By Rease Kirchner

When I told people I was leaving the US to move to Buenos Aires, Argentina, most of them thought I was crazy. When I added that my half-brained dog, Padfoot, would be coming with me, they thought I had snapped completely. You can read all about the insane adventure (read: stressful nightmare) that he and I went through to arrive to Argentina in my article It’s My Dog and I’ll Cry if I Want To. After you read that, you might be surprised to know that when I decided to move back to the US just a couple weeks ago, I was determined to bring my beloved Padfoot with me again. Yep. I should be committed. 

The Rules Have Changed. Let’s take this from inconvenient to comically complicated

When I moved to Argentina, the rules for flying with a pet were fairly straight forward. Padfoot had to have rabies shots no more recent than 20 days but still valid at the time of travel and an international health certificate done by a veterinarian that was qualified to do this exam no more than 10 days before the travel date. The airline rules were related to the cage size, a proper water bowl, and some temperature restrictions. Inconvenient, but reasonable.

This time, the international health certificate had to be done no more than 5 days before the travel date. Oh, did I mention the health certificate cannot be presented at the airport like before, but instead must be taken to a middle-man company called SENASA so that they can exchange the certificate for a series of stamped papers that you have to pay more money for? Yeah, well you do.

Getting to SENASA

The US Embassy website lists the address for SENASA as  ”Brasil and José C. Balbín, Dársena Sur, Puerto de Buenos Aires.” First of all, that’s an intersection, not an address. Second of all, it’s an intersection that doesn’t exist. I tried searching it on the Buenos Aires government map site and Google maps. No dice. I desperately tried to search each street separately, looking for the cross, but I could never find one. After 20-30 minutes of Googling various combinations of wordings, I found one result that said “José C. Balbín y Rawson Dellepiane Elvira, Av (EX Brasil)” Seriously? The street name was changed from “Brasil” to that mouthful and no one thought to update the embassy website?!

I found that this office was 1 hour away from where I lived. Sigh. I trekked out, only to find that half the signs said Brasil, half said Rawson Dellepiane Elvira Av. Get your shit together, street signs! The vague address and not at all consistent street layout resulted in me wandering around in the sweltering heat, clutching important papers, passport and Argentine ID, trying not to burst into frustrated tears. I eventually found the “building,” which was actually a tiny hut thing that was half-hidden behind a massive restaurant.

Where you at, SENASA?!

When I got inside the woman looked through my papers and said I was missing a note that said my dog didn’t have worms. After my hour and a half trek to get there and my flight only a couple days away, I almost snapped right then. Luckily, she was very helpful and said she would call my vet and ask him to fax something. The fax came through and after paying about $100 pesos for some papers with special stamps, I was on my way.

Oh you thought that was the end of the paperwork and payments? LOL

When I got to the airport 3 hours before my flight, I walked straight up to the counter (because my friend used his points to fly me first class like a BOSS) and confidently handed them my papers. The agent asked me if I went to SENASA. I assured her I had, only 3 days earlier. She said I need to go to the airport SENASA. I was sent to the other side of the airport (all the while lugging around my barking, horrified dog) to get yet another piece of paper. There was a minor issue when the guy said I was missing a stamp, but after giving him a completely pathetic, sad look, he said he would overlook it and handed me a bill, and told me to go to the airport bank, then come back to him for yet another stamp. I managed to get past this part of the obstacle course with minimal problems.

A half-hearted knight in cargo pants

When I finally got back to the agent, she informed me that I needed a special vet note that said my dog could fly in low temperatures so that he could fly to St. Louis. She suggested I go back to SENASA and ask them if they had a vet that would do this for me, otherwise, Padfoot was staying in Miami until spring. I trudged back over and begged the SENASA guys for help. One of them had chatted me up before, fascinated by my ability to be foreign, have the legal name Teresa and Argentine residency all at the same time, so he stepped up to try to help. While they discussed, I turned on my shaky crying voice (hey it worked last time, didn’t it?) and rambled on about how my dog couldn’t be left behind and my flight was leaving and please oh please help me. Eventually, one of the men decided to walk me to the airline counter and get this stuff straightened out.

I wants to fly, plz. There are squirrels to chase in the sky, right?

As I’m wheeling my still totally spastic dog across the airport again, I am looking at this slightly grungy SENASA guy wearing cargo pants like he is my knight in shining armor, a hero meant to save Padfoot and I from the evil airline agents. However, my daydreams were shattered when he and the agent quickly resolved that this was neither an airline problem nor a SENASA problem. My so-called hero dropped me like a bad habit and left me to fend for myself again.

Lies and acceptance

At this point, my flight boarding time was getting dangerously close and I was getting desperate. The agents suggested that I fly Padfoot as checked baggage to Miami and then fly with him in the cabin to St. Louis. I explained that I would love to, but the kennel I had was for flying underneath, not in the cabin. They sent me to a luggage store to look for a new kennel. I returned empty handed and at the brink of a breakdown. The agents were clearly annoyed with my presence at this point, so they told me that since I was first class I could just fly with the hard kennel. I was skeptical. I asked her if I could have her employee number and a signed piece of paper from a manager. She looked at me like I was out of my mind, said they didn’t do that, and that she would put the notes in my reservation.  I knew she was lying to me. Sure, she was typing away in that reservation, but what the hell would the Miami agents care if some random person in Argentina said I could fly with a non-regulation kennel? She was lying to get rid of me, but I chose to accept the lie. I paid her some more money, and rushed through security. Once I got on the plane and into my incredible first class see (more on that in a later post) I relaxed myself with a mimosa and told myself you’ll figure it out when you get to Miami…

Stay tuned to Part Two of Padfoot and I’s journey coming next week. More opportunities to laugh at my suffering to come! If you can’t wait to hear more about Padfoot you can check out other articles about him or his blog. 

Rease is a US citizen who fled the Midwest in favor of ex-pat life in Buenos Aires, Argentina. After 1.5 years of living and working abroad, she has recently relocated back to the US for a new adventure that doesn’t involve working in an office. She is bilingual and is very capable of cussing you out in Spanish. She loves gaining and sharing knowledge of local cultures, customs and adventure, and she especially loves getting sassy with anyone who gets in her way. Her favorite place in the world is any artisan ice cream shop in Argentina.

When I stayed at the Hollywood Beach Suites, Hostel and Hotel, one of the biggest perks for me was the incredible taco place on the premises. I absolutely love tacos, so, honestly, they had me intrigued just by being named Taco Beach Shack

Getting my drink on at 11am

My room came with 2 cards that granted me a free drink with the purchase of any combo at the Taco Beach Shack. I arrived in Miami around 5am, so my internal clock was a little off and by 11am I was ready to claim my free drink. Usually those sort of deals only entitle you to a soda, but when we asked the waitress (with a bit of hope in our voices) if we could have a vodka pineapple instead, she was more than happy to oblige.

Taco madness

My boyfriend and I each ordered our own combo, having no idea how huge they would be. We each were given three overstuffed tacos (beef for him, chicken for me), grilled corn, rice, and black beans. The waitress also brought us some rocking hot salsa that I drowned my tacos in. I had every intention of absolutely destroying my plate, but in the end I was only able to finish the tacos, part of the rice and beans and a few meek bites of the corn. I hated wasting such awesome food, but I simply couldn’t eat anymore.  We agreed that next time we could just get 1 combo and maybe some nachos on the side.

Fish tacos combo, chicken nachos, and sangria

Keeping it simple with a plate of nachos bigger than my head

As planned, on our next visit, we ordered 1 taco combo and a plate of chicken nachos, thinking we were keeping it simple. Well, the plate of nachos arrived and we immediately realized this was almost the same amount of food as the 2 taco combos. We ordered ourselves a pitcher of white wine sangria to wash it all down and got to work. This time around, we went for the grilled fish tacos. They were absolutely divine. As a Midwestern girl who grew up no where near the ocean and next to the incredibly dirty Mississippi, I rarely get to enjoy fish. I was pretty sure it was awesome, but due to my lack of experience, I looked at my Puerto Rican boyfriend for approval. He devoured those tacos like a champ and assured me the fish was, in fact, quite tasty. I only ate one of the tacos, as I was thoroughly engrossed in the nachos that were smothered in generous portions of sour cream, guacamole, salsa and of course cheese – such glorious cheese! With all the all the chicken, jalapeños, and blackbeans to deal with, I could barely support all the flavors on a single chip. We managed to finish everything this time around, save for a few forkfuls of rice and beans. The price tag, including the pitcher of sangria, was only $44 bucks, and we were so satisfied that we skipped dinner that night. 

So much more than tacos

I am partial to tacos and nachos, but the Taco Beach Shack actually has a lot to offer. Their menu items are available to anyone (not just guests) and can be explored while chilling out in the outdoor seating (complete with a couple of ping pong tables and plenty of lounge chairs) or at the counter if you want to order to go. The complete menu is displayed on three surfboards hanging on the wall.

If you are ever in the area and look for a cheap, filling and delicious meal, I highly recommend the Taco Beach Shack.

Rease is a US citizen who fled the Midwest in favor of ex-pat life in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is bilingual and is very capable of cussing you out in Spanish. She loves gaining and sharing knowledge of local cultures, customs and adventure, and she especially loves getting sassy with anyone who gets in her way. Her favorite place in the world is any artisan ice cream shop in Argentina.

By Rease Kirchner
I usually don’t do these things, but since I was tagged by Ayngelina, Lola and JoAnna, I went ahead and did it. Enjoy!

A: Age you started traveling?

19. I studied abroad in Mendoza, Argentina the summer after my freshmen year of college.

B: Best beer you’ve had and where?

As a native St. Louisian, I should say Budweiser at the Busch Brewery, but I think Boulder, Colorado has way better microbrews.

C: Cuisine (favourite):

Mexican. I live for rice, beans, fresh tortillas and spicy sauces.

D: Destinations, favorite, least favorite and why:

I really loved Guadalajara, Mexico (not just for the food) but I did choose Buenos Aires, Argentina as my home for the past year and a half.

Orozco mural in Guadalajara, Mexico

Least favorite would be Colonia, Uruguay. This has got to be the most boring town I have ever paid way too much to visit. You can read about how much I hated it.

E: Event you experienced abroad that made you say “wow”:

Skydiving in Las Sierras outside of Córdoba, Argentina was pretty amazing.

F: Favorite mode of transportation:

I like planes because they get me where I need to be quickly. I want to like buses and trains but as I get motion sick, especially when I read, they are pretty miserable for me unless I have company.

G: Greatest feeling while traveling:

That I am completely free to do whatever the hell I want.

H: Hottest place:

My air conditioner-less apartment in Buenos Aires in January 2010. I took a lot of cold showers that summer.

I: Incredible service you’ve experienced and where:

I feel like everyone in Denver, Colorado is super friendly and helpful.

J: Journey that took the longest:

When I moved to Buenos Aires from St. Louis, I left my house at 3:30am on June 22nd and arrived at my apartment in Buenos Aires around 10:30am on June 23rd, so a total of 29 hours in transit. Did I mention I was lugging around 2 huge suitcases and my dog, Padfoot? Padfoot is a handful, you will learn that if you read those articles or just check out his blog)

K: Keepsake from your travels:

I am obsessed with hand-made earrings. I buy them like crazy. These are my latest purchases:

Dragonflies and paper cranes, purchased at a Bonodori festival outside of Buenos Aires, Argentina

L: Let-down sight, why and where:

Sears Tower in Chicago. I avoided it for my first several trips to Chicago but I ended up going eventually. Mistake. It´s just a really tall building.

M: Moment where you fell in love with travel:

I think it was when I jumped out of that plane in Córdoba or perhaps after the first Argentina World Cup win in the 2006 World Cup. I was in Mendoza and the streets went crazy.

N: Nicest hotel you’ve stayed in:

The CasaSur Hotel in Buenos Aires. I stayed in the Executive Suite and it was incredible!

O: Obsession—what are you obsessed with taking pictures of while traveling?:

Mullets and rat tails. I just find them disgusting and their continued existence blows my mind.

P: Passport stamps, how many and from where?

I am not the type to worry about my passport stamp count. I just have 4- Mexico, Chile, Uruguay and Argentina

Q: Quirkiest attraction you’ve visited and where:

Tierra Santa. To quote my description in our 101 Places You Should Never Go article: “basically a giant outdoor Jesus advertisement with Jesus through the years models made of Styrofoam and a freakishly huge Jesus that pops out of a cave every 30 minutes. Unless you feel like saying Hail Marys for the rest of your life, keep away from this creepy sacrilegious park.

R: Recommended sight, event or experience:

Blogger meetups. Living in Buenos Aires has given me lots of opportunities to meet bloggers who are passing through and host unofficial blogger events. I would really love to go to a TBEX or other official event some day. I have met some great friends such as Ayngelina, Stephanie and Abby in person just through twitter and blogging!

S: Splurge; something you have no problem forking over money for while traveling:

Ice cream. I take my ice cream pretty seriously, I make sure there is ample room for it in my budget.

I bought this beautiful creation in Parana, Argentina.

T: Touristy thing you’ve done:

I did some winery and brewery tours in Argentina. In Mendoza, I got bored of it so I convinced the guy at Trapiche winery to let us skip the tour and go straight to the tasting. He was more than happy to oblige and even added bonus wines and champagnes. We left drunk and happy.

U: Unforgettable travel memory:

Celebrating multiple world cup wins in both 2006 and 2009 in Argentina in Mendoza, Cordoba, and Buenos Aires. The energy is incredible and completely intoxicating. I loved it so much in 2006 that I scheduled my move to Buenos Aires around World Cup games.

V: Visas, how many and for where?

I have never needed a visa to go anywhere.

W: Wine, best glass of wine while traveling and where?

Luigi Bosca DOC Malbec 2008, which I tried at the Fierro Hotel wine tasting. It was amazing.

X: eXcellent view and from where?:

My friend Rachel and I joked that we have seen so many “highest points” that it almost gets old so instead of a city view, I will go with the view of the waterfalls in Puerto Iguazú, Argentina. I’m not going to pretend like my photos are even worth looking at compared to all the incredible shots travel blogging photographers have taken, but here’s one anyway:

Iguazu Falls in Argentina

Y: Years spent traveling?:

I am not a RTW traveller or even a backpacker, really. I spent 3 weeks straight traveling through South America and 3 weeks in Mexico, but other than that I have just done shorter trips and my longer stint as an expat (1.5 years) in Buenos Aires.

Z: Zealous sports fans and where?:

Do I really need to mention it again? ARGENTINA! OLE OLE OLE! AR-GEN-TINA! AR-GEN-TINA!

New York drivers are infamous for road rage, honking wars and swearing contests. No one participates in these activities more than cab drivers, or more commonly known as “cabbies,” in New York.

Valerie Reddemann was looking for one of these outrageous cabbies to take her on a wild cab ride through the city. Valerie is the President and founder of Greenfeet, which is an online retailer of green home goods. While visiting New York with family for her husband’s 40^th birthday, she got her wish.

Valerie and several other family members had just finished touring the Statue of Liberty when they decided to tour another iconic New York symbol, the Empire State Building. Since there were eight people in the group, they had to take two cabs to their next destination.

To add some spice to the trip, the two groups decided to race each other to the Empire State Building. Valerie and the three other passengers barely closed the cab door before the driver hit the gas pedal and launched the car into hyper drive. Apparently, the cab driver overheard the group’s race idea and treated it as though it were the Indy 500.

For the next 10 minutes, Valerie and the other occupants were launched into a scene from a movie. The cabbie attempted to impress his riders by taking a shortcut, but ended up stuck behind a blockade due to a festival.

This only fueled the road rage that boiled up inside the cabbie. He swerved the car to the left and began weaving in and out of traffic, dodging cars and pedestrians like he was Frogger on a speed.

While the cabbie entertained his racecar driver attitude, Valerie and the others were tossed around like ragdolls. The passenger in the front seat threatened to puke all over the cabbie’s meter because the tumultuous ride triggered her carsickness. One of the passengers in the back pounded on the cabbie’s seat for him to pull over and end the dangerous ride.

It was only Valerie that made the best of the situation. She took in the screaming and cursing, and she laughed until tears ran down her face.

When the ride came to an end, Valerie could barely exit the cab. Her laughter temporarily paralyzed her. Eventually, Valerie overcame her laughter and joined the rest of the group who was waiting outside of the Empire State Building.

Apparently, the other cabbie was an Indy car driver in his previous life, and got the other group to the destination faster. When Valerie and her group walked up to the rest of their party, they asked, “Where have you been?”

Valerie can’t wait to go back.

A slave to her education, Rachael is in her third year at the University of South Florida to earn a Bachelor’s of Art degree in magazine journalism. In her future, she envisions herself editing a fashion/photography/travel magazine (if such a thing exists). Her feisty attitude and short temper can be traced back to her Italian heritage. She knows a little Italian but plans to learn more while vacationing there someday. She is most at peace when writing, spending time with the boyfriend and watching movies about chicks that kick ass.

by Rachael Sena

Las Vegas is known for gambling, booze and other scandalous behavior. When it comes to these memorable experiences, it’s no surprise that it happened in Vegas, but it didn’t quite stay in Vegas.

Crash Landing

Alison Storm of The Traveling Journal and her four friends grew up in Sioux, Iowa. To maintain their lifelong friendship over long distances, these girls partake in an annual tradition that good friends do: the girls’ weekend getaway.

Alison and her friends were no strangers to Las Vegas. They usually ended up there for their getaway. So, to spice up their visit this time around, they looked for something adventurous.

They woke up before dawn to head out to the outskirts of Vegas to take their wild ride. As the sun rose, Alison and her friends were taking a scenic tour of Nevada’s desert in a hot air balloon.

But not even the calm sands and sun could distract the girls from the balloon pilot who was having anger management issues. Seriously, what could he be so angry about at 7 a.m. in the morning?

The girls could do nothing but ignore the angry captain and enjoy the sandy scenery that lay before them. As the irate pilot belittled his crew, the girls took in the glittering sunrise.

Like all good things, the ride had to come to an end. But as the pilot and his crew were ushering the balloon in for a smooth landing, a huge gust of wind pushed the balloon further across the desert.

The captain turned his fury onto his passengers as he instructed them to hit the deck, or the basket, as it should be called. From the bottom of the basket, Alison could see that they were rapidly heading for a huge boulder of death.

The pilot jumped out of the basket and the balloon roughly came to a stop. The landing was so jarring that Alison and her friends formed a human pretzel at the bottom of the basket.

The girls were in good spirits, though, and they laughed at the whole experience. The cheap champagne toast in front of the sunrise helped too.

Saving Grace

Barry Maher was visiting Las Vegas several years ago for a small businesspeople convention. Since Barry is a motivational speaker, his job was to pump up the crowd with his closing keynote speech.

And he did just that. The crowd rewarded him with applause that echoed throughout the high-ceiling ballroom.

The executive director of the association that was hosting the convention approached Barry to congratulate him on a speech well done. He leaned close to Barry to speak over the applause. But he wasn’t counting on the applause dying down as soon as it had.

Loud and clear, the director said: “You just saved that goddamn, piece of shit meeting planner’s job. You were the only goddamn speaker at the entire goddamn, piece of shit convention that didn’t suck.”

Barry heard it and so did the rest of the convention. The director just so happened to have announced that piece of information into Barry’s lapel microphone.

Barry appreciated the “high praise” and contemplated putting “didn’t suck” as a testimonial on his website.

A slave to her education, Rachael is in her third year at the University of South Florida to earn a Bachelor’s of Art degree in magazine journalism. In her future, she envisions herself editing a fashion/photography/travel magazine (if such a thing exists). Her feisty attitude and short temper can be traced back to her Italian heritage. She knows a little Italian but plans to learn more while vacationing there someday. She is most at peace when writing, spending time with the boyfriend and watching movies about chicks that kick ass.

By Chiara Tarenzi

Featured photo by High Contrast

Getting around in Milano has become quite hard and complicated if you don’t know what you are doing. There are only two ways to travel here safely and with little money. In order to understand this it is important to know about the most expensive way as well.

Avoid driving

Driving is expensive because of the high price on gas in Italy: 1,714 € per 1 liter, while it is 2,376 € for 3.78 liters in the USA.

Parking you car anywhere in the city is also expensive: the government is trying to gather some money and has sent out all of its public workers to give tickets to those who park in the wrong spot. Getting a ticket after 10pm used to be rare, now it’s pretty much expected. If you do have to park a car, keep the color coding in mind:

• The yellow line is for residents of that specific area.
• The blue line is for everybody but you have to pay for it: 1.20 – 1.50 € per hour, depending on how close to center city you are.
• The white line is for everyone and it’s free. You can imagine how few white lines there are in Milano.
  

You get a 39 € ticket if you don’t respect the parking rules. But gas and parking aren’t the only expensive factors to add to the act of driving: entering the city will be impossible starting January 1st 2012. It will be mandatory to pay a ticket to enter in center city for the day for the ridiculous price of 5 € per car. It can get stressful and expensive.

Scoot around for less

The first cheap alternative is to rent a scooter or a motorbike. It’s fun and none of the rules listed above apply. The rent is low, the gas tank is small so it is likely to only use one filled tank per week: 7-9 €.

Get friendly with the locals on public transportation

Public transportation is the second cheap alternative. Milan has spread the ATM system throughout the city. You can buy one ticket for bus/trolley/subway for 1.50€, which is valid for 75 minutes after you stamp it. If you forget to stamp it, you get a 30 € fine and you are cordially invited to descend from the bus by the official in disguise. Unfortunately, while you can use your subway stamped ticket to go on a ground transportation vehicle, it does not work the other way around.

If you are looking to stay in Milan and use ATM for one week, I recommend buying the day passes: 4.50 € for unlimited trips in 24 hours, 8.25 € for unlimited trips in 48 hours and 8.40 € for 2 trips of 90 minutes validity each day for 6 consecutive days. There is also a special 48-hour card, AmaMi, for the price of 25 €: it allows you to travel freely with ATM and the railway system and receive discounted or free access to numerous museums and exhibitions. All these tickets are available at the subway station kiosks – buying a ticket when you are on the bus/trolley/subway is not possible!

Milano is a very expensive city for what concerns lifestyle, but if you learn how to travel in it and don’t get trapped in paying for useless items and tickets, it will radically improve your stay. In addition, it is not a very big city so walking and public transportation is a great way to save money.

Chiara Tarenzi is a poltical science student in Milan, Italy, hoping to become a very obnoxious journalist some day. She has a very large family split apart by the Atlantic Ocean: one side in Italy and the other in Philadelphia. She is a total american wannabe so BEWARE! She is also a beginner runner of half-marathons (very slow!) and intends to travel all over the globe to race and explore. Her favourite place in the entire globe has to be Crans Montana, an adorable small town hidden in the Swiss mountains.

by Rease Kirchner

I left the US and moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina in June 2010. In 8 days, I will say goodbye to the place I have called home for the past year and a half. It is very incredibly bittersweet, but this article is not going to be about the sadness and difficulties of internationals moves or leaving home. In the past, I have spoke of Argentina as if it was my boyfriend, a living human I could get mad at and forgive, so for this article, I intend to keep it lighthearted and tell you some reasons why Argentina and I have to break up.

Argentina, why you gotta be such a gold digger?

Seriously, Argentina, I’ve heard of inflation but this shit is just ridiculous. In the past year and a half, your prices have skyrocketed. The only thing that seems to stay cheap in this country is wine. Don’t get me wrong, Argentina, I love the wine, I really, really do, but you have got to get your hands up out of my bank account. After spending 5 miserable months jumping through hoops to become a resident, I am still charged like a tourist. Not all Americans are rich and living off trust funds, and I can no longer afford to be treated as such.

Damn, Argentina, keep it in your pants!

I feel like you only think of one thing, Argentina! What happened to our love? I feel like an object in your eyes! All those men on the streets, licking their lips, blowing me loud kisses and shouting out ridiculous things and then getting offended when I send a sassy remark back at them. Need I even mention the horrible dating in Buenos Aires? I just want to walk to the grocery store without being verbally accosted and maybe encounter a man who doesn’t believe he is God’s gift to me.

Argentina, you need to get your shit together

Sometimes I think the things you ask me to do must be a joke, but I am almost always sadly mistaken. The mail system here is mind blowing. There are so many slips of paper, different offices to go to, and totally useless package searches. I don’t like being treated like a terrorist just because my last name is the same as the president’s or because my mom just happened to throw some Airheads candy into my care package without listing their full ingredients on the outside. And what about the all the scams and lies, especially the ones aimed at foreigners? Remember the Taxi Nazi? I certainly do. And what about those weird medical tests everyone has to do before starting to work. I also had to send a Quitting Telegram to formally quit my job here. Not an email, not a letter, but an actual telegram. I had to wait in line for 2 hours to send that worthless piece of paper. What is up with your crazy processes and rules, Argentina?!

Argentina, you a hot mess

I know I am no beauty queen but, damn, you need to clean yourself up. Littering is so common and acceptable here that it makes me sick. People buy a piece of candy and immediately throw the wrapper on the ground. No one picks up after their dogs and garbage is often just piled next to trees, left to rot and stink up their air that we all know is not so bueno. You have so much potential, you could be so incredibly beautiful, but you have really let yourself go.

This is an old rolled up mattress with a beer can on top, shoved into a giant hole in the street. This was outside my apartment one day.

Argentina, stop eating garbage

I know it is harsh to compare you to my ex, but seriously, the United States has food from almost every culture and it is all pretty freaking delicious. I know I don’t eat steak and that is supposed to be your most impressive dish, but that does not excuse some of the garbage you serve up. Flavorless pizza which is really more like cheese with some greasy bread bits? So called “salads” that are made completely of shredded carrots? Hot dogs that sit in hot water at a kiosko all day and then are covered with stale crispy “potato” things? Gross, Argentina. Your body deserves better than this.

But we had our good times..

I do love you, Argentina, I truly do. I will miss you dearly and may or may not drunkenly text you, telling you how much I miss your incredible ice cream, your comprehensive and affordable transportation system, and all those unforgettable nights we spent together until way past sunrise. I may even write poetry about our love. Hell, I already have. But it is time. I need to move on. Perhaps we shall meet again someday. I certainly hope so.

Rease is a US citizen who fled the Midwest in favor of ex-pat life in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is bilingual and is very capable of cussing you out in Spanish. She loves gaining and sharing knowledge of local cultures, customs and adventure, and she especially loves getting sassy with anyone who gets in her way. Her favorite place in the world is any artisan ice cream shop in Argentina.

By Rachael Sena

Featured photo from Wikimedia Commons

New York City is one of the biggest tourist destinations in the continental U.S., and it also tends to be one of the most expensive cities. For those who are not Donald Trump and need to travel on a budget, here are a few tips to cut down on housing costs.

CouchSurfing.org

Join CouchSurfing.org for free and look into the hundreds of housing options in New York. CouchSurfing.org is a site where travelers can locate hosts to stay with in the destination they are traveling to. There is no charge to stay with a host, but it is acceptable to offer a gift to the host for his or her generosity.

It may be a little scary relying on the kindness of others, but CouchSurfing.org keeps an accurate profile of everyone who is using the site. Other users share information about their experiences to keep the profiles updated. Reviews of each host are also available to ensure you are choosing the right place to stay. The site also verifies every name registered as a host to confirm that such a person exists. Before traveling, you are encouraged to contact the host and establish a relationship so things won’t be so awkward when you arrive.

IStopOver.com

IStopOver.com is an online listing of apartments and houses that are for rent in major cities all over the world. The site is free to use, and the only money paid is to rent out a space. When renting a space, you aren’t committed to a specific lease term. You can rent for a period of time that suits your travel schedule. As of today, there are approximately 500 results for apartments and houses for rent in the New York area.

Like CouchSurfing.org, IStopOver.com gives you a chance to read reviews and see photos of a space before booking it. But with IStopOver.com, it is most likely that you will be renting out a private space. Meaning that you will not be staying in the space while the individual who is renting it out is home, but you will still be able to get acquainted through the site.

Airbnb.com

Airbnb.com is a cross between CouchSurfing.org and IStopOver.com. With Airbnb.com, you will have the privilege of a private room while staying with New York locals. Hosts are great resources for transportation and entertainment tips. Sometimes, they will be able to give you a tour of the city.

Thousands of listings came up for the New York area. The services and securities of Airbnb.com run similar to the other housing sites in this article. However, each site offers a different type of stay. Airbnb.com offers a more bed and breakfast type of accommodation with a modern twist. Instead of old, antique inns, you’ll be staying in modern New York apartments.

Hostelbookers.com

If renting out an apartment is not within your budget, then check out Hostelbookers to view listings of the cheapest hostels in New York. Hostelbookers.com features a full review and rating of each listed hostel. Users will feel safe and secure booking a hostel on this site because multiple photos are provided for each listing, and the site verifies that each hostel is accurately reviewed and priced.

Hostelbookers is free to use and the site doesn’t charge a booking fee if you reserve a hostel. Currently, there are 13 listings for hostels in New York. Over half of the listings received a rating of 70 percent or above.

Hotels.com

If renting out extra spaces and staying with locals is not your cup of tea, then check out Hotels.com for deals on a more traditional housing option. Hundreds of hotel listings pop up for the New York area. The interactive side bar on the left allows you to narrow your search results based on several different qualities, such as price, rating and amenities.

Hotels.com offers 20 to 30 percent off of select hotels when you stay three or more nights. Select the red “Hotel Deals” tab in the top right to search for New York hotel savings. Hotels.com specializes in package deals as well. If you need to book a flight to New York, check out this site to see if there are any discounts for booking the hotel and flight together. The blue “Packages & Flights” tab in the top right can help you locate a bundle deal.

A slave to her education, Rachael is in her third year at the University of South Florida to earn a Bachelor’s of Art degree in magazine journalism. In her future, she envisions herself editing a fashion/photography/travel magazine (if such a thing exists). Her feisty attitude and short temper can be traced back to her Italian heritage. She knows a little Italian but plans to learn more while vacationing there someday. She is most at peace when writing, spending time with the boyfriend and watching movies about chicks that kick ass.

By Chiara Tarenzi

Featured photo from Wikimedia Commons

For all those female travelers heading to Italy: this is what happens when you are out and about and meet the Italian stallions! They leave very little to the imagination.

1. “Ciao, io sono (insert name) e tu devi essere…meravigliosa!”

Hi, I’m (insert name) and you must be…beautiful!

Answer:  “Veramente, io sono (name) e tu..mi dai noia!”

Actually, I am (name) and you are…bothering me.

2.  “Come ci si sente?…Ad essere la più bella nel locale!

What does it feel like?…Being the prettiest girl in the club!

“Come ti senti tu, ad essere il più scemo del locale?”

Answer: What does it feel like for you, being the lamest guy in the club?

3. “Hai dimenticato qualcosa – Me!”

You forgot something – Me!

Answer: “Hai dimenticato qualcosa anche tu! Le palle!”

You forgot something too! What? Your balls!

4. “Scusa, ci conosciamo?”

Excuse me, do we know each other?

Answer: “Si, per questo ti ignoro!”

Yes, that’s why I’m ignoring you.

5. “Assomigli molto alla mia quarta ragazza!
(Quante ne hai avute?) Tre!”

You look like my fourth girlfriend! (How many did you have?) Three!

Answer:“Guarda! Ho appena visto la tua quinta!”

Look! I just saw your fifth girlfriend!

6. “I tuoi occhi sono come un oceano bellissimo!”

Your eyes are like a beautiful ocean.

Answer “I miei occhi sono castani, idiota!”

My eyes are brown, idiot!

7. “Ciao bella principessa!”

Hello gorgeous princess!

Answer – (if he’s prince material):”Ciao mio principe!”
Hello my prince!

8. “Sono già pazzo di te!”

I’m already crazy about you!

Answer: “Sei pazzo, punto.”

You are crazy, period.

9. “Sei un angelo caduto dal cielo!”

You are an angel fallen from the sky!

Answer:“Credo che sia tu quello caduto del cielo e che ha picchiato la testa.”
I think you are the one who fell from the sky and hit his head.

At some point they just get bored of even trying to talk and you get the Italian version of Rease’s Argentine Honk-Happy Driver:

10. The International “Honk! Honk!”

From cars/buses/trucks driving by you. Whenever you are wearing a dress or a skirt (any length), you become eligible for this kind of amusing approach. Exposed ankles are enough to tick these Italian sweethearts off.

Don’t be too harsh to judge my men, though; there are some really good guys in the bunch. They might have to resort to using these cheesy pick up lines, but they would love to show you around the country, teach you Italiano, and invite you to stay. Your only job is to do the sorting.

May the falling in love or running away begin!

Chiara Tarenzi is a poltical science student in Milan, Italy, hoping to become a very obnoxious journalist some day. She has a very large family split apart by the Atlantic Ocean: one side in Italy and the other in Philadelphia. She is a total american wannabe so BEWARE! She is also a beginner runner of half-marathons (very slow!) and intends to travel all over the globe to race and explore. Her favourite place in the entire globe has to be Crans Montana, an adorable small town hidden in the Swiss mountains.

Why did you start your travel blog?

I’m sure you have a long list of reasons. Maybe you started it so your friends and family could follow your adventures, or maybe you just wanted to share your love of travel with the whole world. No matter what your primary reason might be, I bet you also wanted to make a little money.

When you make money with your travel blog you get to take pictures like this

Making money with a travel blog is a difficult nut to crack. I know from experience. My name is Alex Ritter, and I manage the business side of Travelated. I have an extensive background in internet marketing and website monetization, and I have spent the last year applying everything I know to Travelated. In 2011 I tried just about every type of advertising, sponsorship, and affiliate deal I could think of on this site. Most of the things we tried went nowhere, but some of them were big winners for us. In fact, this humble little travel blog ended up bringing in over $15,000 in 2011.

Now, nobody is going to retire on $15,000 per year, and not every site will be able to do what we did. That said, there are definitely things that every travel blogger can do (including us at Travelated) to earn a little more money. If you are actively traveling, just think what you could do with an extra $50 to $100 per month. How many nights sleeping in the airport or a questionable hostel could you turn into nights in a comfortable hotel?

If you want to make more money with your travel blog, keep reading. Below is a list of different ways you can monetize your blog along with tips on how to implement them successfully. If you want help, I will give you my personal email address at the end of this post. Please contact me, I would love to help you make more money with your travel blog.

CPC/CPM Ad Networks

The easiest form of monetization to implement are CPC (Cost Per Click) or CPM (Cost Per 1000 Impressions) ads. Google Adsense is the most popular CPC ad network, and if you have tried only one ad network I bet it is Adsense. CPC ads attempt to figure out what a page or post is about by picking out keywords, then they show a block of hopefully relevant ads. If someone clicks the ad, you are credited with a little cash. CPC ads can be either a banner or text. The important things for maximizing revenue with CPC ads are placement and the post topic.

CPM ads pay out per impression rather than per click. In other words, you will get paid a fraction of a penny for each page view that includes a CPM banner. There are more variables than just page views with CPM ads, but the gist is more page views leads to more money.

These are a few ad networks you should consider using on your blog.

• Google Adsense – Adsense will offer the best CPCs (i.e. the most money per click) because it is the largest network (it has the most publishers and the most advertisers). As long as your blog meets Google’s quality guidelines you will be approved, and you will be able to start placing ads on your site very quickly. The main downside of Adsense is that internet users are savvy enough to recognize Adsense ads when they see them, and many people won’t click them anymore. Also, Google is very strict with payouts. If you receive a flood of traffic from StumbleUpon or some other social media site and it generates more clicks than normal, Google could decide the clicks were fraudulent and withhold your payments or even disable your account. Adsense probably won’t earn a lot of money for a typical travel blog.



• Chitika – Chitika is a lot like Google Adsense, but with more flexibility and more options for displaying your ads. Chitika mostly targets traffic that comes from search engines, so it can be a great compliment to Google Adsense. Chitika also allows you to create blocks of ads in the sizes you want, and even offers map ads that can be great to use on travel blogs. If you already use Adsense, you might want to try using Chitika in combination to increase your revenue. As long as your site meets Chitika’s quality guidelines, you should be approved as a publisher with no problems.
  Click here for more info on joining the Chitika Network
• CPM Networks – There are many CPM networks you can consider joining that all do the same thing: show banners. You will need to prove a minimum level of page views per month to be accepted into a CPM network, usually 50,000 to 100,000 or more. These ads are best if you have a lot of page views and content that is very general in nature (webcomics, personal stories, etc.), or if a lot of your traffic comes from social media sites.

With any of these types of ads, the more traffic you get the more money you will make. How to get traffic is another topic entirely. The things you can control with these ads are placement, and what keyword the ads will focus on. In general, the more you put the ads in your readers’ faces, the more likely the ads are to get clicked (see the graphic above – it shows where to place ads if you want to encourage clicks). Aggressive ad placement tends to irritate your regular readers though, so there is a definite tradeoff of money and return visitors. It is up to you to find a balance you are comfortable with.

Affiliate/CPA Networks

CPA stands for Cost Per Action. It means that someone must click your ad then make a specific action on the landing page, such as purchasing an item or supplying their email address, in order for you to get paid. The amount you get paid can be a flat fee or a percentage based commission. Earning money through a CPA ad is more difficult than CPC and much more difficult than CPM, but it can be by far the most profitable if it is implemented correctly, especially for a travel blog with loyal readers. With affiliate networks, you first have to get approved by the network, then you have to join specific programs. So, for example, if you wanted to advertise for Hotels.com you would need to join the appropriate affiliate network, then join the Hotels.com affiliate program in that network. You will need a plan for how you will generate traffic to get approved by the network, and your site will need to be aesthetically pleasing and on topic to be accepted by specific programs. It can be tough to get approved, but once you are approved you are only limited by your own creativity in how to promote the programs you join. Did you recently stay at a great hotel? You can recommend it to your readers and get a commission if they stay there! Do you absolutely love your luggage? Write a post about how great it is, and get a commission if someone buys it! Below are a few of the Affiliate networks I recommend for travel bloggers:

• Commission Junction – This is probably the largest affiliate network, and it includes programs for many big-name travel sites (Travelocity, Hotels.com, Expedia, and many more).
  Click here for more info on joining Commission Junction
• Linkshare – This is another large network that includes some popular travel booking sites (Orbitz, CheapOair, Hotwire, and many others). Linkshare also includes a lot of handy tools that make integrating relevant ads very easy even if you have no coding or HTML experience.
  Click here for more info on joining the Linkshare Network
• Amazon – Amazon.com lists just about every product imaginable for sale, and you can get a commission on all of it. Like I mentioned earlier, if you love your luggage you can write a post about it and then show your readers where they can buy it on Amazon.com. If the person clicks your link and goes on to buy anything at Amazon.com you get a commission. Yes, you can link to a piece of luggage then get commissions if that person buys a Kindle. Again, your site must pass the Amazon approval process, but as long as it is a good looking site with original content you should get approved.
  Click here for more info on joining the Amazon Affiliate Program
• ShareASale – Another affiliate network similar to CJ or LinkShare, but with smaller advertisers in the Travel Niche.

The most important thing with CPA/Affiliate ads is you must have a plan in mind. It isn’t as easy as placing a banner or block of text ads, but it can be much more profitable.

Sponsored Articles and Sponsored Links

Sponsored articles and sponsored links are fairly controversial among travel bloggers. This is an arrangement where the blogger accepts a cash payment in exchange for posting on their blog a link to a third party site or an entire article that includes links to a third party site. There are plenty of SEO specialists and marketing companies who are more than willing to pay you for a link back to their site (or their client’s site). This is technically against the guidelines of Google, and it could result in your site getting penalized for selling links. You can minimize the risk of being penalized by Google by disclosing any links or articles that you were paid to post, and by using rel=”nofollow” in the outbound links. You can earn anywhere from a few dollars per month for each sponsored link up to $100 or more for a sponsored post. This is entirely up to you and how comfortable you are with posting paid links or posts on your site. There are many ways to attract sponsored links or posts, but the easiest is to simply provide a way for advertisers to contact you on your blog.

Applications

Apps are all the rage these days, and I don’t mean just iPhone and Android apps. You can make apps for facebook, or apps for browsers, or even make your own toolbar. There is a platform called Conduit which you can use to make your own branded toolbar and offer it to your readers. You can put together a toolbar in under 10 minutes and get paid for every install you generate. You can even get paid for placing some apps on your toolbar. I would suggest adding the TravelScout app if you build your own toolbar. Of course TravelScout is the app Travelated built, but it would be a great app for the audience of any travel blog.

Be Creative

The best advice I can give is to try to be creative. Don’t be afraid to try anything you can think of. Contact anyone who might benefit from being mentioned on your blog. Do you rave about a specific hotel, product, or even a location on your blog? Contact anyone who stands to gain from your kind words and you might be amazed at what can happen. The travel industry is brutally competitive. Every country, state, city, hotel, and airline wants to attract every traveler they can. Your blog helps people decide where to go, where to stay, which airline to take, and even where to eat. Reach out to tourism boards, hotels, and even restaurants. They are all willing to listen to your ideas on how you can drive more business their way.

Our Breakdown

UPDATE: A few people have requested to see the breakdown of how much revenue we earned from each of these sources in 2011. So, below is a pie chart that shows where our income came from.

As you can see, the bulk of our revenue came from Commission Junction and Linkshare, and most of that revenue is from our TravelScout coupons. We made just a tiny bit of money from CPC and CPM ads because we made the conscious decision not to place ads in our content area, but instead focus on building a loyal reader base who would be inclined to use our coupons and even install our TravelScout app. What you don’t see on the chart are the things we tried that brought in no money (such as our attempt to sell our own travel guides). We also chose to stop accepting sponsored posts early in 2011, or our revenue from those activities could have been much higher.

Conclusion

Are you still with me? I know this is a very wordy post, but this is just scratching the surface of ways to make money with your travel blog. I would be glad to help you if you need advice on what to try on your site or how to implement it. I would love to help you with anything from ad placement to discussing ways we can partner up. Send me an email, alex -at- travelated.com. I know making money with your travel blog can be difficult, but I would love the chance to help you out.

Do you know of any other ways to make money with a travel blog?