I thought you’d like to know that one of our frequent Carnival of Cities contributors, Mary Jo Manzanares from Seattle Traveler and Fly Away Cafe, is now hosting the Carnival of Travelers.

She posts it monthly, and the December topic is….drum roll….music!

If you have a good post related to travel and music, do consider submitting it by the December 5th deadline, for publication in her Carnival on December 7, 2007.

Our own Carnival of Cities is still rolling around the blogosphere; the next host is the Go Chicago Card blog. 

Send in your one post by this Sunday November 25th 2007, about any aspect of any city.

Use this form for your one submission.

Welcome to the 1st of October and the latest edition of our Carnival of Cities.

I’m thrilled to report that blogs from several major travel magazines have been hanging around the Carnival, munching cotton candy and offering up words of wisdom. 

Last week, the fine folks at National Geographic Traveler magazine’s Intelligent Travel blog hosted the Carnival, and today we have posts from the Budget Travel magazine blog “This Just In” and one of the Condé Nast Traveler blogs, the “Perrin Post.”

Welcome to everyone, and let’s get started….

**  Cities in the Americas  **

Seattle, Washington, USA   Mary Jo Manzanares says that when it’s time to get away from it all near Seattle, you should veer off onto Route 11, Chuckanut Drive;  “This is a beautiful drive all year round.”   She blogs all about those Pacific Northwest vistas at The Seattle Traveler. 

Houston, Texas, USA   Ruth Mitchell found an incredible arts center that kind of makes you want to visit Houston.  Yes, Houston….and Fort Worth is even better for fine art. Ruth blogs at Buy Outside the Box. 

Orlando, Florida, USA   Some call Epcot a “Walt Disney World for grownups” because of its World Showcase of national pavilions, science-related exhibits and events like the Food and Wine Festival (running now through November 11, 2007.) Sean O’Neill and Anthony Falcone reflect on Epcot at 25 years at the Budget Travel magazine blog This Just In. 

Washington, DC, USA   Jon Rochetti presents Monument Monday - Lincoln Memorial posted at his blog The DC Traveler, saying, “One of the nation’s greatest American presidents was Abraham Lincoln, and the Lincoln Memorial is a “must see” in Washington, DC.”

Athens, Georgia, USA   No, the other Athens, the one with R.E.M., the Indigo Girls and those Love-Shackin’ B-52s.  Darlene Berkel says you can kick back at a former stagecoach stop and enjoy the grandeur of the Grand Oaks Manor Bed and Breakfast, posted at her blog Everyone Loves To Travel.  She says it’s an “ideal place to stay.”

**  Cities in Europe  **

Stockholm, Sweden   Even the Hairy Swede has picked up one of those blue reusable IKEA shopping bags, part of living in Stockholm, rated the Most Livable City in the World.  He’s pretty psyched about landing in paradise, which he blogs about at A Swedish American in Sweden. “WOOOOO!!!”  I think that’s Swedish for “WOOOOO!!!

Milan, Italy   Carnival regular Jul is an American based in Zurich, but currently traveling in Italy. As usual, she has great photos, this time taken on top of the duomo in Milan.  Check out the one of her cherubic head!  Jul writes and takes beautiful pictures at This non-American Life. 

Oslo, Norway   Kristie blogs at Norway - An American In Oslo, and gives us some tips on transportation passes to help with getting around in Oslo, which is a pretty expensive city. (I have to horn in here and confess, I’m a huge fan of travel to Norway myself.)

**  Cities in Asia, Australia and New Zealand  ** 

Yangon/Rangoon, Myanmar/Burma   Consumer travel expert Wendy Perrin wonders, can you trust State Department advisories? as she gives us an update on the explosive political and travel situation in Myanmar/Burma and its capital city Yangon/Rangoon.  Wendy blogs at The Perrin Post. 

Beijing, China   You want cheap watch? Mao’s Red Book?  Traveler tenforty fights off the touts and does some shopping and eating in Beijing, posted at the blog ten-forty.

Auckland, New Zealand   Doris Chua starts out in the city of Auckland and gives us some travel details, then she and her family range further afield on the North Island.  Doris blogs at Life..Passion..Travel & More….

Tokyo, Japan   Sheila Scarborough goes in search of that incredibly realistic-looking plastic food that you see in the windows of Japanese restaurants.  She finds it in Tokyo on the plastic fantastic boulevard called Kappabashi Dori, near the Asakusa section of the city.  Sheila writes at the Perceptive Travel Blog. 

That concludes this edition, and thanks for visiting.

We are still looking for hosts for upcoming editions of the Carnival of Cities; if you’re interested, there’s carnival info here.

To submit a blog post to the next Carnival edition, use our carnival submission form.  Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of cities, blog carnival, travel, blogging.

You know what to do….submit that ONE really great post from your blog about any aspect of a single city, using this form on the Blog Carnival site.

Deadline is 2 p.m. Eastern, Sunday September 30th, 2007.

It’ll be almost an Octoberfest of bloggy fun!

We’re now accepting applications from blogs that would like to host the Carnival of Cities. Drop us a line and tell us about your site and ideas for the carnival.

It’s great to welcome everyone back to Home Turf Media and the home base for the Carnival of Cities.  My apologies to our Southern Hemisphere readers — I know it’s winter down there, but it’s hot as the dickens up on this side of the equator.

And how many of you actually have Neil Diamond’s “Hot August Night” double album….on vinyl? 

Never mind; onto our worldwide tour!

**  Cities in the Americas **

Seattle, Washington, USA   How about an “instant decoder ring” for the famous Pike Place Market AND a chance to figure out the sex of an eggplant?  Pam Mandel reveals all in her overview of the Savor Seattle Food Tours posted at her great blog, Nerd’s Eye View.  Yep, she’s the official Nerd.

San Juan, Puerto Rico   The Coqui has the Top 5 Reasons to Start a Caribbean Cruise in San Juan Puerto Rico posted at Visit The Coqui blog.  Save yourself the shipboard transit time from Miami and start your cruise when you’re already deep in the Caribbean.

Washington, DC, USA   Sure, you can mix politics and romance in the same city. Jon Rochetti writes about Dancing in the Moonlight at his blog The DC Traveler.  He says, ”Here’s a chance to hold your lover tight…dancing outside to live music on the Kennedy Center terrace in Washington, DC.”  Awww….hot August night, indeed!

Vancouver, Canada   Darlene Berkel presents Options For Pet Friendly Lodgings In Downtown Vancouver.  She writes at Everyone Loves To Travel, saying, “There are many pet-friendly lodgings available in downtown Vancouver, which means that you can take your pets with you on your trip rather than have to leave them at home alone, or in a pound with other pets.”

Long Island City, New York   Gotta love that public transportation; they think of everything.  On the East River you can admire the Manhattan skyline if you go Drinkin at Water Taxi Beach.  Check it out on shedwa’s blog.

Kansas City, Kansas/Missouri, USA   See, the problem is that Kansas City straddles the Kansas and Missouri borders, so sometimes it’s hard to figure out which state you are in.  Either way, it’s a fun town. Seafarer says, Kansas City, here we come at her blog Family Travel.

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA   Listen up as The Free Geek gives us The Ultimate Guide to Getting Comp’d in Vegas.  You can save all sorts of money, especially on lodging, so then you can turn around and spend it!  More details at Free Geekery.

Red Hook, Brooklyn, USA   Did you know that singer/author David Byrne of the Talking Heads has a blog?  Neither did I, until I read his post about city park food vendors in 8.19.07 Red Hook, posted in the David Byrne Journal. 

San Francisco, California, USA   So you’re in the pretty hip City by the Bay, and you have this marketing idea that involves a Kenny G-ish soundtrack and a bunch of businesspeople in a parking lot.  However, the Silicon Valley Blogger thinks not, and says, If You Want To Succeed, Here’s How NOT To Promote Yourself Or Your Business posted at The Digerati Life blog.

Oxford, Mississippi, USA   If you want literary inspiration, Marilyn Terrell and Katie Howell can fill you in with all the Southern good stuff.  Read about Unvanquished Mississippi at Intelligent Travel, the blog for National Geographic Traveler magazine.

Seattle, Washington, USA   Mary Jo Manzanares keep us up to speed in the entertainment department, with her post about A Kubrick Film Festival (from “Spartacus” to “2001: A Space Odyssey”) at her blog The Seattle Traveler.

Vancouver, Canada   Kevin Bedell asks, What is Government’s Role? at his blog 21st Century Citizen, saying, “Vancouver recently enacted a law outlawing leaving your car idling while unattended — it highlights the environmental awareness of that region.”

**  Cities in Europe **

Zurich, Switzerland   Jul writes about Fondling food in the darkness posted at This non-American Life, saying, “Zurich is home to the world’s first dark restaurant, where the servers are blind and the guests play with their food a lot on its way to their mouths…”

London, UK   The financial shaman Michael Fowke presents City of London: the money ghosts posted at Money is the way, saying, “Money ghosts are out of control in the City of London.”  It’s as good an explanation as any for why people make silly fiscal decisions.

Berlin, Germany   Molly presents Who goes to Checkpoint Charlie and FORGETS TO SEE THE BERLIN WALL posted at the Buda Baby blog, saying, “Though I currently live in Budapest, I love traveling all over Europe and was greatly impressed by Berlin on a recent long weekend there. This post describes some of Berlin’s highlights.”

Paris, France   Laurie Hertzel writes about going through the catacombs with Ethel Merman at THE FOOTBALL FAMILY FORUM blog.  Nothing like getting stuck underground with skulls and loud people.

**  Cities in Asia **

Ayuthaya, Thailand   artThailand presents Ayuthaya: return to the jedi (with gorgeous photos!) posted at artThailand.

Mauritius, Indian Ocean   Alfa King gives us some background on the history of his island nation with Independent Mauritius: A brief historical perspective posted at the Alfa King Memories blog.

**  Cities in the Middle East **

Dubai, UAE   You want to talk about HOT?  Grace says there’s no cold shower until November at her blog Sandier Pastures, saying, “At this time of the year, Dubaians long for cold showers!”

That concludes this edition, and thanks so much for visiting.

Submit your (one!) blog post to the next edition of the Carnival of Cities using our carnival submission form; it will be hosted by me on my Family Travel blog and will publish Tuesday, September 4th because of the US Labor Day holiday on Monday.  Past posts and future hosts of the Carnival can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of cities, blog carnival.

You know what to do….submit that ONE really great post about any aspect of a city using this form on the Blog Carnival site.

Deadline is 2 p.m. Eastern, Sunday August 26th, 2007.

See you there!

Welcome to Home Turf Media and the latest edition of the Carnival of Cities; it’s nice to have it touch down at “home base” for a week.

I also want to take this opportunity to invite bloggers to come to Chicago, Illinois, USA for the BlogHer blogging conference July 27-29, 2007. I’ll be a speaker/panelist on Day One and would love to meet you in person! Yes, men are absolutely most welcome….

Here we go around the world….

  **  Cities in the Americas **

New York, New York, USA   Think you’ve seen it all in the Big Apple?  Mandy takes us on an underground journey to find hidden NY : “The Book” posted at New York City Blog.  Apparently there’s a ”….virtually unknown work of art underneath the streets of New York City.” 

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA   If you’d like to see how the TV wizards make over a house in paradise, you’ll be glad to know that Extreme Makeover pays a visit to Honolulu.   Blogging at Homespun Honolulu, Evelyn says, ”Extreme Makeover Home Edition selected a home in Honolulu as one of their projects!” 

Kankakee, Illinois, USA   TherapyDoc does social work, helps look into your head and provide therapy, and also takes a fun bike ride in Doe a Dear.  Blogging at Everyone Needs Therapy, she says, ”Kankakee State Park is on the river, and it’s a nice park. But we also had fun just driving home through the nearby towns. Every once in awhile a person has to get OUT of the city.”  Doc is in Chicago, in case you’re trying to place Kankakee on a map.

Puerto Pirámides, Argentina      Vanessa Latimer tells us that Puerto Piramides offers more than just…whales (Southern Right Whales, that is) posted at Argentina’s Travel Guide.  Thanks for the insight into Patagonia….it’s always great to get a Carnival submission from a place in the Americas other than the USA.  Canada, where are you?

Atherton, California, USA   Oh, those Californians and their real estate woes.  Actually, Silicon Valley Blogger’s post about ten ways to handle that problem property next door has some really good tips for homeowners everywhere, including my own neighborhood in Texas that has a couple of, ahem, problem properties. SVB writes about Silicon Valley (south of San Francisco, near San Jose) in The Digerati Life. 

Fort Fisher, North Carolina, USA   A local man provided color and a human face to a coastal North Carolina town. Bella writes about the Fort Fisher Hermit at her blog ~Bella’s Life on the Island~.

Washington DC, USA   Jon Rochetti blogs about a special exhibit running through mid-September, the Wings of Fancy - Live Butterfly Exhibit at Brookside Gardens near DC in suburban Wheaton, Maryland, where you can “see 30 species of butterflies flying freely (indoors) among tropical plants in a lush garden environment.” Jon blogs at The DC Traveler – Washington DC travel & tourism information. 

New York, New York, USA   Are you a fan of Google maps?  Now you can get street-level views; take a look as shedwa presents 15 NYC sites to see in Google Street View posted at his blog shedwa.

Seattle, Washington, USA   Mary Jo Manzanares says that a former Seattle Oceanaire Chef is on Season 3 of Top Chef (the Oceanaire restaurants are in Seattle and San Diego.)  Apparently Chef Brian’s rattlesnake and eel didn’t pick up many kudos, but better luck next round.  Mary Jo blogs at The Seattle Traveler.

  **  Cities in Europe  **

Munich, Germany   Jul is taking a break and mellowing out in Munich, and yes, there is beer involved.  She’s an expat who blogs and posts great photos at This non-American Life.  

Paris, France   Life has its little requirements, like personal grooming, but traveler Laurie Hertzel found that buying nail clippers on the Champs-Elysées was just a little more frustrating and expensive than she’d expected. Laurie blogs at THE FOOTBALL FAMILY FORUM. 

Preston, United Kingdom   Riversider reports on recent flooding in the town and what would have happened if a proposed barrage had been built downstream and the impact on draining the floodwaters; Were We Glad the Ribble Was at Low Tide? This post and others at Save The Ribble. 

Amsterdam, the Netherlands   Seafarer says to pay no attention to all of those stories about drugs and the red-light district; you can certainly travel with kids to Amsterdam.  She blogs at Family Travel: See The World With Your Kids on BootsnAll.

  **  Cities in Asia  **  

Mauritius, Indian Ocean   Alfa King hurried home from work to catch the Finance Minister talking for two hours about fiscal issues on Budget Day in Mauritius.  What a concept; someone who is interested in the workings of his government. :) He blogs and enjoys the beautiful Indian Ocean sunsets at Alfa King Memories.

Christchurch, New Zealand   Liz Lewis recommends that you hop on the tram for a quick tour of Christchurch, her hometown. She blogs at Christchurch Tour Guide, saying, “One of the best ways of finding your way around Christchurch is to take a ride on the tram. Take the full trip or hop on and off as you please…”

That concludes this edition, and thanks so much for visiting. Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Cities using our carnival submission form; it will be hosted by Liz Lewis in Christchurch and will publish Monday, June 25th. Past posts and future hosts of the Carnival can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: Carnival of Cities, blog carnival, blogging, travel.

Good thing that the Carnival of Cities will be back at Home Turf Media after a lot of other blogs hosted in past weeks.  This week, jaunt over to Argentina’s Travel Guide and take a trip around the world.  Thanks Cesar! 

Remember – one post only, please. 

Pick your best-written work about any aspect of a single city, and get it to us by Sunday, June 17th at 2:00 p.m. Eastern.  Use this form to submit.  For more Carnival of Cities info, click here.

We’ll publish on Monday, June 18th 2007.

Technorati tags:  travel, blogging, blog carnival, carnival of cities, Home Turf Media ]]> http://www.hometurfmedia.com/blog/68/welcome-back-carnival-barkers/feed/ http://www.hometurfmedia.com/blog/67/htm-las-vegas-blog-on-budget-travel/ http://www.hometurfmedia.com/blog/67/htm-las-vegas-blog-on-budget-travel/#comments Tue, 12 Jun 2007 04:53:30 +0000 Sheila http://www.hometurfmedia.com/blog/67/htm-las-vegas-blog-on-budget-travel/ Good news – the very active bloggers on Budget Travel magazine’s blog “This Just In….” had nice words for Las Vegas Is Home, one of our Home Turf Media compadres.

Congrats to blogger Paul Geary! 

Newstex is a content aggregation company that helps sort the millions of Internet offerings into a more manageable package of news feeds.  They provide “tailored, real-time news and commentary from thousands of branded newswires, newspapers, magazines, financial and business sources, official government feeds and blogs.”

If you go to their site and look around, there are plenty of topics – architecture, law, health, sports, travel and more.

In the Blogs on Demand under ”City,”  you’ll find eleven Home Turf Media blogs (listed alphabetically from Around Des Moines to The San Diego Beat) along with the ”ist” blogs like austinist and others that cover Washington DC and Chicago.

Home Turf Media is excited to be associated with this great content provider.

Technorati tags:  content provider, blog syndication, Newstex, Home Turf Media