thefutureisred

Photo Essay: Bathe the Rejuvenating Waters of Argentine History

This past weekend, we took my parents to the Hotel Termas in Rosario de la Frontera. It lies about half-way on Ruta 34 between Tucuman and Salta. The website makes it look absolutely spectacular. Lush grounds, beautiful interior with thermal waters, a spa menu full of luxurious treatments and a restaurant that comes highly recommended.

The reality of the place is a bit different. That is not to say it's not a place worth visiting. In fact, this hotel and spa lets you take a step back in time about 100 years, when a sanitarium was a place where the rich went to rest and relax and not just for the insane.

As we drove in the front gate, my mother asks somewhat reluctantly, "Is it me? Or does this look a lot like an old age home?" We all had to agree. Yes, Hotel Termas appears very much as convalescent home meets T. Coraghessan Boyle's The Road to Wellville meets The Shining.

I know, I know. I'm not making this place sound very appealing, just bear with me. This place plays a part of history. Built in 1880, when visionary Antonio Palau realized the therapeutic nature of hot waters found underground. Since then, the termas have been a place for Argentine writers, celebrities and politicians to escape and rejuvenate.

Above you see the entrance to the hotel building. Behind the hotel lies a separate building holding the spa, comedor, baths and an outdoor pool filled with the warm thermal waters.

This photo of Dr Palau hangs in the front part of the spa building.

I originally hoped to spend the night in the hotel, then we could spend a full day taking advantage of the services the spa and baths offered. Unfortunately, the hotel itself was fully booked for the entire time my parents would be here.

Thus, we decided to drive the 175 kilometers to the spa from Salta for the day. The road between Salta and Tucuman is a main route and well paved, so the ride lasts approximately one and a half hours. We arrived just as lunch hours began.

Noah had heard rave reviews of the food at this lunch room. And really, it wasn't bad at all. The menu offers standard Argentine cuisine: lomo, empadanas, bife de chorizo. Noah ordered lomo that comes with a tomato-onion sauce and a fried egg on top. Not a combo that comes easily to the American palate, but try it before you knock it. It's heavy, but really good.

Then onto the bath and spa.

Unfortunately, the spa closed for siesta after lunch, so we contented ourselves with a walk through the facilities, ending with a fifteen minute immersion bath in their boiling, yet healing waters.

The upstairs level houses a gymnasium that looks down onto an outdoor pool. Water comes directly from the heated waters below ground as well. Notice the crack in the window? The gymnasium itself isn't much different, but it's fascinating to see the original window frames, tile and walls of the building.

Lower level, behind the bath you'll find this old area where people once enjoyed immersion soaks and mud baths. These days, the area is under construction but you still pass through to go to the showers and change rooms. Those three jugs in front offer mineral water for every occasion. Laxative. Constitution. And I never did find out what zarza -- or blackberry -- water will do for you.

Any thoughts? Please let me know.

Voila! The main bath hall. My parents almost bailed (ie run away as fast as possible) when they first saw those back rooms. It's not entirely well signed, so we thought that was the bath area. Yes, this still looks quite hospital-like, but it was a relief to realize this is where we would find our relaxation and rejuvenation and not the crumbling back area filled with concrete bags.


This is the bath in which you soak. Well, some of them anyway. Many of the tubs have already been replaced with new, cleaner more modern options, but a few originate from the late 1800s.

You soak for fifteen minutes in the tub, during which an attendant returns to add more hot water. Afterward, you lie under blankets for another fifteen to relax. I fell asleep.

Like I said, the place is not your every day spa-filled luxury, but I'm glad we went. I'm not sure how much longer you'll have the opportunity to see this little piece of Argentine history in its current state. Oh, and if you're wondering, the bath itself was quite wonderful. It relaxed me for the rest of the day, and I fell asleep early that night.

Renovations have already begun, after which the plan is to begin publicizing the bath house.  I'm betting the old, bath house, am-I-in-a-hospital feeling will soon fade and be replaced with something far more sleek and new, which is fine, if that's your thing.

Otherwise, if you're driving route 34 -- also ruta 9 in this part of the country -- slow down and take a look.

Picturing Flamingos Flying In the Desert

What a crazy week with visitors galore! First Jason and Aracely from Two BackPackers. Then Audrey and Dan from Uncornered Market arrived. It's been wonderful to meet up with other bloggers, particularly those I've known for a while online but never met face-to-face.

Still, I haven't had much time for blogging. What better time to add another photo for Delicious Baby's Photo Friday?

We saw these flamingos at Laguna Chaxa approximately 45 minutes south of San Pedro de Atacama. It is an unbelievably harsh, yet spectacular place with pockets of life somehow living in the midst of dry, hot, salty land.

I suggest renting a car to reach here. The rental companies in San Pedro have only 4x4s and if you share the ride with a few others, you'll spend less than you would on a tour. I'm not sure many tours go to Laguna Chaxa anyway.

Now, if you'll excuse me, we have more visitors. My parents have just arrived from Atlanta bearing a Snow White dress-up dress and a spiky, furred Webkinz cat for Lila. Shhh. Don't tell her. She'll get a hapy surprise on her birthday next Thursday.

All is quiet and extremely beautiful.

How-To Pimp Your Couchsurfing Profile & Find A Place To Stay

I'm working on a series of Couchsuring Tips. To be the first to read them subscribe to my feed in your preferred reader. Or subscribe to my RSS e-mail list to have the delivered directly to your mailbox.

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Couchsurfing can be daunting. I mean, how does one navigate the process of asking a stranger for a place to sleep for the night? That's why I've decided to take a page from Kelly Diel's book and offer all readers the opportunity to ask advice, tips or any questions you might have about Couchsurfing.

I'll begin with answering a few questions that seem to come up often. Then you'll have the change the chance to ask anything you've ever wanted to know about Couchsurfing.

What's my Couchsurfing experience?

I've been an active member of Couchsurfing for the last four years. I've couchsurfed as a family and alone. I've hosted tens of people and both created and taken part in Couchsurfing meetups in Europe, the United States, Canada, Central and South America. I even partied and peeled potatoes with the Couchsurfing camp at Burning Man.

I feel comfortable rocking up in any city in any country on this planet confident in the fact I'll be able to find a place to stay, a group for a drink or simply someone to give advice about how to find a bus to the next town.

I'm happy to help you develop the same sort of resource and community in Couchsurfing as well.

How Can I Create A Profile That Makes Others Want To Host Me?

Of all the questions people ask, oddly, this one rarely comes my way. But I think it is probably the most important. The answer is relatively simple, logical and can be answered as easily as one, two, three.

One. Be yourself. Be real. The more honest you are about who you are and what you want in a host or travel experience, the more likely you are to find what you need. 

Don't be afraid to include your interests and personal opinions. A potential host is more likely to respond to a request when your profile overlaps with similar interests. That connection can lead to a fantastic surfing experience because, believe it or not,you've dispensed with all small talk by reading each others profiles and can immediately get down to the business of having fun.

Two. Begin meeting people and building up your friends and references before you send out your first couch request.

When I receive a couch request, I immediately look at how many friends a person has and then read all the references. Friends and references let me know how invested you are in the Couchsurfing community. You don't need to be an card-carrying t-shirt wearing Couchsurfing ambassador, but I do want to know you're not just popping on the site for a free place to stay.

References and friends also let me know that others have had positive experiences with you. They allow me to trust you. If we have friends in common, even better.

Three. Make sure your friends and references are real-life, real-time connections. 

Nothing sets of my No-Surfing-With-Me alarm bell faster and louder than a profile with all or mostly online-only connections. On online-only friend only tells me that you've contacted someone through an e-mail or chat. Maybe you've even sent a friend request to someone you don't know.  It tells me nothing about whether you're a good guest or if you get along with people face-to-face.

I have about 140 friends on Couchsurfing. Only two are online-only. Both of those are people I've known for well over a year and with whom I have developed an actual friendship.

How does Couchsurfing differ from other forms of social media?

Please, don't treat your Couchsurfing account the same way you would Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare or even Linked In. While you're welcome to e-mail whomever you want for advice -- of course they may not respond -- the last thing you want to do is fill your Couchsurfing profile with a bunch of people you barely know.

I already told you the first thing I do when evaluating a profile is read references. If a person has tens of references, but none of those people seem to know him beyond a couple jokes and a drink, I still know nothing about that person.

But if you've helped someone lay down a concrete floor in their basement, babysat their children and cooked a meal for them, then I know something. Now if you've had similar interactions with twenty different people, I begin to get a real sense of who you are.

I admit, when I first began Couchsurfing, I did add friends in an attempt to bulk up my profile. We all do it to some extent. And that is a fine strategy for just about any other social media forum. Not Couchsurfing.

It's the strength of my connections that matter. You're asking people to open up their homes and lives to you. Many have children. Would you trust your home and family with someone you know only through a few tweets and a short profile?

So how do you meet people prior to sending out your first couch request?

Simple. Check groups. There's a group for just about everything, too. From women traveling solo to stamp collecting to families welcome and literally everything in between.

That's where you'll find meetings, get togethers, mash-ups, people looking for a coffee, for someone to share a car rental, places to volunteer. Join one of these get togethers. Get to know people in real-time in real life.

I joined up with Los Comelones in Costa Rica a few years ago. They meet once every month or so to try new restaurants in and around San Jose.  Randall e-mailed me about it, but he couldn't go that night. Since that night a group of us met for Peruvian Japanese food, Randall visited us. We've stayed with him in San Ramon. We've gone out drinking and eating. We've cooked together. He's referred his friends to us and vice versa. I've even written an article about him.

It's amazing where one seemingly minor e-mail can lead.

What else do you want to know about Couchsurfing?

Now it's your turn to ask anything you want to know about Couchsurfing. Small or big. Complicated or simple. Just ask your question in comments below or e-mail me with your thoughts, and I'll follow up in upcoming blog posts.

Photos courtesy of DaveAustria and Mike Murrow.

When #FollowFriday & Photo Friday Collide: What A Delicious Baby!

Why am I posting my own personal photo of wildflowers in Iceland's Thingvellir National Park as part of today's Follow Friday recommendation?

Because there's no better way to introduce you to a wonderful blogger and the unique and community-building Photo Friday feature she includes on her blog.

Who is this person?

That would be Debbie Dubrow of Delicious Baby, a website dedicated to traveling with babies, toddlers and kids. I've written about her before in relation to her work on Passports With Purpose. You can also find her tweeting as @deliciousbaby.

How does Photo Friday work?

You post a photo on your website with a link to Delicious Baby.  Then, you simply fill in the short form on Debbie's site that creates a link from her page back to yours. You don't have to be a travel blogger or parent to post. You simply need a desire to share your photos and explore the photography of others.

I first heard about this about a year ago from Carolina of Kids Go West, another kids travel site with a focus on California and the western United States.

Two others I've seen participating in Debbie's Photo Fridays that I must mention. 

The First: Caitlin from Roaming Tales writes cogently and honestly about travel and the environment. A recent favorite post of hers discusses the effects of Nestle using palm oil in their products with a particularly interesting focus on how Nestle uses (or mismanages) social media.

The second: Philanthropist, goofball and nutcase Peter Carey from The Carey Adventures. His photo of the day today shows an incredible close up of pachyderms from his recent trip to Kenya. Nothing quite like a baby elephant taking a nap.

All four are most definitely worth a follow on this lovely Friday morning!

What Kind Of Bird Is This Flying Around My Kitchen?

Funny how often we find birds in the house. Not just here in Salta but also in Atlanta and Bocas. Cardinals, horneros, hummingbirds, too. I found this one flitting about the kitchen recently. Yellow bellow. Red pate. A small creature. Anyone know what kind of bird this is?

I took these photos then set about the project of helping the poor thing return outside. At first, it was petrified. 

Anytime I came near, it would panic and dart back and forth, banging it's head into the screen. After a little while, though, it just ignored me.

I have this weird fear of birds. Prior to this bizarre rash of random birds flying into our living space, I've been attacked -- yes, literally attacked -- by many birds over the years. From an old employers parrot grabbing onto my hand with it's amazingly powerful beak to random birds flying out of the sky trying to peck at my head, I've had my share of negative bird experiences.

I always figured, I'll leave them alone if they leave me alone. But that's not an option when there they are inside on your kitchen windowsill.

So, I grabbed a large curtain our landlord left in the house, climbed up on the counter and waited for the bird to come closer.  Meanwhile, the bird squinched down below the window frame making it almost impossible to catch him with fumbling curtain-hands.  Almost. I reached in and could feel his tiny quivering body -- surprisingly frail -- between my fingers. Captured.

I've never before held a bird, let alone a wild one. Never before have I felt a living creature leave my hands and instead of falling to the ground -- as I half expected -- take flight.

It was exhilarating.

Today, though, no more birds. Today, instead, the house is full of butterflies. Black and orange, about an inch and a half in diameter, they sit on the windows and kitchen table. They land on our hands, slowly flap their wings.

Soon they'll be gone, but my short experience in this country house has shown me that something else will soon take its place. We've been through frogs, birds, horses, grasshoppers, butterflies and bright green beetles as large as sucking candies.

What will tomorrow bring?

What Can Happen In A Thousand Days?

As of today, I've been writing this blog for exactly 1000 days. One. Thousand. Days. I know that's not very long if you compare to all the days I've been alive or days of the recorded universe. Still, it measures the distance between here and there. What was and what is.

Yesterday, I found some old forgotten photos from a cell phone I no longer have and sent to an e-mail address I no longer use. They were taken right before we left New York, just before my thousand days of blogging began.

We had just finished the long and tedious process of selling our apartment and divesting of all the things we didn't need. These were the days just before the beginning, when we were mired down with saying goodbye and had no idea what lay ahead of us.

This is my cat Paloma. Lila is giving her a last goodbye kiss at the vet's office.

I found Paloma at the ASPCA on 5th Avenue on the Upper East Side when she was three months old. She lived with me through college, my first apartment in NYC. Marriage. A move to Brooklyn. Pregnancy. Newborn. Paloma patiently bore the wrath of toddlers running rampant through the apartment, grabbing her tail. She was sick once in her life and that once was complete renal failure. The vet suspected all the excitement of packing and an inadvertant change in food were too much for her aging body.

I remember this particular day even more clearly, because 7am the morning this photo was taken, we received a call to say that during the night Noah's grandmother, Grandma Ruth had passed away.  Noah took Lila home right afterward, and I stayed while Paloma was put to sleep.

Then I took a long walk listening to Sufjan Stevens before going home to pack our suitcases and fly to Atlanta for Grandma Ruth's memorial service.

This next photo I took while waiting for the 2/3 train to arrive at Borough Hall in Brooklyn.

I was on my way to my very first Couchsurfing meeting. It was one of the last times I ever took the subway, and I felt that as a landmark as acutely as the nervousness I felt about going to some random bar on the Lower East Side to meet a group of strangers from Couchsurfing.

I met a couple from Iowa, now living and acting in New York City, although they traveled pretty extensively for work as well. I met a 22 year old guy who had just been living in Prague. And a cool woman named Jennifer who had just been to her first Burning Man.

Noah, Lila and I were living in a rented apartment, where I didn't feel comfortable inviting strangers since it wasn't really our place. (Now, I wouldn't care) The owners of that place sent their friends around with regularity to check up on us and make sure we weren't ruining their things or doing things we weren't supposed to do. It was an uncomfortable situation.

This third photo comes from a goodbye brunch we had with all the families we knew from the neighborhood. It was at Pacifico restaurant early one Sunday morning. Too early for all the non-childed folk of the neighborhood to even consider being awake on a weekend. So we had the place to ourselves.

The kids sat lined up at the bar watching cartoons on the TV while the most awesome bartender ever served them drinks and snacks. Apparently, he used to be a nanny, so he was fabulous with the kids. Pacifico, itself, got a bit punchy though. Something about worrying they'd lose their liquor license because of minors seated at the bar (I mean. Really?).

There's something funny about old photos, especially when you haven't seen or thought about them in a long time. They carry with them a shock of emotion, bringing back the past to life for just a brief moment. And like a smell or strain of music, evaporates quickly as you incorporate the past into the now.

But for just a brief time, I again feel the cold February wind as I wandered the streets of Brooklyn between the vet's office and our house. Or that amusement bubbling from the bit of my belly as I saw all our three year olds on bar stools ordering another juice. Or how amazing was that first bite of salmon taco?

What I can't quite grasp is who I was then.

It's only been 1000 days, and yet those days of travel have changed everything.  I am no longer the person I was then. They way I think, the manner in which I relate to other people, all different. Saying hello to strangers or goodbye to old friends have become part of my daily landscape. 

I look at this photo taken by Ali. We celebrated Lila's first four birthdays with famous John's pizza on Bleeker followed by a walk to Magnolia Bakery. Then to the park where we played on the jungle gyms and ate banana pudding with Nilla wafers. 

And while I know just what I was thinking by the look in my eyes, I no longer understand why I was thinking it.

So tell me, where were you 1000 days ago? What were you eating? Or wearing? Who were you then and how has your life moved?

What will the next 1000 days bring?

Art or Pornography? You Tread On Thin Ground

I published an article yesterday on Matador Life about The Most Obscene Debate On the Internet. While that article sparked massive debate about the nature of privacy, cultural relativism and whether personal modesty and sexual repression are distinct entities or undeniably tied together, there was at least one very important topic I didn't cover.

I met artist Kate Hansen through the Facebook while researching an article discussing Facebook and the banning of breastfeeding photos. One series of her paintings titled Madonna and Child Project depicts very intimate moments between mother and child.

That those moments often include paintings of mothers breastfeeding lead to the removal of those paintings from Facebook under the heading of obscene, possibly pornographic.

Kate wrote the following letter to Facebook in response to the deletion of her artwork.

I have to protest the deletion of my work from a group of artwork dedicated to the human figure. If you have a look at the group, you might note that many artworks there are full nudes, far more explicit than anything I posted.

I happen to think your reasons for deletion are less about nudity and more about an unfair policy against the breastfeeding subject matter of my work. I think you need to rethink your policy as it is a very blatant discrimination against the female perspective on the figure. You also need to consider the differences between art and pornography.

You tread thin ground.

Kate allowed me to post her paintings here.

Do you find them to be obscene? Should they be removed from Facebook under what Facebook terms "hateful, threatening, pornographic, or that contains nudity or graphic or gratuitous violence." Or is or these paintings examples of legitimate artwork that should have it's place with other works of fine art?

Sometimes #FollowFriday Comes On Monday: Kelly Diels' Cleavage

I read literally hundreds of blogs. From travelers to expats to writers to foodies to science and art. There are very few, though, that I read every single day. Kelly Diels' blog is one of those. This is one very good reason why.

Ok, so she's personable, funny. She's the mom of a six-year-old and the mom of a Layla. Two different kids for her, but you see the overlap? But I promise, it's not just navel-gazing that draws me to her site.

Recently, I've been thinking a lot more about guest posting for other websites. There are a few already in the works, but many of those sort of fell into my lap. They are also all within the travel-blogging sphere. I'd like to branch out and maybe write for a writing site?

So I began where I always do when I need an answer. I turned to the internet.

Thing is, many of the bigger websites where I'd like to publish make it very difficult to pitch your guest ideas. Some even tell you flat out not to bother because they only accept guest posts by submission. Let me also add, that if you are considering guest posting and run into this, ignore it. Submit anyway. Worst you can get is no answer or a no. But if you don't try, it's definitely not gonna happen. Not that I'm the best at taking my own advice in this vein, so let's just say I'm saying it as much for my own benefit as yours.

Anyway, back to Kelly. See, it already feels as if I know her better simply by writing this post.

I was becoming somewhat discouraged by the state of guest posting when literally minutes later the following blog post appeared in my inbox: Help! I Need Advice About Guest Posting!

In this article, Kelly invites you to post your questions about guest blogging. She then answers them from her personal experience as a regular guest blogger for Problogger, then turns to the many other bloggers she knows to add their two cents.

Basically, you get a free seminar on one of the most overwhelming parts of blogging that also allows for personal interaction with an already very busy blogger as well as insight from her community of bloggers.

Kudos, Kelly. I tend to be pretty cynical, and now you have me all moony-eyed.

My question? How do I guest blog for you?

Sign Up Now For Free Internet Resource Newsletter from The Future Is Red

I spend a lot of time online. A lot. Along the way, I come across all sorts of websites, resources, flight information, articles and many other things that I think are interesting and useful, but I don't always have time to blog about them.

I would, though, have time to put them together in a nifty little newsletter and send it out to whomever is interested on a weekly basis.

Is that something you'd want or find interesting?

Some examples of websites I've found recently:

Poisson Rouge Games for Kids: If you're watching it April Fool's Day, keep watching. 

Instapaper: Allows you to add a button to your browser toolbar. Then if you find an article you want to save for later, you hit the button. The article is automatically added to your reading list.

How to Build A Compost Bin: Now that we have more space at home, I want to start composting. This is one of the best resources I've found for starting the process.

Association of Writers & Writing Programs List of Contests and Awards: Calling all writers. Something to consider. Someone I met at Burning Man this past year just won one.

Volunteer Opportunities with Teachers Without Borders: While Doctors Without Borders may not be a possibility for the average person. This organization is. Their projects are interesting and accessible. Just because I'm in one place, doesn't mean I'm not always on the lookout for volunteer projects.

The Impossible Project: Just when you think the days of Polaroid are over, someone goes and back end develops film you can buy when all the current supplies on E-bay and Craigslist sell out.

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As you can see, the topics span a huge variety of topics. Photography. Web and blog design. Ways to organize your thoughts online. Volunteering and more.

If this sounds like something you'd want, e-mail me letting me know you'd like me to put you on the list and feel free to include topics and information you'd like to see in this newsletter.

Subscription to this e-mail newsletter is separate from the RSS feed to alert you of new blog posts. You will receive no more than one e-mail per week. I will never sell your e-mail information nor will I use it for anything other than this newsletter.

(I'm working on a form sign up that will make this easier for all involved. But since the formatting side of things takes freakin' forever for me to finish, the e-mail sign up will have to do for now. I apologize to anyone who tried using the form I posted earlier this week.) I'll get my so-called ass in gear as soon as possible.

Photo by WilliamCho