Matador - Travel Talk

Do you use a Blackberry???

smorse — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:11:19 -0500

Hey Ya'll....I need your help!!

I'm looking for people who make a lot of international calls to be beta testers

My company is offering $25 in free phone calls.
If you use a Blackberry, and make a lot of international calls.

I need your help
Follow this link and...

GO Phones and sim cards: help needed!

deva — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:18:42 -0500

When I traveled in the South in March, I bought one of those $20 AT&T GO phones at Target for the trip. Now, I know whatever minutes I had left when I flew back to Canada expired after 30 days, but I'm wondering, does the sim card expire too? Or can I just buy some new minutes for it? And if the sim...

Join My Group

pateluday — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 10:27:00 -0500

India travel - wildlife

http://www.flickr.com/groups/tigersafari/

What's your favorite travel gear or gadget?

geotraveler — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 05:07:55 -0500

Tell me about your favorite travel gear/gadget and I may review it on Matador Goods - http://www.matadorgoods.com - with a link back to your Matador profile.

Email me at lola [AT] matadornetwork [DOT] com

Cheers

Granada anyone?

Lost_Soles — Wed, 9 Jul 2008 17:22:53 -0500

Lately it seems to be happening more and more. I catch myself sitting or standing with a stupid look on my face as I slowly slip into a daydream. More often than not I end up some place tropical with white sand beaches and rum drinks... better yet, cheap rum drinks. Today I had a slight change of pace....

Hello World

jolinarodriguez — Tue, 8 Jul 2008 02:53:04 -0500

Hello Guys ...

keep up the good works
MORE POWER to Matadortravel

best regards

jolina
keep in touch

What is authenticity?

Joseph Kelly — Mon, 7 Jul 2008 17:35:21 -0500

What does authenticity mean to you? What would you consider your most authentic experience?

I've been doing some thinking about this, a lot, as far as what people really mean when they describe some place or experience as authentic. Academics may define it as "the immersion of a resident's life...

Matador members: Do you have a website?

novoarte — Thu, 3 Jul 2008 18:34:44 -0500

Over on our news blog, Pulse, we recently wrote about the websites of Matador members who are doing amazing things, travel-related and otherwise.

The post was a huge hit, with more than 830 views so far. You can find it here: http://matadorpulse.com/community-spotlight-matador-members-online/

We're...

Freebie

novoarte — Thu, 3 Jul 2008 18:30:43 -0500

First things first: If you're not aware that Matador has a blog called "Pulse," get thee to the News tab at the top of the navigation bar. Eva Holland and I--and some occasional guest editors--serve up fresh content (usually twice a day) about travel and place-related news from around the world and within...

writers' retreats

Lhasa — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 10:15:41 -0500

Has anyone ever been on a writers' retreat abroad? I know that there are several offered in the States, but there is also a high-profile one held in Paris during the summer (for English-speaking writers). There is also another held in the Chateau d'Alogny in fall. Do you know of any others?

Flashpacker?!

ricardo_emp — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 10:17:43 -0500

I may be out of it, but I heard this term the other day for the first time...can anyone give me a good description of what exactly is a Flashpacker?

Where's the Beef?

jgbrandt — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 23:38:21 -0500

Take a look at this article from the New York Times if you don't know about the protests in South Korea over American beef imports.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/20/washington/20trade.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

What I want to know from fellow Matadorians is, in any travels or experiences with the...

MATADOR NEW YORK CITY!!! Are you ready to party?

novoarte — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 19:09:37 -0500

Okay, Matador New York.

Our West Coast friends have been partying it up, and it's time for us to get off screen and get together.

Before I head out of the city for the next few months, I'm organizing an impromptu party this Friday at a TBD location in Manhattan (TBD only because I haven't...

What Are the American Customs?

jgbrandt — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 17:16:40 -0500

Usually before I travel somewhere I read up on the place, the people, and the customs. It's always good to know how to greet yourself, respect the local traditions, and not make an ass of yourself in general. I've been reading up on the culture in Ecuador, and recently thought to myself, what are the...

The world is Talking. Are You Listening?

BIENTHUY — Thu, 5 Jun 2008 08:08:05 -0500

The world is Talking. Are You Listening?

Which places do you go back to again and again?

deva — Sun, 1 Jun 2008 22:54:27 -0500

When I first started traveling, I figured it would be years and years before I started making 2nd or 3rd visits to places - after all, why go back when there's still so much more to see? But already, in my few short years of international travel, I've started to make repeat pilgrimages to a few places,...

Party Hostels around the world

Nomadic Matt — Sun, 25 May 2008 20:23:08 -0500

Hello everybody,

I am collecting a list of the top 20 party hostels in the world and am querying for opinions. I have about 20 already but I am looking to see what hostels people feel should make the list and find some hostels I might have missed, which given the number of hostels out there, is probably...

Talk to Us! Pulse Editors Seeking YOUR News!

novoarte — Sat, 24 May 2008 12:17:43 -0500

Hi, Matador Community!

If you haven't heard, the Matador Network has grown, and now includes nine blogs.

Eva Holland and I co-edit the News blog, also known as Pulse (www.matadorpulse.com), in which our mission is to scour the internet, print media, and, especially, our own community to give you...

New Traveling Name

Turner — Sat, 24 May 2008 10:13:27 -0500

I'm buying a new domain name and need to think of a good traveling/vagabonish name for my travels. Any ideas? Just hoping for some feedback on Matador. I'm particular about running marathons, travel philosophy, and hail from Austin, Texas.

Tips for receiving a free(-ish) bible in the mail...

Lauren Lim — Fri, 16 May 2008 03:23:39 -0500

I just got this from my friend Haley, who is sending me powdered gatorade to take to India because it saved her life in Ghana. (Although it didn't actually stop her from having explosive diarrhea in the middle of a crowded street festival.)

"Hey Dude,

I don't have much time to write right now...

USA Today travel section Friday May 17

snowleopordboy — Thu, 15 May 2008 16:48:56 -0500

USA Today will run a feature article on my upcoming uide bok "Bicycling San Diego" his Friday. It will be in print version on that day and then available online for several weeks under the reporter Laura Bly. Enjoy it, and if you are coming to San Diego, bring your bike and ride along with me as I...

Uploaded some videos

Racso11_11 — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:38:00 -0500

Just uploaded some video's from the travels. Anyone who wants to check em out is more than welcome.
Cheers

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=RacsoEleven&page=1

low cost international shipping question

azulero — Tue, 13 May 2008 11:27:19 -0500

was wondering if anyone had any info or could suggest a good company ... I need to send back a good-size package (Lisbon to Los Angeles) but then also receive a good size package in return ... any tips?
thanks!

Teaching English in S. Korea

MichaLola — Mon, 12 May 2008 19:29:50 -0500

I was wondering if anyone could share their experiences about living and teaching in S. Korea. I've been going through this weird existentialist crisis and I believe it may have something to do with having lived in one city for too long. I need something new. However, as my bank account has been on...

Fiery Phoenix

Drifterboy — Sun, 11 May 2008 12:54:46 -0500

I know of a few people who have this crazy drunken stunt called the Fiery Phoenix. If you have heard of it or have seen it, i would like to hear from you. I am trying to put together a pic collage.

You can email me at

Thanks Preston

Is the "Lonely Planet trail" really so bad?

deva — Thu, 8 May 2008 07:31:36 -0500

I've always been vaguely irked when my fellow-travelers complain about their destination being swamped by people similar to themselves, when they note that following a guidebook recommendation only leads to a cafe full of backpackers for example - the experience we've all had, sometimes called the...

Obama-mania around the world?

deva — Tue, 6 May 2008 10:32:18 -0500

Noticed any foreign Obama fans during your overseas travels during this US election year? (Or fans of any of the candidates, for that matter?) The 2008 presidential election is being followed closely around the world. Drop by Matador Pulse to share your stories!

http://matadorpulse.com/barack-obama-for-president-of-the-world/...

I need some ideas!

IAmTheWalrus — Fri, 2 May 2008 12:17:17 -0500

Other than my love of travel, I also have a lust for randomness and usual experiences - fortunately these two desires combine quite nicely.

For example, one of the highlights of my South East Asia trip was gatecrashing a party and wound up drinking shots of whiskey with the city governor of Siem Reap...

If you could change the travel industry...

novoarte — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 17:08:44 -0500

If you could change anything about travel and the travel industry, what would it be?

For example: I would change the fact that airlines, trains, and other travel related services all seem to have voice-activated prompts when you call them, WHICH MAKES NO SENSE because passengers use these services...

Como se dice...beer?

Tim Patterson — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:21:32 -0500

OK, here's a question I know you have an answer for:

How do you say "one more beer please" in a foreign language?

I want to compile the definitive beer dictionary for travelers and figure this is a good place to start, so without further ado, and with extra points for draft beer...

Japanese:

(if...