Tablet Magazine #97 - The GO! Issue

Tablet 97 - The GO Issue
Photograph by Casey Kelbaugh

A Letter From Us

As much as we love it here in the Pacific Northwest, we have to admit we don’t get out of here often enough. It’s so easy to get bogged down in our everyday lives—we spend too much time at work, we close ourselves in at home during the long, cold winter nights. We too often dream of escaping to an exotic locale or a nearby metropolis but seldom act on those dreams.Sometimes we blame it on not having enough time, sometimes not having enough money, and sometimes because if we do have a spare moment, we just wanna chill with a drink and our friends in a dark, out-of-the-way bar.

Spring is just around the corner and this is the time of year to lose the baggage of weak excuses. This issue is dedicated to travel writing because we just can’t wait any longer to hop a plane, train or bus and start exploring a new city or revisit an old favorite.

Whether it’s a trip to see the ancient architecture of Europe, the glitzy futurism of Asia, or the cheap thrills of Vegas, we know we need to get out and about to make our lives better here at home. We may come back tired, broke or broken-hearted, but we couldn’t live without the excitement that comes from figuring out how to read a new subway schedule, how to order a foreign delicacy, or how to explain to your partner back home how important for international relations it was to explore the foreign tongue of a handsome local.

In this issue we challenge some of the conceptions we have about traveling. We bust open the idea that traveling requires a loaded pocketbook. We sent a few of our writers to Las Vegas, Vancouver, San Francisco and New York City and had them report back on how easy it is to have a great time in those cities on only $250. It was a lot easier than we would have thought and the experiences they had—at least those they actually remember—had all of us longing to book a flight out of here.

We also sent a reporter to grand old Europe to find out what one woman traveling alone needs to know. Traveling with friends or lovers can be an exciting way to grow together and it’s great to have someone to share your experiences with—but it can also be a recipe for relationship disaster or mean catering your vacation experience to someone else’s idea of a good time. We offer some helpful hints and reveal some of the pitfalls of solo travel.

As always, we need to work sex into our issue. Let’s face it: vacation sex cannot be beat. So we put together a few articles on hooking up with foreigners, how to get it on in languages not your own, and some good tips on using the Internet to meet that man or woman to whom you will be devoted (for at least one night).

All this and so much more! Enjoy this issue, but not for too long. There is so much more to experience outside the pages of a magazine—and outside the comfy confines of the Pacific Northwest. So go online, book your ticket, schedule a sexual liaison for each leg of your trip, and make reservations at some cheap hotels. But don’t plan too much—as in life, traveling is all about the experiences you have between the carefully planned events.

Love, Tablet