Matador Network's Blog, page 2230

How to piss off a female traveler

Photo: Trey Ratcliff

Women are getting totally wild these days. Some of them are making their own plans, cavorting about sans chaperone (clutch your pearls!), and generally holding it together. Here are some topics to avoid if you want to keep the crazy traveling ladies in your life happy.

Talk about all the romantic action we’ll be missing on the road.

Yes, sorry I missed an awkward blind date at Applebee’s with your coworker’s socially challenged nephew — I was too busy enjoying a sunrise guitar jam session on the steps of the British Museum with my hot piece of the moment, Claude (terrible name on a great everything else). Claude was from Australia, worked in the London hostel where I was staying, and wanted to be a pilot; I was living in Germany and used to fly trick planes with one of my professors. That instant connection, fueled by the intersection of interesting life experiences and washed down with several pints, made for a much better time than your average Match.com date.

The dating downsides of traveling are more than balanced by their upsides: You broaden the types of people you encounter, meet interesting fellow adventurers, and develop your own independent personality, all of which make for a more fulfilling relationship in the long run. And if you meet the love of your life, you’ll figure it out.

Assume we don’t have friends.

Traveling with a friend or romantic partner can be an awesome and relationship-solidifying experience, but traveling alone is rewarding in different ways. Mainly:

#1: You can do whatever the fuck you want. If you feel like speed walking a 15-mile self-designed tour of Berlin, you can do it without your boyfriend sulking and dragging his feet. If you decide the next day that you’re going to sleep in until 2pm, go for it — no one’s there to judge you. When your fellow hostel tenants invite you out for a beer, you can say “yes” or “no” based on what you want to do without consulting your friend who just got dumped and wants to have “girl time” tonight so she can endlessly bitch about how “Jason never cleaned the bathroom but she misses him soooo muuuuch.”

#2: You also have complete responsibility for taking care of your own shit. If you’re on a train to Cologne that gets rerouted midway and you wind up getting unceremoniously dumped on a platform in Frankfurt at 11pm, you need to figure out how to get your ass to Cologne. If you get arrested in Prague because you didn’t pay your subway fare, tough titties. You have to make decisions in an unfamiliar place, and you need to learn how to adapt without the assistance of others. This is an invaluable life skill.

Tell us we need to find a man to travel with.

From my experience in the US, women implicitly aren’t trusted as decision-makers and leaders. We still haven’t had a female president, and over 95% of Fortune 500 CEOs are men. We are infantilized, raised to be people-pleasers who defer to parents, boyfriends, and husbands for the final say in many things.

I guess it’s not that surprising that this attitude also permeates the stereotype of a woman traveling on her own — she might break a nail and subsequently melt down in the big, terrifying world. We all need to get over this and start trusting women to handle themselves.

Treat us like “accidents” (read: rapes, murders) waiting to happen.

This is fucked on so many levels.

First, there’s the victim blaming, which applies to sexual assault anywhere. When a guy gets robbed at gunpoint, how often does he hear, “Well what did you expect, running around flashing that fancy watch? Everyone knows you give money away all the time, so what’s the difference? I bet you even enjoyed it a little. And why were you out so late by yourself? Were you drunk?” The idea that women should never leave home alone or need to wear the equivalent of a full-body sweater to make sure not to offend anyone places responsibility on the wrong shoulders. Rape is not a natural disaster — it’s a crime perpetrated by human beings who should be held responsible for their behavior.

Second, your sweet lecture about our destination’s myriad dangers is also some patronizing bullshit. I’ve been planning this trip for months, but I’m sure someone who’s never been within 500 miles of this country knows all about it, right? Because ladies are ditzy, defenseless airheads who can’t make coherent plans.

Finally, this idea that wherever we’re coming from is some pristine beacon of safety is also nonsense. The world is a dangerous place in general, and women are aware of this. We do appreciate your concern, but please trust that we’re reasonable adults and will take appropriate measures to minimize our risks.

Wring your hands over the lack of beauty / feminine hygiene products abroad.

Just because we’re women doesn’t mean our top priority is to look good. If we want to do hair and makeup on the road, we’ll figure it out. If we don’t want to lug a bunch of extra crap around, going au naturale shouldn’t be any less acceptable than it is for men every day. The average woman spends over 3,000 hours in her life primping. That is fucking ridiculous.

Also, there are tampons almost everywhere, and if not, there are other options — women get their periods in every country, and it shouldn’t be a barrier to travel (see this article detailing some alternatives).

Give well-meaning but useless self-defense gifts.

When I was getting ready to leave for Ethiopia, my uncle very thoughtfully invited me to go shopping for a Camelbak hydration pack with him, since I’d be camping in the desert. Sweet! I thought — I get to bond with my ex-military badass pilot uncle over mutual adventures. Unfortunately, the afternoon somehow devolved into a rant about how I needed a desert camouflage pack to make sure those crazy, violent Africans didn’t decide to spontaneously use me for target practice. I wasn’t entering a war zone — I was working in a national park. I persisted, got the blue pack, and somehow managed to return home in one piece.

My parents, on the other hand, got me an awesome journal that I filled cover-to-cover, and my brother got me an extremely useful buck knife. These were great tools that both proved to be super helpful in very different ways during my trip, and having the positive (instead of fear-based) support of my family helped me feel prepared before and during my trip.

16 water-based adventures in Utah

Photo: fairuz othman

WHEN YOU THINK OF UTAH, you don’t usually think of water. There’s the Great Salt Lake, for sure, but otherwise, Utah is usually associated with its striking desert scenery in the Great Basin and on the Colorado Plateau. During the summer months, it’s one of the driest states in the country. So if you’re a watersports enthusiast, you might not consider Utah a viable travel option.

As it turns out, you’d be dead wrong. All that dryness and desert doesn’t change the fact that Utah ranks among the top ten states in terms of boatable surface-acres of water. There are literally hundreds of places to partake in the state’s excellent watersports culture, stretching from Lake Powell in the south to Bear Lake up north. Here are some of the things you probably didn’t know you could do on the water in Utah.

1. Jet skiing

Jet skis make for some of the most fun you can have off of dry land. Rentals are available at and around virtually all of the major lakes and reservoirs, such as Deer Creek, Rockport, Echo, and Pineview.

2. Whitewater rafting

Photo: Four Corners School of Outdoor Education

Some of the West’s most hallowed rivers cut a path through Utah, providing for all levels of whitewater rafting, from Class I to Class V. The big names are the Colorado, which enters the state at the midpoint of its eastern border and runs southwest to eventually form Lake Powell; the San Juan (pictured above), located in the southeast corner of the state and also feeding into Powell; and the Green, which flows from the northeast of the state to meet the Colorado.

3. Kayaking

With the Colorado River running through some of the country’s most scenic landscapes — Arches, Canyonlands, Glen Canyon — the best way to experience it is by kayak or canoe. Moab makes for a good base camp to organize a paddle trip, with plenty of guided tours and rentals available.

Learn more about this region: Land of arches - Travel guide to Moab, Utah


4. Paddleboarding

Stand-up paddleboarding (or SUPing, if you want to use the most delightful acronym ever) has been growing in popularity in recent years, and the Utah SUP scene is no exception. There are 24 state parks in Utah that offer SUPing as an activity, including on the Great Salt Lake (Antelope Island State Park and Great Salt Lake State Marina) and the Caribbean-blue waters of Bear Lake (Bear Lake State Park).

5. Fishing

Photo: slashvee

With over a 1,000 fishable lakes and a ton of streams as well, Utah is home to a legit year-round angler culture. There are 47 Blue Ribbon fisheries in the state, many of which are renowned for their fly fishing (check out the Provo and Green Rivers). Whether you’re looking for a quick day out near an urban area, or a longer excursion to more remote waters, Utah’s got it. Just don’t forget to pick up a license before you go.

6. Parasailing

For those who prefer to enjoy the water from a couple hundred feet above it, there’s parasailing, which is offered at five of Utah’s state parks: Bear Lake, Great Salt Lake, Jordanelle, Deer Creek, and Yuba. The views, both of the lakes below and the landscapes surrounding them, will naturally be astounding.

7. Water skiing

Photo: Paul Savala

Water skiing, water tubing, knee boarding, wakeboarding…all those boatable acres make these activities a relatively simple proposition in Utah. Try the Jordanelle Reservoir near Salt Lake City, which restricts the number of boats allowed on the water in the summer to make it even more pleasant for boaters. Deer Creek Reservoir is another body of water easily accessible from Salt Lake City. And just west of Provo there’s the fantastic 97,000-acre Utah Lake.

8. Boating

Of course, there’s no need to improve on the experience of simply motoring around one of Utah’s scenic lakes. Bear Lake, on the Utah-Idaho border, is often called the “Caribbean of the Rockies,” thanks to its crystalline, turquoise-blue coloring. At the other end of the state is the huge and popular Lake Powell, along the Arizona border. And in between are scores of boatable bodies of water of all sizes to explore.

9. Windsurfing / kiteboarding

Photo: Peter Miller

Another popular pastime on Utah’s waters is windsurfing, which is made available in nearly two dozen of the state’s parks. The Utah Windriders Association gives daily updates as to the quality of the windsurfing on various lakes, and there’s a school that conducts windsurfing lessons in Salt Lake City. There are also many opportunities to go kiteboarding, as shown above.

10. Houseboating

For those with a long weekend of boating in mind, an excellent choice is houseboating. There are boat-in campsites at the Yuba Reservoir, located just off I-15 in the middle of the state, and Lake Powell has houseboating options as well. Or, you can head to the 42,000-acre Flaming Gorge Reservoir near the border with Wyoming, known for its watersports and its many secluded coves that make it perfect for camping.

11. Canyoneering / canyon swimming

Photo: Sascha Wenninger

Utah’s canyoneering — an activity that combines hiking, rappelling, and (sometimes) swimming — is unparalleled by pretty much anywhere else in the world. Zion National Park and its surrounds, with routes like the Narrows and the Subway, make up the best-known region, but there are many others, including Escalante, the San Rafael Swell, and the area around Moab.

Read more about canyoneering: 5 adventures in Southern Utah to beat the crowds


12. Diving

Yep — there’s scuba diving and snorkeling in Utah. While the salinity in the Great Salt Lake is too high for much aquatic life to survive, there are plenty of lakes, reservoirs, and pools where diving is a rewarding activity — Bear Lake, Flaming Gorge, and Homestead Crater, to name a few. You also have the geothermally heated, semi-tropical Bonneville Seabase right near Salt Lake City for a truly unique diving experience.

13. Sailing

Photo: Carl Mueller

While motorboats and jet skis are certainly more popular, the sailing in Utah is equally amazing. The Salt Lake Tribune maintains that the Great Salt Lake is a seriously underrated sailing destination, with some of the best sunsets in the world. But probably the most recognized sailing lake is Utah Lake, with another solid option being the Jordanelle Reservoir just outside of Park City.

14. Ice skating

You might have guessed this one, seeing as Salt Lake City hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics. Being up in the mountains and having a reputation for winter sports means that ice skating is a natural pastime in Utah. Of course, in the summer you’ll have to get yourself to an indoor skating rink, but there are plenty of outdoor rinks and skatable lakes if you’re traveling in winter.

15. Ice fishing

This is another opportunity for visitors during the colder months, and one that fills out Utah’s portfolio as a year-round fishing destination. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources recommends a number of lakes and reservoirs for ice fishers, depending on what you want to catch — there are sites with rainbow and cutthroat trout, bluegill, perch, and largemouth bass.

16. Hot tubbing

Photo: Dan Olson

Maybe it’s a stretch to call this a water “adventure,” but Utah is known for it’s world-class ski slopes and winter sports. And after a day of being out in the cold — downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling…whatever moves you — you’ll want to get back to your lodge and warm up in a hot tub. Let the good times ensue.

This post was proudly produced in partnership with Utah, home of The Mighty 5®.

On the insecurities of the traveler

Photo: Steven Worster

“YOU DANCE LIKE AN ANIMAL!” he growled at me through gold teeth and an accent heavy as lead. At first I smiled, a dumb wide-eyed gape, thinking he meant it in a primordial, ferocious way. Like I danced like a goddamn tiger would if it was bipedal and moved by the sounds of Midnight Oil’s “Beds Are Burning.”

He shook his head, clasped my shoulder, and laughed, “No, no, you dance like shit!” And just like that the confident winds and homemade wine that had pushed me onto the stage of an Eastern Bloc nightclub rolled back, replaced with the sobering flush of shame.

Through the smoke machines, bodycon dresses, and defiantly superior Soviet cheekbones, I was reduced to feeling like a terminally uncool American tourist with a cheap halter top and no rhythm. It was not the first nor would it be the last time I found myself fortunate enough to be invited but not quite cool enough to belong.

When I was younger, the main source of my international insecurity came from fellow travelers. In youth hostels and bars, the conversation would always dissolve into something akin to a dick-measuring contest. Who has been the furthest and suffered the strangest: I hitchhiked from Cape Town to Cairo with nothing but chewing gum and steely resolve, I invented dubstep with a deflecting Buddhist monk I met in Bristol, I lost my virginity to Jacques Cousteau’s grandson, the ONLY way to see Vietnam is on the back of a vintage hand-built Indian motorcycle, yeah my necklace was made for me by a local shaman using the teeth of his enemies, Poland is the new Prague, this tattoo is Sanskrit for “be here now”…and so on in a loop of one-upmanship anchored by snot-nosed rich kids trading passport stamps like baseball cards, smoking clove cigarettes, experimenting with alternative hair and life styles.

I’d be lying if I told you these perennial boner wars didn’t cause me my fair share of self-doubt. The question was always where are you going and where have you been, and I came up short on both lists. Slowly though, through enough miles and subjugation to terrible expat bars and even more terrible expats, I realized that if I wanted to hear obnoxious people talk about their own exploits, I didn’t have to leave home to do it.

Nowadays I am unmoved that Malcolm from South Africa has swallowed a cobra heart and been to more countries than me. I just pray I don’t sound like him. My fear now is in the way I’m perceived by the people who belong to the places I visit, my insecurities as a traveler just a hyper-realized version of my standard uncertainty. I’m worried I appear unworldly, over-privileged, uncouth, and white to a vulgar degree.

Watching cliff jumpers in Brazil, I have never felt paler or less graceful. How do people even look like that? So elegant, sinuous, and sun bleached like a mermaid gave live sea-foam birth to them. In a gypsy orphanage outside Prague, I listened to a girl with crooked teeth like tarot cards play the piano in the asbestos bones of a living room. It sounded like turning wheels and when all the visitors clapped, I hoped she knew mine was from awe not pity.

In the Kibera slum of Nairobi, I wanted to choke on the price of the sunglasses hanging around my neck. In Nicaragua, watching field after field of cattle, blinds of bone pushing through their skin, I felt my own stomach sick full with a 2-star continental breakfast. In Rome, I was turned away from St. Peter’s for showing too much skin and had to buy a shawl from a scowling nun. Same halter top. In a favela in Rio, under the veins of electrical wires and corrugated roofs, clothes lynched and pulled like unanswered prayer flags, I thought of my Pinterest board dedicated to interior design, cheekily titled Rustic Rooms, and wanted to punch myself in the face.

I felt the warm bloom of shame in a crumbling Argentine graveyard; a woman in black shook her hand at my camera and yelled in fast angry Spanish that these were not my ghosts. In Saigon, after a sobering lesson in alternative history at what was once called the Museum of American War Crimes, I wanted everyone I met to know that I knew, that I wasn’t another thoughtless tourist eating pho and posting artful pictures of amputees on mopeds and the weathered faces of old women to my fucking Instagram.

The more I travel, the less I care about the story I could tell about a place, and the more and more about the one they would tell about me.

The firefly skateboarder of Brno, CZ

FIREFLY from samadhi production on Vimeo.

“WAIT, THERE ARE OTHER CITIES IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC?” people have legitimately said to me when asking about a trip to my most favorite country. They are surprised when I bring up Brno, Olomouc, and a few smaller places that are harder to pronounce (go ahead, try saying Jindrichuv Hradec, or Bystřice nad Pernštejnem).

Brno is seriously a chill place though. I think the locals are cool with the fact that Prague, while also awesome, is just a wee bit overglorified. Brno’s beauty and innovation are well displayed in this video by Samadhi Production, who used a Jamcopter drone to film the director Jan Minol skateboarding around the city. I think the title is pretty befitting, as Minol really does look like a firefly buzzing through the streets.

The real faces of homelessness

This portrait gallery was put together in collaboration with PATH LA, where men, women, and children living in homeless shelters across LA were given the opportunity to pose for the camera and tell the world what “home” means to them.

There are 60,000 homeless people in the city of Los Angeles. The city has worked tirelessly to maintain its glamorous and high-powered image, but this is belied by some of the highest rates of homelessness in the developed world. Instead, the celebrity image of Los Angeles that’s exported all over the world has emboldened the homeless community to take it upon themselves to change the way they’re perceived.

The perception of destitution and helplessness has been fought head-on by homeless shelters in order to bring humanity and dignity to people who’ve fallen through the cracks in our developed society. This collection is intended to highlight and dismantle a problem of perception we’ve attached to the homeless. This is what our homeless community looks like after a shower, hot meal, and a good night’s sleep.

1

“Me and the Devil…we was homeboys…but he always seem to leave me...”

Erwin Ross has suffered from heroin addiction, homelessness, and regular incarceration for most of his life. At the age of 67, through Lamp Community, Erwin was able to access permanent housing and services to help him recover from a lifetime of hardship.

2

Derek's a curious and energetic young man who's living in a homeless shelter with his mom in the ghetto of East Hollywood. He was very confident in front of the camera. It was hard to get him to share the spotlight, and even harder to find him without a smile on his face!

3

Confident and happy Maria has been living with her mother, Melissa, in a homeless shelter since the start of 2014.

Intermission




3
16 images of life on the streets in LA
by Joshua Thaisen



4
10 portraits of people living on a dollar a day
by Katie Scott Aiton



3
10 experiences you can only have in the Guianas
by Karin-Marijke Vis











4

“Home is Skid Row. I think they should change the name to compassion row.... We need love…”

Rosa's been homeless for eight years after sustaining a head injury. Originally from Florida, Rosa's just one of many people who make the cross-country trek to LA to obtain services that are otherwise nonexistent in many small towns in America.

5

Joseph lives in a homeless shelter with over 15 other children. While education isn't compulsory, the services are available for children to continue pursuing their dreams.

6

Inquisitive Devon escaped the close watch of his mother to join the other children having their portraits shot on Mother's Day in the PATH Mall homeless shelter in LA.

7

“Home means everything…life…family.”

Danny's been homeless for six years. He was attacked by a gang while playing basketball with his two-year-old son at a public park in Compton. He suffered a nearly fatal head injury that rendered him unable to work or function with normality. He's now receiving help at PATH and is looking forward to getting back to his family and starting a career as a mechanic.

8

“Home is in my mind.”

Mykal succumbed to homelessness after a lifetime of sexual abuse, depression, and mental illness. She's a budding artist in the Skid Row community, using her writing to assist others in understanding the realities of being homeless.

9

“Home is a place where you belong. Whether it’s a place, person, or circumstance, home is terribly important."

Walt's a US Navy vet and has been homeless for two years. He's yearning to find a place where he belongs.

10

“Home is a safe place to rest my head.”

Paul's been homeless for three months. He suffers permanent physical and mental disabilities from drug abuse. The reality of homelessness doesn’t register for many people who take recreational drugs in their youth; Paul's a reminder of the very real risks associated with drug abuse.

11

"Home means getting my family back, uniting with all my kids and grandkids…”

Katherine's been homeless for three years. She's most looking forward to reuniting with her family and getting to love and cook for her grandchildren.

10 signs you're from Columbus, Ohio

Photo: Daniel Foster

1. You’re ridiculously proud of anything from Columbus that’s nationally recognized.

Columbus people love to talk about things that come from Columbus. Maybe this is because we feel the need to prove ourselves to the rest of the country.

2. You insist, “We’re not just a cow town, okay?!”

Sure, we’re flat, land-locked, and surrounded by farms, but have you ever heard of Jeni’s Ice Cream? Yeah. Her Salty Caramel flavor is nationally known. Guess what? Jeni’s is based in COLUMBUS. Boom! Drop the mic, leave the stage.

3. You attended Clippers baseball games so you could scarf down wieners at “Dime-A-Dog Night.”

I am not into sports. I am, however, into meat. Cheap meat on a bun. The Columbus Clippers, formerly the farm team for the New York Yankees, host a variety of promotional game nights to attract more fans. There’s a new stadium now, which has brought in more paying customers over the past few years, but I remember when the main allure was sucking down hot dogs faster than you could say, “Spare a dime?”

4. You wondered as a young child why Tiger Woods and Arnold Schwarzenegger came to town every year.

You later learned that Arnold Schwarzenegger, and thousands of oiled-up muscle bros, descend on the capital city every spring for the Arnold Fitness Classic. After this amped-up epic event, the golf pants emerged for Jack Nicklaus’ . Thus Tiger Woods and Arnold Schwarzenegger have been forever woven into the fabric of the city.

5. You look forward to seeing the Butter Cow sculpture at the Ohio State Fair every year.

No one was immune to enjoying deep-fried Twinkies and fried mashed potatoes on a stick at the Ohio State Fair. I was no exception. I squealed at the pig races, winked at farm boys shearing sheeps’ asses, watched Pat Benatar and Grand Funk Railroad perform, and then ventured over to an artistic masterpiece: THE BUTTER COW, a tradition since 1903.

The full sculpture required around 8,000 sticks of butter to make, and usually featured a cow, a calf, and several farmers. It’s still constructed annually to honor Ohio’s dairy history.

6. You grew up among die-hard Ohio State Buckeye fans.

My lack of enthusiasm for sports hindered my social experience as a Columbus kid. I grew up in utter dread that someone would hear me say anything negative about OSU. When the team lost, I recall crazed fans clad head-to-toe in Scarlet and Grey burning couches in front yards and setting dumpster fires in alleys. Buckeyes lose, fans set things on fire. Just normal, demonic fan behavior.

7. You touched gross insects at the Columbus Zoo. Or, you just had a good time at the Columbus Zoo.

“Jungle Jack” Hanna, with his signature khaki outfit and mega-tan, was responsible for making the Columbus Zoo into the reputable place it is today. As a child, I delighted in rushing as fast as I could to the reptile room to gawk at the king cobras, then racing to put a Madagascar hissing cockroach in my little grubby fingers.

What the hell was wrong with me? Anyway, the zoo experience was a must for any Columbusite. You didn’t need to touch weird things like I did. In the winter, when the animals were tucked away in their beds, you had the option to freeze your ass off viewing the elaborately beautiful Christmas lights displayed on the zoo grounds.

8. You vacation to “Put-In-Bay.”

Many people I knew growing up had the luxury of going to “Put-In-Bay” for family vacations when they were young, and more recently for weekend getaways and bachelor / bachelorette parties. The Lake Erie vacation spot was the closest “beach” experience Columbus kids could get. You just had to drive northbound past the cornfields and then past…more cornfields…and you arrived at a sort-of-beach!

The name makes it sound like a swingers resort: “Put-It-In-Bay-Be.” My Columbus peers insist it’s just a fun place to ride jet skis and drink beer on a boat.

9. You consume enormous cream puffs and schnitzel from Schmidt’s Sausage Haus.

Columbus has a large German population. In the heart of the German Village District shines Schmidt’s Sausage Haus: a shimmery meat beacon that has been providing C-Bussers with happy-heart-attack meals for many years. I still don’t understand why the classic German sausage item on the menu is called the “Bahama Mama,” but some things I just stopped questioning the longer I lived in Columbus.

10. You saw more naked breasts than you ever wanted to see at ComFest.

Every year, Columbus hosts Community Festival, or ComFest. The progressive event began in the 1970s in support of “[C]ooperation and collective activity rather than competition and individual profit.” The people of Columbus congregate at Goodale Park to hear live music, sample local food, view artist demonstrations, and attend environmental awareness seminars.

And drink. And gawk at painted, naked bosoms of women young and old, of every shape and size. It’s part of the ComFest experience.

Why it's better to travel with a man

Photo: Christopher Michel

1. My ability to avoid creeps improves drastically.

I can lie by the pool without 17 different creeper men throwing out the ever-general pick up questions like, “Haven’t I seen you before?” No, you haven’t. Have you met my man-friend with huge muscles and a black belt?

Other favorites include, “Wow, girl, you look just like (insert obscure b-list celebrity here)” and, “Your drink is looking far too low for happy hour!”

2. I can reduce my dependency on public transportation.

With a male travelbro, I can take a cab without having an impromptu internal “how-am-I-going-to-avoid-abduction” crisis. It’s much less likely that a taxi driver in Bangkok is going to divert his route to an abandoned warehouse somewhere when I’m with a guy.

3. I can save money.

I can haggle with vendors without being taken advantage of just because I’m a woman and I “probably like overpriced shiny things.” There have been countless times where I’ll walk up to a street vendor with some interesting jewelry and, the minute I touch something, it’s as if they assume I’m going to buy the whole table and maybe the umbrella.

4. Going to bars becomes more fun and less cripplingly terrifying.

With a male travel companion, I can order drinks confidently knowing there have been at least four eyes on the bartender’s handiwork. Or, we just drink open-ourselves beer, like men.

5. I can participate in public blame games.

Don’t pretend like you haven’t done this. I’ll fart in public and blame it on him (because girls obviously don’t do that).

6. I can wander unknown streets late at night.

A late-night stroll no longer gives me carpal tunnel due to clutching my keys between my fingers in preparation to go Wolverine on any sudden movements or shadows.

7. Two words: couples massage.

What’s better than a super-cheap, super-relaxing massage after a long day of sightseeing? A massage with a friend. Couples massages are the best. They’ll often give you a two-for-one deal and are more inclined to break out the fancy stuff if you pretend to be so madly in love you can’t possibly fathom doing anything without each other.

8. We can capitalize on faux-honeymoon upgrades.

Right in line with couples massages, putting on the “we-just-got-married” act no doubt at least gets you a free breakfast or some kind of deal at the spa. If there’s one thing hotels love, it’s newlyweds. They’re excited to be there, they’re probably going to spend money, and if you treat them well, you’ll get a killer review out of it.

Traveling with a man friend has gotten me a sea view with a private pool many a time.

9. We have double the muscle power.

When getting lost in a new, unfamiliar city, I can breathe easier knowing eye contact with aggressive strangers is no real cause for concern because, between the two of us, we can most likely take them. Also, hoisting my backpack up onto the top bunk at the hostel is increasingly easier with a man around.

10. I can relax and simply savor the experience.

Most importantly, traveling with a man puts my fears (including all of the above) at least a little bit at ease so I can enjoy more things I might not be able to by myself or with another woman.

Oakland, the East Bay melting pot

Photo: Robert Agthe

SO MANY PLACES, SO LITTLE TIME. It’s the blessing and the curse of the traveler. At some point, you come to the realization that you simply won’t be able to see all the places you want to see.

Luckily, today’s modern cities play host to a variety of cultures, each contributing their authentic dishes and traditional events to the experience of daily city life. You could have breakfast in Belgium, lunch in Taiwan, and dinner in Japan, without missing a meeting and still making it home in time for the evening news. And of the many cities that enable this local world travel experience, Oakland might just be the West Coast king. Its history as a crossroads of culture, industry, and activism manifests today in its striking multiculturalism — over 170 languages are spoken by Oakland residents, making it one of the most diverse cities in the country.

Here are some destinations around the world that are perennial traveler favorites, and how to experience them without ever leaving the Oakland area.

China

Oakland’s Chinatown has been around since the mid-1800s and is possibly one of the best in the country. It’s home to numerous dim sum and traditional Chinese restaurants. Take Shanghai Restaurant, for example, which has whole forums and blogs dedicated to how good its food is. The results are in, and while everything comes out sounding delicious, their xiao long bao (soup dumplings) rank as some of the tastiest you’ll find Stateside.

For the cultural side of things, catch the annual Oakland Chinatown Streetfest, or hit up the Red Bean Cantonese Opera. Oakland is also a regular stop for the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Ballet, and Shanghai Circus.

Italy

Okay, there are no Colosseums in Oakland (except O.co of course, but that’s a little different). Fortunately, Oakland does have some pretty legit dining options, such as the new(ish) Desco. From the antipasti to the atmosphere, Desco (in Old Oakland) consistently ranks highly for its authentic regional Italian cuisine. Other purveyors of the Italian experience in the East Bay include Dopo, Pizzaiolo, Centouno, Italian Colors, and Bellanico.

And forget the stuffy exhibits of Renaissance art — Oakland’s many galleries host contemporary artists from around the world…including Italian street artist Moneyless (known for his 3D PVC installations). If you time it right, you might just get a sense of what you’d see on a trip to modern Rome or Florence.

Morocco

This is a destination for which, when experiencing it Oakland-style, you’ll not only get a sense of its culture and flavor, but you’ll also get California’s take on it. At Doukkala (named after a region in Morocco, and formerly the popular Tanjia), the self-proclaimed “California Moroccan” eatery is serving up tagine next to escargot, and mint tea with panna cotta.

For immersion in a more wholly Moroccan experience, you may have to stray a bit into Oakland’s backyard (Berkeley), where you’ll find Sahara Import. The owners have a satellite shop in Tangier, so you know it’s legit, and host parties featuring native foods, music, and henna under a traditional Berber tent.

Photo: Adam Freidin

France

There’s no shortage of kickass French eateries in Oakland to help contribute to your Parisian inclinations. Topping the list is newcomer Michel, a French bistro on Lakeshore where you can order a lamb burger and bone marrow…if you’re into that kind of thing. And don’t overlook À Côté on College Ave, where you can eat at large communal tables as well as have a more intimate, romantic experience.

And we aren’t the only ones sensing an Oakland-France connection. Take Virginia R. Garcia’s recent Kickstarter-backed photo project, Oakland/Paris. In the online gallery, she juxtaposes photos shot in Oakland and those shot in Paris, and challenges the viewer to decide: “Is it Oakland or Paris?” Having struggled with the task myself, I suspect Oaklanders are actually getting a pretty solid Parisian experience on the daily. And the suspicion definitely bears out once you wander into Entrez Open House, a boutique housewares and gift shop specializing in French and other European items.

Vietnam

Oakland has some pretty excellent options for getting a taste of Vietnam. Start at Tay Ho on 12th, a family-owned establishment that’s been turning out authentic recipes and regional dishes since 2010. You can sample proper Hanoi cuisine, including the bun cha Hanoi (trio of pork) and cha ca la vong (turmeric fish with dill).

For some Vietnamese culture, check out the Oakland Asian Cultural Center, which hosts events year-round celebrating the many Asian cultures that call the East Bay home. You might be able to drop in on one of the many that feature Vietnamese and Vietnamese-American artists, or witness a combination dance performance and statement piece by the Nguyen Dance Company.

Cambodia

For starters on your Oakland-Cambodia journey, head to Battambang (on Broadway) for a taste of proper Khmer food. Its ratings are routinely high, regardless of whether the diner is seeking authentic Cambodian cuisine, or just some tasty grub.

If you happen to be in Oakland in spring, you can take part in the Cambodian New Year festival in Peralta Hacienda Historical Park on 34th. A day of celebrating Cambodian culture, the event showcases performances of traditional musical arts from the older generations, as well as crafts from local Cambodian artists. At any other time of year, head to the Oakland Cambodian Buddhist Temple on East 10th. Hosting regular cultural gatherings, ceremonies, and classes, it’ll give you a feel for how Cambodians (and Oakland-Cambodians) practice Buddhism.

Germany

Two big things come to mind when I think of Germany: beer and chocolate. Perhaps unsurprisingly, you can find both in their most pure German form in Oakland. At Brotzeit Lokal on the Estuary, you’ll get your wiener schnitzel and sauerkraut fix, as well as any of the 16 beers they have on tap in the biergarten (a selection of German, Belgian, and Californian).

And on Grand Ave sits Michael Mischer Chocolates, a little shop locals are raving about. Hailing from northern Germany, Mr. Mischer knows his stuff (having apprenticed under a Swiss Master Pastry Chef) and has brought this knowledge to Oakland. Yes, it’s on the pricier side, but I’m looking at the pictures online and can’t stop drooling.

Of course, Germany is more than chocolate and beer, and for that healthy dose of German culture you can check out the Excelsior German Center at the Altenheim, located on Excelsior Ave. With a mission of “connecting our community with German Language, Culture, and Heritage,” and through regular events, lectures, and the weekly German School of the East Bay Saturday school program, it seems like a pretty solid place to get a feel for the country.

Photo: Hitchster

Argentina

The Bay Area loves to tango, making this standard bearer of Argentine culture a great place to start on your Buenos-Oakland experience. Few do the traditional dance better than Jean-Pierre at the Tango Magdalena studio. If you don’t want to attend classes, there’s no shortage of tango events, tango nights, and tango-centric clubs to check out around town.

Another purely Argentine prize to be found in the East Bay is the Buenos Aires alfajor, served up by the Wooden Table Baking Company and available in grocery stores in the area. The alfajor, described as a “traditional Argentine pastry made of two shortbread-like cookies joined with dulce de leche,” is not only incredibly delicious, but also has a lot of locals addicted.

Thailand

Oakland seems to be home to more Thai restaurants than either of the neighboring areas of San Francisco or Berkeley. When it comes to authenticity, though, Neecha Thai (on Grand between Elwood and Lake Park) and Soi 4 Bangkok Eatery (College Ave) are pretty safe bets.

For your dose of Thai culture, we couldn’t not mention the Thai Cultural Center in Berkeley. Sure, it’s in Berkeley, but they host events all over the Bay Area, and their mission is to bring Thai culture (and many Bangkok-based teachers) to the region at large.

Hungary

Oakland, as one of the premier cultural spots in the US, is regularly blessed with visits from Ivan Fischer’s Budapest Festival Orchestra when they tour the US, which comprises some of the best young talent in Hungary. The city also proudly features Hungarian artists, and was actually the host-site for the cataloging of Hungarian heritage folk music during the WPA California Folk Music Project in the 1930s.

For Hungarian food, you may have to head north a bit to the Crixa Cakes bakery. It’ll be worth the trip, I promise, as their kilfi, kremes, tortas, and vatroushka look absolutely amazing.

Ethiopia

Oakland and surrounding areas are home to a few thousand Ethiopians, and these East African immigrants have definitely added their tastes and traditions to the East Bay melting pot over the years. Addis Ethiopian on Telegraph serves up classic dishes like tibs and yedoro wot and features some unique thatch decorations around the restaurant. Others options include Asmara and Café Colucci (both also located on Telegraph).

If you like what’s on offer at Colucci, check out their associated property, Brundo, a spice shop that puts on cooking classes. Once you pick up the skills you need to make your own injera and other Ethiopian staples, you can take the culture home with you…talk about local-global travel.

This post is proudly produced in partnership with our friends at Visit Oakland. Find us on social and use the hashtag #oaklandloveit to share your Oakland story.

5 ways to waste a travel experience

TRAVEL CAN BE an invigorating, enthralling, life-affirming, eye-opening, magical mystery tour of spectacular and epic proportions, the likes of which shall have you reminiscing wistfully for decades to come about that time you did _____ in _____ and _____ happened.

Or it can be squandered on McDonald’s and imported Western beer and forgotten in a haze of alcoholically induced memory problems and shoddy Hollywood film productions.

Image by author

We’ve all been there. Galavanting around the world is fun and all, but sometimes it’s just way too easy to stay inside and watch The Hangover Part XIV and dine on a poorly constructed excuse for cuisine whilst peering out the window periodically to wonder if maybe there’s more to the world than…nothing.

And there is.

And here’s how to ruin it.

1. Too much internet

Sorry, internet. I love you. Your endless treasure troves of random factoids and cat pictures provide me no end of education or amusement. Many have been the hours I’ve spent exploring your depths and wonders, and intoxicating have been the wisdom I’ve gained and laughter I’ve exuded.

But I need more.

The internet is one of the easiest ways to suck up all the time you’ve got in a day, but to be honest, it’s not nearly as awful as people make it out to be. The internet is merely the collective voice of billions. Is it so wrong to listen to what they have to say? And what is travel but experiencing those voices and homes firsthand?

But it’s still second-rate to walking out the door, accidentally discovering some random bakery or whatever, and savoring the serendipitous moment a series of accidents have presented to thee.

Internet is great. Keep its greatness at just enough to stay great, but not devour every moment of the day in its endless jaws. Catch up on the cute cat pictures later.

2. The English clique

Sorry, world. English is king. The British Empire planted its weeds all over the world, and the US carried the torch for centuries too. Then the internet drove the last nail into the coffin of any non-Latin alphabet hoping to make a comeback. Plus: Hollywood.

English has won.

Oh, and all those silly people saying it’s going to be Chinese one day? HA! Have you seen Chinese lately? No. Just no. Sure, a billion people speak it, but they’re pretty much all in China, and they’re trying to learn English a whole lot faster than any Americans are trying to learn Chinese. Maybe by 2300. Maybe.

Okay, back to the point. Chances are if you visit any hostel, you’ll hear English spoken almost exclusively between guests, and it’s mostly native speakers doing it. Since Westerners currently make up most of the backpacking demographic, you can easily surround yourself with nothing but familiarity.

It’s not so bad if you’re communicating with people from all over the world, but it can be something of a crutch if you only talk to fellow Westerners. Sure, maybe they’re cool, but if you fly all the way to the other side of the world, it’s good to mix things up. Try doing something stupid in public, like walking into a telephone pole. Good fortune is sure to follow!

3. Irish pub quarantine

This is part 2 of the “Only talk to other Westerners” motif. Going only to Western-style hangouts.

“Dude, let’s go to the Irish pub! They’re exactly the same all over the world and we won’t experience anything new!”

Sigh.

Once again…it’s not like Irish pubs are bad. They’re pretty great. No wonder they’ve taken over. And to be honest, a professionally run Western-style pub might be a whole lot better than a poorly run hovel set up to capitalize on drunk foreign tourists. So fair enough.

But traveling shouldn’t be just about sightseeing and then hibernating inside a sheltered cave of predictable solitude. Want some familiarity? Okay, go for it. Sometimes. But for every visit to the Irish pub, make sure you visit some random hole-in-the-wall nothing bar in the middle of nowhere with only one bartender and six chairs. Good things will happen, I promise.

4. The drunken roller coaster

Here’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard:

“Dude, I was soooo drunk last night! It was awesome! I don’t even remember what happened!”

You know what’s stupid? Paying for experiences and not experiencing them. Memory problems count, kids!

Getting drunk and not remembering the amazing times you claim to have had is like watching a movie with the sound turned off. Forgetting amazing things is indistinguishable from not doing amazing things in the first place! But more expensive!

A fun game to play is to go up to the people who don’t remember what happened the night before, and make up a horrifically terrifying tale of embarrassment and public displays of sheer idiocy so awful they’ll think twice about getting that trashed again. See how far you can push the boundaries of believability and still have them fall for it!

5. Formulaic whatever

I once heard a conversation in a hostel that went something like this:

“Know anywhere good to eat around here?”

“Hmm, well the guidebook says…”

“Nah, I don’t like guidebooks. It’s just one guy’s opinion.”

Somehow he failed to notice how the human to which he was speaking was also one person.

Now that’s not to say one set of instructions or another are to be followed. Chances are that any strategy is going to fall flat on its face at some point, and adhering too closely to any good-luck-charm travel tactic is going to be silly. Such as:

Never obeying the guidebook
Only obeying the guidebook
Never listening to hostel buddy suggestions
Only listening to hostel buddy suggestions
Never going off the beaten track
Only going off the beaten track

I could go on, of course, but I think you get the picture. I’ve had great restaurant suggestions from backpackers as well as locals, and I’ve seen backpackers either religiously adhere or steadfastly refuse to do things a certain way, thinking guidebooks are always bad or that the big touristy attractions are always stupid, and so forth.

Lesson learned: Change things up every once in a while. Sometimes studying the city ahead of time works out, and sometimes ignoring everything and wandering around randomly until something ridiculous happens works out quite nicely as well. You never know. So make a plan, and screw things up sometimes.

This post originally appeared at Snarky Nomad and is republished here with permission.

Hong Kong through a young photographer’s eyes

I’VE NEVER VISITED HONG KONG, but this video has me seriously considering a trip. Hyoin Bae, a student from South Korea, is very lucky that she gets to live and work in such an inspiring city. I enjoyed her version of “24 hours in ___” because it wasn’t filled with, “You should do this! You should go here!” generic travel suggestions.

Bae’s video diary is proof that the travel experience is subjective. She made the city of Hong Kong her own, just like I will when I go.