San Diego, Day 1, Part 2: Point Loma Hostel, Carne Asada Fries, and More

I checked in to the hostel as I arrived.  As soon as that was done, I got on my laptop and researched areas to be in San Diego.  I wish I hadn't, traveling is much more enjoyable when you don't know where you're going.

I picked the area around me that seemed to have less of a hipster-tourist vibe: Ocean Beach.  I decided to go there the next day, but I had to take care of something first.

Carne asada fries are like nachos, but with fries instead of chips.  It was also invented in San Diego.  Being a food geographer, I couldn't go the rest of the day without sampling some.  There was a taqueria a block from the hostel, so I went there.

My carne asada fries.

After trying it, I headed off to a well-deserved sleep.

San Diego, Day 1, Part 1: Night Driving, Windy In the Grapevine, and More

I packed my backpack and briefcase in the back, and got in the car.  We introduced ourselves as we drove to the highway.  Victoria, the driver, was a horse trainer in the Bay Area.  Corey was from England, and was going to be an intern for the White House.  Both of them were very nice, and gave me an excellent first impression of ridesharing.  In fact, I believe that it is now my favorite mode of transportation.

As we drove on I-680 at night, we listened to some music.  I introduced Victoria and Corey to Blitzen Trapper, and they introduced me to the fact that not all Taylor Swift songs are terrible.

We turned south on I-5 after a while.  By then, it was beginning to get light outside.  As we got into Lebec, we stopped in Starbucks for breakfast.  I had the oatmeal.

Right after Lebec, we passed into the stretch of I-5 known as the Grapevine.  It has a long-standing reputation for speeding cars and wrecks.  It was also extremely windy.  Luckily, Victoria was a very good driver, and we made it through just fine.

We dropped Corey off a bit before San Diego.  I got off at the Point Loma Hostel in San Diego.  I said goodbye to Victoria, and walked in.

Stockton, Day 1, Part 2: The Train Panini, The Nicest Denny's Ever, and More

Immediately after boarding the train to Stockton, I worked my way over to the Cafe Car.  This was different from other dining cars I've been to.  Basically, it's a way better version of the snack car in the Coast Starlight.  I had the Three-Cheese Sundried Tomato Panini, which, although microwaved, was decent.

The train worked its way east along the Sacramento Delta.  After a while, it got to Stockton.

Before I left, my godmother had contacted someone she knew in Stockton to show me around.  I met her at the train station.  We went to lunch at a Mexican restaurant, and had dinner at an Indian restaurant.

At around 7 PM, we left for the bus station.  The bus left for Pleasanton at around 8:05, and got there around 9:25 PM.

Once there, I started on finding a place that was open late that I could stay at to wait for the rideshare to San Diego at 3 AM.  Denny's fit the bill, as their locations are always open 24 hours.

Usually Denny's employees are not very happy to be there, and it shows.  I don't blame them one bit; it's a job that has little room for advancement, the customers treat you like dung a lot of the time, and you don't get paid very much at all.

This Denny's was different.  Maybe it was because I was nice to them (again, a lot of people aren't), but they were welcoming and pleasant to talk to.  They didn't even get upset in the slightest when I notified them that I was going to be there until 3 AM!

Sure enough, when 3 AM rolled around, the people in the rideshare drove up.  I packed my stuff in, and we headed to San Diego.

Stockton, Day 1, Part 1 : The Coast Starlight Is Early, Martinez, and More

And so it goes, another journey on the road. This time, my destination is San Diego, with layovers in Martinez, Stockton, and Pleasanton.

When the train arrived in Redding, I realized something. The Coast Starlight was early. I can assure those of you who are familiar with this route that indeed, I did not see any pigs flying, nor did I hear any dogs meowing as this Herculean feat was accomplished. I'll be on the watch for the Four Horsemen, though.

Martinez is... well, an interesting place. I had a three-hour layover there, enough to explore a bit. And what I saw was downright depressing: boarded-up windows, bars on doors, and graffiti on buildings saying “No Trespassing”. It took a toll on me, but then I realized that if it made me depressed, I couldn't begin to imagine what the people who live there felt about it. What I thought about it suddenly seemed irrelevant, so I walked on through it anyway.

After a bit, I found the main street through downtown, looking for any small, family-run coffee shop I could stop in. The only one I found was locked, so I resorted to a Starbucks instead.

After drinking cough syrup-esque coffee served by snooty baristas, I walked on back to the station until the train to Stockton arrived.

Interview: Katie Gaston, Blog Author of "Katie, On, On"

On November 25, I sat down and spoke with Katie Gaston, a fellow travel blogger.  She currently runs the blog "Katie, On, On."

Robin Heater: So, what made you decide to travel the world?

Katie Gaston: Well, that's a good question. I think that once you think about something for a long time and can't stop thinking about it, then I figure... you're not destined to do it, it's more of a thing that you just have to do. I'm passionate about learning and growing, meeting new people, and challenging myself to new experiences. So I think that's probably the foundation of it: to challenge myself and experience what I never have, while understanding people around the world that I otherwise wouldn't have had the opportunity to. And then finally, I would say that I don't think I can start life until I do it.

RH: I read the blog... “50 Countries, 1 Pair of Shoes.” Why only one pair of shoes?

KG: [laughs] I knew I'd get this question! …Because it sounds good. Okay, technically, I will be bringing three pairs of shoes. The “one pair of shoes” idea is that you don't need a lot when you do a trip like this, so it's keeping it simple, keeping it minimalist. But the adventure is all about running those 50 countries, so my goal is to run in every single country I travel to.

RH: Has your background in business affected the way you travel?

KG: I would say so, probably because the types of experiences I'd be looking to pursue when I travel are based in business, as in my experience professionally, at least for starting the blog. It's helped me understand how to build the blog, how to market it... it's because I have that background and experience.

The network that I'll be using is Rotary International. It's a business and service network, but it's an amazing network internationally because you can go and serve and do things with people who share your same values around the world. Those values are founded both in business and in serving their local communities.

RH: Is that across the U.S., or worldwide?

KG: Worldwide. There are 1.2 million Rotary members; I'm a 'Rotaractor', which is a younger version of that, and I have been for about 4 years or so now. Rotary is an amazing network because no matter where you go, you'll always be able to find someone who has a vested interest in improving the community, as well as business connections to be able to help you if you're in a situation where you would need help.

RH: What's your opinion on Couchsurfing, Zimride, and other forms of collaborative budget travel?

KG: I think they're amazing; they're ideal. When you think of traveling 30 years ago, resources like that didn't exist. I think we're extremely fortunate nowadays that the Internet and other technology have provided us with collaborative solutions to not only meet and share cultures, but also to save money. I am a long-time Couchsurfer, and I intend to use that network abroad as well.

RH: I specialize in food geography, so I have to ask: what is your favorite meal you've had abroad?

KG: Oh gosh... honestly, it's Irish soda bread. That stuff is so good! And it's not abroad, but my favorite Irish pub in Long Beach, where I've lived for the last seven years... and I'll say it's Irish because when I was in Ireland, I went to this place called the Craic House and talked to the shop owner and told him I was from Long Beach. He said, “Oh, have you been to the Dubliner?” It turns out he knew the owner of the Dubliner. That's how I knew it was a legitimate Irish pub, when someone in

Ireland – a very small, rural community in Ireland – knew someone who owned the pub that I went to. So, at the Dubliner in Long Beach, they have my favorite soda bread ice cream, which is amazingly tasty. And it doesn't sound like you should put bread in ice cream, but it's the most brilliant concoction I've had in many, many years.

RH: Bread pudding and ice cream go together well, so...

KG: Their bread pudding is actually pretty fantastic too.

RH: Last question: after you've met your goal of 50 countries, do you plan on traveling more?

KG: Definitely. I mean, ideally, on this trip I'll make it to 50. I don't know if I'll have the energy or the funds to do that, but that's the goal. We'll see. Either way, I think my lifetime goal is 50, and then... if you're passionate about traveling, there's no reason you should stop.

External Links:

Katie's blog

Couchsurfing

Rotary International

Launch of Terroir Plus

Many people have asked three basic questions that are factors in how certain foods taste:

• What components and/or ingredients make a food or dish [insert attribute of food or dish here, such as “taste sweet”, “have a pungent smell”, etc.]?

• When do you make a food or dish so that it [insert attribute of food or dish here]?

• How should you create a food or dish so that it [insert attribute of food or dish here]?

Often what gets missed is:

• Who are you making the food or dish for, and how will that affect how the eater perceives or does not perceive [insert attribute of food or dish here]?

• Why are you making the food or dish, how does that affect how your emotions and therefore your energy and stress levels, and finally how does that affect your performance in the kitchen and therefore [insert attribute of food or dish here]?

• Where is the food or dish made, and how do the physical and cultural factors of the environment surrounding the sources of each and every component and/or ingredient of the given food or dish affect the [insert attribute of food or dish here]?

If we were to be given a theoretical formula for each of these six questions for all possible attributes of a given food or dish, we would quite possibly have a “theory of everything” for that food or dish. You could customize it however you want it; it would be an artisanal food maker's wet dream.

I can't pretend to answer the “who” question, as I'm not a sociologist. I'm no psychology expert, so I can't pretend to know anything about the “why” question either. However, I am a geographer. Therefore, in the new section on this blog known as “Terroir Plus”, I plan on helping to understand the “where” question listed above.

Stay tuned for the first content-based post in this new section, which will be about using the concept of terroir to make the claim that honey has far more potential variations than any other food commodity imaginable. Until then, later!

Going Off Social Security to Travel for a Living

When I tell other people that I want to go off of Social Security, one of the most common questions I get is: “why?”

Social Security can be a safety net. But like all nets, it can trap you if you let it. For one thing, it limits my travel so that I have to be in the country at every new month. I don't like that, because as most of you know, I want to travel for a living (including out of the country).

It can also be a factor in even getting a steady job. Many jobs require a car, and I can't get driver's training or car insurance (let alone a car) with my income unless I work to supplement it. Catch-22's can get annoying sometimes.

Also, not too many renters agree to have tenants on Social Security. So, it seems my only feasible option would be to work in a menial, dead-end job close to where I live (which would be with one of my parents) for most, if not all my life, never seeing the world like I want to. This is not the case, however.

What if, instead of finding desperate ways to boost my income, I could eliminate my main expenses? That's where help exchange programs come in. My main expenses that I need right now are food and lodging. Help exchange takes care of all of that. It lets you work for room and board while traveling.

Unfortunately, help exchange is limited in legality; you can't do it legally on a tourist visa in most countries, and in a few (like the UK) it's just plain illegal if you only have a U.S. passport. However, there are numerous opportunities in the U.S. where, since I'm a citizen, they have no issues with it. Also, in Canada, you can do any sort of help exchange for up to 30 days as a tourist.

And now, my plan. I will try and do help exchange throughout the US and part of Canada from February to August. By then, I will have gone from little to no work experience to a fully employable candidate for a job I just might like, all through volunteering. During that time, I will try and get published in a few places as a travel writer. By that time, I will hopefully be off Social Security. I will keep my job for four months, then in January, I will go around Europe, continuing as a travel writer.