Monthly Archives: September 2012

Sailing the Bay with Captain Bob

Posted on by under Vayable Experiences

One of our popular experiences in San Francisco is a private sail around the bay with Captain Bob. This is a relaxing and beautiful way to take in the city from the serenity of a sailboat. Captain Bob’s guests generously let me tag along to take in the sites with them.

At the start of the tour, Captain Bob initiated fun conversations with stories about sailing and Bay Area history. I loved his anecdotes about Treasure Island, Alcatraz and San Francisco landmarks. He takes great care of his guests by making sure everyone has food, drinks and a comfortable view. He even let me explore the bow to take some photos.

As we peacefully cruised around the bay, we saw typical sites in the bay such as, the Bay Bridge, Alcatraz and the Ferry Building. We were also lucky enough to watch dolphins leap through the water!

Captain Bob has over 35 years of experience sailing and made us feel completely comfortable as he navigated the waters with ease.

Visitors will love this experience for the beautiful views of the city and water. Locals will love this chance to relax outside of the city for an afternoon. Mostly, this is the perfect way to spend time with the people you love or would like to know more!

Tips for the Perfect Turkish Breakfast

Posted on by under Community

Merve and Kasper are a young international couple in Istanbul with a serious love for breakfast, the most important meal of the day in Turkey. Here they dish a few of their secrets to a homemade Turkish breakfast.

What inspired you to offer a Homemade Turkish Breakfast to visitors?

Breakfast is the most important meal in Turkish culture. I like to prepare a big breakfast to start the day off right. I have been preparing breakfast for Kasper for a long time and we thought “Why not share this tradition with others and let them taste a real homemade Turkish breakfast?” We make a great team! I prepare the food, he cleans and entertains the guests.

How do you make a Turkish breakfast?

First, prepare some Turkish tea because it takes about 20 minutes to get the flavor just right. Then, prepare a cheese plate and adorn with some dried mint and olive oil on top. Next, cut tomatoes and cucumbers into small pieces and add lemon juice, olive oil and pomegranate syrup or spices if you like. Then, prepare a plate of olives. You can spice this up with red pepper and olive oil.

Next, start making the menemen. First, cut green peppers into small pieces and saute in olive oil. After the peppers are cooked add some cut tomatoes. Cook a little bit longer and add watered tomato paste. Last, you can add eggs and cheese (kaşar, white cheese), if you like. Scramble all ingredients and add black and red pepper.

You can also prepare a plate of bal kaymak, which is a cream similar to a think yogurt with honey on top.

What are the 5 best Turkish breakfast foods?

  1. Menemen: Scrambled eggs with tomato, pepper, cheese and any other toppings
  2. Gözleme: Savory handmade pastry similar to a crepe.
  3. Bal-Kaymak: Kaymak is a thick cream, similar to yogurt. This dish is served with honey drizzled on top.
  4. Sucuklu Yumurta: Eggs with Turkish spicy sausage.
  5. Fresh cucumber and tomato salad with different types of cheeses.

Work With Us!

Posted on by under Announcements, Vayateam

Recently our little team finished Y Combinator and raised more money than we can fit under our beds. Long story short, we’re hiring for positions in our beautiful, charming San Francisco office.

We believe in empowering people to make a living doing what they love and creating a world where having a passion in something is your source of financial stability. Technology should make our lives better by solving problems and enhancing real world interactions. All of us have met friends during our travels - in Peru, in Nepal, in Cambodia - who we wanted to help if only there was something like Vayable. We want to make it easy for people to connect and explore the world in more meaningful ways.

We’ve been inspired by unexpected hidden gems found off the beaten path, far from touristy parts of town. Benefits of tourism should be more widely distributed, and locals should have an influence on the neighborhoods, communities, and businesses that tourism dollars go to. More tourism dollars should stay in the local economy. After all, destinations are only appealing because of the cultural and natural heritage that has been cultivated by people who live there. We love our community and are constantly inspired by their generosity and love for their cities.

We also just want people to have kick-ass experiences when they travel. Other than that, we’re wicked fun, and you’ll be stoked to see us for 12 hours a day. We love to go hiking, do yoga, sail the seas, and live what we make. We have healthy foods for breakfast and lunch, but you can also request whatever you want, and we won’t judge you if you get a weekly bag of cookies. We like cookies too, and we eat pie on Fridays. So come along for the ride - we’re just getting started.

Apply Here.

“And what is it to work with love? Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.” - Kahlil Gibran in The Profet

The Explore Local Mumbai Guide

Posted on by under Guide Stories

Ruchit is a Mumbai native and hosts the Explore Local Mumbai tour. This tour gets to the heart of the Mumbai lifestyle and shows off what Mumbaikars love about their home. Here he shares with us his guide for a day in Mumbai.
Popularly known for “Bollywood,” Mumbai is often alternatively known as a ‘slum’ city since the release of the Oscar winner movie “Slum Dog Millionaire.” But that’s not entirely fair. There’s a lot more to Mumbai. Here’s what I would suggest if you have a day in Mumbai –

  1. See a few point of interest, but go local! - Hop into an overcrowded local train that takes you to the British Raj monument, Victoria Terminus Station. Just outside the station, get into a taxi (we call it taxi not cab). Drive by the waterfront Marine Drive and visit the Gateway of India and the heritage hotel, The Taj.
  2. Walk through the largest open laundry, Dhobi Ghat and the hippie area, Colaba Causeway.
  3. Scorching afternoon heat of Mumbai? – Stop by the famous Leopold Cafe mentioned extensively in the novel Shantaram. I happen to really like this retro-bar for its beers and burgers.
  4. Wondering what to do in the afternoon? – Escape the heat with some desi (local) shopping. Adorn the spirit of India with cotton attire from Fab India and accessories from Colaba Causeway shopping arena.
  5. Snack time! – If you haven’t had Mumbai Chaat (local street food) especially ‘pani-puri,’ you are definitely missing the mouth-watering taste of Mumbai! I suggest you hit the Sakari Bhandar chaat-stall, close by Amitabh Bachchan’s (a Bollywood legend) residence in Juhu.
  6. Mumbai Manhattan? Is that in New York? - Well no, we are talking about the Mumbai skyline where the property rates increase faster than the inflation rate. The view of the army of buildings is just spectacular from the Worli Sea-link.
  7. Go clubbing! – But hit some galli (street) serving more of Mumbai’s local food, like Pav Bhaji, to get pumped-up. As Mumbai is the home of India’s elite, it has quite a few crazy clubs where the bold and the beautiful hang out drinking mojitos.
  8. Hard to believe it’s the end of the day in Mumbai? – Not yet! Mumbai is tagged as a city that never sleeps. The after-party food… Food again? Yes Mumbaikars love food. The shawarma wrap at Bade Miya is the place. Open till 3am, you will often spot the elite crowd in their Mercs and BMWs, as well as working class eating at this place! Food has no race/caste, I’d say.
  9. The last pit-stop! – Sit at Marine Drive facing the Arabian Sea for the nighttime sea breeze that WILL make you feel sleepy and realize – Now, it’s the end of a tiring and fun-filled day!

Get Shot in LA on FataLAtour

Posted on by under Vayable Experiences

There’s the Los Angeles on the silver screen, the Los Angeles in television news, and the Los Angeles in reality TV. And then there’s real life in LA.

FataLAtour mixes reality in La La Land even more.

What’s it like to get shot? How do the body and mind react?

FataLAtour explores the process the mind and body endure when it believes it’s been shot. Whether the fatal wound was shot on the streets or the screen the episode will become part of your reality. Starting September 10, you’ll be able to book it here.

The FataLAtour App

The FataLAtour app alerts you whenever you are within a one-block radius of a real-life or fictional shooting. You can either follow the FataLAtour map to seek out destinations or keep the app on during your daily walks in the city of Los Angeles. Each alert shares information about the victim’s name, death details and location.

The FataLAtour Experience

Next time you’re in LA arrange a FataLAtour with David. You’ll strap on a FataLAtour (as seen in the videos) and begin walking around the city. When you approach the scene of a real life or fictional shooting, blood packs will burst, simulating a gunshot wound on your shirt. From there the brain takes over.

About Your Guide

David Leonard is a fourth-generation LA native and media artist. He worked in television news for eight years as a photojournalist and reporter. The FataLAtour is the product of his graduate work in Design | Media Arts at UCLA. Check out his personal site www.davidleonard.tv and follow FataLAtour on Twitter @FataLAtour.

The Family Reintroduction: What Traveling in Southeast Asia Taught Me About My Family

Posted on by under Columns, Transformative Travel Experiences

The people I’ve known the longest still surprise me. I learned this when my family visited me in Thailand. Take everyone out of their context and comfort zones and new elements of their personalities unfold. Sure some things always remains the same. My sister still wants the royal treatment, my dad wants to make sure everyone has the royal treatment and my mom just wants everyone to get along.

I wandered off to far flung places before I’d graduated university. I completed my last semester abroad and stayed overseas for the next two and a half years. There’s a transition into an adult relationship with family members that happens during those years. While my sister figured all of that out, I was biking in a rice field in Thailand.

The chance for my family to visit me overseas stirred a bubbly mixture of reactions. Mostly, I was excited to enjoy their company and show them my life in Thailand. Part of me however, was anxious. The years overseas had changed me and I wasn’t sure how much they’d changed in those years either.

The first few days were mixed. I loved showing them around, exploring new places and basking in luxuries like air conditioning and beaches. I was also incredibly impatient. I’d been in Thailand for over a year and took for granted the daily routines I’d become accustomed to. I guess the money does look different, and talking to cab drivers is awkward at first, and squat toilets can be mildly traumatizing the first go around.

What I did come to appreciate are the new things I learned about the people I’d known my whole life. My dad, with his boundless curiosity thrives abroad. He was the most alert, inquisitive and giddy I’d ever seen. My mom, the rock in our family, knows how to cut loose more than she lets on. My sister with her perfect hair, will be the first to run through the mud if it means a good time.

Most of all, I loved the reassurance of the things I already knew. This I realized when we made our way over to Cambodia. As we teased each other over afternoon hor d’oeuvres of champagne and cheese, I remembered this is the family I’ve always known. This is the family with a tendency to turn the most average moment into a celebration to remember.