All stories about "Contest"

Most of the 13 entries in the Dream Destinations contest contest rallied in getting "followers" and votes -- below is a breakdown of the counts, with those going on to the final round in bold. We'll be announcing the winners by May 5. The Grand Prize winner gets airfare for two to their dream city, four nights of hotel accommodation, and $500 spending money. Each of the four other finalists win a $100 gift certificate for Travelocity's Last Minute Packages. (photo)

You have until 7 pm Eastern to vote in that contest we're running. That is all.

With two more days left of voting in the Corolla Dream Destinations contest, the entrants have definitely broken out into roughly two groups. But a lot could still change by the 25th, when voting is over. Note that because we don't want to be counting up votes at midnight on a Friday night, polls will close at 7pm Eastern. That's the end!

After the jump, a rundown of the number of followers our 13 entrants have been able to attract. Remember, entries will have to be in the top five to go onto the final round. (claudecf/flickr)

Mexicans call it la Gran Mancha, the Big Stain. It's a filthy, chaotic mess. It's crowded, polluted and loud. In short: Mexico City is a wonderful place.

This and a dozen other essays are the semifinalists in the Corolla Dream Destinations Contest. Your vote will help determine which essay goes on to the final round, where a round of celebrity judges determine which entrant gets to make his trip a reality. After the jump, quotes from the other twelve, and info on how to vote. (pingnews/flickr)

Here's a rundown of the 13 entries to make it to the penultimate round of the Dream Destinations contest. We had a wealth of goodness to choose from, so it was difficult to narrow the entries down -- the battalion of interns were kept strung out on even more substances than usual to get them to come to a decision. Now it's time for you to vote for your favorites. Remember, voting ends this Friday, the 25th. You can vote for as many candidates as you want. The list after the jump. (redjar/flickr)

Hey! What are you still doing here? In fact, what am I still doing here? I'm not really sure, but it's Friday and we're having ourselves one heck of a dream vacation contest.

Want to enter? Too bad friend, it's too late for that, but you can still vote to your heart's content. Just follow the link to the profile page for the entry you think kicks the most ass, and click the plus sign that says "follow this commenter." Don't write a message on the page though, well actually feel free to, but it's not a vote. Definitely don't write us an email though. That just pisses us off and it's not even close to a vote. (We kid, we will definitely help.)

Confused? Of course you are. Just try to relax. To help chill you out, I've run this post alongside the best nearly naked picture of Scarlett Johansson and her incredible breasts in a cheerleader outfit to ever grace the internet. Alright, to be honest, I actually ran that photo of ScarJo because it gave me an excuse to say "pictures," "breasts," "naked," "cheerleader," and "Scarlett Johansson" in the same post. That guarantees that this here post will get mad pageviews. Oh that reminds me-- Boobs. Yeah, I needed to get that one in there too. Don't believe me? Check back in a month, this thing will have more views than a Julia Allison sex tape. See that? There I go, I just did it again. God, I'm good.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry13". For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

It's three in the morning and I'm pleasantly tipsy, traipsing through the neon embrace of Roppongi.. A bitchin' psych-rock band finished their second set at Superdeluxe hours ago, but the hip, young coterie of Tokyo artists in attendance just kept drinking, and I asked for one last Kirin more than a few times. I'll be paying the price at my five A.M. date with a half-ton tuna at the Tsukiji Fish Market, where the leviathans are auctioned off. I decide to show up fashionably late--not like the tunas will be able to tell--and head to my room at the Grand Hyatt. The lavish lobby, festooned to the nines, is a blur in the corners of my eyes, and I don't know what Egyptian cotton is, but damn if it doesn't feel comfortable.
The fish are still jumping in the mongers' stalls, and I spot a burly-looking gent with a cleaver and a cigarette perched gingerly on his lower lip sizing up a tremendous shark. Breakfast is less than a block away, the freshest sushi on earth, mechanically prepared by the gruff Daiwa chefs--the fish is practically still pulsing. I can't get back to sleep, so I wander to Akihabara Electric Town and peruse the Mecca of nerd-dom: MediaLand. I have time for a couple rounds at the Sega Arcade and a bowl of soba before I end my day right. As the sun sets, I climb the steps to Atago Shrine, plum blossoms wafting all around me.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry12. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

A total of 24 hours in flight may not be much fun, but a long weekend in Tokyo would be well worth it. Despite the novelty staying in a capsule hotel may provide, my base of operations in the city would be the Sadachiyo, a traditional Ryokan in. My first priority in Tokyo is a day-long jaunt around the Harajuku district, thus completing my pilgrimage to the Mecca of strange clothing styles. I'd also pop into Toyko's largest Daiso, a Japanese equivalent to a dollar store, where I could overburden myself with cheap novelties. Exhausted from a day of visual assaults, I would take a repast at Kowloon ramen house and snaffle down some octopus laden noodles. If the Harajuku district didn't allure me for the entire trip, I would also visit Odaiba. At the Panasonic Center and the Nation Museum of Emerging Science I could examine technologies that may come to America in the next decade, if we're lucky. After immersing myself in the future, I would give in to my tourist urges and ride a rickshaw around Asakusa absorbing a more traditional Japanese setting. Naturally I would have to visit Shibuya, Tokyo's Times Square, where I would float from store to café to store until I could take no more. Exhausted, I would settle in the Dessert Okoku and stuff my face with their all you-can-eat cake buffet. I could be rolled to the airport, then fly home dreaming of flashing lights and tentacles all the way.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry11. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

I'd start my "Roman Holiday" at stylish Hotel Art on Via Margutta during the outdoor art show "Cento Pittori Via Margutta". After browsing neighborhood furniture shops, I'd eat fritti at Matricianella, then visit the Pantheon, sample the best espresso in Rome at Sant'Eustachio, and shop on Via del Governo Vecchio. Stop at gelateria San Crispino at least once. Have dinner at Michelin-starred Il Convivio Troiani, then a nightcap (or two) at Vineria in Campo de' Fiori.

After breakfast, buy picnic supplies at Volpetti for an al fresco lunch in the Roman Forum. Stroll the city, shop, consume more gelato, then have dinner at Armando al Pantheon; I love their fantastic ricotta torta. Dance the night away at Ex-Magazzini or Goa.

The next morning, I'd skip the usual tourist spots and head to Panella ("the Art of Bread") on Via Merulana, visit San Giovanni in Laterano and hop on the Archeobus down Via Appia Antica for a walk among the catacombs and ruins. After the walk, explore the layers of underground excavations in Basilica San Clemente. Finish the day near the Colosseum with stops for vino and snacks at Cavour 313 and Il Pentagrappolo. At night, hit nightclub-rich Testaccio for dinner at Checchino and a sampling of the current "it" spots.

After sleeping in, tour the Vatican (plus the funky religious shops), eat pizza, browse La Tradizione in Prati for gourmet souvenirs. Later, people-watch at Bar della Pace, drink and snack at Crudo and Salotto 42. Goodbye Roma!

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry10. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

Thursday, we'll arrive at the Faena Hotel and Universe. We'll have the Poretno river suite on the 6th floor for the view of the sunrise.

Friday we'll walk by the Puente de la Mujer on the way to Social Paraiso for lunch. We'll then go to La Boca to see the Estadio de Boca Juniors. We'll dine at La Bourgogne to sip on vintage Mendoza wines. That night we'll head to Bahrein in El Centro where we will spend too much money on VIP service and not care at all.

Saturday we'll visit The Museo de Arte Latinoamericano for the Kahlo/Rivera collections. We'll stop by Bar Uriarte for lunch at the outside patio. After lunch we'll walk around the mansions in Palermo Chico and the Plaza Cerrano in Palermo Viejo. We'll dine at La Cabrera for the pork shoulder wrapped in bacon. Saturday night will be spent downing copious amounts of Argentinean beer at Cossab.

Sunday we'll go to Ølsen in Palermo Hollywood for brunch and vodka. On our way down to San Telmo for the Feria de San Pedro Telmo we will stop at Grand Cru in Recoleta to pick up a bottle or two of the Pulenta Gran Corte 2003. We'll dine at Restó focusing on the revered molten chocolate cake. Sunday night will be spent at Dominga to snack on sushi.

We will get in some pool time at the hotel and check out Monday.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry9. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

I saw my husband's entry
He wants to go to Japan
Well he sure didn't ask me
That's not part of my plan!

I'm not going to lie to ya
I don't need an excuse
I want to travel to eat pasta
And buy some new shoes

In Rome, I'll bestow
One big shopping spree
Time to drop those Euros
On the Via Condotti

To stay, I've got an idea
A place that's quite pretty
Called La Posta Vecchia
Former home of Paul Getty

By now I'll be hungry
Gluttony is so in
A table at Vizi Capitali
It means 7 deadly sins

Well do the tourist attack
See the Forum and Coliseum
Then off the beaten track
Like to the "dead museum"

Now my body's quite dead
Not going to roll the dice
Massage my toes to my head
At a spa called Paradise

Hubby can have Tokyo
Europe is where I'll roam
Gridskipper, I'm ready to go
Please send me to Rome

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry8. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

This exotic seaside location wraps its cosmopolitan center with cultural outskirts. Reputedly one of the most beautiful cities on earth, it will also help host the world's most-watched sport during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. My dream destination? Cape Town (aka The Mother City).

I would stay at An African Villa, a boutique hotel that captures a sense of place without fanfare, blending African motifs with modern comforts. It's close enough to city center for urban pleasures, but a hike up Table Mountain is do-able on foot. There's also a cable car for the faint of foot.

Robben Island is the Alcatraz of the southern hemisphere -- Nelson Mandela spent 27 years there. I would ask to tour the facilities with a former prisoner for a first-person narrative experience.

I would check out some of South Africa's best dive spots through a National Geographic dive center; perhaps some shark diving if the usual fish don't have enough bite? Beaches also abound, so I reckon Boulders Beach for penguin watching, Noordhoek for a horse ride, and Clifton Beach to just catch the southern rays.

Shopping? Yes please. I'd recommend the V&A Waterfront and Canal Walk.

Thinking gastronomically, Lola's on Long Street or Africa Café on Shortmarket are casual eateries with a hospitable vibe. For a serious meal, Buitenverwachting offers tongue-twisting but great-tasting international fare. Lest I forget to sip South Africa's renowned wines! And if I really feel like sticking my pinky out, I'll treat myself to "High Tea" at The Nelson.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry7. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

I want to go to the rudest city in the world. Badly. Reader's Digest may deem Mumbai as no fan of Emily Post, but I know Mumbaikars are just hardened and misunderstood urbanites. Who has time to say "gee, thanks" when you're in a city that is loud, brassy, and overwhelming, but also fashionable, glamorous and an economic powerhouse. I'm so there.

A true wannabe, I'll be checking in at the Oberoi Hotel, where I'll "accidentally" run into more than a few Bollywood stars hanging out at the Bayview Bar, not-so-incognito. I'll then disrupt my relaxed mood and head into the blaring Mumbai sun in an autorickshaw, appearing nonchalant like a true Mumbaikar as the kamikaze drivers zip by. First stop: Manish Malhotra, fashion designer to Bollywood stars, where I'll buy designer Indian clothes (who knew). We'll head to the trendy Bandra neighborhood and stop by Olive Restaurant for more gawking, but no serious eating. No, we'll head to the street for the food, like true Mumbaikars, aware but dismissive of the future digestive repercussions of our actions. Tangy bhel puri on Chowpatty Beach, simmering kebabs in Bhendi Bazaar, and vada pav everywhere: delicious.

But being around and dining with Bollywood stars is not enough - no, I must dance with them, too. Hopefully, "persuading" the guards at the surreal Film City will let me sneak onto a film dance sequence, wave my arms like I just don't care, and make my small but indelible mark on Mumbai matinee history.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry6. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

Imagine: a brief UK road trip, bookended by two mind-blowing shows.

You arrive in Manchester, and check into the decked-out Lowry Hotel. The following evening, you bundle up and head down to the LCCC to witness Radiohead performing live.
In the morning, you'll drive through the vibrant moors of the Southern Uplands to Glasgow, stopping at intervals to photograph the magnificent Scottish landscape. Arriving in Glasgow, you check into the spectacularly designed Hotel du Vin, and then strike out for a snakebite at the Chip's charming Wee Pub.

Over the next three days, you forgo the typical tourism; instead, you stop in and peruse the isles of Monorail (a record store inside a pub, located beneath a neglected rail-line). Introduce yourself to the locals and buy a round--they'll likely clue you in to some of Glasgow's hidden gems. Next, head southwest to explore Glasgow's urban decay, and then the ill-fitting architecture of the Templeton Carpet Factory. You'll rise early one morning to hike the Scottish Highlands. Undoubtedly, you will gorge yourself on the sharpest cheddars. And you'll definitely visit the University (while cursing yourself for not studying abroad).

On your last evening, you'll cram into Barrowland, and enjoy the distorted sound of My Bloody Valentine.

The following day will be spent begrudgingly checking luggage and boarding a flight back to the U.S., just in time to attend the ubiquitous July 4th BBQ. It's doubtful, however, that those fireworks will relieve the wanderlust inside you.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry5. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

Siem Reap immerses you in sheer chaos - tourist-filled busses, screeching motorbikes (often carrying entire families), and the ubiquitous tourist-friendly tuk tuk (motorcycle pulled rickshaw) create a buzzing, honking din that continues day and night. The Raffles Grand Hotel d'Angkor is not exactly hip, but provides an oasis of old-world colonialism that is strangely entrancing (and the basement bar serves a respectable sidecar at happy hour).

My favorite way to acclimatize is a meal of Amok Trei (steamed fish and coconut milk that is totally addictive), and an Angkor beer or two. Catch a tuk-tuk to Angkor Thom and see the Bayon's gigantic smiling faces and bas-reliefs depicting ancient wars. Even if you are not into architecture, the sheer scope of these ruins and surrounding jungle is awe-inspiring. The (painful) effort to wake before dawn and fight hordes of tourists is worth it for the breathtaking view of sunrise over Angkor Wat. At some point, you'll find yourself contemplating the dichotomy of such an achievement and the still-recent devastation brought about by the Khmer Rouge.

Over the next couple of days, climb the famous towers, visit overgrown Ta Prohm and distant Banteay Srei, spend afternoons browsing trendy boutiques selling local handcrafted silk and carvings. After dark, there is plenty to do; souvenir shopping into the wee hours at the Night Market, sampling the fantastic native Khmer dishes, and drinking and making friends around the aptly monikered Pub Street.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry4/. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

Like the city itself, my dream trip to Tokyo would be cute and kinky. I'd shack up at Hotel J Girl, a love hotel in Ikebukuro which looks like what would happen if Rainbow Brite bought a plantation and pimped it out. (It offers in-room karaoke so I'd have privacy to practice my Aerosmith ballads before going out.)

I'd drink expensive espresso at the world's only school boy cafe, where waiters dress as effete manga characters, and eat dumplings from a Chinese restaurant decorated with genitalia art. (I might have to visit a drag-maid cafe as well.) In between, of course, I'd stuff myself with the most amazing soba and sushi from holes-in-the-wall with menus I can't read.

I'd visit Tokyo's first feminist sex toy store, Love Piece Club, which has a secret location and is open by appointment only, to check out the space age electronics that haven't yet made their way west. (But when it comes to souvenir shopping, I'd hit up sex toy vending machines instead.)

After all the kink, I'd clear my head by admiring construction equipment decorated with adorable cartoon characters, and visiting the Izu Cactus Park where there are more than a thousand varieties of my favorite plant (plus chimpanzees!).

I'd drink hot coffee that comes out of vending machines in aluminum cans, and harsh grocery store sake from bottles shaped like pandas. I'd buy adorable stationery and write filthy accounts of my adventures.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry3. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

Mexicans call it la Gran Mancha, the Big Stain. It's a filthy, chaotic mess. It's crowded, polluted and loud. In short: Mexico City is a wonderful place.

North America's oldest metro area, whose founding on an island in the middle of a lake took place about eight centuries ago, is a New World treasure in many ways. It's a place where the ancient, colonial and modern eras cohabitate. I cannot think of any other place on the continent that comes as close to this visceral sense of history.

I would spend the entire trip wandering the Historic Center, which in recent years has been going through a renovation renaissance. I would be sure to visit the Pino Suarez subway stop, built around an ancient Aztec temple discovered during the station's construction. Later I would eat ant-egg quesadillas at the renown Hacienda de Los Morales, then stop for quality tequila at the nearby bar La Nueva Opera to gawk at the bullet hole in the ceiling that, legend has it, was made by Pancho Villa. I would also visit the recently renovated Palacio de las Bellas Artes, one of the most memorable buildings in North America. The opera house's Art Nouveau exterior (with a Tiffany glass dome) and the Art Deco interior, covered with some of the most iconic murals of the 20th century, makes the building truly unique.
Three things. That's what I can outline in such a short essay. It would take an encyclopedia to get to it all.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry2. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

I want to jet to the beautiful and exotic city of Marrakech, Morocco. My girl and I will stroll the wide boulevards in the Ville Nouvelle and dive into the maze-like medina. Aah, to have sun again! Blue skies and perfect temperatures await.

We'll stay at the Riad Tizwa Marrakech, a beautiful Moroccan mansion with an interior courtyard and garden, where all is calm and peaceful. We'll be surrounded by fascinating images, geometric tile patterns, carved dark wood, colorful glass, elaborate decoration. Mornings we'll gather with fellow travelers on pillows and chairs around the fireplace and enjoy fresh fruit, preserves, muesli, orange juice, coffee, tea, and sweets for brunch.

From here we'll be drawn by the sounds of drumming and Moroccan flutes into the Djemaa el-Fna, the mad central square of the city. By day we'll join with locals and tourists to watch snake charmers and storytellers, musicians and hustlers, monkey handlers and henna artists. At night we'll return to the square filled with portable open air food stalls, where we will brave cuisine as unusual as snails and sheep heads, along with the more familiar tangine dishes.

From the square many paths will lead us into the medina, a several hundred year old marketplace of twisty narrow streets. With a handful of Moroccan currency and minimal French, we are ready to do business. We'll haggle for daggers, hand woven carpets, fossils, piles of colorful spices, and glass lamps, pausing as the periodic call to prayer echos in the air.

The ID for this entry is DreamDestinationsEntry1. For more information on how to vote, go here. For information on the contest itself, go here.

In Iceland's outrageous, white-hot capital Reykjavik, I can only assume an immediate connection with my inner Viking would form. Perhaps it would rear its head -- horned-helmet-clad, of course -- while deliberating with locals about whether elves really do exist in the sparse country's nether regions (apparently that's up for real debate, which in all honesty should be intrigue enough for anyone to go). Or maybe I'll go all Viking while romping au natural--soaking up the midsummer's night dew for its so-called medicinal qualities or steeping in the steamy Blue Lagoon, a geothermally warmed pool set in hardened lava that's famous for its eerily calming effect.

We're just about finished sifting through the many great entries that came for the Corolla Dream Destinations contest. Over the course of today and tomorrow, we'll post our favorites -- and that's where you come in.

You still have until midnight eastern to enter.

A reminder: you have until tomorow, April 15, to submit your entries in the Corolla Dream Destinations contest. Click here to review all the info you need to craft a winning entry.

Like so many other things, time marches on, and the April 15 deadline for the Corolla Dream Destinations Contest approaches. Have you had a chance to make the acquaintance of our celebrity judges yet? As well as being good in itself, doing so may help you craft a winning entry.

And while I'm thinking of it -- a couple more tips:

• These are dream destinations, mon frère. Everything else being equal, writing about a visit to a nearby state or to (even worse) the city you live in is not going to succeed as well as those entries pimping more exotic locations. Indeed, a close reading of the rules shows that the largest part of the prize has to go toward airfare. So think of crossing time zones. Many, many time zones. Latitudes would work too, obvs.
• Include links to relevant places and spaces if you want -- HTML is OK.Don't use HTML. Entries should consist only of words. We will strip out links before posting entries.

Sure, your contest entry might make it past the Gridskipper editors and get posted online. And you might even sway enough reader votes to make to the Final Five. But then you must face the harsh, merciless, all-seeing gaze of our panel of celebrity judges. They shall review your entry with machinelike efficiency, analyze its flaws with the gusto of the most exacting parish priest, then decide its fate with a ruthless élan not seen since the latter days of the French Revolution. Kidding! Actually they're all quite friendly folks who are doing this out of the kindness of their hearts and their tireless work on behalf of a better world. Get to know them well and increase your chance of making it to the finals.

Entries for the Corolla Dream Destinations contest are flowing in. and we couldn't be happier. But as the weekend and its mix of relaxation, pointless errands, and too many Alabama Slammers arrives, here's a quick reminder about what you'll need to do to win. It's not enough to just tell us where you want to go. Bring us detail, color, sounds, and feeling -- spend those 250 words making us jealous of all the great things you're going to do.

And if you already entered and worry that your entry may not have been quite up to snuff, no worries. You can enter as many times as you want, and you have until the 15th to get right with us.

Yesterday we announced our Corolla Dream Destinations contest, which can take you and your sweet honey on a trip to remember. You have until Tax Day, April 15th, to enter, so you'd best start planning.

Courtesy our noble sponsor -- the automobile folk at Toyota and their fine conveyance known to scholars as the Corolla -- we've been empowered to offer our readers a most excellent contest. In 250 words or less, sum up your ideal urban getaway, specifically a major city you've been wanting to see, plus a hotel where you've always wanted to stay in that city, and a strange, foreign creature you've always wanted to eat in that city, or most anything else to do, see, eat, or speak with in the city trip of your dreams. We'll post the good ones on Gridskipper, and readers will choose their favorites. Then a panel of celebrity judges will select a winner. And that grand prize winner will pack up and catch a flight to live out their dream trip in the city of their choice, all expenses paid. Well, most expenses paid! Read on to see how it works.