Campout! Carolina take place Oct. 8-9

by Kraig Becker on

The 4th annual Campout! Carolina is schedule to take place next weekend, October 8 and 9, throughout North Carolina, as thousands of outdoors enthusiasts head to a variety of campsites to enjoy the fall season. The event is organized each year to encourage the state’s residents, and visitors alike, to enjoy North Carolina’s environmental attractions by pitching a tent and turning off all the unnecessary electrical items for a couple of evenings.

Participants are encouraged to camp anywhere, including their own backyard or in a state park. All registered campers are automatically entered into a drawing to win some great gear, including a tent and other supplies, as well as a $50 gift certificate from REI. The company will also be providing gear for campers to use free of charge as well. Additionally, Dick’s Sporting Goods will be hosting a photo contest in which they’ll also be giving away a $50 gift card.

The Campout! Carolina website has a host of ideas for what to do while roughing it in the tent, with suggestions like taking a nature walk, telling ghost stories, and going on a scavenger hunt. They’ve even posted some fun recipes and a link to free star charts for checking out the night sky.

Last year more than 5500 people took part in this event, and the organizer of the campout, EarthShare North Carolina, is hoping to beat that number this year. If you live in, or around, North Carolina, plan on sleeping in a tent next week to celebrate!

[Photo credit: Campout! Carolina via Flickr]

Space travel destination: Gliese 581g

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Okay, so the name isn’t as sexy as “St. Tropez” or “Bora Bora.” But, you have to admit that “Gliese 581g” does get your imagination going. Why is this such an inspiring destination? Well, it’s the first potentially habitable planet that’s been found! You’d actually have a shot at living there. So, as talk of space travel continues to gain momentum – regardless of how much it may remain in the realm of fantasy for now – it looks like we finally have a place to go.

Gliese 581g has everything you’d want in a space destination. According to The Awl, “it’s around three earths, it’s probably not made of gas, it could conceivably hold on to an atmosphere, and it’s at the right distance from its star, Gliese 581, to have liquid water on the surface.” Get ready for a bit of extreme heat, though: “half of it may or may not be always a 70°C degree daytime and the other half, a -35°C degree night.”

The temperatures may be a bit rough, but I’d still book a ticket for this trip.

[photo by BlatantWorld.com via Flickr]

Top ten new tastes at the EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival

by Leigh Caldwell on


The 15th annual EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival kicks off today at Walt Disney World Resort.

The festival includes cooking demonstrations, concerts, cookbook signings, wine dinners and celebrity chef appearances, but the “main event” is what the Festival Marketplace around the World Showcase promenade, where 25 kiosks selling regional food and drink from around the world are set up.

The tapas-size portions sell for $3-$8. There are always some festival mainstays, like Canadian Beer Cheese Soup and Polish Kielbasa and Potato Pierogies, but this year 60 percent of the items are new to the festival.

I got a chance to preview the festival last night during a soft opening, and here’s my list of the top new tastes (and sips) at this year’s EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival:

  1. Freshly Baked Waffles with Berry Compote and Whipped Cream – This dish at the new Belgium kiosk was delicious, as expected. The waffles were perfectly crisp – not soggy at all, which is a great feat when they are being prepared outside in the Florida humidity.
  2. Cheese Fondue with Croutons and Roasted Potatoes – This was a classic fondue at a new Charcuterie and Cheese kiosk. Applewood smoked beef, duck and ham are also available at this booth.
  3. Coconut-braised, Beef Rendang with Jasmine Rice – Another new kiosk for 2010 is Singapore, and I loved this spicy dish there.
  4. Bohae Bokbunjajoo – South Korea is the fourth new kiosk for this year’s food and wine festival, and the first thing I tasted there was this black raspberry rice wine. I’m not a huge fan of sweet wines, but this one wasn’t overpowering, and I enjoyed it.
  5. Bison Chili with Wild Mushrooms, Cabernet and Pepper Jack Cheese – The USA kiosk rotates by region every few years. For the past couple of years, the culinary focus has been on Louisiana, but this year it has shifted to the Pacific Northwest. This chili was spicy, earthy and just plain good (though the portion felt a bit skimpy.)
  6. Godiva Chocolate Iced Coffee – This sip from the Belgium kiosk was a great way to end the evening on a sweet note, and, though it is starting to feel like autumn here in Central Florida, hot coffee just doesn’t work most of the year at Walt Disney World.
  7. Asopao de Pollo – Disney Chef Roberto Velez’s family recipe for this comforting chicken and rice soup won a competition to be included on the tasting menu at this year’s festival. It’s available at the Puerto Rico booth.
  8. Heirloom Tomato Salad with Domestic Blue Cheese, Red Onion and Fresh Basil – Another new addition from the USA booth, this salad was flavorful and gorgeous. The tomatoes tasted like they had just been picked.
  9. Lettuce Wraps with Roast Pork and Kimchi Slaw – I found this dish from the South Korea booth to be packed with flavor. The Jinro Chamisul Soju beverage sold at this booth is a great complement to the lettuce wraps.
  10. Pear Streusel Pudding Cake – While I’m sure the Desserts and Champagne kiosk at the festival is meant to be a last stop of the night, I’ll just admit right here that it’s often my first stop. This cake was new to the menu and caught my eye. It’s dense, moist, and sweet, and it goes great with a dry champagne.

The Epcot International Food and Wine Festival continues through Nov. 14. While many of the events require reservations and extra fees, the Festival Marketplace booths can be accessed by anyone with regular Disney Parks admission.

Daily Pampering: Learn to ride at Jackson Hole’s Hotel Terra

by Melanie Nayer on

“The woods are the goods.” That’s the motto of Burton’s Stash Park. With Burton set to unveil the sixth and only Rocky Mountain Stash Park this winter in Jackson Hole, Hotel Terra, the area’s most chic and green address is offering a chance for the wanna-be snowboard bums to “Learn to Ride” at the area traditionally known for its world-class, steep skier terrain.

Burton’s eco-conscious Stashes welcome more experienced riders with its natural features and drops, and with Hotel Terra’s “Suite Stash Learn to Ride” Package, those new to snowboarding can take advantage of all the perks. Based on double occupancy, the offer includes:

  • 3 nights lodging in a one or two bedroom Terra suite
  • Ultimate ‘Suite Stash’ amenities: a state of the art, full furnished kitchen and bar seating area, dining area, living room, one or more extra bathrooms, flat screen TVs, and one or more furnished terraces
  • 1 Day instruction (for two) in the Burton’s Learn to Ride program at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort (includes: Boards, boots and bindings specifically designed for beginners will make learning to snowboard easy and fun)
  • Daily Breakfast for two in Terra Cafe
  • Flip Ultra Video Camera for capturing your progress (return at the end of the days and plug it directly into your Hotel Terra flat screen TV for immediate playback)

The Hotel Terra package is available from November 27, 2010 – April 3, 2011.
The cost? Rates start at $1,102.50

Want more? Get your daily dose of pampering right here.

Department of Transportation mulls expanded passenger delay rule

by Tom Johansmeyer on

The Department of Transportation is thinking about getting even stricter with the airlines. After implementing a rule last spring that involves heavy fines for carriers that keep passengers on a plane on the ground for at least three hours, the DOT is already considering expanding the scope to small airports and international flights.

MSNBC reports:

“The situation is much worse than the [official] statistics indicate,” said George Hobica of AirfareWatchdog.com. “We have to include every airport, every type of plane and every type of flight.”

Unsurprisingly, the International Air Transport Association isn’t crazy about Hobica’s approach, with spokesman Steve Lott saying, “If DOT goes ahead with this, they’re going to cause a much larger problem than the one they think they’re trying to solve.”

The final rule won’t come down until the spring, so there’s plenty of time for both sides to fight this out.

For the airline sector, this measure seems to be seen as a signal of something much worse – the prospect of broad regulation and constraints on its ability to operate effectively in the manner to which it has become accustomed.

For its part, DOT won’t announce a final rule until next spring, but you can expect a lot of others to weigh in before then. Hundreds of last-minute ideas were lobbed over to the DOT, according to MSNBC, addressing all kinds of passenger and watchdog hot buttons, such as: advertising, fee disclosure and compensation for those denied boarding. The big one, of course, was the issue of delays on the tarmac.

International carriers oppose the expanded rules – shocking, right?! Lott, taking the standard industry stance, raises the issue of cancellation instead of risking a $27,500 per passenger customer fine, telling MSNBC, “I don’t think getting stranded in a U.S. city for a day or more is necessarily helping passengers.”

This may be a risk, but the data tells the only reliable story:

Meanwhile, as the airline industry and consumer advocates press their points of view, two truths regarding tarmac delays remain. Delays of three hours or more for domestic flights are down substantially since the original rule went into effect – there were only three in July, says DOT, compared to 161 during the same period last year – and international flights do present a much more challenging scenario.

[photo by williamcho via Flickr]