[Travel Saturdays] Sykes Hot Springs, Big Sur

This is where I will be this weekend. Photos to come next week!

One of Three Hot Springs (Image via Big Sur Lodging)

This will be me, except my feet are girl's feet (Image via boy loves fire)

I have to hike up a mountain for ten miles before I get there, but it will be well-deserved and well-enjoyed.

[Things We Adore Sunday]

1. Nerve's Talking to Strangers. I can never get enough of these articles. I feel like it's such a cool mini-introspective into each city.

Photo via Nerve

2. The Hipmunk travel blog. Lots of vital travel news and cute tidbits. I'm planning my next trip as I type this. Hipmunk is a new travel search site, like kayak or bing travel. 

3. Pretty summer sandals like these. I'm so excited to get some and pair them with high-waisted denim shorts. 

via Need Supply

Via Kurt Geiger UK

4. Reese's Ice Cream. Oh, yeah.

[Travel Saturdays] Girls Weekend in LA

This weekend, I'll be in Los Angeles, doing some of my favorite LA things. I have a love-hate relationship with LA, but I only have love for these places. 

Tokyo Delve's in North Hollywood. Sake BOOOOMBS.

Shopping at Kaitlyn in Westwood

Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles on La Brea

UCB Theater - BYOB, laugh your ass off for $9 (photo via LAist)

[Travel Saturdays] A Slice of...

Danielle is the amazing woman behind Sometimes Sweet - one of my favorite blogs. One of here features that I enjoy the most is her "A Slice of..." where friends and readers share the best parts of their cities. The newest one, on Chicago, has me itching to go to the city (and not just chill at the airport :-) ) Other cities include Tuscon, Nashville, Columbia (South Carolina), and even the Jersey Shore among others.

[Travel Saturdays] West Coast Wine Tasting in Winter

Last week, I took a short day trip up the Northern California coastline to visit the Russian River wine region. Most people save their wine tasting trips for the summer, when the days are long and tastings stretch on for hours and lead to picnic lunches and hangovers that start somewhere around 9PM. In the winter, you have to be much more strategic about where you go because you have fewer hours of daylight. 

My friends and I chose three wineries to visit because of price, hours, and the breadth of their selections. That way, everyone got a little of everything they wanted. 

1. Korbel: Free tasting, free tour of the champagne cellars, and a wonderful cafe to eat lunch. 

Photo of the brandy tower from Sunset

I got a bottle of the sec, which is perfect for super-sweet mojitos because it is dry and not syrupy sweet like the Brut. I also picked up some of their cream sherry, which the tour guide said is good for curing coughs. I'll probably just drink it because it tastes so damn good. You can't get this stuff anywhere but at the winery or online. Their wine sucks though, so don't bother with that. 

2. Martinelli: This is a much cozier establishment with super-friendly staff. You do have to pay $5 for the tasting, but they also gave us about 10 coupons for free tastings at other wineries in the Napa and Sonoma areas. My only complaint was that they definitely focus too much on Syrah (that's a personal preference thing though) and there were fruit flies buzzing around who were trying to get into my wine glass. 

Foggy day at the vineyards

3. Kendall-Jackson: I know it's not exactly the most original, but it is quite fancy. And the staff tailored our tasting to each one of our preferences. They had a really tasty, sweet Riesling that I loved (and bought with my 10% discount that Martinelli threw my way) and a nice Moscato. The ambience was also worth the visit. Got me thinking about my wedding to ______ (who will it be!?).

Inside the wine tasting room

I definitely recommend the wine country in winter. It's much quieter and more intimate and, really, there's no excuse not to enjoy wine in every season on every day of the year. 

[Get Involved Tuesdays] The Wide World of WWOOFing

I lived here for free for 4 weeks

For those who don't know, WWOOF stands for Willing Workers on Organic Farms. And if you don't know what it stands for, you're also missing out on a world of opportunity to learn how to milk goats.

Well, not just to milk goats. You're also missing out staying with families all over the world, taking care of their animals, plants, children, or whatever else you feel like doing, and learning about sustainability, farming, design, crafts, cooking, and secret recipes for Devonshire apple cake.

I WWOOFed my way around New Zealand for about 5 months, working four hours per day in exchange for a place to live and free meals. I stayed on the beach, near the mountains, and in the middle of nowhere and spent virtually no money.

Get involved in WWOOFing and give back to family farms who supply us with so much happiness with their wares at farmer's markets and specialty stores. It only costs about $40 to join each country's network (or join the US one because that's probably the best deal in terms of sheer volume of experiences) and that fee gets you access to all the farm resources you need.

WWOOFing tips and tricks after the break!

[News Counterpoint] How to Use CouchSurfing Safely

Me and My Auckland CouchSurfing Family

Like Amber, I was shocked to read about the numerous instances of sexual harassment and even rape that had occurred as a result of people using CouchSurfing.org. I do think it is the website’s responsibility to notify people of their rights in these situations. Though it may not be the website’s direct responsibility to punish hosts and surfers for their wrongdoing, they can forward these complaints to police departments and, at the very least, delete a person’s account upon the slightest suspicion of harassment or assault. Even the notion that someone might give off that sort of vibe should preclude them from using the service.

At the same time, it is important to consider how CouchSurfing is run. It is mostly staffed by unpaid volunteers from around the world, who do their part while they work full-time jobs and live their own lives. They can’t be expected to police individual profiles. Because this is the case, it is important to know that you’re on your own when you use the site.

Having heard and lived through my share of cautionary tales with the website, I’ve put together a guideline for using CouchSurfing safely, so you can have the most memorable (in a good way) experience possible. Happy travels!

[News] CouchSurfing Ignores Victims of Sexual Harassment

I was perusing Change.org's blog and saw this article on CouchSurfing and sexual harassment. When I backpacked through Europe this past summer, my friends and I debated doing CouchSurfing but decided against it because there were three of us. In theory, CouchSurfing seems like legit option for travelers on a budget. Travelers can contact hosts via the website and can stay with people all over the world for free, with the expectation when they return home, they will open up their own abodes to fellow CouchSurfers. With the rating and comment system as well as the fun and affordability that CouchSurfing offers, who wouldn't consider this option? (Especially when their tagline is "Participate in Creating A Better World, One Couch At A Time."

However, this post outlines how CouchSurfing has ignored comments on profiles and message boards about sexual harassment and even rape.

Some highlights from the blog post:

Digital video artist Melissa Ulto traveled to Athens and was harassed as her hosts tried to kiss, grope and coerce her into sex: "...Ulto contacted CouchSurfing to report the host's misconduct and left negative feedback on his profile warning other women to stay away. The host retaliated by posting nasty comments to Ulto's profile, including calling her a "psycho." CouchSurfing remained silent. So, she contacted them again. Silence. On the third try, she threatened legal action and got their attention. But even that failed to keep it."

"...the online service ignores complaints from women and LGBTQ travelers who have been attacked, drugged, raped, molested, and harassed by hosts."

"CouchSurfing denies responsibility with the pat response that victims should more vigorously vet potential hosts and report illegal behavior to the proper authorities in the country in which they're traveling."

(This reminds me of the Craigslist controversy and the controversy over the intentions of certain posts and how they promote illegal behavior such as child pornography and prostitution.)

How responsible are these websites for the content posted on them? How much responsibility should CouchSurfing take on? I think they should take complaints more seriously and make more effort to ensure the safety of travelers. That being said, I'm not sure I would ever do CouchSurfing even if there were better policies. However, for travelers choosing CouchSurfing, it should be a safe option, since it is marketed as such. Sure one can offer advice: "use the buddy system" and "check the comments," but those methods are fool-proof against rape and harassment.

If CouchSurfing is asking its users to make the world a better place, they should try to do the same.

Read Carrie's take on CouchSurfing here.

[Travel Saturdays] See Big Sur the Best Way Possible

The View from McKay Falls: Worth the Misty Walk

A few weeks ago, I convinced my camping-virgin friends to allow me to show them Big Sur from the only side I've seen of it, and that's not the side overlooking the ocean from wraparound windows at a bed and breakfast (I wish). It's the side where you eat at a cozy picnic table and sip tea around a fire, then retire on a sleeping pad and wake up in the middle of the night to hear skunks rustling around outside your tent. Sigh. So beautiful.

Anyway, they drove from LA and I drove from San Francisco and we met pretty close to halfway. We had a really quiet campsite at the end of the campgrounds, where we set up our tent and sleeping gear. Since I had planned the occasion, I gave them the responsibility of bringing most of the food. So they brought some hot dogs and we threw them on top of the grill along with some buns and called it a well-rounded meal.

The next day, we went on a hike to Pfieffer Falls. It only took about 15-20 minutes to get there, and then we turned around to do the Valley Walk, which offers 360° views of the entire valley. It was too foggy for us, but you can usually also see the ocean from there. This is what we saw instead:

Then we ate lunch at Nepenthe, which is a family-run, locally-sourced restaurant on Highway 1. My friends had the Ambrosia burger and I had a veggie burger, but I wasn't that impressed (especially not after the $25 price tag with tax and tip). I like the idea of Nepenthe though, but you're paying 50% for the view, 25% for the atmosphere, and 25% for the food. The french fries are a good investment for your belly though. Farther south down Highway 1, you run into signs for McKay Falls, which you can't miss if you go to Big Sur. You'll see all the other tourists there, but there's certainly a good reason for its popularity.

It started pouring rain by the time we got there, so we turned around pretty quickly and ran back to the car. Then we ate cup of noodles and s'mores for dinner. I mean, we're total health-freaks, in case you couldn't tell.

Overall, I'd say the weekend was a success. But I don't need to say that; this face says it all.

Until the next adventure!