Your editors, Hal (being ridiculous) and Carlo (saying wtf!?)

As the world’s largest independent travel magazine, Matador holds transparency as one of its core values.

Matador Network brings you dozens of stories each week straight from our own experiences and those of our contributors. They’re written by people who know the places and issues they’re covering, and are motivated to share that knowledge with an audience who appreciates it.

Here at Trips, transparency manifests itself in guides that cut the BS and tell you what you want to know about a destination. In other words, we’re not trying to “sell” you place, just show it to you.

We think it’s an approach that works. So, in the spirit of transparency…

We Want You to Know Who We Are

You can visit the Trips About page to learn about your editors, check out our bylines, scope our Matador profiles.

But the door opens further than that. Our web presence isn’t limited to Trips; we both keep personal blogs where we wax (usually unpoetically) about our travels, our lives, and what it’s like being an editor for Matador.

Hal’s is called WayWorded and is coming up on its two-year anniversary. Carlo maintains two: the eponymous Carlo Alcos and The Long Layover, where he’s chronicling his and his wife’s current lives in Melbourne.

And we’re not the only ones. To find links to the personal sites of everyone on the Matador team, scroll down to the sidebar list titled “Editor Blogs” on any article in the network.

We Want to Know Who You Are

Hal hiking Mt. Snowdon, Wales

That’s us. How about you?

There would be no Trips without its readers, so we want to know who you are and what’s in your head.

What Trips piece is your absolute favorite? Which article opened you up to a destination you’d never heard of or considered before? What made you laugh, sigh, smirk?

How can we improve?

We’ve put ourselves out there — now it’s your turn. Join the discussion by commenting on this or any other post, or email us your take directly at hal[at]matadornetwork[dot]com and carlo[at]matadornetwork[dot]com.

We can’t wait to hear from you.

Photo: Ed Yourdon

As a Canadian living in Melbourne, the recent death of Canadian backpacker Cain Aguiar hit a little too close to home. The rising level of violence in this city, both in frequency and severity, is cause for concern.

It seems standard now to open the Monday newspaper only to read about a big brawl, bottling, or stabbing leading to hospitalized victims and worse, as in this case, ending in death. Last week Cain, while drinking by himself at a local pub, was attacked by three men, allegedly because he was talking to a woman known by the three accused.

As Cain lay in a hospital bed on life support, his sister set up a Facebook group for others to join and offer their support and well wishes. Unfortunately, the group theme had to be changed from “hope” to “rest in peace” when the family made the impossibly difficult decision to turn off the life support.

Remember, you’re not at home

While this sort of thing can easily happen at home too, it’s safe to say that we are more vulnerable on the road. We don’t really know the area we are in, we don’t know the culture, and we let our guard down a little. After all, we are supposed to be relaxed, having a good time and trying new things.

The case of Australian Britt Lapthorne, who was found murdered in Croatia late last year, serves as an example where “toning it down” would probably have led to much different results. Partying it up and getting out of hand is one thing at home, but abroad it’s a whole different ball of wax, where we stand out and can be more easily taken advantage of.

When you’re in a foreign country, be aware of your surroundings and err on the side of caution. We’re not invincible.

Safe travels everyone.

Photo: geoftheref

I gazed out the bus window last Sunday afternoon to see…well, nothing.

No jagged mountains or endless pampas as I’d imagined. Instead, a solid sheet of white hung like TV static out the slowly progressing bus window. Blizzard-like conditions were slamming Patagonia’s Route 40.

This was the first time I saw it snow during my now six months in South America. And I was just as shocked as I had been back in January, flying out of snowy Boston to arrive in the humid, hazy summer of Lima. How amazing that it’s possible to switch seasons in a day simply by hopping a plane.

Photo: lepiaf.geo

However strange it may feel, I’m ready to take advantage of what Patagonia’s throwing at me.

Over the next month or so that I’ll be here in Esquel, Argentina, volunteering with Asociación MAPU (which just so happens to be a Matador member organization), I should have a couple days free to hit the local ski mountain, La Hoya.

And if I were to venture a bit farther north, I could sample a couple of the 5 Best Southern Hemisphere Ski Resorts that Trips profiled earlier this year.

The other three are in Australia/New Zealand.

What about my fellow Southern Hemisphereans? What are your plans for enjoying the winter of 2009 while our cousins up north steam and sweat? Let me know in the comments.

Community Connection

To connect with other Matador members stationed below the belt, search the community destination pages.

Photo above: notsogoodphotography, Feature photo: the trial

It’s a time when many take to the beach to relax or get their sport on, and the Guardian’s travel section recently released a top-10 list of the world’s best stretches of sand.

Who’d they ask? People who know their beaches — marine biologists, surfing instructors, and divers, among others.

Photo: notsogoodphotography

Here’s what they came up with:

1. Kapalua Bay, Maui, Hawaii, U.S.
2. Hossegor, France
3. Hyams Beach, New South Wales, Australia
4. Porthtowan, Cornwall, United Kingdom
5. Bingin Beach, Bali
6. Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman Island
7. Sifah beach, Oman
8. Namotu, Fiji
9. Punta Lobos, southern Chile
10. Pease Bay, Scotland

Look at the geographical diversity of this list. You can literally find your favorite anywhere in the world.

They offer different colors and textures of sand, different crowds, different surf breaks…different ways to enjoy the summer.

We at Trips want to know: what are your favorite beaches? Where can you be found come June 21, and what will you be doing there? Let us know in the comments!

Community Connection

Matador has covered a variety of beach-related topics, from the Best Nude Beaches in the World to Simple Beach Yoga for Backpackers.

Need help figuring out your family summer travel plans? Maybe a photo essay of reader-recommended family destinations is what you need.

Carlo rockin’ out

If you’re wondering where you’ve landed, don’t fret. You’re home!

The Matador Network has an all new layout and we’re gearing up to bring you more content.

Each week we’ll be taking you to peaks, rivers, waves, cities and towns around the world, giving you the heads up on places you may not have heard about otherwise.

Your two editors are longtime Matadorians and ex-pats living on opposite sides of the globe. Carlo is a Vancouverite calling Melbourne home for now; Hal grew up deep in the heart of Texas and is currently kicking around the Andes.

We’re both driven by a passion to explore the world, its inhabitants and its beauty.

Hal, about to plummet into a Bolivian canyon

We’ll share what we find along the way but we also hope to learn, so don’t be shy!

If you feel inclined to leave comments on what you see, good or bad, please do. We want to hear your thoughts and experiences even more than we want to hear ourselves (trust us).

But don’t stop there. Become a member of the Matador Community and interact with like-minded travelers. Subscribe to our feeds and have posts delivered to you as they’re written.

And if you have something you’d like to appear on these pages, become a contributor yourself.

These are exiting times at Matador — be a part of them!