Katka Travels How to drink cheaply in NYC

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alcohol, beer, cocktails, drinking, New York, NYC, partying, Travel, travel guide, travel tip

Photo by PetroleumJelliffe.
Paying $8 for a beer where you’re from might seem outrageous, but to us New Yorkers, that’s just life.  However, it doesn’t mean we drink like that all of the time.  There are plenty of occasions where we need to pinch pennies, and we’ve all… http://katkatravels.com/?p=1818

Katka Travels 5 of my fave resources for inexpensive flights

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airfares, budget, deals, flight, flying, Travel, travel advice, travel blog, travel tips

Every day I scour the internet in search of awesome airfares I can take advantage of.  I used to do the whole Kayak/Priceline/Mobissimo searches, but they became long, complicated guess-and-check processes and I wanted faster results. These sites below that offer me a lot of flexibility and… http://katkatravels.com/?p=1773

Newest Article for Matador Network: How to celebrate Thanksgiving in Slovakia

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advice, Matador Network, Slovak, Slovakia, thanksgiving, tips, Travel, travel advice, travel article, travel blog, travel story, travel tips, travel writing, writing

As travelers, it’s easy for us to forget that not every country celebrates Thanksgiving.  It’s even easier for us to forget that not all countries sell frozen turkeys.  Recently, I wrote an article for Matador Network on my improvised Thanksgiving meal that occurred in Slovakia in 2008.  That was probably the best Thanksgiving I ever had and it was a really special memory.  Check it out!

Figure out a menu that will show your new Slovak friends how Thanksgiving is your most favorite holiday in the world. Feel slightly intimidated that many Slovaks make their meals from scratch, so obviously instant mashed potatoes will not do (not that they really exist in Slovakia…). The trepidation wears off as you recall that part of Thanksgiving’s charm is having an excuse to eat everything in sight.

How to celebrate Thanksgiving in Slovakia

“Your article SUCKS!”: How Do You Respond to Negative Commentary/Criticism?

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advice, tips, Travel, travel advice, travel blog, travel tips, travel writing, travel writing exercise, writing

Sad panda in London, UK

As an emerging writer, I am not yet used to receiving responses to articles I’ve published on the web or in print. I’m usually elated if I get one or two, and especially cheery if they say something positive like “Good job!” Who wouldn’t be? But then, there are the critics. Critics, it seems try to bring you down for only reasons they understand.

I wrote an article about Hurricane Sandy that received some positive feedback through comments, Twitter and Facebook. I was just happy people were actually reading my article at all. But then someone on Facebook commented on how the article was an exaggerated portrayal of what happened and that I was over-glorifying my role through the whole thing. I got mad, and thought about retaliating with some equally nasty commentary, but I stopped, took a breath, and thought.

Thought Catalog contributing writer and literary personality Nathan Savin Scott often opens dialogue centered around negative commentary:

“Negative comments hurt. Yes, they do. No matter who you are…I know I’m supposed to say that I appreciate them because they will make my writing better, but let’s be real, for every one negative comment I get that actually brings up a valid point about the problem with my writing, I get 200 that just say ‘That suck'” or ‘Ur gay’ or ‘I thought this was stupid.'”

There are certain things every writer must keep in mind when dealing with outside criticism:

1. People are entitled to their own opinions. One of the hardest things to reconcile with is that there are going to be people out there who won’t like your work. Scott suggests writers “humanize the person commenting…they’re people. And that’s what you have to remember. People who feel stuff. They’re angry people, obviously, and pretty clearly dealing with some control issues. (What type of person takes time, considerable time, out of their day to anonymously post this hateful shit?)” It sucks to see it, but honestly, you can’t criticize a person’s feelings. Some people just don’t see it your way. And that’s that.
2. Don’t be that author. If you respond in an equally-negative fashion, what does that say about you? That you are a bitter author who can dish it but can’t take it? A strong writer is one who is able to forge ahead without a little bad commentary dragging them down.
3. Not all criticism is bad for you. Sometimes, internet trolls actually do you some good. If people disagree with comments, they will fight back with a vengeance and support you. But even if it is overwhelmingly negative, at least people are reading it. You can open up a new conversation, and learn from the experience as well. “A huge flux of negative comments can teach you to stay away from certain topics in your writing,” Scott describes.  “When you write something and ALL the feedback is negative, you can learn something from that, even if the individual comments are stupid.”

When I comment on articles, I follow these rules. 1) only leave positive comments. 2) comment in the style of the article – is it a judgmental article? Then it’s alright to leave a judgmental comment or 3) open up a dialogue. I try to uphold rules 1 and 3 more than 2, utilizing rule #3 more so when there is an article I don’t agree with.

An article was written about some popular USA tourist attractions that the author thought were not as big of a deal as people made them out to be. She received some scathing remarks. Although I didn’t agree with her choices or style, instead of bashing her for it, I tried to uncover deeper meaning. Starting a dialogue is constructive and often helpful for other readers to gain insight as to what the author really wants readers to get out of the article that may not have come across easily the first time around.

So basically, “don’t player hate – participate.” Make negative commentary as constructive as you can, and don’t get defeated when a few people don’t happen to like what you have to say. It doesn’t mean you’re a bad writer. As a writer, you’re going to encounter criticisms in many forms. Take what you can from it, and grow.

“When some kid writes, ‘nice artical you fucking homo’ on something I write, it doesn’t do me any good to lose sleep over it,” says Scott. “Instead, I sort of make myself imagine the person who’s writing that. How sad and angry that person must be…To empathize with people who hate you, who hate on you, is a lot easier on the heart than just hating them back.”

How do you deal with negative commentary/criticism for your work?

Thanks to the always awesome Nathan S. Scott for providing me with some sweet quotations.  Check out his articles for Thought Catalog, if you like what he has to say leave him a little love!

My Latest for Matador Network: 5 travel lessons that got me through Hurricane Sandy

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advice, article, hurricane, Hurricane Sandy, Matador Network, natural disasters, tips, Travel, travel advice, travel article, travel blog, travel news, travel story, travel tips, travel writing, travel writing exercise, writing

My latest article for Matador Network

People whose homes were not annihilated during Hurricane Sandy still freaked out a bit. “WHAT DO YOU MEAN, I’M LIVING WITHOUT ELECTRICITY/HEAT/WATER/GAS FOR TWO WEEKS? HOW AM I EVER GOING TO DO ANYTHING EVER AGAIN?!?!?!??!”  People lamented and “woo is me”d until the the magic lights came back on and suddenly, everything was fine.

What most people don’t realize however, is that there are people all around the world who live without basic amenities every day – sometimes, for their whole lives.  This is something you would only be able to know by traveling the world and exposing yourself to the way other people live.  It’s one thing to see it on the news, it’s another to actually live it.

No power?  No problem.  I wanted to write an article about how it’s alright to live without the things we take for granted, as long as we are resourceful in other ways.  I love learning how I an improve my life from watching another way of doing things.  For example, I never would have known what to do with myself in the dark if I hadn’t lived through continuous blackouts in Ghana.  And I never would have figured out what I could and could not eat if I hadn’t been without a fridge in Slovakia.  We learn as we travel, it changes us, and it helps us grow in other ways.

Before the next natural disaster hits, check out my survival lessons I applied to Hurricane Sandy.  You’d be surprised how easy it really is to live without technological innovations.

5 travel lessons that got me through Hurricane Sandy

What were some travel skills that you were able to use to get you through the storm?

Happy Halloween! And Happy Stereotyping?

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cultural sensitivity, culture, Halloween, Holidays, news, stereotypes, travel blog, travel news, travel story, travel writing, writing

From the 2012 STARS campaign, led by students at Ohio University

Recently, Gadling posted a list of Halloween Costumes for Travel Lovers which I’m sure is mainly tongue-in-cheek but I found to actually be a bit judgmental.  Halloween played a very big trick on us this year with Hurricane Sandy. But that doesn’t mean your Halloween has to be a natural disaster!

When I first saw the article, I thought “Oh, this will be a cool list of common items travelers have that can be used to make creative costumes on the road!” After all, I’d pulled the same MacGyver tactics to create a last-minute Batman costume while celebrating Halloween in Prague.  Instead, what I read was basically a list of travel stereotypes, and how you cam emulate their “looks” to enhance the idea of this stereotype for yourself.

Let’s start off with the Trustafarian Backpacker.  I don’t think it’s wrong for wealthy people to travel.  They may not travel in the same way you do, but their presence in the travelsphere is not to be scoffed at.  Wealthy travelers keep many developing parts of the world in business – many of the Caribbean islands, for example, rely solely on tourism to keep a steady economy.  I  know a lot of wealthy people who act like hippies because they didn’t agree with the lifestyle they grew up with and are trying to change themselves; traveling offers them a chance to explore places away from their upbringing and make their own life decisions.  I also know a lot of poor travelers who are just as culturally insensitive as what is implied by the Gadling article.  Basically, let hippies, wanna-be hippies, and non-hippies do what they want and mind your own business.

Harajuku girl: I’m not really sure what this is supposed to be.  Harajuku isn’t really a person, it references a place (Harajuku is the area around Harajuku station in Tokyo, Japan), a sub-culture (Japanese teens congregate socially in this area on Sundays) and a style (Harajuku punk mixes a lot of genres and is one of many fashions paraded around Tokyo’s Harajuku area).  Harajuku fashion is not merely limited to exaggerated punk styles as well – Cosplay, Lolita, Kei and Decora sub-cultures are also present.  Not only that, but to dress in any of the aforementioned styles as a Halloween costume is actually offensive to many of these sub-cultures.  They don’t view their clothing as charactery or costumey.  Would you dress as an Amish person and celebrate Halloween in Lancaster, PA? Probably not.

Euro Trash Guy: Again, let’s not make fun of the man for his sense of style.  Just because you don’t dress in pointy shoes, “douchey” scarves (what determines a douchey scarf from a non-douchey scarf?) and shirts with high-thread counts (those sound heavenly, actually) doesn’t mean Euro Trash Dude wants to wear your second-hand shirt from Goodwill and cargo pants from Old Navy.  Offering Ecstasy tabs to strangers?  That sucks.  Holidaying in Ibiza?  How does that even factor into this equation?  If you don’t like the way this guy looks, don’t hang out with him!  Also, half of Europe dresses like this on a daily basis and I’m sure they wouldn’t like to be referred to as “trash” just like Americans don’t like being referred to as “obese.”

Moral of the story folks, is that Halloween is meant to be a fun day where people dress up in crazy outfits in search of sweet treats – it shouldn’t be an opportunity to visually bash people’s appearances or attitudes using Halloween as an excuse.  Some people go as far as to remind people not to stereotype on deeper cultural levels, such as the STARS campaign started by students at Ohio University.  Most Halloween costumes are innocently created, but if you think your idea might bother someone, maybe stick to one of those cheesy store-bought outfits instead.

Awesome Trip Alert: 6 Nights in Peru

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deal, Machu Picchu, Peru, South America, tourism, Travel, travel blog, travel deal, travel deals, travel tips, trip alert, vendor

I want to do this at Machu Picchu! Photo by wanderlasss

Peru is definitely on my list of places to go, if only to see Machu Picchu.  But if I only have six nights to see everything, I want to do it right.  Sometimes, guided tours are a good thing…

What You Get: International airfare from Miami to Lima, intra-Peru airfare, 6 nights accommodations (3 nights in Lima, 2 nights in Cusco and 1 night in Aguas Caliente near Machu Picchu), English-speaking tour guide, all transfers and entrance fees, 6 breakfasts and 2 dinners.

Additional info: Reservations will require a deposit to secure the package airfare.

Why this trip is awesome: HELLO! MACHU PICCHU, one of the great mountainous mysteries of the ancient world! This trip provides a nice little sampling of Peru’s great cities and sights. Traveling to Machu Picchu can be a little hectic, so having a guide plan everything for you makes it really easy. A couple of meals thrown in there also helps cut down costs for you while still allowing you to sample local flavors on your own.

Dates: March 11, 25, April 8, 22 or May 20, 2013

Book by: October 26, 2012. Click here to book.

Information courtesy of Travel Zoo and Gate 1 Travel

Career-Break Travel with BootsnAll

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advice, Round the world, RTW, RTW travel, tips, tourism, Travel, travel advice, travel blog, travel tips, trips

Recently, BootsnAll held a fantastic interactive RTW chat about career-break travel. One of their innovative methods was recording their Google Hangout session and posting it on Youtube. I really enjoyed watching the experts discuss this topic in-depth. Sometimes, 140 characters just doesn’t cut it – I need to hear it from the “horse’s mouth.”

I am always ready, and never ready, for career-break travel. Yes, of course I am totally capable of packing up my bags and leaving home to travel the world – the motivation isn’t the problem. But at this juncture in my life, I have too many responsibilities that are unavoidable. I have to pay my student loans. I have at least a year of grad school left. My boyfriend and I have been talking about getting married soon. I could leave my family, my home, my dog and my friends behind, no problem, and I have enough money saved to make it possible, but those aforementioned hiccups sadly are causing the delay.

Before the BootsnAll RTW chat, career-break travel depressed me. Here I am, 25, well-traveled but always seeking more, and always jealous of those younger than I who have traveled extensively. “Travel while you’re young,” people always tell me; I freak out visualizing how someday I’ll be too old and full of kids and arthritis to do anything ever again. Hearing miserable adults reminiscing about their study abroad or backpacking stints in their 20s also worries me. I can’t imagine going through life the same way – honestly, it terrifies me.

But hearing the BootsnAll RTW career-break travel chat live was incredibly inspiring. Here are a handful of people who have taken that leap, and guess what? They didn’t do it when they were 25! Sherri Ott, founder of MeetGoPlan said she took her career break at 35. That’s ten years more I have to save, plan and GO! She made me confident that career break travel can occur at any age and that you don’t have to be an early 20s spring chicken to enjoy adventurous world travel. Not to mention, scores of other social media users I connect with are well-seasoned, spritely travelers, and none of them are younger than 25.

So the point is, if you are young and suffer from wanderlust, don’t get discouraged. If travel is a priority in your life (like it is in mine), you’ll make it happen. All of those little trips will eventually lead up to one big, fabulous experience. Whether that career break comes when you’re 25 or 55, it’ll come, it will be wonderful, life changing, and help you feel complete.

It’s always good to have long-term goals, and RTW travel is definitely something to look forward to!

You are never too old to dream a new dream ~ C.S. Lewis

Do You Travel Write, or Travel Wrong?

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advice, narrative, tips, Travel, travel advice, travel blog, travel narrative, travel story, travel tips, travel writing, trips, vignette, writing

© KatkaTravels

I am loving this article by Pam, acclaimed travel writer and photographer over at Nerd’s Eye View. Her recent review of TBEX Europe ’12 was insightful and thought-provoking, but most of all, led me to this little gem about the travel writing format.

Everyone does it: when trying to encapsulate our emotions about a place, travel writing can sometimes come off more promotional than relevant.  I struggle with this a lot – how do you make a place sound good without making it sound “good?”  Even if you truly feel that the beaches of the Bahamas are “gorgeous beyond belief” or “the hot place to be in 2013,” it still sounds like someone paid you to say so.

However, Pam helped me evaluate how to “Travel Write, not Travel Wrong.”  Of course, this insight is purely subjective and obviously, there is no absolute perfect way to write about travel.  Above all, it is important to remember your purpose for writing.  If you want to make travel more promotional, and if that’s your strength, go for it!

I especially love these few lines:

I am glad you had an awesome time on someone else’s nickel, now, can you tell me something genuinely interesting, new, insightful, enlightening, peculiar, maddening… about the destination? Or am I just reading about you and your friends (or a group of bloggers) having a good time? Whose voice am I hearing when I read about your travels? Yours or a voice heavily filtered to please a sponsor? When you sit down to write, do you think about who you’re writing for?

I started travel writing because I had stories that I wanted to tell. I have experiences that may be relatable, or may be totally distant. But I think sometimes my travels are interesting, and that my style of writing is different from other authors out there.

Pam put into perspective a form of travel writing I need to improve on. Are the words on the page genuinely interesting, or just something I think people want to hear? Is there a way I can craft my topics into narrative form so that it sounds less like an advertorial campaign and more like an adventure?

Or, think about it this way:

Many people write for travel in hopes that readers will live vicariously through them.  They had such a good time at the Great Wall of China, why shouldn’t their readers feel the same way?  Except, everyone’s travel experience is different. You may have thought the Eiffel Tower was “amazing and beautiful” and someone else might think it’s “ugly and out of place.” Instead of trying to replicate your trip for others, why not just share an experience you had?  Don’t try to make it sound awe-inspiring, or critical, or preachy.

Just write it how you want to remember it, and let your readers have an adventure of their own.

What are some of your tips for travel writing?

SADcars Make Me Happy

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advice, car rental, cars, company, Iceland, narrative, review, SADcars, tips, tourism, transportation, Travel, travel advice, travel blog, travel deal, travel deals, travel narrative, travel story, travel tips, travel writing, vendor, vignette

Our sweet ride from SADcars

$80 to freeze my butt off and look up at the night’s sky? Some of the “Northern Lights” tours through Iceland’s countryside promise guaranteed sightings or a free tour the next day, but who has time to plan that closely? I’m only in Iceland for five days. I want to make the most of every minute.

“Rent a car and do a self-guided tour,” the forums touted. Lots of attractions in Iceland are free because it’s all nature-based, so Lindsey and I decide to take the plunge. I find SADcars via BeersandBeans, whose experience with the company seems very pleasant. We want to see a lot of Iceland in a little bit of time; SADcars helped us achieve this goal.

“Do you have an automatic vehicle?” I ask the SADcar employee. He’s very obliging despite our drowsy demeanor, and at 7:00am we are introduced to a candy-apple red Toyota hatchback. It’s nothing gorgeous, but I’m happy about that. Driving in Iceland is not a clean business. I don’t worry about bringing back the car with normal wear and tear that comes with rural driving, since the car’s main purpose is to get me there and back – not make me look like a rockstar.

Siggy, an employee of the company, and I have several conversations about Iceland on Twitter via @SADcars. She’s extremely helpful and cool. It’s also comforting to know there are service stations all across Iceland so if we break down or something happens, help is on the way.

“You don’t need to fill up the gas tank before you return it,” the rental employee tells us before we drive off. Good news, because we spend almost half of our budget on petrol.

Took us into lava fields and back

Put the keys in the car. Turn the windshield wipers on as it starts to drizzle. We are surprised how smooth the car runs and how bright the lights are. The seats are comfortable, broken in, as though I’ve been driving this vehicle my entire life.

Our SADcar stores our luggage after a grizzly hostel worker says we can’t check in until 2pm. It also becomes our pantry after we pick up snacks and drinks for our impeding road trips. I don’t worry about how long things will take or about being anywhere on time, since our car offers us ultimate flexibility (especially when we decide at 1am on a Monday night to go chase the Northern Lights). Plus, listening to Icelandic radio is super cool. The selection of Icelandic songs and hearing their unique language over the airwaves is an out of this world experience.

We met some other Americans on our trip who laugh at our SADcar’s appearance. Our new friends rented a brand new Toyota Yaris that drove through the freak snowstorms occurring in the North this year. According to Dan, “Our car got totally destroyed. I can’t imagine what kind of fees we are going to incur.”

“Yeah, that MIGHT make it to the east side,” his friend Luke comments about our car. “MAYBE.”

Too bad for them, it totally does – all the way to Jökulsárlón and back, through sheep farms and gravel roads and side trips to pet Icelandic horses.

Old cars, new adventures.

I think I just coined a new company motto…

When you rent a car in Iceland, you get to make awesome pit-stops like THIS!

 

*All vendors reviews are based on purchases by the author.  No promotional discounts were provided/solicited.  Reviews are the sole opinion of the author as a way of saying “Thanks!” for great service.