Travel -: Hiking where locomotives once chugged

Travel - Headlines from Hiking where locomotives once chugged 9 Jul 2011, 2:27 am Jogging along the Whittier Greenway Trail is traversing a corridor of history, a trip through an era when citrus trees bloomed â€" and boomed â€" in the breeze of passing rail trains. I found this trail because I wanted somewhere long and flat to run, but then I realized I'd stumbled on a relic of a Southern California long past. The Whittier Greenway Trail is a rail trail, a multipurpose public path along an abandoned rail corridor. Following the gentle grade of railroads, rail trails offer recreation â€" bicycling, walking, horseback riding â€" and open transportation routes through otherwise dense urban areas where similar trails would now be difficult to build. As I jogged along the five-mile trail, I paused at information stations such as the one in front of the former Sunkist packing house â€" built in 1902, it is now, appropriately, an antique store â€" that outline the interwoven boom-and-bust history of citrus and rails in Whittier. In the early 1900s, the railroad was carrying thousands of train carloads of oranges to market â€" $2 million worth in 1931. By 1967, the Whittier depot was closed, and the track lay abandoned. That is, until 2008, when the city of Whittier purchased the land right of way and built a trail along the former rail corridor. "Railroads had such a pivotal role in the development of the country, especially in the opening of the West. Many communities' identity sprang up around the railroads, so [preserving rail trails] preserves an important piece of American history," said Laura Cohen, the Western regional director of Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit dedicated to the preservation of railway corridors. "We look at rail trails as a way to reconnect neighborhoods and reconnect people." In 1920, when Congress began to track the loss of freight railroad lines, the national rail network extended more than 270,000 miles, a Rails-to-Trails report said. By 1990, that number had shrunk to 141,000 miles. Highways replaced many of these routes, but just as many were left untended. When Rails-to-Trails was founded in 1986, there were fewer than 100 miles of rail trails nationwide. Today, 20,000 miles extend on 1,600 rail trails around the country; California has more than 100 distinct trails. Besides preserving history, rail trails help transform urban areas. "A lot of times, an abandoned rail corridor will be an eyesore, a place where people dump trash or spray graffiti," Cohen said. The Martin Luther King Promenade runs through downtown San Diego along an active trolley line; adorned by public art, grassy areas, water fountains, the trail offers access to revitalized areas of downtown such as the Gaslamp Quarter. Rail trails also offer scenic day trips outside of major cities. The Ojai Valley Trail begins just south of Ojai and sweeps 10 miles down to Foster Park, north of Ventura. With panoramic views and a gradual downgrade as you head south, it's a good trail to cycle. From Foster Park, you can hop on the Ventura River Trail, which continues to the Ventura Pier, for a complete mountain-to-sea ride. The Mount Lowe Railway Trail, teetering through the San Gabriel Mountains with grades up to 62%, defies the long and flat rule. It was built in the 1890s by engineer Thaddeus S.C. Lowe and drew tourists to the expansive Mount Lowe Tavern. At 4,420 feet, the lodge boasted vistas from Pasadena to the Pacific but was plagued by fires and floods until it closed in 1937 and the railway was abandoned. Now it's a narrow 21/2-mile hike up 1,500 feet just to access the railway (a climb once mounted by cable cars) and tavern ruins, and a 31/2-mile climb along the rail line to Inspiration Point. The Whittier Greenway Trail begins just off Interstate 605 and runs mostly parallel to Whittier Boulevard. The route is well landscaped and decorated; four wind sculptures adorn the bridge over Whittier Boulevard, and a wide woodchip shoulder protects the joints of joggers and dogs. travel@latimes.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Travel -: A healthy dose of American history

Travel - Headlines from A healthy dose of American history 10 Jul 2011, 8:00 am Reporting from Boston, Philadelphia and New Yorkâ€" Paul Revere was captured on April 18, 1775, before he could warn the residents of Concord, Mass., that the British were coming. (He did make it to Lexington, Mass.) No Revolutionary War battle was ever fought at Valley Forge, Pa., even though Gen. George Washington and his troops were there for nine months, including during a horrific winter. Gustave Eiffel â€" he of tower fame â€" gave our Statue of Liberty her backbone. In Boston, Philadelphia and New York last spring, I exercised my way through decades of U.S. history that I never seemed to have learned in school. Maybe all the movement activated my brain and made me more receptive as I walked, biked and kayaked my way through these lessons. As my knowledge increased, my weight decreased by about 3 pounds. Does it get any better than that? Boston During four days in Boston, by kayak and by foot, I got the skinny on a diverse range of topics, from canoe courtship to Revere's incomplete ride. Paddling a two-person kayak with Daniel Smith from Charles River Canoe & Kayak, I learned that in the 1890s unchaperoned couples could court in a canoe, but if they were caught kissing, they would be deemed "not in control of their vessel" and could be fined. We paddled round trip from Kensington Square in Cambridge across the Charles River and around the Esplanade park. As I took in the skyline and attempted to do at least 30% of the paddling (with several short breaks), Smith pointed out the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Museum of Science and the back of the Boston Pops Hatch band shell that I'd known only from televised Fourth of July concerts. Boston is a walking kind of town (I averaged 20,000 steps a day, or about five miles with my stride), so the next day, I accompanied a patriot guide from the Freedom Trail Foundation on two walking tours along the 21/2-mile Freedom Trail. The guide was dressed as William Dawes, who helped Revere spread the alarm that famous April night. It's said that the statue of Revere on horseback doesn't face the Old North Church, where the one-if-by-land-two-if-by-sea lanterns were hung, because the parishioners of St. Stephen's Catholic Church (at 401 Hanover St.) didn't want a horse's behind facing their church. Revere allegedly cast the bell in St. Stephen's, which began life as a Congregational church but became St. Stephen's in 1862. It was the family church of Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, the matriarch of the Kennedy clan. Her funeral was here in 1995. On a Freedom Trail historic pub crawl (a crawl counts as exercise, I told myself) that evening, we borrowed a toast attributed, probably incorrectly, to Ben Franklin: "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy." So I exercised my elbow and raised my glass to Ben. The next day, a short train ride from Boston took me to Concord. Here, Sue Merlino of Concord Bike Tours and I pedaled four miles through Minute Man National Historical Park (which encompasses the battle road from Concord to Lexington on which British regulars and American militia and Minutemen fought in 1775) from the North Bridge to Paul Revere's capture site in Lincoln, Mass., just outside of Concord. We also stopped at the Concord house of Dr. Samuel Prescott, who joined Dawes and Revere on their ride. Revere was captured, and Dawes fell off his horse, which ended his evening. Prescott was the only one who made it all the way to Concord. I wrapped up my visit to Boston with a guided bike ride to and a walking tour of Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox. Fenway, which opened in 1912, is the oldest ballpark still in use the U.S., followed by Chicago's Wrigley Field, which opened in 1914. Philadelphia If Boston was the cradle of liberty, Philadelphia was the nursery. The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Liberty Bell were born here, and Valley Forge is but 20 miles away. I biked 6.6 miles along the rolling hills of Valley Forge National Historical Park, which boasts more than 3,500 acres of opportunities to picnic, fly kites and bird watch, and even, when it snows, cross-country ski. Park rangers guide tours, and reenactors interpret how soldiers and the families who followed them lived. Martha Washington, who could have lived comfortably at Mount Vernon, chose to join George at Valley Forge. I saw no trace of the miserable encampment of the winter of 1777-78. Instead, I discovered a tree-lined Eden for birders, bicyclists and dog walkers. No such leisure, of course, for the soldiers who, under the tutelage of Baron Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus von Steuben, a Prussian soldier, became the well-trained Continental Army. Von Steuben wrote "regulations for the order and discipline of the troops of the United States." His transformation of Washington's ragtag militia helped the new country prevail in the 81/2 -year-long Revolutionary War. Back in Philadelphia that evening in Old City, I joined the "Independence After Hours" tour, which includes dinner and an evening visit to Independence Hall. The setting and the Colonial characters who joined us transported me to July 1776. It was more entertainment than exercise, but nothing beats chatting with Benjamin Franklin over a meat pie at City Tavern, founded in 1773 and where Franklin, Washington and Thomas Jefferson once dined. I walked a mile back to my hotel to make up for my slacker evening. About 21/2 miles from Independence Hall are the ruins of Eastern State Penitentiary, which emphasized repentance, and I wandered there the next day. Although it was designed for criminals to repent in solitary confinement, the penitentiary had its perks. Inmates had flushing toilets before President Andrew Jackson had them in the White House. (He didn't learn the pleasures of the flush toilet until 1829.) On my walk back to the hotel, I jogged up the 72 "Rocky" stone stairs outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art (about five blocks from the prison) and watched other tourists experience their own "Rocky" moments. The next morning, I kayaked two miles on the Schuylkill River â€" which links the western edge of the city center with the Philadelphia Museum of Art â€" to see the Water Works that supplied Philadelphia with clean drinking water from the 1800s through the early 1900s. Later I walked to the Liberty Bell Center in Old City. I'd been preceded by some prestigious company: Nelson Mandela came here July 4, 1993, to accept the Liberty Medal, and the Dalai Lama visited in the fall of 1990. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Travel -: More for Your Money: The quest for transparent airline fees

Travel - Headlines from More for Your Money: The quest for transparent airline fees 10 Jul 2011, 8:00 am If you think flying is tedious, try figuring out what your flight will cost. Fees for bags and optional services, such as seat selection, extra legroom, Internet access, onboard entertainment and other choices can plump up airfares by $100 or more. And you may need radar to find the fees. "I've actually challenged airline executives to find their fees for me, and they can't find them on their own websites," said Charles Leocha, director of the Consumer Travel Alliance, an advocacy group based in Washington, D.C. Help may be on the way. Under a new federal rule dubbed "Enhancing Airline Passenger Protections," each airline would be required to list all its so-called ancillary, or optional, fees on a single Web page, linked from its home page. When first displaying a fare quote, the airline would have to tell the customer where to find bag fees, and bag fees would be shown on e-ticket confirmations. The U.S. Department of Transportation is mulling over a petition from airline industry groups to delay the many-faceted rule, most of which is scheduled to take effect Aug. 23. The groups said they needed more time to train staff and retool. Spirit Airlines and Allegiant Air are challenging the rule on various grounds in the U.S. District Court of Appeals in D.C. So until Aug. 23 and maybe later, consumers will need to puzzle out each airline's fee display. Although many airlines' websites already link to bag fees on the first fare quote, fewer provide the one-page fee display. "Delta nailed it, except it takes more than one click," said Jonathan Harriman, an attorney with Anolik Law Corp., a Bay Area company that specializes in travel law. From the Delta Air Lines home page (www.delta.com), after you click on "Travel Information," "Travel Tools, Tips & Fees" and "Optional Products & Services," you call up a chart, sorted by cabin class, for more than 30 fees. Then we have United and Spirit airlines. When I tried United's website, http://www.united.com, recently, basic bag fees were two clicks away but other fees were scattered among assorted tabs and menus. Spirit (www.spiritair.com), a low-cost carrier, offered one-click access to bag fees from its home page and two-click access to a "Travel Policies" page, a mix of fees and rules that required more clicking, which sometimes led to vague statements. The "nominal" fee for advanced seat assignment, it said, varied; no price or range was given. When I test-booked a ticket on Spirit's website, it showed the fare with government taxes and fees. Then it required me to enter my birth date, address, phone and other personal data to continue. The next screen displayed fee options for bags, the third showed fees for seat selection, and the fourth showed my total. After adding one carry-on bag ($30 each way), one checked bag ($28 each way) and the cheapest seat option ($10 each way), my $340 fare-plus-tax round trip totaled $490. The extra $14? That was for travel insurance, which Spirit had added; I had to uncheck the box to opt out. Such automatic add-ons would be banned by the new rule. When asked about the fee displays, Spirit spokeswoman Misty Pinson said in an email, "Spirit's website is very consumer friendly and clearly shows customers what they are selecting before they make their final purchase." Even a fee chart such as Delta's falls short of ideal, said Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition in Radnor, Pa., which advocates for corporate travel departments. The chart is static; fees are dynamic and may vary by demand, distance, frequent-flier status and more. "On any given trip, there are hundreds of thousands of different possible combinations," he said. The new federal rule, although a "good first step," Mitchell said, doesn't solve the big question: How can consumers compare fee-inclusive fares among airlines, side by side, so they can comparison-shop for tickets? The answer awaits more Department of Transportation rule-making, already proposed, but in Mitchell's estimate, unlikely to take effect before 2013. Let's just say it's on the tarmac. jane.engle@latimes.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Travel -: Not even death a good enough excuse for refund

Travel - Headlines from Not even death a good enough excuse for refund 5 Jul 2011, 8:00 am Q: I recently booked a flight on Expedia from Dallas to Midland, Texas, with my wife. She died before we could make the trip. I canceled her ticket and applied for a refund through Expedia, the online agency through which I had booked the ticket. I furnished all the requested documentation, including the death certificate. After not hearing anything from either Expedia or American Airlines, I called Expedia this week and was told that American had refused the refund. The reason given was that all American could do was issue a credit for a future flight. But since my wife wouldn't be able to use the credit, they weren't even going to do that. Now, the amount involved isn't going to break me, nor would it break American Airlines, but the bizarre reasoning for the refusal just smacks of lousy customer relations. On top of American's poor attitude, Expedia never informed me of the refusal of the refund until I initiated the call. Sure I'd like a refund but you can bet your bottom dollar I will never darken the door of either American or Expedia again. -- David Walters, Plano, Texas A: My condolences on the loss of your wife. Airlines routinely offer a full refund when a passenger dies, and your online travel agency should have been able to return your money when you sent it proof of your wife's passing. The death of a passenger is one of the most common exceptions to the nonrefundability rule on airline tickets (the other is military orders). Once Expedia and American were informed of the event, the refund should have been more or less automatic. Here's the problem: There's no rule that says your agency or airline must return the money. American Airlines' contract of carriage, the legal agreement between you and the airline, doesn't promise your money back. Neither does Expedia. It's just something the companies do as a matter of policy, because as you suggested, it's good customer service. I have to admit; I'm a little puzzled by the offer of a credit. How do they expect your wife to take advantage of that? The only reasonable explanation is that someone just wasn't paying attention when you filed your request for a refund. In this kind of situation, you need to appeal your case to someone more senior at either Expedia or American Airlines. I publish the contact names on my new customer service wiki, On Your Side (www.onyoursi.de). A brief, polite email works better than a phone call and also helps you keep a paper trail. I contacted American Airlines on your behalf. It responded lightning fast -- in fact, I've never seen an airline react so quickly -- and refunded your wife's ticket. A representative phoned you and apologized, adding that this was the first time the company had heard of your request. (Christopher Elliott is the author of the upcoming book "Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals" (Wiley). He's also the ombudsman for National Geographic Traveler magazine and the co-founder of the Consumer Travel Alliance, a nonprofit organization that advocates for travelers. You can read more tips on his blog, elliott.org or e-mail him at chris@elliott.org). You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Travel -: European cruises can be cheap if you take care

Travel - Headlines from European cruises can be cheap if you take care 6 Jul 2011, 8:00 am When I was growing up, cruising was a rich person's hobby. I used to joke that the goal was not travel but hedonism: See if you can eat five meals a day and still snorkel when you get into port. (Not that I've got a problem with hedonism â€" after all, I'm a Lutheran.) I still believe that travelers in search of engaging, broadening experiences should eat, sleep and live Europe. It's less caloric, perhaps, but certainly much more fulfilling. A Mediterranean cruise does have its advantages, however. Cruises provide a good introduction for travelers who prefer to tiptoe into Europe rather than dive in. They let you sample different destinations and then decide where you'd like to return someday. And they're efficient. You can see several dynamically different destinations in a single week without wasting valuable hours packing, hauling your bags to the station and sitting on a train. Short of sleeping on a park bench, there is no more affordable way to see Europe than cruising. On the cheapest cruises, you and your partner can travel for less than $100 per night, and you get a comfy place to sleep, transportation between multiple destinations and all the chocolate-dipped strawberries you can eat. Though cruising is affordable, extra expenses, such as alcohol, Internet access, spa treatments, casino games, and cheesy gangway photos can add up quickly. I've talked to passengers who have unwittingly racked up bills that exceeded the original cost of the trip. To avoid surprises, check your balance at the front desk every few days. To keep your bill from bloating, buy as little as possible while onboard, because things usually are more expensive on your ship. To check email, visit an Internet cafe in port rather than onboard. For souvenirs, do your shopping in port (ideally away from the main tourist areas) rather than on the ship. One of the biggest optional expenses on a cruise is a shore excursion. Though these can make sightseeing easy and efficient, saving you the time and hassle of figuring out how to get into town on your own, in many destinations they simply aren't worth the expense. For instance, in cities such as Barcelona, Nice, Dubrovnik, Venice and Istanbul, the cruise ports are so close to town that you can easily reach the major sights on your own. In Barcelona, a cheap shuttle bus goes directly from the port to the bottom of the Ramblas, the lively pedestrian drag that runs through the heart of the Old City. In Venice, an express boat zips passengers straight from port to St. Mark's Square in 20 minutes, or you can walk through the magical, tourist-free back streets in about an hour. Excursions aren't always a rip-off. Certain sights, such as the ancient Roman ruins of Ephesus in Turkey, involve a complicated journey by public transit. An excursion takes care of transportation and comes with a knowledgeable local guide who can bring the ruins to life. Not all food is included in your cruise fare. Many ships have specialty restaurants, such as a steakhouse or sushi restaurant, which cost extra. Skip these restaurants in favor of the main dining room, where the food is typically good, and even better, included. If you're heading out for a long day in port, help yourself to a big breakfast and bag up the leftovers to keep you going until dinnertime. It may not be classy, but at least it's cheap. Because alcohol, name-brand soft drinks and specialty coffee drinks all cost extra, beverage tabs can rise quickly. Instead of Diet Coke, develop a taste for iced tea or juice, which usually is included. (To satisfy a craving for pop, get it cheap at local grocery stores.) Some cruise lines ban passengers from bringing alcohol onboard, but others allow limited bottles of wine and beer. Before you set sail, find out your cruise line's policy on taking alcohol aboard; if it's more lenient, BYOB to save some bucks. Take advantage of other onboard freebies. Rather than buy a book, check one out from the ship's library. Instead of watching a pay-per-view movie in your cabin, enjoy the free shows. Hang out by the pool, take an art class or join a trivia game. Read your daily program: There's something free going on virtually every minute of every day. You don't have to avoid extras entirely. After all, you're on vacation. Go ahead and have a cocktail, or stick a $20 bill into a slot machine. As long as you're aware of these expenses and keep your spending under control, a cruise can still be one of the cheapest ways to experience Europe. Rick Steves (ricksteves.com) writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television and public radio. Email him at rick@ricksteves.com and follow his blog on Facebook. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Travel -: New York City hotels hear new wedding bells

Travel - Headlines from New York City hotels hear new wedding bells 6 Jul 2011, 8:00 am People hold signs thanking New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo during the New York City gay pride march June 26, 2011. The New York state legislature voted June 24 to become the sixth state in the US to legalize same-sex marriage. (STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images / July 8, 2011) Irene S. Levine, Special to Tribune Newspapers July 6, 2011 NEW YORK â€" The new state Marriage Equality Act is putting a fresh spin on this city's traditional role as a wedding destination, with special offers aimed at same-sex couples under the new "NYC I DO" campaign. Some examples: The newly renovated Pierre New York is offering a champagne welcome, a designer wedding cake and a floral arrangement by designer L'Olivier. After a relaxed breakfast, couples can enjoy an in-room massage and a late-night aphrodisiac menu, including oysters, chocolate and champagne. The package, starting at $2,095 per night, includes a picnic lunch and carriage ride. 212-838-8000, tajhotels.com At Westin New York at Times Square, couples can choose a reception for 50 or a ceremony and dinner reception package that includes a wedding party suite with lunch for as many as eight guests, a pre-ceremony hospitality suite for the entire wedding party, a room for the ceremony, a one-hour cocktail reception, a five-course sit-down dinner with a four-tiered designer wedding cake, an overnight stay for the wedding couple and more. The package starts at $175 per person, not including guest accommodations. 212-201-2700; westinny.com The Love Has No Boundaries Package is one of two offered by the swanky Le Parker Meridien New York. It includes an officiant; a ceremony room; an hour cocktail reception with butler-passed hors d'oeuvres; a five-hour sit-down dinner, champagne toast, open bar and wedding cake; and a stay in the Presidential Suite with personalized robes monogrammed "Mr. and Mr." or "Mrs. and Mrs." Rates start at $25,000 for 100 people. 212-245-5000; parkermeridien.com For information on getting married: New York City Marriage Bureau (licensing information for same-sex couples), cityclerk.nyc.gov/html/marriage/marriage_bureau.shtml For information on pricing and other I Do packages: tinyurl.com/5woavha You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.

Travel -: Chef gets a very fresh start, menu in Sedona

Travel - Headlines from Chef gets a very fresh start, menu in Sedona 6 Jul 2011, 8:00 am Jeff Smedstad joined the Coast Guard at 17 (and got cook's training); cooked in Scottsdale, Ariz.; traveled Mexico and studied cooking with Susana Trilling in Oaxaca; and was a chef at an Atlanta restaurant when a friend called from Sedona, Ariz. "He said he'd found my new home." When Smedstad walked into the small space (75 seats, no reservations) in the King's Ransom Hotel, "I handed (the friend) a blank check and said I'll be back in a month (and) sketched out the logo in the parking lot a few minutes later," he said. "It's a weird room, man, to be honest with you. We're in an old, funky hotel. I'm not going to sugarcoat it. We look out at what nature and God set down around us. It's freaking amazing. The whole front of the restaurant is glass. And then in front of that is a patio. And in front of that is Red Rocks." Smedstad considers James Beard, Diana Kennedy and Rick Bayless his "paper mentors." Q: How did your menu come about? A: When I got out here, I discovered the wine country five minutes from Sedona. So, I'm drinking these Rhone-style reds in the middle of the desert by a creek. Over time I found other farmers and farmers markets. Now I've got guys growing me chilies and corn and tomatoes and bringing them to my back door while they're still warm from the sun. That's a chef's dream â€" at least this chef's dream. Q: The Elote Cafe's most popular dish? A: I've been doing my lamb adobo dish for over 16 years, but we sell more corn than anything else in this restaurant, as unfashionable as that is. ("The Elote Cafe Cookbook," by Smedstad ($29.95) can give you more menu ideas.) Q: What else should I visit in the region? A: You're going to go to Red Rock Crossing; it's absolutely beautiful right on Oak Creek. Spend some time over in Page Springs. The Page Springs winery is out there. … Then go up to Jerome, which is an old ghost town. Go to the Spirit Room in the old Connor Hotel, and there's usually some live music and some live bikers. Elote Makes: 4 to 6 appetizer servings Adapted from "The Elote Cafe Cookbook" Roast 6 ears of corn, with husks intact, over a medium hot grill until husks are well charred, about 5 minutes. Turn occasionally so as not to burn the side in contact with direct heat. Set roasted ears aside until cool enough to handle, then shuck and cut kernels from cobs. Mix 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon Cholula-brand hot sauce, 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, 1 teaspoon each: kosher salt, fresh ground pepper and sugar, plus 1/4 cup chicken stock in a skillet over medium heat. Add corn kernels and warm through. Pour into serving bowl; garnish with 1/4 cup crumbled Cotija cheese, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro and pinch of ground red chili. Serve immediately with crisp tortillas for dipping. Elote Cafe, 928-203-0105, elotecafe.com You are receiving this email because you subscribed to this feed at blogtrottr.com. If you no longer wish to receive these emails, you can unsubscribe from this feed.