Intelligent Travel

Saddling Up with TrustyPony

While we tend to ignore most of the silly travel swag orbiting the blogosphere, that doesn't mean we don't occasionally go weak in the knees over stylish laptop sleeves, totes that compress into keychains, and tiny pirate spyglasses. To that end, IT's Katie Knorovsky was thrilled to discover fellow Drake University alumna Berit Thorkelson had launched TrustyPony, an independent travel goods blog determined to help inspire people "to get out there and explore the world...in style." Check out daily picks and a Global Eye-type photo feature. But first, Berit divulges TrustyPony's backstory as well as a few highlights of her stomping grounds: the Twin Cities.

Why did you start TrustyPony?

I've been a travel writer for over a decade now, and I'd started doing regular travel-gear roundups for the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune, my hometown paper's Sunday travel section. While researching gear, it struck me that there wasn't an independent, leisure travel-specific shopping blog on the web. I've always been a compulsive traveler, as well as a compulsive solution-finder, so it really made perfect sense that I fill that void. I went live with TrustyPony in July of 2007.

You mentioned on your website that you're "not about more stuff" but "about finding the right stuff." How do you determine what the right stuff is?

For the site, I'm careful not to select stuff that only I would use. Everyone travels quite differently, has different tastes, and each type of trip requires different necessities. I try to mix it up and to be selective, yet open-minded about items. I envision what style of traveler would see what I've posted and get excited about it, because it fulfills a definite need or just because it's an interesting or cool-looking version of something they'll use on a trip. You only get to bring so many things. Best to make them really count.

How can a traveler determine what the right stuff for them is, especially in a time of shrinking baggage allowances?

I’ve always felt as though less is best. I've done month-long backpacking trips overseas where I loaded up a pack with everything I "needed," then started paring down until the bag was less than half full. In the end, I still ended up overestimating and bringing a t-shirt or two I could have done without. So my best piece of advice is to pack a few days in advance, then take three or more items out. Try to select articles of clothing that mix well, so you can get lots of mileage out of each piece. And try to accumulate double-duty clothes that can go from beach to dinner, or sightseeing to the club. That sort of thing. Beyond clothes, it really depends on your trip and your style. An item that might seem unnecessary to one can end up playing an integral part in another's travels.

What are the goods that you don't leave home without?

It depends on the trip. I'm obsessed with luggage and bags, so that's where my thoughts first turn. There's my trusty Kelty backpack, which I've used for over 15 years. It's seen a couple dozen countries and is still kicking. I love my Hideo Wakamatsu three-way carry-on trolley for more urban travel. It has a padded front laptop pocket, made of black basketball rubber, both sleek and durable. And my Yak Pak Chinook bag is the perfect size to act as a purse or a tote. Plus, it's cloth and washable. And super cute. When my husband and I might be sharing the bag, though, he prefers we go with the Haversack, made of recycled bicycle tires. Unisex. Durable. For international travel, gotta carry the all-in-one universal adapters, which have inputs and outputs for different countries in one compact little device. I have a couple of those. And, of course, Moleskine notebooks for recording road thoughts. They have new artsy versions, plus city-specific styles with little maps and such. I could keep going, and going, and going...

Eat and Shop Better

For eager wanderers like us, browsing a bookstore’s travel guidebook section tends to stir raw and conflicting emotions: lust, for the thrill of a new adventure; ennui, for the too-often trite content; and angst, for the endless options from which to choose.

After all, no matter how off-the-beaten-track you consider your destination, chances are likely the bookshelf holds at least a handful of guidebooks promising to be your travel bible. And while we strongly believe that the best way to experience travel is by immersing yourself in a place full-throttle—not with your nose in a book—there’s no denying the added confidence a guidebook provides in unfamiliar territory.

So when we heard about Portland-based eat.shop guides, we were eager to learn more. The guidebook series only features local shops and restaurants—such as Manhattan's Saxelby Cheesemongers (pictured) in Essex Street Market—so you can support establishments with local color instead of generic big-box stores and chain restaurants and hotels.

“We believe that for travelers, patronizing locally owned businesses is so integral to the real experience of any city,” eat.shop’s Emily Mattson explained to us. “Especially in the U.S., it's too easy to stay within your comfort zone while traveling: drinking Starbucks, for example, because you recognize the logo on the street. Why not go to Ristretto Roasters here in Portland, for example, where the owner, roaster, and barista are passionate about what they're serving you?”

Vienna (Opera) Waits For You

Travel to Vienna wouldn't be complete without seeing an opera. But how to see one on a tight budget? I just learned how to get tickets to a world-class show, without giving up my right arm. The Vienna State Opera (pictured, above), the oldest German-speaking theatrical venue in Europe, has a variety of options to please the budget traveler.

• Between 25 and 100 tickets are reserved for every show for children under 14. Children's tickets sell for €15 (about $22) for a seat anywhere in the house. Not bad for a parent who doesn't want to pay full price to watch their restless kid squirm during a three-hour opera!

• The State Opera's box office opens 80 minutes prior to each show. If you've got willing legs, get in line early to score standing room-only ("Stehplätze" on the seating chart) tickets for a mere €2-3.50 (about $2.90-5.00).

• Or bring binoculars and plenty of tissues and grab a seat in the nosebleed section. Balcony and gallery (balkon and galerie) tickets sell for only €7-18 (about $10-26). This is quite a steal, in my opinion. My legs would definitely appreciate the extra €3.50 spent on a seat!

Thanks for the tips, EuroCheapo!

Photo: Liam Delahunty via Flickr

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Finally, a Map for the Folding Challenged

 

While scanning the Chicago Tribune’s recent list of gift ideas for travelers, we discovered a nifty gem: Rand McNally’s fabMap. Made of “tear-proof, wrinkle-proof, waterproof micro-fiber fabric,” the map still does its job after being crumpled into your carry-on and even doubles as a lens cleaner.

The maps measure 8 by 11 inches and showcase the major sites of tourist hot spots like Hollywood, the Las Vegas Strip, the San Antonio River Walk, Miami’s South Beach, and Honolulu’s Waikiki, with several city maps that will be available Dec. 14. Available online for $5.95 each or at select big-box retailers like Barnes & Noble, Borders, Target, and Office Depot.

Though the maps might not be particularly comprehensive, we imagine the serenity gained from the lack of map-folding crises is worth its weight in gold.

Photo: Rand McNally

Learning the Lingo

Fumbling through the phrasebook of any guidebook can be frustrating when all you want to do is find out where the nearest bathroom is in Beijing. That's why IT is interested in Lingolook Flashcards. Each deck of passport-sized flashcards includes more than 75 cards with illustrations, keyword translations, a "fan-out" design (so your cards don't go flying when you try to sort through them), phonetic translations, and a reference section with other useful information (travel tips, menu readers, numbers, country map, etc.). The cards are also color coded by category (Essentials, Lodging, Food and Drink, Help, Travel and Transport, Leisure, Shopping, and Services), making for easy searching when looking for the right card.

The big bonus is that once you buy a deck of flashcards, you gain access to electronic versions of the cards as well (for Pocket PCs, iPhones, BlackBerrys, and PDF).

Currently, the only available flashcards are for China, France, and Japan, but look for Lingolook Spain, Mexico, and Italy in the fall of 2008. Buy online for $11.95.

Thanks to Jaunted, for keeping us posted.

Green Guidebooks

While lots of tour companies are becoming more sustainable and reducing their carbon footprints, there are many travelers who still prefer to explore the world solo. Guidebook companies have answered travelers'  pleas, as the Washington Post recently noted:

The new responsible and ethical travel guides, including Lonely Planet's recent "Code Green: Experiences of a Lifetime"... aims to give readers a way to judge the sustainability of operations from lodges to wildlife treks. In a world where commercial enterprises are increasingly eager to tout their eco-tourist credentials, these specialty books help travelers distinguish environmental ventures from orchestrated PR.

Some publishers, such as the U.K.'s Rough Guides and Australia's Lonely Planet, have integrated the concept into all their books and Web sites. They urge readers to reduce their global warming emissions and compensate for those they generate over the course of a vacation. Both companies' Web sites have a feature allowing visitors to calculate the global warming impact of any given trip and then donate money to Climate Care, a British group that compensates for carbon emissions by funding initiatives that cut greenhouse gases. Every Rough Guide, moreover, contains a section urging travelers to stay longer in a given location to minimize their climate impact.

The guidebook companies are careful to practice what they preach: Lonely Planet's Code Green: Experiences of a Lifetime is printed on 100% recycled paper and uses soy-based inks. Also be sure to check out the company's "Is Your Holiday Green - Or Just Greenwash?" and its "Pick and Mix" PDF chapters for South America, Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean. This spring, Fodor's is also publishing Green Travel: The World's Best Eco-Lodges & Earth-Friendly Hotels, which will feature reviews of 100 hand-picked eco-lodges around the world.

So, whether you prefer Lonely Planet, Fodors, Rough Guides, or any other guidebook, it's likely your favorite trusted travel companion is turning green (and if it's not, then it is at least green with envy).

Photo: Lonely Planet's Code Green: Experiences of a Lifetime

Kindling a Book Revolution

Last week, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos unveiled the Kindle, a portable electronic device he told Newsweek he hopes will become Book 2.0. The handheld gadgets can hold 200 books (plus hundreds more saved on memory cards), and has access to Amazon’s endless “virtual library stacks,” at $9.99 for new releases. Plus, via Amazon, Kindle users can subscribe to newspapers, magazines, and blogs at monthly subscription rates.

According to Newsweek:

The Kindle represents a milestone in a time of transition, when a challenged publishing industry is competing with television, Guitar Hero and time burned on the BlackBerry; literary critics are bemoaning a possible demise of print culture, and Norman Mailer's recent death underlined the dearth of novelists who cast giant shadows. On the other hand, there are vibrant pockets of book lovers on the Internet who are waiting for a chance to refurbish the dusty halls of literacy.

Now, we prefer curling up with a tattered book or magazine to anything with an LED screen as much as the next bookworm. But as travelers whose shoulders get tense even thinking of the way we stuff our carry-ons with hefty novels and guidebooks, the notion of slipping a 10.3-ounce Kindle into our bag feels like instant Icy Hot to our weary muscles. “Working sort of like an Etch-A-Sketch,” says Newsweek, the contraption uses MIT-developed E Ink and is designed to be easy on the eyes.

Premiering at $399 per Kindle, we’re inclined to hope Bezos pulls a Steve Jobs and lowers the price soon. In the meantime, we can't wait to see whether the Kindle sparks a book revolution.

For some book picks to use on your new Kindle, be sure to check out our Ultimate Travel Library. And to read more Intelligent Travel, subscribe to this blog's feed.
 

Photo: Amazon.com

Can You Find Me Now?

Using GPS (global positioning system) to find where you're going has become almost commonplace: more and more cars are rolling off the assembly line equipped with navigational devices and about half of cell phones now feature the system. But increasingly, GPS is not only being used to help you know where you're going, but where your friends are going as well. The International Herald Tribune just wrote a piece about GPS phone systems Loopt (which works on Sprint and Boost mobile phones) and Buddy Beacon (which works with Helio phones). Both use the technology to help you keep tabs on your friends, and raise new questions as well:

Such services point to a new truth of modern life: If GPS made it harder to get lost, new cell phone services are now making it harder to hide.

"There are massive changes going on in society, particularly among young people who feel comfortable sharing information in a digital society," said Kevin Bankston, a staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, based in San Francisco.

"We don't know what the implications are," he added. "We seem to be getting into a period where people are closely watching each other, and there are privacy risks we haven't begun to grapple with."

IT is intrigued by the idea that finding your friends could be so easy, and its certainly nice to know when an acquaintance has come to town. But we also rather like the idea of being completely off the map. Let us know what you think.

Image: Loopt

Mobile Music

Here's a new gadget that will get your wheels spinning: Cy.fi, the world’s first wireless bike speakers.

There are two parts to the device: the transmitter and the speakers. The cy.fi transmitter attaches to an iPod. The iPod stays in the cyclist’s pocket and transmits a signal to the speakers, which are attached to the handlebars. Unlike headphones, the cy.fi won't obscure important traffic noises, and cyclists will never have to reach into their pockets to skip songs (the controls are all on the speaker dock). Granted, it also means that your guilty-pleasure music can be heard by everyone (come on, we know you’ve got “Ice, Ice, Baby” on there).

These speakers came into being after Global Icons CEO Jeff Lotman--both a biking and music enthusiast--wanted to provide a solution to the dangers of biking with headphones. According to the company, the cy.fi’s Kleer audio transmission means the speakers’ transmission is “100% lossless” and claims to be ten times more energy efficient than Bluetooth.

Why we think it’s cool: If you are cycling with several people who also have cy.fi, one iPod can transmit signals to all of them (up to four). If you're on a scenic bike tour of Umbria, everyone in your party would be able to listen to a walking tour podcast of Rome or Venice to prepare for the next day's adventure. So, instead of annoying passersby with Nsync’s “Bye, Bye, Bye” ('cause we know you've got that, too), put the speakers to good use. Or at least play good music. The cy.fi will cost $149.95 and will be available in 2008.

 

DIY Guidebooks

Travelers whom wild horses couldn't keep from a particular city (think Jessie and London, or Jerry and Paris) will be psyched about a new product that showed up in IT's mailbox: the Moleskine City Notebook. These combination guidebook/journals help you organize all those places you won't want to miss the next time around, and they're a heck of a lot more reliable than our usual method of keeping track (ye old noggin).

IT checked out the New York City edition, and it seems pretty handy. There's everything you need to navigate the city: an extensive section with maps (including subway), a street index, and nifty translucent sheets for tracing itineraries over maps. The tabbed "archive" section is definitely geared for repeat travelers, but first-time visitors with no plans to return can still use it (and the 76 blank pages) as a travel journal, and then marvel at the ease of passing on recommendations to friends following in their footsteps.

Each City Notebook is specific to a particular destination, and they are currently available for a number of cities in Europe and the U.S., with Asia on the way. Canada waits with baited breath.

IT's Dirty

Mardi Gras festivities in New Orleans will soon be in as full swing as before Hurricane Katrina. However, Katie Howell won't be eating king cake with Taylor Hicks and James Gandolfini this Fat Tuesday (February 20); instead, she'll be wearing some Big Easy-themed apparel to bring a little piece of the Carnival celebration to D.C. Here, she writes about her favorite witty T-shirts:

Dirty Coast Press, one of the greatest things to come out of New Orleans post-Katrina, has been plastering the world since January 2006 with their 'Be a New Orleanian. Wherever you are.' stickers. The stickers have cropped up everywhere from the Big Apple to the Berlin World Cup to Brad Pitt's script folders. And their T-shirts have become wildly popular as well. Not your average, cheesy three-for-$10 French Quarter rags, Dirty Coast's shirts boast messages to 'keep NOLA on folks' minds.'