France Tourism Hopes for Better Times in 2010

It's a familiar scene. Kent and I drove into Manhattan last night and once again we got that sense that we had come to the right place. The occasion was a media show by France Tourism, a combination of Air France, Rail Europe and tourism officials from Normandy and Rhone Alpes, along with the people who run A Tout France in New York.

We learned about what 2009 was like for tourism in the world's most popular tourist destination--down nearly four percent. We found some excitement, though in two areas, and that was worth celebrating with Rhone red wine and rare lamb on a stick. The new A380 airplane is making Air France big money and the representative claimed that flying transatlantic on this giant beast is something 'completely different than any other flying experience.'

Sony Stark already raved to us about her chance to ride in the plane, so we know now she's not the only person wowed by the mood lighting, six bars and three levels of service on the A380. The other thing that one of the panelists was excited about for 2010 was trains. The resurgence of high-speed rail in the US has prompted a huge interest in taking the trains of Europe. There is a new high-speed line that takes people from Paris to Berlin and then overnight to Moscow.

In our business, we're always optimistic--and judging from the many writers and producers we ran into at the event, everyone is hoping for a fantastic 2010, in France and around the traveling world.

Tipped Off to the Google Ad, a Follower Knows All

As I fell asleep after one of the best Superbowls I've ever watched, I thought about the connections and the various lines that bind people together. There was a commercial during the game's third quarter for Google, perhaps spurred on by the early success of rival search engine Bing.

I knew it was coming because I follow John Battelle, who wrote a book about Google and runs Federated Media, the people who publish one of the top blogs on the web called BoingBoing.net. He had mentioned that it was coming, so I was ready when I saw them up on the screen.

Google's ad followed a series of searches about France. One of the top results was for "How to Make a French Woman Happy" and referenced a website knew well--Paris logue. The site was created by my friend Sean Keener's company, Bootsnall.com, and I was proud that they got such a high-profile shout out on the world's biggest stage. Good on ya Boots!

Saturday's Podcamp ended with a few beers at the Tavern in Westfield, where my seat at the bar brought the charming Rebecca Caplice, President of Greenfield Savings Bank, and two other women gathered around. Rebecca talked about the restaurant she and her husband opened, and how they've got more than 1000 fans on its Facebook Page. The funny thing is since I'm one of them I knew the whole story about the place and some of the former Greenfieldites who have given the place their blessing. Once again, social media brought me insights and backstories that made our face-to-face time more enriching.

The Guard Economy Keeps Us All Down

Samuel Bowles is an unappreciated yet wise economist who runs the Santa Fe Institute, a radical hotbed where people with big brains meet and talk about issues. I read in the Santa Fe Reporter about one of Bowle's theories, which intrigued me.

He states that in the US, one in four people are in the business of guarding other people's wealth. Whether they work as a private security guard for a gated community, or a rent-a-cop in a shopping mall, their job is to keep the rich rich by keeping the poor at bay.

Bowles speculates that we lose millions of dollars in productivity because so many of us are doing the work of guarding, instead of creating new businesses or doing other valuable things. He says what he calls 'guard labor' supports the beat down economy. These are the marginalized, the workers who sadly, in most cases will pass along their poverty to their kids. The SF Reporter story was titled "Born Poor," cites Bowle's study.

Like-minded People Gather to Share at Podcamp

"I have met so many people as a result of social media," said Leslie, an active blogger, twitterer and Facebooker, and one of the presenters at Podcamp Western Mass. "I met Morris, my partner, and I met another person who became a business partner, and so many people all over Western Mass. I've gotten so much more than I've given."

Leslie summed up why we have all given up a Saturday to join like-minded people learning about the fine points of twitter, facebook, blogs, videos and other aspects of today's social media landscape.

What I like is that it's one of the few venues where we can be typing a blog, reading twitter feeds and still listen to the speakers. I've always said, 'hey I'm listening, really' and nobody believes me. But here, hey....it's ok to do it all at the same time.

Jackie Stevenson has been a friend for many years, and she gave a bang up presentation about how she uses SM to promote companies and restaurants. She has some cogent examples of big media scores.

She spent more than a year as a freelancer; now she's gotten a four-day a week gig as Director of Public Relations for Winstanley Associates.

Without all of this SM stuff, she would have never gotten this great opportunity to have a good paying job with benefits. Couldn't happen to a better gal; and it couldn't have happened without our social media world.

Padded Airline Schedules Make for Longer Flights

Doesn't a free trip to Cancun sound good? Yeah, it does, but when you book a ticket six days in advance the flight details are kinda gnarly. I'm not one to complain but I fly out of Bradley at 6 am and spend about four hours in Dallas. It's only about 3 hours to Cancun but of course, nothing is ever as easy as one hopes when it comes to air travel.

Last night I read a story in the WSJ about how airlines have increased the length of time for nearly all flights to pad the schedule by about 30 minutes. Thus, a flight from New York to LA that might have taken five and a half hours five years ago now clocks in at six and a half.

The delays aren't weather related, it's all about the waiting time on the tarmac. Planes in lines like cars, one after the other, all trying to take off. It seems that nobody in the airline business believes in congestion pricing, so they go with the will of the people who all want to leave at the same time. So the schedules are padded, and people can think that airlines' on-time percentages are more impressive.

Oh well, I'm not gonna beef about this day-long flight. It's worth it to see my friends in Cancun again and hopefully, I can give a speech or something when they hand me my award.

Award-Winning Writer: I Love the Sound of That!

Cindy and I traveled to Mexico last January and upon my return I wrote a story for GoNOMAD titled "Ecotourism in Cancun: Wilder than we Expected," about the contrast between the stereotype of Mexico's most popular tourism destination and the public perception of ecotourism. The story was about things you can do outdoors---but what we remembered most was how much we loved the people of Mexico.

I've been a writer since I helped put out my elementary school newspaper in 1970. But I've never been able to call myself an 'Award-winning writer.' Tonight, for the first time in my 51 years, I took a first place prize for my writing. I'm awfully proud, I must admit. And this one comes with a big check and a free trip to Cancun for the ceremony. Pinch me!

It was our first trip to Mexico and we loved everyone we met. The physical beauty of Mexico's azure sea and the cenotes (water holes) of the Yucatan were striking. But Mexico, for us, was about the people who live there. Our hosts were friendly and warm, and everyone from the hotel manager down to the chamber maids were genuinely pleased to help us and their smiles were real. I can't wait to go back next week!

Faceless Facebook Friends Will Meet at Podcamp

I awoke to the sound of a 5-horsepower motor whirring in the driveway across the street. It has snowed and Kate next door was using her snowthrower to clean the white. It's early February and I can only say I'm glad that January is gone. As I lay back in bed and gazed my barely focused eyes on my iPhone, I read the trail of Facebook posts that had been posted while I slept.

Like many people I know my life has been significantly changed by this regular ritual. Gazing down and reading the posts that 350 other people have added over the course of a day has become an important part of life. But truth be told, it's really not all of those 350 people, it's more like 20 or 30 who are active posters who consume most of my Facebook reading time.

I have never met many of these people who I follow; that's a unique aspect of this new world of pseudo-communication. But I feel like if I met them I would know them as old friends. It's the same for the blogs I follow; I know so many things about people because they've posted blogs about their lives.

On Saturday I will get to meet many of the Facebook friends and Twitter followers who only appear in my life in pixels. It's time for Podcamp, where the questions one saves up all year can be answered and Geekdom rules. It's a time where having 3200 followers on Twitter is actually cool, and we share expertise on whatever we know something about. It's a time when it's really ok to talk while you're typing...my kind of place!