Dec
4
78% Of Americans Use The Web To Search For And Book Travel
December 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment
From a November 24, 2008 travmedia.com press release: Second Annual Travel Trust Index Reveals Growing Trust in Online Review and Booking Sites
Factors of Trust: Prolific review contributors tend to have best following
Dublin, Ireland – According the second annual Travel Trust Index Report released by boo.com, online travel review and booking sites continue to gain the public’s trust. In fact, online travel resources are strongly preferred over more traditional options such as travel agencies, travel brochures and the news media.
Dec
4
SATW Travel Writing and Photography Institute
December 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment
| January 9, 2009 12:00 am | to | January 11, 2009 12:00 am |
Thanks to Karen Misuraca for forwarding this information:
Plan to register for the next SATW Travel Writing and Photography Institute session in January 2009! (open to non-members). The faculty is comprised of a variety of individuals that have proven themselves in the marketplace, whether that be in writing, photography, video or website delivery.
Want to learn how to be a better travel writer-photographer? The Institute’s intensive one-weekend travel writing course is the way to jump-start a career or to accelerate one, and to make valuable professional contacts.
Dec
4
Fun With the Family Northern California
December 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment
The 7th(!) edition of Karen Misuraca’s guidebook, Fun With the Family Northern California, has been released by Globe Pequot Press. A popular guide for more than a decade, the book leads the way to amusement parks, historical attractions, children’s museums, wildlife habitats, festivals, parks, and more, including extensive coverage of Yosemite National Park, the Gold Country, the San Francisco Bay Area and the redwoods.
Dec
4
Russia photo books
December 4, 2008 | 1 Comment
Curious about what Russia looks like today, and how her citizens are adapting to a democratic society?Ă‚Â Jim and I visited in September, and filled two 100+ page travel journals with lively photos and commentary. They’re available as free downloads until the end of 2008.
Book #2 (just out), Russia 2, includes photos of Russia’s two magnificent cities, Moscow and St. Petersburg: this volume showcases grand palaces, sprawling museums, city scenes, centuries’ worth of art, modern outdoor sculpture, the Hermitage, Catherine’s Palace, GUM department store (converted into an upscale shopping mall), the famous Moscow metro, Peterhof, Tretyakov Gallery, the Park of the Fallen Idols, and more.
Dec
4
Just Back from: Uglich, Russia
December 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Here’s a link to the “Just Back From” section of the San Francisco Chronicle that features Jim and me in Uglich, Russia.”
Traveler: Laurie McAndish King, Novato
I went because: I wanted to see the magnificent Church of St. Dimitri of the Blood where Ivan the Terrible’s son was murdered in 1591.
Don’t bother: The famous Tschaika watches (until recently, the Tschaika clock factory manufactured 5 million timepieces per year) were uninspiring.
Dec
4
Happy Thanksgiving
December 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment
A young man named John received a parrot as a gift. The parrot had a bad attitude and an even worse vocabulary. Everything it squawked was rude, obnoxious and laced with profanity. John tried and tried to change the bird’s attitude by consistently saying only polite words, playing soft music and anything else he could think of to clean up the bird’s vocabulary.
Finally, John was so fed up and he yelled at the parrot. The parrot yelled back. John shook the parrot, and the parrot got angrier and ruder. In desperation, John grabbed the bird and put him in the freezer. For a few minutes the parrot squawked and kicked and screamed. Then suddenly there was total quiet. Not a peep was heard for more than a minute.
Dec
2
Travel Writers Exchange
December 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Travel Writers Exchange is a great site for beginning travel writers, with Top Ten lists (Top 10 Photography Tips, Top 10 Travel Writing Jobs, etc.), ideas to help you network, get published, and get paid, and lots more. Its tone is a little annoying (“Exclusive! Inside Secrets to Publishing from Editors and Publishers!”), but the content and organization are both excellent.
Dec
2
World Nomads’ 2009 Travel Scholarship
December 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment
| January 9, 2009 | ||
| 12:00 am |
From GeckoGoneBlogging:
“Wanna be a travel writer? Get a World Nomads’ 2009 Travel Scholarship & Writing assignment. Love to travel? Want to be a published travel writer?
“Here’s your awesome chance to do it – between now and January 9, 2009 – our friends over at World Nomads are offering a travel writing scholarship to Kerala, where you’ll be writing for Footprint Guides.
“What do I win?
* flight to Kerala, India between February 16th and March 7, 2008
* a 10-day tour with Blue Yonder Tour
* self-guided assignment updating travel insurance: accommodations, bars & restaurants, etc.
* Footprint travel writing assignment for Footprints India 2009
Dec
2
Science Feeds
December 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Some of the best travel writing zeros in on specific aspects of place: food, history, flora and fauna, culture, etc.Ă‚Â If you want to keep up with what’s going on in the world of nature and science, check out Science Feeds.
Dec
2
Holiday Fundraiser with Terry Tempest Williams
December 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment
| December 7, 2008 | ||
| 4:00 pm | to | 5:00 pm |
Thanks to Amy Tsakel, Business Manager for the West Marin Review, for sending this information:
“Here in the far reaches of coastal California, we ring in the holiday season with enthusiasm: a hearty feast at the local community center, a gathering of artisans at the annual craft fair, and an abundance of solstice celebrations. This weekend, join us in Point Reyes Station in support of a promising new literary journal—the West Marin Review.
Holiday Fundraiser with Terry Tempest Williams
December 7
4 p.m.
Toby’s Feed Barn
Dec
2
Companion Animal Care
December 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment
My friend Ann Garrett has launched a Marin-based pet sitting service specializing in care of animals that are ill. Sure, it’s stretch news for a travel writing site, but you never know when you’ll want to travel but need a responsible caregiver who can provide in-home visits with feeding, play, administration of fluids and medications, respite care, hospice suport, and even Reiki (gosh, I love Marin)! Call Ann at (415) 892-4678 for more info or to schedule care.
Dec
2
Mumbai is a golden songbird
December 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Thanks to Kalpana Mohan for this link to a New York Times article, What They Hate About Mumbai, by Suketu Mehta.
“I once asked a Muslim man living in a shack without indoor plumbing what kept him in the city. ‘Mumbai is a golden songbird,’ he said. It flies quick and sly, and you’ll have to work hard to catch it, but if you do, a fabulous fortune will open up for you. The executives who congregated in the Taj Mahal hotel were chasing this golden songbird. The terrorists want to kill the songbird.
Nov
17
Grotto Classes
November 17, 2008 | Leave a Comment
| December 4, 2008 | ||
| 6:30 pm | to | 7:30 pm |
From the San Francisco Writers’ Grotto:
“GROTTO CLASSES RETURN! MARK YOUR CALENDAR TO MEET THE TEACHERS ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4
“The very popular Grotto classes are returning! Beginning the week of January 12, 2009, we’ll be offering weekly evening classes, as well as weekend workshops. Classes will cover every genre from fiction to non, muck-raking to memoir. Visit the Classes page of the Grotto website at http://www.sfgrotto.org for more information and to register. (These classes always fill early.) And remember, a Grotto class makes a fabulous holiday present!
Nov
17
Venturing in Italy: Travels in Puglia, Land between Two Seas
November 17, 2008 | 1 Comment
| December 14, 2008 | ||
| 7:00 pm | to | 8:00 pm |
Editors Barbara J. Euser and Connie Burke will present their latest travel anthology, Venturing in Italy: Travels in Puglia, Land between Two Seas at Book Passage in Corte Madera at 7 p.m. on Sunday, December 14. Contributing writers will read segments from their stories about Puglia (the heel of Italy’s boot) and Barbara and Connie will present thirty slides of the region.
Local readers include Nancy Alpert, Connie Gutowsky, Tom Harrell, Laurie McAndish King, Linda Watanabe McFerrin, Ethel Mussen, and MJ Pramik. Out-of-town “celebrity readers” include Sandra Bracken, Annelize Goedbloed, and Carol Kelly
Oct
31
Narrative Travel Writing Contest
October 31, 2008 | 1 Comment
| December 15, 2008 | ||
| 11:00 pm |
Travel writing contest calls for submissions on the ‘dangerous world’
Deadline: December 15, 2008 Professionals, freelancers and writers worldwide are invited to submit their travel stories to the 2009 Narrative Travel Writing Contest, organized by TransitionsAbroad.com.
The theme for this year’s contest is “Travel in a Dangerous World.” Submissions should address whether the world is truly more dangerous than it has ever been, or if governments and media have exaggerated the threats.
Stories will be judged based on their sensitivity to the people and culture being described, ability to engage the reader, and literary quality.
Oct
13
Road Junky 2008 Gonzo Travel Writing Contest
October 13, 2008 | Leave a Comment
| December 31, 2008 | ||
| 12:00 am |
Road Junky 2008 Gonzo Travel Writing Contest – HellĂ‚Â Trips
Let’s face it, stories about people falling in love, getting high on drugs and enjoying stunning mountain views only take you so far. There hasn’t been a movie made yet that begins “And they will all live happily ever after …”
There’s way more juice in hearing about the nightmare stories, the hell trips when everything that could go wrong did. So we want to hear about your worst journeys, your near-death experiences, when you were robbed, beaten up, extorted, heartbroken or brainwashed.