Contest Rules

Between now and January 31st write a blog post of at least 200 words on what is your favorite city and why. Think about these sort of questions:

• What makes this city unique?
• What was your favorite day in this city?
• What is the best festival or event in this city?
• Who is your favorite person you have met in this city?
• Where would you stay in this city?
• What would you city in this city?
• What would you do in this city to have an authentic experience?
• How would you meet the locals of this city?
• What should you not miss eating or drinking in this city?

To submit your entries you can either email them directly to me or:

• register on blog.amateurtraveler.com
• drop me an email and I will create you as an author on the blog
• post your story using the wordpress backend

You may:

• include one ad in your post of reasonable size
• write under your own byline
• retain rights to what you post to use elsewhere
• link to your blog, podcast, or the blog of your cat

You may not submit someone else’s work as your own or submit spammy entries.

I will give two books to my favorite articles and a third book to the article that gets the most number of valid comments.

Join Intrepid Travel and discover a land of contrasts as you journey from Lima’s coastal shores, through the lushness of the Amazon Jungle, and onto the snow-capped peaks, llama-filled plains and quaint colonial towns of the Andean altiplano. Get up close to wildlife while staying in a jungle lodge, embark on the trek of a lifetime along the Inca Trail and immerse yourself in the culture and history of fascinating La Paz. This insightful adventure is sure to leave you astounded by the magic and mystery of the sacred land of the Incas.

For more details on the contest check out Beth’s blog Wanderlust and Lipstick.

Pikeo is yet another web 2.0 photo sharing site but this one s having a contest that will place the photos from four of their users on the cover of a new Lonely Planet Guide. The winners will also win a trip from Intrepid Travel. You can bet i will enter my photos from Istanbul, Barcelona, London and Paris.

Author of 100 Things to Do Before You Die, Doesn’t

Dave Freeman, the man behind the famous travel guide 100 Things to Do Before You Die, has died after hitting his head in a fall at his home. The 47-year-old writer passed away in his Venice home, said his father, Roy.

Airplane Crash in Madrid Kills 153

The budget airline Spanair has defended its decision to clear a passenger jet for take-off despite aborting an earlier attempt because of a technical problem.

One hundred and fifty-three people died in yesterday’s air crash at Madrid’s Barajas airport. Witnesses said the plane’s left-hand engine burst into flame as it lifted off the runway and the aircraft broke up and crashed back to earth in flames. Only 19 people survived the disaster.

FAA Software Glitch Delays Flights

The software program in Atlanta failed about 10 a.m. Pacific time. When that happened, a similar facility in Salt Lake City took over. But users continued to try to refile their flight plans, bogging down the system. At its worst, flight delays (mostly departures, but some arrivals) were as late as 90 minutes in some areas of the country. Hardest hit: Chicago (O’Hare and Midway), Baltimore/Washington International, Boston and Atlanta.

National Parks and “Sites” to be Featured on Quarters

On July 9, the US House of Representatives unanimously approved the America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008 (H.R. 6184). The proposed new commemorative coin series was inspired by, and unabashedly capitalizes on, the tremendous popularity of the 50 States Quarter® Program.

What about poor Delaware, which has no national park? Not to fear, folks. You see, the proposed legislation – a copy of which you can see at this site — doesn’t require a state to actually have a national park in order to qualify for an America’s Beautiful National Parks quarter dollar coin

Crete mayor has had enough of British drunks

The mayor of a Crete town has grown so exasperated with the rowdy, drunken behaviour of British tourists that he has demanded action from the British government.
“They scream, they sing, they fall down, they take their clothes off, they cross-dress, they vomit,” said Konstantinos Lagoudakis, the mayor of Malia, in an interview. “It’s only the British people – not the Germans or the French.”

Chinese Airline Official Sentenced to Death

No, it is not because of flight delays but because they have been found guilty of embezzlement that China has sentenced an official of China Southern Airlines Group to death.

United Airlines to charge up to $9 for snacks

While capital punishment might be overkill it might occur to some passengers of United Airlines when they find out how much the airline will be charging for snacks.

1. Get one point for subscribing to this blog via email using the form in the right sidebar
2. Get 5 points for blogging about tripinator and sending an email with a link to your blog post to chris2x [at] tripinator.com

I will draw the winner of this contest on the last day of March from all the entries.