Matador Network's Blog, page 2282

26 futuristic gardens & green spaces

With cities taking up more space on the planet than ever, communities are struggling to solve problems of food security, climate control, and how to make our concrete jungles look a little more…well, jungle-like.

These amazing inspirational farms show that urban farming can pave the way to real change in the future.

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1

Cloud Mountain – Singapore
One of the centerpiece gardens of Singapore's Gardens by the Bay (see #9 below) is "Cloud Mountain," with a circular pathway ascending its nearly 140 feet. Not pictured on the backside is a waterfall. The entire structure is covered in epiphytes such as orchids, found in tropical mountain regions of Southeast Asia and South America.
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2

Gardens at Marqueyssac – France
An oldie (1860s) but a goodie, these elegant gardens in the Dordogne region may be the world's original futuristic green space. Thousands of boxwood and cypress trees are planted in brilliantly trippy arrangements that boggle the mind.
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3

Parkroyal Hotel – Singapore
This hyper-modern luxury hotel has over 15,000 square meters (and six levels) of sky gardens, which are cantilevered between blocks of hotel rooms and feature waterfalls and reflecting pools as well as local flora.
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See more like this: 6 of the world’s most ingenious wildlife overpasses




4

Acros Building – Fukuoka, Japan
15 stepped terraces contain an amazing 100,000-square-meter park perfect for lunch-break meditation sessions.
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5

Vancouver Library Square – Vancouver
Library Square is a gorgeous compound featuring a beautiful rooftop garden and a massive glass atrium that helps blur the line between inside and outside.
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6

Athenaeum Hotel – London
This eight-story vertical garden harbors a diverse ecosystem of plants, insects, flowers, and birds right in the heart of downtown London.
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7

Nanyang University – Singapore
A sweeping, walkable green roof rolls across the five-story Nanyang University campus.
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8

High Line Park – NYC
Built on an abandoned rail line elevated above the streets of Manhattan’s West Side, High Line is a one-of-a-kind urban space for strolling, jogging, and relaxing.
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9

Gardens by the Bay – Singapore
A futuristic park / garden in Singapore, the entire area is built on reclaimed land.
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Intermission





U.S. summer music festivals gone green





Green to the extreme?





Alaias: How an old-school board is making surfing greener












10

Supertrees – Singapore
The Baobab-like "Supertrees" in Gardens by the Bay "mimic the ecological function of trees – photovoltaic cells that harness solar energy which can be used for some of the functions of the Supertrees, such as lighting, just like how trees photosynthesize; and collection of rainwater for use in irrigation and fountain displays, exactly like how trees absorb rainwater for growth. The Supertrees also serve air intake and exhaust functions as part of the conservatories' cooling systems."
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11

Hotel Reina Roja – Cozumel, Mexico
Reina Roja's rooftop bar and pool is surrounded by plants, trees, and flowers in pots and planter boxes.
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12

Public Farm 1 – Queens, NY
Technically an art installation celebrating urban farming, P.F.1 features a chicken coop and a juicing station. The entire installation is solar-powered.
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13

Yau Ma Tei Farm – Hong Kong
HK Farms collaborates with local communities to build rooftop farms. A group of artists, designers, and farmers, they specifically encourage local produce to reduce carbon footprint.
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14

Ngau Tau Kok Farm – Hong Kong
Another HK Farms mini-farm, this 4,000-square-foot rooftop in an industrial neighbourhood grows herbs and vegetables and opens to visitors on weekends for guided tours.
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15

Garden of Cosmic Speculation – Scotland
If you put Gandalf, Timothy Leary, Willy Wonka, and the Mad Hatter into a room with their mind-altering substances of choice and told them to design a garden – this would be that garden! And it's only open one day a year so, yeah, plan accordingly.
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Intermission





10 steps hotels can take to go greener





DIY plumbing: Green ways to clean a drain





Is there a green lining in the economic cloud?












16

California Academy of Sciences – San Francisco
The massive green roof prevents two million gallons of rainwater from becoming storm runoff every year.
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17

Chicago City Hall green roof – Chicago
This rooftop garden in the heart of downtown was planted in 2000 and is mostly prairie plants native to the Chicago region. It reduces heating and cooling costs for City Hall and retains 75% of an inch of rainfall before entering the storm drains.
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18

Namba Parks – Osaka, Japan
Amidst the bustling urban sprawl of Osaka, the Namba Parks offers eight stories of natural sanctuary with groves of trees, clusters of rocks, cliffs, lawn, streams, waterfalls, ponds, and terraces.
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19

Vancouver compost garden – Vancouver
Originally developed in 1982 to demonstrate how much food could be grown in a city yard, this pesticide-free farm turned its attention to composting in 1990. It's run by nonprofit group City Farmer.
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20

Pasona 02 – Tokyo
Built in a series of converted bank vaults, this urban underground farm was developed to provide agricultural training to the unemployed or people interested in switching jobs. Because it is underground, Pasona 02 uses artificial lights and hydroponics to grow crops.
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21

Vertical flower garden
Whether it's a living wall or a literal "tower of flowers," vertical gardening is gaining popularity in urban environments because of the way it maximizes space.
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22

Vancouver Convention Center – Vancouver
The six-acre living roof atop Vancouver's convention center is filled with native plants and hosts several hives of honeybees, whose honey is used in the center's catering facilities.
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23

O'Hare Airport garden – Chicago
Twenty-six towers hold over 1,100 plants in this vertical garden in Chicago's O'Hare International Airport rotunda. It uses no fertilizers or chemicals and nutrient solution is regularly cycled through the plants to prevent water evaporation waste.
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24

Ballard Library – Seattle
Complementing the design sense of the neighborhood's traditional Scandinavian and maritime roots, the Ballard Library's green roof contains solar panels and 18,000 plantings.
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25

Comcrop – Singapore
A 6,000-square-foot urban farm on a downtown rooftop, Comcrop is one of the first farms in Singapore to use vertical farming and the first to use aquaponics, a combination of aquaculture (farming fish) and hydroponics.
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26

Awaji Yumebutai – Hyogo, Japan
Built to restore the natural environment after earth from the area was removed to create manmade islands in Osaka Bay, Awaji Yumebutai is surrounded by native flora of Awaji Island.
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The post 26 futuristic urban farms and green spaces [pics] appeared first on Matador Network.

Why musicians are the best travelers

Photo: Volker Neumann

A party is one musical note away.

A cold, rainy day in Hanoi. Stuck in the hostel with little to do, you decide to put your feet up in the lobby. Your new travel companion appears, guitar in hand. You ask him to play a song. He obliges. You watch his hands move, picking with the accuracy and precision of a dart player.

You look back up, only to find a crowd gathered around you. A Bia Hà Nội, the local beer, is passed to you. The music gets louder, as does the crowd, drinks in hand. You find yourself holding a bottle of rice whiskey at some point in the evening.

The next thing you know, you’re waking up in your dorm with a giant headache — but you know you had a good time. And after doing some detective work to piece together the rest of the evening, you find out everyone else did too.

Music is the universal language.

You find yourself asking lots of questions about this six-stringed device. You learn to play your first song — a simple, recognizable tune.

Days later, you come across someone you’re attracted to, but you have trouble communicating. You point at your friend’s guitar. Your new love interest nods. You play. The song ends and she claps. Using your broken Spanish and makeshift sign language, you hint towards having a meal together. She nods again.

Touring is the ultimate preparation for budget travel.

Much of your time is spent in transit. Every other day you’re having trouble sleeping — on a plane, sleeper bus, van, you name it. Every time you peer over, your musician friend is sound asleep. He might as well be back home in a queen-size bed.

You ask how he’s able to sleep so well in any situation. You’re told that spending months at a time traveling from city to city in a muffler-less “tour van” makes a plane feel like a five-star hotel.

Running out of money is a temporary problem.

You and your new partner-in-crime are running low on funds. You fear having to spend your last dollars on buying a plane ticket back home. You’re told to “breathe and relax” — the situation will be “figured out.”

You accompany him from bar to bar around the city as he asks bartenders and doormen questions. Finally, you see him walk out of a bar with a smile: He booked a gig for the night. You spend the evening watching him entertain, playing cover after cover. You watch as people drop tip after tip into your friend’s hat.

Boredom is an excuse to create.

Every so often, boredom hits you while on the road. Today, you have three hours to kill before your seven-hour bus ride. You pace around the bus station trying to find something to do. All your electronics are out of batteries.

Your musician friend, pen and paper out, is scrawling at a hasty pace. You remain quiet and observe. You ask what he’s doing. “Writing music.” You sigh. You’re told to give it a try yourself.

The post 5 reasons musicians make the best travelers appeared first on Matador Network.

Inside Korea's abandoned buildings

The reception desk of an abandoned hotel. Even the pool table has been left behind. All photos: Author.

When alone in nature, your world is at peace. Everything is calm, and the forest is your friend because you feel as if you’re the only person to have ever walked the path before you.

When alone in an abandoned building, those feelings are reversed. Why is this building here, why is it abandoned, who might still be lurking in the dark shadows? There’s something sinister about a structure that was obviously erected at great expense, then simply left unused.

An abandoned hotel movie set

On the island of Jeju, the ‘Hawaii of South Korea,’ I heard about an abandoned hotel movie set. I couldn’t resist checking it out for myself. Excitedly, a few friends and I bundled into the back of a minivan and went in search of this elusive structure. A short while later, we spied a grand castle-like building from the main road. Could this really be it?

Dodging some barbed-wire fencing and pushing our way through thick foliage, we made our way towards the towering, elaborate beast. What we found blew our minds. We were greeted by a structure adorned with fine detailing, and on the grounds were both water features and a swimming pool.

Like kids on Halloween, we rushed around, drinking in the visual candy. One of the doors was open, so we took this as an opportunity to explore inside. There we found pianos, beds, a bar, and one hell of a lot of everything else. Lighting equipment worth thousands of dollars had simply been left behind, and the whole space could’ve served as a real hotel if there’d been staff…until we realised the towers were mock features with no access, there were no actual bedrooms, and some doors opened onto nothing. I felt like a ghost exploring a sacred and hostile place — no one knew we were there, no one else existed in the world.

Our first view of the abandoned hotel movie set. The creators even took the time to install water features.

The interior of the movie set.

You can be forgiven for believing that the dining room is still functional.

An abandoned circus

Because of this experience, my appetite was whetted. I wanted to see more places like this, to feel that same rush of excitement you feel when you have something amazing all to yourself. The next place we found was an abandoned circus. A circus is a creepy place at the best of times, but devoid of humans and lighting, even more so.

We walked into the deserted arena, hallucinating dark shapes around us until our eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness. I could imagine clowns and horses dancing across the stage many years ago. With tentative steps, we explored every room, every corridor, curious and wary of what we might find. Then I came across a box that delighted me: Inside was a dragon head and clown costumes! Alone, I slipped on the headpiece and an electric blue clown outfit to hide my own clothing. Then I marched across the arena in the darkness, not responding to the calls of my friends, with the full intention of terrifying them. It made them suitably uncomfortable.

The view of the circus arena from the stands.

Playing dragon dress-up after using the costume to scare people.

An abandoned school

The next building we found was an abandoned school. Once again, it had been allowed to fall into disrepair, but unlike the other buildings, it had suffered huge amounts of vandalism. Every window had been broken. Was this a sign of past students wanting revenge? South Korea has one of the highest suicide rates in all the world, and the intense education system is a major cause of this.

Inside one of the rooms in the school, there were signs that someone had been living there and keeping large birds. This was our creepy cue to leave the place.

The main view of the abandoned school.

The room in which someone has been living and keeping birds.

From the roof of the school, you can see Hallasan, the largest mountain in Korea.

Paradise no more

The most recent abandoned building I’ve found is the jewel in the crown of discoveries. Named Paradise Hotel, it’s a luxury resort complete with spa, sauna, and outdoor swimming pools. Although all of the doors were open, we entered through the basement and found ourselves plunged into darkness amidst a maze of twisting corridors and impenetrable blackness. We had only one phone screen between us to use as a light source, and it offered little information about our surroundings.

Leaving the basement, we explored the bar, the dining room, the ballroom, and the reception area before moving on to the bedrooms. Here we found price lists. A regular room cost $370 a night while the deluxe rooms were $800 a night. This wasn’t a cheap place to stay. The rooms themselves were being invaded by nature as it battled to reclaim land it once owned, but the resort was so large that it’ll still be standing for many decades or centuries.

Entering an open door to the roof, my friend and I stood to take a harmless photo of ourselves wearing smoke masks we’d found in the hotel. A security guard appeared below and begun shouting at us. We quickly put back the smoke masks and disappeared without a trace, our adventure over for the day.

In the basement, we could see almost nothing.

Only with the magic of the camera restoring lost details were we able to see the mould and destruction around us.

The reception desk and breakfast dining area.

The view of the swimming pools and sea from the roof.

Why so many abandoned buildings?

I started to become curious about why there were so many abandoned buildings. The general consensus was that Jeju is a lucrative tourist island, so presumably many people invested lots of money building structures, only to find their ventures unsuccessful. As no one else is willing to take over an unsuccessful business, the buildings are simply left to be taken over by nature. Each individual building has its own story, and I can’t wait to find more.

My only sadness is this: I can’t help but wonder about these structures. Couldn’t they be put to better use than just sitting around doing nothing? Could you house homeless people in them (or the deprived people of North Korea, so very close at hand), make them something to be proud of? Or will they sit there unused with security guards who chase you away forever? I hope someone comes up with a good idea to reinvent these fantastic structures.

Rules for exploring abandoned buildings

Don’t steal anything. It’s not yours and theft is not okay.
Leave it as you found it. Don’t break anything — you’re only a guest.
Don’t force entry. If you do, you’re trespassing, and this is illegal.

The post Inside the eerie abandoned buildings of Jeju Island, South Korea appeared first on Matador Network.

Meet a Google Africa innovator

AND NO, this has nothing to do with April Fools’ Day. Google just announced the five most inspiring and innovative web-based projects in Africa at the Africa Connected Awards in Nairobi, Kenya.

Nqobizitha Mlilo (above) is a young Zimbabwean and one of the 10 finalists across the continent at the forefront of Africa’s technology movement. Content as a runner-up behind the five winners, who received $25,000 each (along with expert assistance from the Google team to edge them closer to realising their goals), he spoke with me about being a self-taught tech ninja, what African innovation can teach the world, and what projects on the continent you need to look out for.

* * *

D: What would you describe yourself as?

NM: I would describe myself as an artist, director, animator, lecturer, and entrepreneur. I am largely self-taught though I did study a year at ZIVA, which is a design college in Harare, as well as RanchHouse, where I studied business administration for a short while.

Where do you see Africa in tech and innovation?

I see Africa as a huge consumer in tech. A lot of leapfrogs are happening in technology. We have seen a huge wave of innovators who have used technology to create solutions for their situations. As we move forward as a continent, these ideas will be key to evolving into what we need to become in the world space.

How is it being a techie in Zimbabwe?

I often have mixed feelings about being a techie sometimes. I love technology, it’s awesome. I feel it increases productivity and efficiency. Sometimes some elements of society don’t quite see it the same way. Some feel it’s too invasive and still prefer an old school way of doing things. I often feel a disconnect between myself and other non-tech heads, but that is the point of evolution that we are currently at.

What 5 projects or innovators excite you on the continent and why?

Google Africa I think would be one of the most exciting tech movements in Africa. Having such a great company take an active involvement into the development of the tech space in Africa is really awesome.
The wave of mobile money services that have been implemented in Kenya and Zimbabwe. I feel they are truly tailor-made African solutions.
The Afrinolly mobile app is a great blueprint for implementing video on demand in Africa.
Tech Hubs like Hypercube in Harare, the SKi-Hub in Bulawayo, and the iHub in Kenya are significant movements in locking down innovative minds and giving them spaces to grow.
Broadband Internet that’s being implemented by various governments and companies across the continent is aiding in getting the continent connected and engaged.

What can tech and innovation in Africa give to the world?

I feel that tech coming from Africa will introduce a fresh perspective in attacking problems worldwide. I think Africa will surprise the world with a new take on solutions for old problems like poverty, hunger, and war.

Are innovators really going to effect progress for the average African?

I think so. Innovators are really just glorified case studies of progress. They begin to be a blueprint in the context of an African environment. They prove what’s possible. They break the rules of their environment. They challenge thinking and inspire change from an older way of looking at things.

Africa in 2020, what are you hoping for?

I am hoping for an open sourcing of intention. I feel if there is a unified thinking and plan for progress for the continent as a whole, that would move things in the right direction significantly. I think technology will act as a catalyst in that process.

To view the winning projects check out: www.africaconnected.com.

The post Google just announced Africa’s 5 best web-based projects…meet one of the runners-up appeared first on Matador Network.

15 reasons it sucks to work at home

Photo: Citrix Online

15. Kids

If you have children, and they’re at home when you’re trying to work, you will quickly realize the mistake you’ve made in choosing a work-at-home career. Kids don’t care that you’ve got a deadline, or that you’re on the phone with an important client.

If Johnny wants to watch Monsters University (for the third time today), you’ll have to drop everything you’re doing and turn it on, or he will scream nonstop until you do. And if the adorable little hand of your precious toddler taps you on the leg and he lovingly says to you, “play, mommy” — you will have to play. If you don’t follow him to the designated play area right then, that precious little hand will grab your computer’s mouse and hurl it across the room.

14. Facebook — and Twitter, and Instagram, and Pinterest

You name it, the social networks that have revolutionized the way we communicate with one another have also destroyed all productivity. You could be working on that big deadline project, decide to check your social network of choice “real quick,” and fall down the rabbit hole. You see, it will not be “real quick;” you will keep diving deeper into the pool of timesuck that is social media.

13. Food — everywhere

If you’re at an office, you long for lunchtime, when you can devour your carefully portioned meal in the 30 minutes you have to eat. If you’re at home, you have complete control over when you eat, and for how long, and how much. And you will eat constantly because you have access to your kitchen 24/7.

12. Work-at-home slobbery

When work is home, you basically get out of bed and get to work. You no longer worry about what you’re going to wear, if your skirt is too short, or if your tie matches your suit jacket. Nobody can tell you not to wear flannel jammies to your computer desk, or to brush your teeth. So you don’t. Some days, you may not even brush your hair. You’re disgusting!

11. Losing touch

When you work outside the home, you make friends and socialize with them in public. When you work at home, you hang out at home. With yourself. Not only can it be lonely, but you forget what it’s like to be around people.

So when you inevitably do go to a social event, or even to the grocery store, you may find yourself doing either of the following two things: talking to everyone you see about the rising cost of milk (it’s expensive!), or at the other extreme, staring wide-eyed in shock at the nice old lady who said “excuse me” as she passed your cart too close.

10. Pets

Like kids, if you have a pet, you know what it’s like to have constant interruptions. Dogs need to be fed and walked; cats like to walk all over your computer and sometimes sleep on your arm. And they are relentless in their pursuit of getting your attention.

9. Housework procrastination

There’s dust on the TV stand. There are dirty dishes in the sink, and you need some clean towels. Any minor distraction can snowball into a day of cleaning or organizing when you’re at home all day, every day. You’ll want to clean that mess up, and you won’t be able to get to the work you’re paid to do until you clean it.

8. Sunshine

One advantage to working in a cubicle is that you can’t always see the weather outside. But when you’re at home, and the sun is blinding you through the windows, it’s pretty difficult to resist the urge to play outside.

7. Snow days

Ah, the Polar Vortex. While it stranded thousands in their homes or cars this winter, kids and workers alike were singing its praises because they didn’t have to go to school or work. But someone who works from home? Expected to work.

6. Neighbors

If you live in an apartment, and the people who live above you either work third shift, or they also work at home, or not at all, they will be noisy. They will annoy you with their noisiness when you’re trying to work.

If you live in a house, and you can see out of your windows, you will inevitably wonder what the neighbors are up to, and sometimes find yourself staring at them and creating lives for them. Some may call it obsessing, but I call it “being informed.”

5. Milk runs

“Can you get some milk?” Others will assume that since you’re working from home, you have plenty of time to run errands. But you don’t. You’re WORKING.

4. The ire of other parents

If you have kids, mothers who have to work outside the home will target you with their resentful stares, because they believe you’re “lucky” to “get” to stay at home with the kids, while they’re away from them all day. Weekend playgroups will therefore be filled with tension.

3. Can’t “leave it at the office”

Because your office (laptop) is right next to you on the couch. If there’s work to do, you can’t just let it go until Monday morning, because it never leaves you. Which is why you work on Saturday nights, while the world parties. Or sleeps.

2. Missing shaving your legs/face

Or wearing heels, or a stuffy suit, or a uniform. There will come a day when you look at yourself in a mirror, ponytail askew, sweatshirt stained, gym shorts full of holes, and you will wish you could wear your Louboutins — if only for a few hours.

1. Never wanting to go back to an office job

It’s true. All of the positives of working at home still outweigh the negatives, and if the opportunity arises to leave your work-at-home job, you’ll feel conflicted. You might even realize it doesn’t really suck, even if it is work.

The post 15 reasons it sucks to work from home appeared first on Matador Network.

How to piss off a Belgian

Photo: Kevin Van den Panhuyzen

Ask if Brussels is in Germany.

Be completely oblivious of geography, history, and politics. Ignore the fact that it’s actually the capital of a country quite commonly referred to as “Belgium,” which declared its independence in 1830. Remind us that, indeed, not so long ago zie Germans did wander around within our country’s borders for a lengthy period of time.

Because we share borders with countries such as the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, and France, it’s of course more than likely that we are actually merely a province.

Assume we all speak French.

After a lengthy discussion, during which we show you our passports, pinpoint Belgium on Google Maps, and finally have you convinced that the annexation to Germany did not happen…assume we all speak French.

Conveniently fail to acknowledge that about 60% of our citizens speak Dutch, along with more than 75,000 that speak German. Disregard the fact that it’s also quite common to be bilingual here. Ask if we’re sure Dutch is an actual language, or be amazed that it’s spoken outside of the Netherlands.

Tell us you really enjoy Belgian beers: Blue Moon, Flying Fish, Horny Devil…

Try to bond with us in a bar by telling us the story of that night out on the town when you tried several real Belgian Beers — not Belgian Style Beers, as the labels read. Be sure to be very confident — you surely knew what you were drinking, so who is this Belgian guy to claim it wasn’t genuine Belgian beer?

As you raise your pint of Blue Moon, become increasingly self-assured with every sip you take. Your beer is as Belgian as Leffe, Duvel, Stella Artois, and Westvleteren, no doubt about it. Continue to celebrate your new friendship, and confide in us that you think they all taste the same.

Pretend to be an expert on ‘Belgian waffles.’

Not only did your last trip to New York consist of exploring the Big Apple, you also tried Belgian waffles for the first time. There’s of course no difference between waffles from Liège or Brussels and those served at Wafels & Dinges. You had a great waffle, one with powdered sugar, whipped cream, and strawberries and/or chocolate.

But there was something missing, was there not? So when you got home, you decided to make the recipe even better by taking some of the traditional toppings and giving it that little bit of extra by adding layers of bacon and maple syrup. Not less is more — more is more. You even took a picture, which you now brazenly show us, expecting a thank you for improving on the namesake of our homeland.

Bring up the tax thing like you know what you’re talking about.

Remember that article in the newspaper about which countries have the highest total tax rate? The one that highlighted Belgium being almost 20% above the EU average? Also the same article that suggested your country is somewhere in the middle.

Well, now that you’ve got us, it must be time to mention how hard it already is for you, how you can’t imagine living like that with the government emptying your pockets. Pay absolutely no attention to our excellent healthcare system, and forget that we provide for the unemployed.

Ask about French Fries.

You’ve eaten mussels and French fries and you loved them — we all do. But why are they called French fries all over the world?

We always enjoy being reminded that one of our favorite dishes is associated with the French, despite the fact that we prepare our fries differently. Perhaps now is also the the time to mention how you always forget whether Brussels is situated in France or Germany…

This post was published in its original form at Mr. Good Life and is reprinted here with permission.

The post How to piss off a Belgian appeared first on Matador Network.

Apply to be a Pokémon Master

IT’S AMAZING TO me that Pokémon is still relevant; I thought that 90s fad was put to rest, along with tamagotchis, and pogs. However, it looks like GoogleMaps has added a new feature in which people can zoom in on locations and catch Pokémon, in an effort to find an official Pokémon Master for this platform. It’s the next wave in augmented reality, and could land you a cushy job at one of the leading technology companies in the world.

Think you’ve got what it takes? Apply right from your cell phone. But you gotta catch ‘em all — you have until April 2, 2014, to find all 150 species, and be considered for the position.

Happy April Fools, from the team at Matador Network!

The post JOB ALERT: Apply to be a Google Maps Pokémon Master appeared first on Matador Network.

5 things you learn living on a boat

Photo: Dave Keane

When your friend asks you to spend a winter with him, living on his 27ft Bristol and sailing through the Grenadine Islands in the Southern Caribbean, it doesn’t matter if you’ve barely paddled a canoe and an irrational fear of sharks keeps you out of most lakes. The answer to the question is yes.

So a month later, when you find yourself in the middle of the Atlantic with no land in sight, 50 nautical miles from where you started, heading into 13-knot winds and an approaching rainstorm, you might be clinging to the safety lines and trying not to vomit again. Your brain might feel like it’s bouncing around in an empty PBR can. Peering down into the cabin for escape might feel like peering down into the satanic depths of your own personal K-hole.

You’ll want to go home. To return to your long johns and your entire wheel of Brie, to your beanbag chair and your HBO Go account.

But boat life is a challenge and a long haul. Your only chance of escape is to stay put, to allow yourself to be weathered by the elements, the lack of rules, and the freedom. You’ll have to decide: Do I sail or do I sink?

And if you sail, you’ll learn.

1. Showers aren’t necessary.

It might be days before you notice that your cuticles have ripped down to your knuckles. Your skin is literally disintegrating from the lack of fresh water.

But you’re living on a boat in the Caribbean! You’re swimming every day! You’re reading three books a week! You’re choreographing an entire synchronized-swimming routine. And it’s Olympic quality! You don’t give a shit about how you smell. You’re busy.

Living on a boat allows you to let minor issues like cleanliness fall by the wayside. Maybe once a month, a torrential downpour will hit and you’ll grab some Dr. Bronner’s, get naked, and have a little baby Jesus shower on deck. There’s no such thing as ‘body shy.’ Look around. Every self-respecting boat person is doing it. And at this point, you’ve seen one too many 70-year-old, retired-expat penises to care. So scrub-a-dub-dub.

2. People living on land have a bathroom. You have the open ocean.

If you haven’t stepped into a shower stall in weeks, your ass probably hasn’t cozied onto a toilet seat in awhile either.

Sure, most boats will have heads. They’ll have odd pumping or pulling or sliding contraptions. And you’ll have to warn every snorkeler in a half-mile radius if you’re gonna deuce it because it might land on their head while they’re investigating some coral.

But you’re coasting in on the smallest lady in the harbor, and she doesn’t have much space to spare below deck. So it’s over the railing, sweetheart.

Boat life is personal, not always socially acceptable. And after a while you might start to enjoy your new habit of cutting out the middleman. The ocean is your own personal bidet! It might feel a little too fancy sometimes.

You’ll proudly make up a song with your captain that goes, “You go in the morning / I go at night / Society says it’s wrong / But to us it feels right.” And because you have nothing else to do, you’ll actually develop that song with more lyrics and perform it acoustically in front of your boat neighbors.

“Why does anyone use a toilet ever?” you’ll ask yourself aloud on an eight-hour sail to Bequia, as you brace yourself on a cleat and tinkle over the side. (The key to peeing while underway is to brace, squat, and lean with the boat. And to have a spotter. Always have a spotter.)

3. Boat life doesn’t always make you cool in real life.

You’re waking up every morning to the sun shining through the forward hatch. You’re free diving down to 16ft to make sure the anchor is secure. You’re rowing Rosie the rowboat a mile into shore every goddam day for ‘provisions.’ You might think this trip is making you pretty fucking cool. You’re probably wrong.

Just because you picked up an old beater guitar in Saint Lucia and stumbled through the first few chords of “Wish You Were Here” does not mean you’re going to be the next singer/songwriter back in the States. Just because you started a band with you, your captain, and that guy on the Oyster 29 across the way, and you called it Caribbean Stew for the Sailor’s Soul, and you got pretty bossy last Tuesday night at band practice, does not mean you guys are going to sign a record deal.

Get that through your head. Before you make the mistake of buying a drum, custom made from the trunk of a coconut tree and stretched with a real goatskin. And you’ve used that drum to pitter-patter along with a circle on Union Island, which has led you to believe that drumming is now your ‘thing.’

So you carry your 18lb drum through five flights back home, and you immediately bring it to a party. Only to realize the hard way that you’ve been playing “We Will Rock You” this whole time. Don’t let yourself make that mistake. It’s incredibly disappointing.

4. Boat life is a simple life.

Your daily schedule might sound like this: Wake up and lay around for 45 minutes. Eat a mango. Swim for a second. Float on your blowup donkey thing. Sample some marijuana. Attempt one pull-up over the railing. Fail. Think about what your life might be like if you had toned arms. Eat some variation of beans and rice. And so on and so on for all of eternity.

Before long, boat life will have you questioning why land life even exists. Why can’t we all just Waterworld it out here?

Back home on land, you have a schedule. You have a phone that rings. You have to answer people and tell them what you’re doing.

“I’m just sitting. Staring at my geranium plant,” you might say.

“Well, why?” they might say.

And then you have to come up with an answer for them. It’s all very annoying. Boat life doesn’t present those conversations. To get through a day on a boat, you just have to solve the basic riddles of survival.

How am I going to get myself to shore to buy a popsicle? I’m going to row my rowboat.

When am I going to sail to Grenada? In two days when the wind has died down to 5 knots.

How am I going to kill this bluefin tuna that I caught? I’m going to hit it over the head with my wench handle. Then I’m going to eat it.

5. You’re stronger than you know.

Now that you’ve spent your winter on a very small boat, living a very primitive and basic life, you’ll return home a happier and more resourceful person. As you jumped from island to island, inspiration followed you. You were greeted every day with the open arms of island culture, each community different and inviting and eager to welcome you.

You’re now a person in perpetual motion. You’ve learned how to maneuver the bow of a boat underway, how to use your weight to hoist her sails and secure her lines, and how to proudly sail onto anchor when everyone else is motoring in.

And in the middle of the night, in the middle of the ocean, thousands of miles from home, you allowed yourself to be rocked into a peaceful sleep under the stars.

The post 5 things you learn about yourself living on a boat appeared first on Matador Network.

15 Middle East natural wonders

My mental map of the Middle East was gray, sandy, and flat. I was way off…for the most part.

[Editor's note: Several of the images below are available for use through a Creative Commons license, but others are not. In those cases, the photographers granted Matador special permission to feature them here. Please review all copyright information for photos before reproducing them.]

1. Egypt’s White Desert

In Western Egypt, this desert features thousands of chalk formations and is often visited by tourists on camping trips. For more shots, check out Touring Egypt’s White Desert. (1) walidhassanein (2) neiljs (3) Private Tours in Egypt (4) clockwise L to R: Cairo Photo Tours, Roland Unger, Wonders From Nature

2. Jabal Qara Caves, Saudi Arabia

The Al Hasa Oasis in the country’s Eastern Province is home to an area of limestone hills, beneath which runs a system of well-visited caves. (1) rickredds (2) Pinterest (3) clockwise L to R: AhmedSadoon, കാക്കര, Mashael Al-Shuwayer

3. Socotra Island, Yemen

Located in the Arabian Sea, far from any mainland, Socotra has evolved species that aren’t found anywhere else, such as the red-sapped dragon’s blood tree, seen above. For information on visiting, read How to travel to Socotra Island. (1) Valerio Pandolfo (2) Alexandre Baron (3) Gerry & Bonni (4) clockwise L to R: Gerry & Bonni, Joël Lodé, Rod Waddington

4. Mt. Ararat, Turkey

The 16,850ft Ararat stands in far eastern Turkey, where it borders Armenia and Iran. This is the view from ~40 miles north, in Yerevan, Armenia. (1) MrAndrew47 (2) i.embrace (3) NASA.gov (4) ArArAt Brandy

5. Dead Sea, Jordan/Israel/West Bank

Yup, the rumors are true — it’s easy to float in the Dead Sea. (1) Taras Kalapun (2) Jeremy Piehler (3) clockwise L to R: MarkGuitarPhoto, momo, tsaiproject (4) patrickneckman

6. Mt. Sinai, Egypt

At the bottom of the Sinai Peninsula is a region of granite and volcanic formations that includes the 7,500ft Mt. Sinai, as well as the taller Mt. Saint Catherine (8,625ft). Early tourists included Moses. These days, it’s a super popular spot to catch a sunrise. (1) Andreas Metz (2) Karl Schneider (3) Davidlohr Bueso

7. Rub’ al Khali, Arabian Peninsula

I’ve got a world map from the ’50s, and one of its cooler cartographic artifacts is the “Empty Quarter,” a blank white space with no names, roads, or features listed. One of the largest sand deserts in the world, it’s only recently been explored by scientists. It occupies a large chunk of southern Saudi Arabia and parts of Oman, Yemen, and the UAE. (1) mario rukh (2) NASA/USGS (3) javierblas (4) Land Rover MENA

8. Musandam Fjords, Oman

The Musandam Peninsula is the spike that juts up from the boot toe of the Arabian Peninsula, creating the Strait of Hormuz and separating the Persian Gulf from the Gulf of Oman. Its fjords are sometimes compared to Norway’s, though they were formed tectonically rather than by glacial movement. (1) oh contraire (2) Panoramas (3) Oman Air Blog (4) Atalante.fr

9. Nile River, Egypt

The longest river in the world runs past several historic sites in Egypt on its way to the Mediterranean. (1) dorena-wm (2) (3) NASA (4) clockwise L to R: Tony Hisgett, Atamari, Dennis Jarvis, risastia

10. Wadi Rum, Jordan

South of Petra, near Aqaba, Wadi Rum is a desert valley featuring Nabatean petroglyphs and several sandstone climbing walls/routes. The shot immediately above was taken from Jabal Rum, one of the mountains that line the valley. (1) Anark75 (2) Guillaume Baviere (3) clockwise L to R: Lawrence Murray, Guillaume Baviere, Guillaume Baviere, Anark75 (4) polandeze

11. Tortum Waterfall, Turkey

The falls is found next to the lake of the same name, around 50 miles north of Erzurum in eastern Turkey. (1) alper4594 (2) Marko Anastasov

12. Egypt’s Black Desert

About 60 miles southeast of the White Desert (see #1 above) is its inverse. (1) neiljs (2) walidhassanein (3) my life, the universe (4) mariusz kluzniak

13. Red Canyon, Israel

This canyon in southern Israel is accessible off Highway 12, just northwest of the city of Eilat. (1) tiroy (2) Senia L

14. Cappadocia stones and houses

The Cappadocia region of central Turkey is a landscape dominated by fairy chimneys and multi-colored canyons. Starting in Roman times, people carved out many of the chimneys to form living spaces, some of which are now hotels. (1) Adam Rifkin (2) Igor (3) Frank Kovalchek (4) archer10

15. Western Asir Province, Saudi Arabia

The area around Abha in the southwestern corner of Saudi Arabia is mountainous and fairly fertile. Much of it is protected in Asir National Park, the country’s oldest. The figures in the first shot above stand looking towards Yemen. (1) krautarsch (2)(3) Wajahat Mahmood

The post 15 natural wonders of the Middle East you’ll have to see to believe appeared first on Matador Network.

Using Couchsurfing to get laid

Photo: Meagan

In 2008, I was a professional bellydancer and went on a self-organized tour of Canada and the United States. Teaching classes and workshops and doing performances, I zigzagged across the country on interstate after interstate; I picked up rideshares from Craigslist to split gas expenses, and decided to rely on Couchsurfing for any residential needs that couldn’t be taken care of by the dance communities I was teaching in. I’d been a member of Couchsurfing for a few months before I finally tried it out.

I was on my way to a solo camping trip in Cape Breton Island for a few days before teaching a workshop in Halifax, and had to pass through a small town called Antigonish. Using the Couch Search, I found a doctoral student with a spare room who seemed nice. He was smart and friendly and had a lot of positive reviews. A few emails back and forth, and I’d invited him on my camping trip. One thing led to another, and we ended up making out in the rain in a tiny tent. We dated long-distance while I fulfilled the rest of my tour, and he wrote me long letters from his summer archaeological site, smeared with dust and waiting for me at any address I gave him. Eventually we split up, but I always wondered if maybe other people had successfully used Couchsurfing as a dating service.

Not just a dating service: It turns out that Couchsurfing’s hookup culture is not only known, but actively exploited. A Business Insider article calls it “the greatest hook-up app,” reducing the idealistic website to a glorified version of Craigslist’s “casual encounters.” Coming from the perspective that the main reason people join Couchsurfing is taking advantage of a home delivery service for highly sexed foreigners, the article interviews several hosts about their success rates. One woman met her husband through surfing…and now they use the site to host threesomes (and moresomes) with willing visiting guests. Another man details his various conquests and mentions that he lists on his profile that he will only accept surfers who are female, and between a certain (younger) age range.

When I was surfing and hosting more regularly, I saw those profiles occasionally. Often they were accompanied by a picture of the host where a female companion had carefully been cropped out. Someone who said they were only interested in female surfers (men need not apply…no homo!), and preferably cute ones, would earn an immediate NO response from me. I was there to foster alternative economies and meet interesting people, and I wasn’t interested in fending off unwanted sexual advances when far from home.

Unsurprisingly, the pickup artist culture thought exactly the opposite, and found Couchsurfing to be a ripe area for exploitation. A guy named Maverick wrote a guide to hooking up while couchsurfing, which has since disappeared from his website, although another stellar article (8 Signs of a Slutty CouchSurfer Girl) remains. It doesn’t take much poking around his site to realize that he’s a trained pickup artist with a Tucker Max-style following. Couch Bangs is a site dedicated to men telling stories of how they convinced, enticed, or coerced various ladies into sleeping in their beds and not their couches. In classic Nice Guy™ fashion, a guy writes:

The first night she was playing hard, and i mean like “go fuck your self if you want to get me,” She was even taller than me to make matters worse, but i kindly showed her around the city and took her to nice romantic place in Alexandria, VA. (like if a care) She told me i was doing to much for her, i replied that i was just a good guy that had lots of spare time. but the first day nothing happened as the matter of fact she agreed to meet another guy from couch surfing to meet that same night (what a ass low move she did to me).

God forbid you be a good host and show your guest around for the purpose of helping her have a good time in a new city. Nope, no reason to care unless you’re gettin’ some.

Given Couchsurfing’s original goals (to help travelers meet other like-minded travelers, find a cheap/free place to stay, and build an alternative community), it’s a shame to assume that everyone on the site is using it for sex. The site has supported a community of travelers for almost 10 years, despite a rocky transition to for-profit status a few years ago. It’s also naive to assume that nobody ever hooks up with a host — traveling is exciting and fun, you’re far from home and feel more able to do things you might not normally do, you’re meeting interesting new people and possibly snuggling under their blankets on a dark, romantic evening.

Couchsurfing is basically an opportunity. You can meet interesting people, and sometimes when those meetups happen, sparks fly and the couch never gets used. Sex between consenting adults is not only possible, but enjoyable and fun, given the right circumstances…and it doesn’t have to turn into dating or end with anything more than an obliquely positive review. Participating in no-strings-attached sex on the road is a choice everyone can make for themselves.

But calling Couchsurfing a “hook-up app” vastly undersells all the rest of its potential, and minimizes an entire community.

The post Using Couchsurfing to hook up: The unspoken culture of sexsurfing appeared first on Matador Network.