Gadling

I don't know about you guys, but I'm really grateful it's Friday! I need the weekend to decompress, but these great reads have already helped me on my way.

• I love companies that give back. Here are five travel outlets that make giving part of buying. [via Jaunted]
• Yikes! As a single female traveler, I've been wary of couchsurfing. This give me more reason to avoid couchsurfing altogether. [via True/Slant]
• I read this article on the plane recently and was really moved by what this graffiti artist is doing to share his vision of the world. [via Hemispheres]
• This is a nice, comprehensive guide to wine tasting in South America. [via BootsNAll]

'Til Monday, have a great weekend!

More Gadlinks HERE.

Men beware: driving with a woman in the passenger seat can make for a hazardous driving experience. I can't tell you how many times I've tried to give directions and been assaulted for getting us lost. Is it better, though, for a woman or a GPS with PMS to give directions?



Even worse, have you ever yourself gotten PMS when trying to follow rotten GPS directions?



Let's face it: sometimes we're better off just getting lost than coping with the stupid GPS system. Tell us your failed GPS stories in the comment field below.

This is the best day of the week, in my opinion: You're in a midweek groove, but the weekend is in sight. That's a perfect metaphor for how I'm feeling this week in life, too. I'm past the midpoint of many things in life, but the end is nigh! We have a whole lot of great travel reads to be thankful for as well, so let's get started.

• This astute article details the dark side of adventure holidays. [via Telegraph]
• I'm ready for a sushi revolution, but are you? [via Hemispheres]
• Trip Advisor advises us on how to protect the world's most important places. I'm all for it! [via Blisstree]
• We all know about those negligent pilots who claimed to be using their laptops and bypassed their arrival city, but what's the truth behind pilots, laptops, and air safety? [via The Week]

'Til tomorrow, have a great evening!

More Gadlinks HERE.

Here's a travel factoid for the day: It was 106 years ago today that Panama proclaimed its independence from Colombia. Apparently, today in Panama, which they call "Separation Day," even the bars are closed.

It's time to look at the festivals and events happening around the world, and this week has a particularly international selection of happenings. If you're close and have time, then you have no excuse to get out and go!

• Japan - Bunka No Hi (Culture Day) is a national holiday held annually in Japan on November 3 for the purpose of promoting culture, the arts, and academic endeavour. Festivities typically include art exhibitions, parades, and award ceremonies for distinguished artists and scholars.
• Helsinki - The Kettupaivat Short Film Festival begins Wednesday, November 4, and continues until November 7.
  
• British Columbia - Whistler's 13th annual art event, ARTrageous, takes place this Thursday, November 5, and features live art, roving performers and a live dance band.
  
• New South Wales - The Bitter and Twisted International Boutique Beer Festival will today take place this weekend, from Saturday, November 7 to Sunday, November 8 in New South Wales.
  
• London - The World Travel Market 2009 will take place at the ExCel London from Monday, November 9 through Thursday, November 12. This travel expo enables businesses to network with each other and learn about the travel industry's latest innovations.

If you make it to one of these events, let us know how it was, or if you know of an event that's coming up, please let us know and we'll be sure to include it in the next "Get out and go" round-up.

It's GPS day here are Gadling, so I think it's only appropriate to offer up some GPS-themed travel reads for you today. Enjoy!

• Prague has tons of wonderful galleries, but they are not always easy to find. [via NY Times]
• Up for a geocache adventure in Portugal? Try your hand at these. [via Matador Trips]
• Check out this comprehensive blog called Adventures in Geocaching.
• Hawaii's islands may be small, but you can still get lost. That's why GPS systems can reduce big-time sightseeing stress. [via Go Visit Hawaii]
• For all you worried parents out there, you could always stuff a tracking device into your child's backpack before s/he sets off on a trip. Voila! You have your very own GPS postcard. [via Jaunted]

'Til tomorrow, have a great evening!

More Gadlinks HERE.

Believe it or not, our Photo of the Day was taken in Kentucky -- at Mammoth Caves, to be exact. As Gadling photographer Peter Rivera explains, "A blast of arctic air flows up from the blackness. you go down concrete steps, lower and lower until the sunny August trees are left behind..." Peter aptly named this photo "descending into the abyss," and for those of you intrepid travelers who are venturing into the cool Halloween evening, I hope you come back from the abyss safely!

If you have some great travel shots you'd like to share, be sure to upload them to the Gadling pool on Flickr. We might just pick one as our Photo of the Day!

I find costumes scary and Halloween night even scarier. I may love to travel, but on this particular evening there's no better place than the comfort of my living room. For those of you who are a bit more brave and eager to set out into the spooky evening donning a custom costume, have a ghoulish time! But for the others, like myself, who prefer to stay home, I invite you to read these Halloween-themed travel reads.

• Haunted houses? That's nothing compared to notoriously haunted hotels or creepy castles. [via BootsNAll]
• My flick chick homegirl Eva over at World Hum put together this great list of travel horror movies that the faint of heart should avoid, but the brave should check out.
• Oh scary! There's nothing more frightening than graveyards by night. [via Matador Trips]
• Recycled Halloween costumes? If I did dress up, I'd go that route. Here are some frightfully good, green Halloween tips for travelers. [via Go Green Travel Green]

'Til Monday, enjoy the last of October!

More Gadlinks HERE.

Here's a travel tidbit for you guys: Did you know that it was 95 years ago that the first rapid transit subway, the IRT, opened in New York City?

We have certainly come a long way in a century, and 95 years from now we'll be just as astound at how travel times have changed. But let's get to the travel stories circulating the Web right now, shall we? Here are some good reads to tie you over.

• We've all had our bad days on the road -- or at the airport in particular. When you're not getting your way, you might want to follow these suggestions to have a better time traveling. [via CNN Travel]
• JAPAN. It's such a unique place to travel, but there are some things to do and not to do in Japan. [via Matador Trips]
• I recently took a coastal drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to Bolinas in Marin and was quickly reminded how much l love the California coastline. Here are some really worthy coastal drives that you can still take before winter sets in. [via MSNBC Travel]
• More and more people travel with their laptops, and more and more destinations are becoming wired for tech travelers. Here are six of the world's most wired places. [via Open Travel]

'Til tomorrow, have a great evening!

More Gadlinks HERE.

It's time to look at the festivals and events happening around the world, and this week has a particularly spooky selection of happenings. It is Halloween weekend after all. If you're close and have time, then you have no excuse to get out and go!

• Denmark - Since the first Music Harvest in 1985, the festival has presented contemporary music from the USA, Russia, Britain, Germany, Hungary, Finland, Poland, Lithuania and the Baltic countries, as well as from Denmark. The event takes place in Odense. It begins Wednesday, October 28 and will continue until November 7.
  
• Cambodia - Coronation Day a major religious holiday all over Cambodia and commemorates King Norodom Sihamoni's Coronation. This event takes place this Thursday, October 29th.
• Ottawa - One World Film Festival is a platform for filmmakers and the public to exchange ideas and information about issues of social justice, human rights and the environment. The event begins Thursday October 29 and continues until October 30.
• Hong Kong - Wine and Dine Festival is part of the a range of food and wine events in Hong Kong. The event begins this Friday, October 30 and continues until November 1.
• Las Vegas - The Professional Bull Riders Finals take place this Friday, October 30 at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas. The event is followed by the National Rodeo Finals later in the year and will continue until November 8.
  
• Transylvania - Halloween in Transylvania is a special event that will be held this Saturday, October 31,. The festival includes tours, shows and celebrations that follow the footsteps of Bram Stoker's novel character, Count Dracula.

If you make it to one of these events, let us know how it was. If you know of an even that's coming up, please let us here at Gadling know and we'll be sure to include it in the next "Get out and go" round-up.

'Til next week, have a great Halloween weekend.

Talk about a gorgeous sunset! I must have said this before, but I'll say it again: I love Hawaii. I'm almost positive this photo's been enhanced, but I have to say sunsets in Hawaii actually look like this all the time. Really.

Today's photo comes to use from arbpdx1, who has a really great photostream on Flickr, complete with family and travel photos. If you have some great travel shots you'd like to share, be sure to upload them to the Gadling pool on Flickr. We might just pick one as our Photo of the Day!