If you add a fried egg to this meal, you might even get a standing ovation.

Bacon fried rice – Apparently the bacon, egg, and cheese you finished for breakfast didn’t quite get rid of that hang over.

Nachos – Normally, ordering a starter for your meal means you will be hungry a couple hours later, but the cheesy, topping-heavy nachos put all other appetizers to shame. And you know it.

Hot Dog – You’ll order this at a corner stand in between meetings and it will taste so good that it will almost make the regret you feel later worth it.

Cheese, wine, and baguette – You embrace the European in you. You’ll probably follow the meal with an espresso and a cigarette.

Fish and chips – You’re torn between your craving for seafood and your strict budget. Sorry, but this won’t satisfy either.

Smoked brisket, macaroni and cheese, and a hot roll – You’ll forget about the fact that this is enough food to satisfy most people for three meals, and you’ll order banana pudding for dessert.

Egg salad – You didn’t like anything on the menu, anyway. This will make good leftovers for your dog.

Where to swim w/ whale sharks [PICs]

I was snorkeling off the Pacific Coast of Mexico with my friend and former dive instructor, Ceci, when I saw what looked like a spiny tetherball with a beak spiraling from the depths towards the surface. I lifted my mask and Ceci lifted hers, preempting my question.

“It’s a blowfish,” she said, matter-of-factly. Then, “All fish are weird.”

To wit: the whale shark. Not a whale at all, and only technically a shark (with a cartilaginous skeleton, gill slits, and pectoral fins it belongs to the shark family of fish), the whale shark has an enormous mouth with up to 350 rows of tiny teeth and 10 filter pads. Like baleen whales, they’re filter-feeders and eat by straining algae, plankton, and krill from the seawater, but their name more likely derives from the fact that at sizes of up to 40 feet long and 47,000 pounds, they are the largest fish on the planet, and can live for up to 80 years. Weird, right?

Whale sharks live in all tropical and warm temperate seas, so the regions where you can swim with them — they’re known to be gentle with divers — are numerous. Whale shark numbers, however, are dwindling; the animal is on the endangered species list.

The migration patterns of whale sharks aren’t fully understood, but there are ways to increase your chances of a sighting. Where you catch up with the whale sharks will depend on the time of year and the region you’re in.

This article was originally published on November 19, 2012.

1

Oslob Cebu, Philippines

When: Year Round

Skill: Snorkelling for Beginners, Dive option included too.

Do it: Oslob Whale Sharks

Photo: Pacific Klaus

2

Mahe, Seychelles

When: August - October


Skill: Beginner to experienced


Do it: Aqua-Firma, Dive Seychelles, Big Blue Divers


Photo: Bunn

3

Isla Mujeres, Mexico

When: May - September; the annual Whale Shark Festival typically takes place in mid-June

Skill: Beginner to experienced. SCUBA not permitted; snorkels only

Do it: Enrique’s Unique Dives, Searious Diving, Ceviche Tours

Photo: kozyndan

4

Puerto Ayora, Galapagos, Ecuador

When: May - October; best month is July

Skill: Depends on the dive but strong currents make this region unsuitable for beginners

Do it: Aqua-Firma, Academy Bay Diving, Galextur, Scuba Galapagos

Photo: tobze

5

Belize Barrier Reef, Belize

When: March - June

Skill: Beginner to experienced

Do it: Splash Dive Center, Hamanasi Adventure and Dive Resort, Seahorse Dive Shop

Photo: Martin Spragg Photography

6

Ningaloo Reef, Australia

When: April - July

Skill: Beginner to experienced

Do it: Three Islands Whale Shark Dive, Ningaloo Dreaming, Ningaloo Blue Dive

Photo: Zac Wolf

7

Tofo, Mozambique

When: November - April

Skill: Beginner to experienced


Do it: SCUBA Mozambique, Diversity SCUBA

Photo: Whale Shark Conservation, Mozambique

8

Ari and Baa Atolls, Maldives

When: May - December on the western side; December - April on the eastern side

Skill: Beginner to experienced; no SCUBA required

Do it: Maldives Dive Travel

Photo: Rory Moore

9

Donsol Bay, Philippines

When: February - April

Skill: Beginner to experienced. SCUBA not permitted in the bay; snorkels only

Do it: Donsol EcoTour

Photo: Darren A.

10

Richelieu Rock, Thailand

When: Feb - May

Skill: Intermediate to experienced

Do it: Blue Guru Diving, Sunrise Divers, Sharkey Scuba

Photo: Marcel Waldis Underwater Photography

11

Utila Bay, Honduras

When: Year round, but Utila Dive Lodge and the Whale Shark and Oceanic Center partner each year to offer "Whale Shark Weeks," during which divers can participate in whale shark research, photo ID, DNA sampling, and tagging (pictured).

Skill: Beginner to experienced

Do it: Utila Dive Lodge, Whale Shark and Oceanic Research Center

Photo: Vladimir Levantovsky - Effervescent Photography

8 things Americans can learn from Cz

Photo: Kristofer Trolle

1. How to be alone.

In Prague, it’s pretty common to see single diners at a restaurant or café, people walking around by themselves in parks or shops, loners having a drink at the pub, or people dancing with no one but themselves at a club. It’s not because Czechs have no friends, but more because they are totally okay with — and appreciate — their alone time.

Even in New York, a person doing things on their own is usually scrutinized. “Are you waiting for your boyfriend? No? Are you waiting for your friends?” are common questions I get asked when I try and grab a drink at a bar by myself. I get odd looks when I reply that I’m here on my own; people don’t understand why I’d want to be by myself, that I must be crazy or something, because I don’t have a gaggle of girlfriends, or I’m not cozying up to a dude.

2. How to express happiness.

“You should smile more often, aren’t you happy?” is another annoying question I get here in the USA. I don’t need to smile in order to show you how happy I am. Yet Americans don’t believe me unless I’m grinning like a fucking idiot.

Czechs are practical people — my friends don’t like exerting more energy than they need, and thus, they don’t walk around with weirdo smiles plastered across their faces for no reason. If they are happy, and they want you to know, they’ll tell you. But most Czechs don’t feel the need to prove themselves in such an outward manner.

3. How to drink.

I’ve never seen a Czech puke once from a night out on the town — they have this amazing way of holding their liquor like I’ve never seen before. They can consume a lot of it, like sixteen beers’ worth, and never show signs of acting like an asshole. Czechs drink more beer per capita, and there is even a political movement going on to keep beer as the cheapest beverage you can order at any restaurant. They hold their liquor (and their liquor intake) with such a high regard that it makes me wonder what things would be like in the USA if our drinking age was lowered and there were no open-container laws.

4. How to structure politics.

The first president of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel, was a political activist who spearheaded Charter 77 and the Velvet Revolution, and was also a successful playwright. During major elections, citizens are allowed to vote for anyone within the multi-party system, including those who are part of the Czech Pirate Party, the Friends of Beer Party, and The Party of Common Sense. Offering these options allows for many issues to be represented, and keeps people from voting for “the lesser of two evils.” In the US, maybe our issues would be more easily solved if we had better representation than just Republican and Democrat ideologies.

5. How to overcome illness.

“You have a sore throat? Here, take a shot of Becherovka.” Alcohol was consistently prescribed for whatever sickness I might have had back in Prague. Kofola, a spicy soda, was also used to cure my hangovers.

In the USA, I’m barraged by costly prescription medicines, doctors who couldn’t care less about my actual state of health, and this attitude of, “Work it out, sissy! Go for a run! Go to work! Fight through your head cold!” Czechs, on the other hand, will tuck themselves up in bed and sleep through most illnesses, waking only to sip on some broth. The American version usually leaves me exhausted and sick for another two weeks, but I’m usually good to go in a day or two after self-medicating the Czech way.

6. How to cook.

Czechs don’t concern themselves with health trends. They’ve been cooking the same five things since the beginning of time – meat, bread dumplings, potatoes, cheese, and cabbage are pretty much a part of every meal. Most of my friends and neighbors were rail-thin, and the more portly folks don’t concern themselves with their body image at all.

I’m constantly monitoring my diet in the US though. Between veganism, gluten-free and other foodie revolutions, it’s no wonder my diet yo-yos so much. Czechs also enjoy walking and being out of doors, which helps burn off the otherwise heavy dishes like svíčková, smažák, and ovocné knedlíky.

7. How to spend our free time.

Most Czechs have a summer cottage that was granted to them under the Communist regime, a strange combination of the Sudetenland Crisis, the seizure of private property beyond one residence, and then an excess of unclaimed housing that resulted in everyone getting a house in the city and a house in the country. Many Czechs use these cottages as a retreat on the weekends, especially during the summer.

In the USA, second houses are a luxury granted to those who can afford a second mortgage. But even if people have them, they rarely spend beyond their allotted vacation time in them. I’d love a pied a terre that I could escape to and be inspired in, or even just a nice place to really break from routine and go off the grid for a while.

8. How to party.

Aside from the beer slugging, Czechs party like it’s 1999 — seriously, every club and bar I hung out at had a penchant for Chumbawumba,and Aqua’s “Barbie Girl.” Places like Cross Club and Karlovy Lázně have more foreign clientele, and that’s where more up-to-date music is played, but any decent Czech DJ knows that a throwback to the ‘80s and ‘90s is the only way to get down on the weekends. Maybe it’s nostalgia for the end of Communism, or maybe they aren’t as interested in Drake, Lil Wayne, and Chris Brown, but when an entire room is rocking out to Limp Bizkit’s “I did it all for the nookie” for non-ironic reasons, I have a better time than trying to “twerk” along with Miley Cyrus.

Why SE Asia's skies are so chaotic

Photo: Omair Haq

BANGKOK, Thailand — The motto for AirAsia, the carrier that recently lost a plane full of passengers off the coast of Indonesia, is “Now Everyone Can Fly.”

That slogan might help explain why Indonesian flights have been so prone to both small mishaps and outright disasters in the past decade.

Not everyone can fly in Indonesia, where roughly half of the 250 million people gets by on less than $2 per day. But the island nation — along with the rest of Southeast Asia — does have a booming middle class that can finally afford to fly instead of taking a creaky bus.

Their appetite for inexpensive flights is fed by a dizzying number of budget airlines, many of which are quite new. But AirAsia is the region’s undisputed budget flight king, a carrier known for hostesses in snug red skirts. Its network is huge and covers podunk towns, major capitals, and all points in between.

Its flights are also dirt cheap.

The jet that disappeared — flying from Surabaya, Indonesia’s second largest city, to cosmopolitan Singapore — travels on a route offering tickets for as little as $28. AirAsia flights lasting under an hour often sell for less than $100.

AirAsia’s founder, a charismatic Malaysian named Tony Fernandes, is unabashedly frugal. An aviation industry colleague previously told GlobalPost that “Tony is the guy who would come to conferences and collect all the free pens to save money.”

Since the 1970s, Singapore Airlines has tried to project an image of glamorous travel to Southeast Asia. But today, the typical flier here is a workaday commuter packed into an AirAsia flight eating $1 instant noodles.

AirAsia’s popularity has inspired quite a few budget airline imitators. Southeast Asia’s skies are now more crowded than ever. Case in point: when pilots on missing flight 8501 sought permission to ascend to 38,000 feet, the request was rejected because there were too many other jets flying nearby.

The tempo of flights over Southeast Asia is set to increase even more. There are more than 800 small, single-aisle airplanes operating in Southeast Asia today but, according to Boeing, that figure will explode to nearly 3,000 in the next two decades.

All those added flights require a rapid expansion of skilled air traffic controllers, ground crews, pilots and safety officials. Some worry the region’s aviation system could crack under the pressure.

In Indonesia — a sprawling archipelago known for low pay and corruption — the prognosis is a bit worrisome.

The last decade has seen at least four crashes involving hundreds of fatalities along with recurring non-fatal mishaps and various other scandals, including one airline called Lion Air that fired multiple pilots for getting high on meth. Indonesian aviation has seen a safety turnaround in recent years yet all but a few carriers are deemed unsafe to fly into Europe.

While AirAsia’s safety record was solid until Sunday, the flight 8501 disaster comes at a woeful time for Southeast Asian aviation, which is still reeling from Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which mysteriously vanished, and flight 17, downed over Ukraine.

AirAsia’s Fernandes, who told GlobalPost in 2009 that he’s an “incorrigible optimist,” described the plane’s disappearance as his “worst nightmare.” But there is little indication that the crisis will dent the demand for more and more cheap flights, which keeps putting pressure on an already overtaxed aviation system.

By: Patrick Winn, GlobalPost



This article is syndicated from Global Post.

25 crazy New Year's traditions

Photo: Anthony Bouch

1. Belarus

On New Year’s in Belarus, single women place piles of corn on the ground in front of them, and then a rooster is set loose. The first woman whose pile of corn the rooster approaches will be the next to get married.

2. Brazil

In Brazil, partiers wear white on New Year’s to scare away bad spirits. Brazilians also jump over seven waves — one for each day of the week — while making seven New Year’s wishes. Those who aren’t near the beach jump three times on their right foot. Brazilians also offer a tribute of flowers to Iemanja, the goddess of water.

3. Bolivia

In Bolivia, people will cook a coin into a cake. The person who finds the coin while eating the cake gets good luck in the next year.

4. Chile

Chileans looking to make a lot of money over the next year will eat a spoonful of lentils on New Year’s Eve. In the Chilean city of Talca, locals will spend the night in the cemetery with their dead relatives.

5. Colombia

Want to spend the next year traveling? Do as the Colombians do: walk around the block once with your empty suitcase.

6. Denmark

Danes throw dishes at the front doors of their close friends. It’s considered lucky to have a lot of broken dishes at the foot of your door at the end of the night, as it’s a sign of a lot of friends.

7. Ecuador

In many South American countries (also Bolivia, Venezuela, and Brazil) you’re supposed to wear colorful underwear on New Year’s Eve. Wear yellow undies if you want to make lots of money next year, and red undies if you want to fall in love.

8. El Salvador

An hour before midnight, Salvadorans crack open an egg into a glass of water. They let it sit as the year changes, and then the next morning, they’ll try and interpret the shape of the egg, and what it might foretell in the New Year.

9. Estonia

Traditionally, Estonians try to eat seven times on New Year’s Day, to ensure strength and plenty of food in the New Year.

10. Finland

Similar to El Salvador’s egg tradition, Finns throw molten tin into a glass of water, and then try to interpret the shape of the tin as an omen for what will happen in the New Year.

11. Germany

Germans watch the British comedy sketch Dinner For One every New Year’s. The sketch is so popular that its catchphrase, “Same procedure as every year,” has now entered the German lexicon.

12. Ireland

Single women in Ireland sleep with a mistletoe under their pillow on New Year’s in the hopes of finding a husband in the next year.

13. Italy

In Rome, divers jump from the Cavour Bridge into the Tiber River. The tradition started back in 1946.

14. Japan

In Japan, people dress up as the zodiac animal of the upcoming year (2015 is the Year of the Sheep), and attend a temple where the bell is rung 108 times — a lucky number.

15. Panama

Panamanians like to burn effigies on New Year’s of anyone famous. The idea is that the effigies — called muñecos — are representative of the old year, and you are burning them to move on.

16. Peru

Residents of Chumbivilcas Province in Peru celebrate the festival of Takanakuy. The festival — which happens on December 25 — involves dancing and, most notably, fighting. People will get into fistfights to settle old beefs so that the slate is clean when the New Year rolls in.

17. Philippines

In the Philippines, it’s considered lucky to eat round foods on New Year’s. This is because round shapes are supposed to represent coins — so eating a lot of round foods means you’ll make a lot of money in the New Year. Children in the Philippines will also jump up and down as the New Year rings in, in the hopes that it will make them taller in the coming year.

18. Romania

Romanians participate in a 2,000-year-old tradition where a young man dresses up in a bear costume and dances around to scare off bad spirits.

19. Scotland

Possibly the best (and least safe) celebration is Hogmanay, in which residents swing fireballs around their heads. The fire is said to bring sun and purification in the New Year. Scots also partake in “First-Footing,” where the first person to step over the threshold of a home brings good luck. Tall, dark men are the most lucky; red-haired and blonde men and women are less lucky. First-footers are also supposed to bring whisky and bread into the home.

20. Serbia

In Belgrade, it’s tradition for an Eastern Orthodox priest to throw a crucifix into the icy waters of the Danube. The first person to dive in and retrieve it will be blessed with a healthy year.

21. Siberia

In Siberia, divers cut a hole into the ice on Lake Baikal and dive to the bottom of the lake with a tree trunk to “plant a tree” at the bottom of the lake.

22. Spain

At midnight, Spaniards try to eat a single grape for each toll of the bell at midnight.

23. Thailand

In Thailand, for April’s Southeast Asian New Year, people throw buckets of water on each other, and smear each other with talc.

24. United States

The most universal tradition in the United States is have someone to kiss when the New Year rolls in at midnight. The tradition is very nice if you’re in a relationship, but can be super depressing if you’re not.

25. Vietnam

In Vietnam, “Little New Year” is celebrated on January 23 in honor of the Kitchen God. Because the Kitchen God is said to ride to heaven on a carp to report on each family on the day of the festival, families keep a bowl of carps set aside as they eat a meal and decorate the Kitchen God’s altar.

Say

Photo: Ginny

According to Ethnologue, the world currently has 6,909 living languages. Here’s how to wish someone a happy new year in 40 of them.
A-E


Language
Spelling
Pronunciation


Afrikaans
Gelukkige Nuwejaar

gha-likkikga-neeva-yaarr (“gh” is a throat scraping guttural sound)



Albanian
Gëzuar Vitin e Ri
gu-zoo-ar vi-tin e ri


Arabic
سنة سعيدة
sana sa’eedah


Azerbaijani
Yeni iliniz mübarək
ye-ni i-li-niz myu-ba-rack


Bahasa melayu
Selamat tahun baru
selamat tahun baru


Basque
Urte berri on

err-te berr-rri on



Bosnian
sretna nova godina
sr-et-na no-va go-din-a


Bulgarian
Щастлива Нова година
sh-tast-liva No-va go-din-a


Catalan
Feliç any nou
fe-LEES A-nee n-Ou


Cebuano (Philippines)
Mabungahong Bag-ong Tuig kaninyong tanan

ma-boon-ga-hong bag-ong too-eeg kan-een-yong tan-an



Czech
šťastný nový rok

SHTU-stnee NO-vee rrr-ok


Dutch
Fijne oudejaarsavond (Fine New Year’s Eve) / Gelukkig Nieuwjaar (Happy New Year)

fei-nee ow-de-yaarr-sa-vont / ghu-lukkikgh-neew-yaarr



Estonian
Head uut aastat
hed oot ah-staht

Photo: Tom Bricker

F-L


Language
Spelling
Pronunciation


Farsi
سال نو مبارک

sale nou mobarak



Filipino
Manigong Bagong Taon
mah-nee-gong bag-gong ta-on


French
Bonne Année
bon a-nay


Gaelic (Scotland)
Bliadhna mhath ur
bleenah vahth oohr


German
Frohes Neues Jahr / Gutes Neues Jahr
frohes neuyis yar / gutes neu-yis yar



Greek
Καλή χρονιά

kali chronya



Gujarati
સાલ મુબારક
saal mubarak (happy year)



Hebrew
שָׁנָה טוֹבָה
shana tova



Hindi
नये साल की हार्दिक शुभकामनायें
nayye saal ki haardik shubh-kaam-nayen



Hungarian
Boldog Új Évet / Buék
bawl-dawg-uuy-aevet / boo-ayk


Irish
Athbhliain faoi mhaise dhuit / Bhliain nua sásta
awh-tvleen fwee mm-hay-sheh gutch


Italian
Buon anno / Felice anno nuovo
boo-on ah-nno / fae-lee-chae ah-nno noo-o-vo


Japanese
あけましておめでとうございます

akemashite omedeto gozaimasu



Korean
새해 복 많이 받으세요

seh heh bok mahn ee bahd euh sae yo

Photo: Jeff Krause

M-Z


Language
Spelling
Pronunciation


Maltese
Is Sena it -Tajba

iz sena it taybah



Mandarin Chinese
新年快乐
xīn nián kuài lè


Maori
Kia hari te tau hou
kia hari tay tau ho


Polish
Szczęśliwego Nowego Roku
shch-eng-shlee-vego novego roku


Portuguese
Feliz Ano Novo
feh-liz an-oh noh-voh


Quechua
Allin wata kachun qanpaq (singular) / Allin wata kachun qanqunapaq (plural)
all-yin wa-ta ka-chun kan-pak / all-yin wa-ta ka-chun kan-koon-a-pak


Romanian
La Mulți Ani
laa mooltsi ani


Russian
С Новым Годом

s novim godom



Spanish
Feliz Año Nuevo
feh-liz an-yoh n-way-vo


Thai
สวัสดีปีใหม่
saa-wat-dii pi-mai


Turkish
Mutlu yıllar (happy year) / Yeni yılınız kutlu olsun (May your new year be celebrated)
moot-loo yill-lar / yen-ee yill-uh-niz coot-loo ohl-son


Urdu
نايا سال مبارک

nayya saal mubarak



Welsh
blwyddyn newydd dda

BLOOdhin NEHwidh dha

Do you know how to say Happy New Year in any other languages? Share in the comments section below to get us closer to representing the world’s 6,000+ languages!

LGBT traveler’s wish list for 2015

Photo: Bryan Ledgard

LGBT travelers have a lot to be thankful for—and a lot to wish for. Let’s take a critical look at LGBT travel destinations this holiday season.

1. Africa

Africa leads the world for most countries where homosexuality is illegal. In what may seem like mixed signals for foreign travelers, North Africa’s Islamic roots allow for public same-sex affection, but not romance, while some deeply religious sub-Saharan states view LGBT lifestyles as “pacts with the devil.” According to the Washington Post, four of the 10 countries worldwide carrying the death penalty for homosexual acts are on the African continent.

Milestones: International attention has succeeded in pressuring African governments away from anti-gay laws, including Uganda, whose Constitutional Court annulled the Anti-Homosexuality Act following a cut in foreign aid. To top it off, the African Commission passed the continent’s first resolution against anti-LGBT violence in May of 2014.

Wish list: Travelers, be wary. A leaked Ugandan bill, to be proposed in response to the August annulment, includes even harsher penalties for the “unnatural acts” of homosexuality. In northern Africa, a practice similar to the US military’s recently repealed ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy drives the LGBT community underground. A Moroccan teacher denounces the practice after an outed gay colleague was fired: “As long you don’t say you’re what you are, it’s ok. Society tolerates you… as long as you keep your mouth shut up.”

2. Asia and the Pacific

From the Middle East across southern Asia and the Pacific islands, Asia’s LGBT intolerance — whether toward visitors or locals — is only ranked better than Africa’s.

Milestones: Leading the Pacific toward LGBT tolerance, Australia’s policies of the 1970’s quickly decriminalized homosexuality. Today, a New South Wales Senator continues the fight with a November 2014-introduced bill against nationalized marriage discrimination.

Wish list: Indonesia’s national law may not criminalize homosexuality, but its two biggest provinces make LGBT life illegal. Even the Cook Islands, a self-governing country nearly 1,000 kilometers into the Pacific, declare same-sex love a crime. Let’s not forget that Australia’s new right-wing Prime Minister Tony Abbott stands publicly — and fiercely — against gay rights.

3. South America

While LGBT travelers and nationals alike experience opposition in much of South America, the past ten years have seen dramatic change in attitudes. The US founder of a Nicaraguan NGO describes the progress in the region: “It is now possible for the first time to live openly LGBTQ lives and maintain relationships.”

Milestones: Many LGBT travelers have dubbed Brazil their “queer paradise,” where gay-marriage is legal, LGBT citizens are able to adopt and serve in the military, and the government’s National Health Service covers sex-change surgery. The popular Nicaraguan television show “Sexton Sentido” presents positive images of LGBTQ youth for an entire generation of young Nicaraguans. Meanwhile, Chile’s Cerro Santa Lucía, a small hill in the middle of capital city Santiago, is abuzz with gay frolicking by visitors and locals alike. Ironically, this lover’s hill not only overlooks the city but also a “cemetery for dissidents” from the 1800s. Who might that include?

Wish list: Although Nicaragua’s Sandinista Revolution of the 1970s and 1980s decriminalized homosexuality, the Catholic Church is very powerful and very conservative, and homophobia is still built deeply into the culture. A law that briefly re-criminalized homosexuality was recently repealed, but the country is not in the clear. Similarly, despite Brazil’s notoriety for LGBT openness, anti-gay violence has been on the rise, and an increasing number of religious-conservative congress members rejected a recent anti-homophobia bill. Over four years after a 2010 homophobic attack using lamps as weapons in São Paulo’s revered Paulista Avenue, a queer student at the Federal University of Pará in the northern city of Belém, Brazil reports, “With the lamp as our symbol, we are still resisting.”

4. USA

New York’s Lady Liberty may well be transgendered beneath that modest gown, but the renowned coastal acceptance of the LGBT community only slowly moves inland. Despite the country’s reputation for freedom, San Francisco and NYC are a long way from the country’s Southern “Bible Belt.”

Milestones: Even conservative states such as Hawaii now allow gay marriage, and the 2013 repeal of DOMA (the Defense Of Marriage Act) was gaily celebrated across the country. Meanwhile, cities like Madison, Wisconsin are “liberal hotspots” in the Midwest, as described by a high school librarian: “Madison has a thriving LGBT community and many safe spaces for trans teens and adults around the area. The students in our high school’s [gay-straight alliance] even conducted a workshop to better educate their teachers on gender norms and the meaning of terms such genderqueer, polyamorous, asexual, queer and transgender.” Global citizens, rejoice! America is on its way.

Wish list: As the country makes slow but sure progress, there is still much to be done. Less than half of US states have workplace non-discrimination laws protecting the LGBT community, and a majority of states can still deny housing based on sexual orientation! “I don’t always feel safe,” confides a legal secretary from the southern United States now living in Washington, DC. The fight continues.

5. Europe

No European countries technically outlaw homosexuality — celebrate, global citizens, but also take a second look: “In Russia, we call the West something like ‘Gay-ropa,’ and it’s not a compliment,” explains one Russian master’s degree student currently studying in Berlin. “Gay marriage in Europe is considered a sign of decay.” Despite the progress made, the liberal West faces off with Orthodox traditions of the East.

Milestones: European openness toward what was once seen as “sexually-deviant” lifestyles leads the charge on this continent: in many Middle and Northern European countries, the debate has moved far beyond same-sex marriage. The ILGA, a group that advocates for equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and intersex people in Europe, requests that “parental leave”—European states’ gender-neutral maternity leave—be granted generously, evenly, and without regard to the sexual orientation or gender identity of the couple.

Wish list: Meanwhile, some Eastern European countries have literally leapt backwards, starting with Russia’s anti-gay propaganda law of 2013, and continuing with similar proposed legislation in the region. Less dramatically, more progressive countries such as Germany are led by religious parties and still give LGBT residents trouble; LGBT travelers in Western Europe, however, are mostly in the clear.

Think only Putin runs Russia?

Photo: Jedimentat44

What do a shadowy oil czar, a deeply religious railway boss and a billionaire judo enthusiast have in common?

They form most of what experts believe to be Vladimir Putin’s inner circle — a coterie of old allies and confidants that defines the country’s trademark system of crony capitalism.

Relying on Putin for their massive wealth and influence, they in turn shore up his power by controlling strategic sectors or resources.

Now that balance may be getting increasingly unsteady as the country veers toward an economic crisis — brought on by low oil prices and Western sanctions — that threatens to shake the stability Putin has long guaranteed.

Hints of that came into focus last week, when experts believe a massive, shadowy government bailout of the state-controlled oil giant Rosneft sent the ruble crashing to a 16-year low.

The company’s president, Igor Sechin, is one of Putin’s closest allies as well as the purported leader of a conservative faction that appears to hold tremendous sway inside the Kremlin.

Sechin is widely believed to be Russia’s second-most powerful person after the president.

Russia’s heavy reliance on natural resource exports means state energy firms play a key role in conducting foreign policy, which has grown increasingly aggressive since Moscow’s seizure of Crimea last spring.

That’s one of the reasons it’s difficult to turn down allies like Sechin when they come calling for cash — even with rumors abounding that the recent loan to Rosneft was aimed at buying dollars to repay the company’s massive foreign debt.

“The Central Bank started the printing press to help the Sechin-Putin business and gave Rosneft 625 billion newly printed rubles,” opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, a former deputy prime minister, wrote on Facebook last week. “The money immediately appeared on the currency market, and the rate collapsed.”

Sechin fiercely denied those charges, calling them a “provocation.”

He’s not the only one in Putin’s inner circle who’s asked for help in these trying times.

The group is largely comprised of Putin’s friends and colleagues who trace their relationships with the president to 1990s St. Petersburg, his hometown.

Asked by a reporter during an annual televised news conference last Thursday whether he fears a potential palace coup, Putin replied with typical swagger: “We have no palaces, which is why there can’t be any palace coups.”

The behemoth, state-owned Russian Railways conglomerate, headed by another Putin crony, Vladimir Yakunin, has also reportedly tapped into the country’s $80 billion National Wellbeing Fund to help fund major projects it says will boost the economy.

Russian Railway’s mega projects, including planned rail links connecting 2018 World Cup host cities or Moscow with Beijing, play a key role in the drive to enhance Russia’s geopolitical prestige.

Long a target for opposition activists who claim they uncovered a sprawling mansion belonging to the magnate, Yakunin is also widely seen as the bridge between Putin and the Russian Orthodox Church, an increasingly influential organization that has lent crucial support to the president’s conservative drive in recent years.

Mark Galeotti, a Russia expert at New York University, believes those men have profited immensely from their proximity to the Kremlin, which hands them lucrative state contracts and crucial loans.

But he says the tanking economy means there’s less state money to go around, which could stoke problems further down the road.

“What we’re going to increasingly see is this tension between a desire to stick together to keep the system running for a common interest and a desire to fight out their own personal economic and bureaucratic conflicts,” Galeotti says.

In the short term, the system appears to be chugging along despite the grim economic news.

A recent Bloomberg News investigation found key Kremlin allies — particularly construction magnate Arkady Rotenburg, Putin’s onetime Judo partner — continue to make a killing from government contracts.

Rotenburg has seen his business boom thanks to a $7 billion contract from the Sochi Winter Olympics. He’s also hoping to cash in on a new natural gas pipeline in Siberia.

But it remains to be seen how long the good times can last, with much probably depending on just how adventurous Russian foreign policy will be in the near future.

Most analysts agree that Putin typically consults his inner circle or at least considers their interests when making important decisions. But some suggest that may have changed in the past year as the Kremlin has grown increasingly confrontational with the West.

Most the president’s allies, including Sechin, Yakunin and Rotenburg, have ended up on sanctions lists.

“A year ago, it was difficult to imagine that Putin would make decisions that would hit his inner circle,” says Vladimir Pribylovksy, a Moscow-based political analyst who studies the Russian political elite.

For his part, Putin still exudes the confidence for which he’s well-known.

Asked by a reporter during an annual televised news conference last Thursday whether he fears a potential palace coup, Putin replied with typical swagger: “We have no palaces, which is why there can’t be any palace coups.”

But it’s becoming increasingly clear the economic crisis won’t disappear any time soon.

Crippling sanctions have already locked Russian banks out of the foreign capital market. Many other oligarchs — whom Putin convinced long ago to stay out of politics in exchange for maintaining their wealth — have also suffered considerable losses amid the economic downturn.

Galeotti, the NYU expert, believes the risk of a coup by the president’s closest allies is less likely than one by “everyone who actually runs the country for them.”

“If the elite begin to think that Putin is actually a liability rather than an asset,” he said, “that’s when they’ll be very tempted to do something about it.”

By Dan Peleschuk, GlobalPost

This article is syndicated from GlobalPost.

Create metadata preset in Lightroom

Photo: Horia Varlan

Internet and social platforms allow photographers to share their images and increase their reach exponentially. But sometimes, essential information, such as copyright details and attribution, get lost in the process.

Luckily, we have the ability to attach all this information to our digital images during import or export. This embedded data is called the metadata.

What is metadata?

Metadata is embedded information that describes the images you take. Some of the information is generated automatically by the camera and embedded in the images by default. This includes data such as how the image was taken (focal length, aperture, ISO, flash, etc.), when (time and date), and with what (camera model, lens).

But the information about the photographer, as well as the description of the image, keywords, and copyright details needs to be entered manually.

To speed up our workflow, part of this data can be saved as a preset in Lightroom.

How to create a metadata preset

The easiest way is to apply the preset during the import process.

Once your memory card is hooked to your computer, open Lightroom and click the Import button in the Library module on the bottom left corner.

On the right-hand column, you will find the “Apply during Import” panel that contains the Metadata drop down.

Click on the Metadata dropdown and select “New” to create a new entry. This will open a window with lots of information to enter.

First, choose a name for your preset. I recommend something easy such as “© 2014 YourName.” Next, fill out all the recurrent and important information. You don’t need to fill every panel. Instead, I recommend you just focus on the “IPTC Copyright” and “IPTC Creator” sections. The rest isn’t as important since it will change according to your location or project.

Here’s an example of how mine looks like:

Once the information is entered, click on “Create” and you’ll have a brand new preset to choose from every time you import your images.

Make it a habit to always include your metadata so your copyright information and personal details are embedded in your images before being shared online.

This post originally published at our education community, MatadorU.

35 moments by age 35

Photo: /Ben Ditto

1. As a child, I used to wheel my red wagon into the living room with a pillow and a blanket and lie in it to watch cartoons.

2. I was probably around 5 and maybe it was my birthday. My mom and I went to visit her sister, my aunt Leslie, who was living close to LSU. She gave me a pair of blue roller skates. They reminded me of Montgomery “Good News” Moose from the Get Along Gang. He wore a blue turtleneck, yellow pants, and brown loafers, and was an excellent athlete.

3. My dad and I used to horse around a lot. My mom would always say, “It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt.”

4. My dad and I climbed the magnolia tree in our front yard. He was way up towards the top and I wanted to go there too. The branch I was on broke and I fell, hitting the bottom branch on my back and flipping over, landing face first on the ground. My mom looked on in horror.

5. We had another magnolia tree, which was taller. I always wanted to climb it. I never did.

6. I spent a lot of time in the small town of Donaldsonville, LA. My mother was born and raised there. My grandparents and two sets of great grandparents lived there. They potty trained me and taught me to talk. As kids, my cousins and I used to play by the bayou, run through our paw-paw’s garden, eat loads of boiled seafood, collect pecans, and drink tiny cokes out of green glass bottles.

7. My poppa, Ed Bahry, was Lebanese. He owned a record store that specialized in R&B. This is where I first learned about race relations.

8. My parents divorced when I was around 10. This was the first time my father could be openly gay.

9. Dad moved across the street from us. I thought this was the best thing ever.

10. When I was 12, my cousin Shawn died in the hospital after being in a terrible car accident on River Road. She had been driving, she was 15.

11. I was raised in a Catholic school. We had nuns as teachers. My dad’s homosexuality was in direct conflict with what I had been taught at school. This marked the start of my departure from organized religion and a move towards trying to understand what it really means to be oneself and about acceptance of differences.

12. My parents were great together. They were cool, loving, and had fun. I know it was hard for them but they did their best.

13. I was a good tennis player but an even better runner. I ran track until I started hanging out with the kids who smoked pot.

14. I went to a public high school much to the disappointment of my mother. It was a Magnet arts and science school. I studied theater there.

15. The summer I was 15, I learned to rock climb at a camp in North Carolina. My life would be forever changed.

16. I went to a lot of raves and took a lot of LSD. At the start of my junior year in high school I ran away from home. I left a note for my parents apologizing and leading them to believe I had joined a commune in Texas.

17. In reality I was slumming it on the floor of an Iranian exchange student. Her name was Layla. She was beautiful, she was Muslim, and she was a stripper. She found out I had Catholic Lebanese blood and she kicked me out.

18. I worked the graveyard shift at a chicken shack. It was a terrible job.

19. I homeschooled myself via correspondence courses and earned my high school diploma from Baton Rouge Magnet High when I was 18.

20. My dad lived in New Orleans through my high school and college years. I developed an intimate relationship with that city. Weekends and summers were spent there. I went to my first gay bars with my dad, had my first alcohol called a Separator. I wore low-top Dr. Martens and we always went to Tower Records. I frequented late-night coffee houses, had numerous snow cones from Plum Street Snow Cone, and learned what a Gutter Punk was. As I got older, I saw a lot of music there, learned where the best pizza by the slice was, had too many beignets, and rode the streetcar from uptown to downtown more times than I could ever recall.

21. I weaseled my way into a better job at a college bookstore. I worked there for 6 years before being fired for failing to return from a trip to Venezuela.

22. I started to rock climb more on the weekends and holidays. The closest place was a tiny crag in Alabama called Sandrock. My friends and I built a climbing gym in their garage. I was always “training” for Yosemite.

23. When I was 20 I was driving home from visiting my dad in New Orleans. I came upon 3 puppies in the middle of River Road. I gave away two of them and named the other one Sidney in honor of Sid Vicious. I had her for 9 years. She was the best dog a girl could know.

24. I had a housemate named Allison. She was funny. We lived together just off of River Road. She was from the small town of Gonzales. In 2007 she passed away from an infection. I think of her all the time.

25. My dad moved to NYC. We traveled to London together and accidentally got lost in the Red Light District. He opened up the world to me in many ways.

26. I moved to Austin, TX two weeks after I graduated from LSU. I ate a lot of Mexican food, bought cool clothes, and spent a lot of money. I lived there a couple of years and did a lot of climbing on Texas and Mexican limestone. I worked at the climbing gym, I coached the youth team. We took a winter trip to Hueco Tanks. I decided I needed to pursue a life more centered around rock climbing.

27. I packed my truck with all I could fit and drove to Yosemite. I had a job working for the NPS in the Valley campgrounds. On a July 4th weekend I was pulled over around 2am after working a night-time Bear Roving shift. I failed to come to a complete stop on a right-hand turn at a stop sign. They arrested me for .2 grams of weed in the form of a roach. It had been sitting in the ashtray, illuminated by their flashlights. I spent the night in jail. I wore an orange jumpsuit with blue tennis shoes. I was cuffed and then locked in a cold, white cell. They made me feel like a bad person.

28. I lost my job with the NPS. It was a true blessing in disguise. I worked for the Yosemite Association in the visitor center, then I worked for Ken Yager and the Yosemite Climbing Association. We put together an awesome museum exhibit. I did a lot more rock climbing.

29. I met Surfer Bob — he taught me how to climb Offwidths. I bought a pair of La Sportiva Kalkulators. I met Ron Kauk one winter day at the Cookie while I was putting on those blue suede shoes. We became best friends.

30. Ron taught me how to climb on hard, technical granite. He showed me the importance of good footwork and how to move with confidence. In 2009 we created a youth-based non-profit called Sacred Rok.

31. In the late spring of 2010, I almost fell off the side of El Cap and died. I walked away with two broken ribs, a partially torn left MCL, a concussion, and 17 stitches to the head as well as many bruises and a deathly fear of wet slabs.

32. I met Ben Ditto that spring.

33. In 2012 we got married at Rock Creek. Our wedding looked a lot like a Who’s Who of Rock Climbing. We spent our honeymoon in the Cirque of the Unclimbables. I gained an affinity for wet cracks and learned how much of a brat I can be.

34. Ben has also taught me a lot about climbing. More than I can really say actually. Since 2010 we have spent a little over a year in total climbing in Europe. One could be so lucky to have gone to places like Ceuse, St.Leger, Gorge du Tarn, Freyer, The Verdon Gorge, Chateauvert, Siurana, Montsant, Terradetts, Oliana, Col de Nargo, Rodellar, Picos de Europa, Poo, Cicera, and where we currently are — Chulilla.

35. It’s nearing the end of 2014. I am 35 years old. We live in a van in the Sierra. We have a storage unit in Bishop and a PO box in Yosemite. I work for Sacred Rok and Eddie Bauer, but we spend most of our time rock climbing. We travel a lot. Sometimes I feel hiraeth. I love my life, it’s always been different, there have always been social norms looming around, but I still seem to keep living on the fringe.