Category Archives: Community Stories

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Want a First Look at Scout on Android? Become a Beta Tester!

As the Social Scout (read: Social Media Guy) at Telenav, a good portion of my job involves answering questions from customers from all corners of the internet. Sometimes I receive questions on Twitter about a feature in Scout and other times, I get questions on how to do something on Scout.me on our Facebook page. Whatever the question is, I try my best to answer it.

Now, of all the questions I receive throughout my day, there is one that comes up more often than any other by FAR. It is …

“When is Scout coming to Android?”

My answer is that is, “it’s on the way,” because… well, it is. Our team is working on it right now.

But today I have some good news for those of you who like getting a sneak peek at things because…

We’re looking for Android Beta Testers for Scout!

That’s right! If you want a first look at Scout on Android before anyone else, now is your chance!

Specifically, we want to find people who:

  1. Have an Android phone
  2. Like discovering and exploring the world around them
  3. Love providing feedback

To qualify, you must:

  • Have a smartphone running Android 2.2, 2.3, or 4.0
  • Live in the U.S.
  • Be 18 years of age or older

Interested in beta testing Scout on Android? Fill out our application here!

Unfortunately, we have a limited amount of spaces available, but if you’re not chosen for this round of beta testing, we will keep your information on hand for the next opportunity.

Have a question? Let us know below!

Thanks, everyone! We can’t wait to know what you think!

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Want an Apple iPad? We’re giving away 4 with iMore.com!

Like Apple iPads? Still looking to get your hands on one of the coolest pieces of technology in the galaxy? Now’s your chance because we’ve teamed up with iMore.com – the best source for everything iPhones & iPads – to give away FOUR Apple iPads!

Can you already feel Apple iPad-goodness in your palms? After winning it, don’t forget you can use it to scout and discover local events and places on Scout.me!

So the question is, are you feeling lucky?

To enter, just jump on over to our Facebook page and follow the directions as instructed.

Want more entries so you can increase your chances? Be sure to invite your friends to enter by clicking the ‘Invite Friends’ button and when they enterr, you’ll be given more chances to win!

Our sweepstakes will run until Monday, May 21st at 11:59 PM (PST).

Good luck everyone!

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Your Ultimate Guide to Scouting Cinco De Mayo

Get ready to fiesta with the flavor of old Mexico because happening this weekend is one most well-known of latin celebrations – Cinco de Mayo!

Still not sure how and where to celebrate this Saturday? Don’t worry. I’ve got you covered.

As with any great celebration or festival, the key to making this Cinco de Mayo an absolute blast is all in the preparation. Determining details like how you’ll dress, how to celebrate, and most importantly, where will you’ll be when you do, will all help determine how much fun you’ll have on May 5th.

Sound overwhelming? Fret not, amigos y amigas, because today I wanted to make it easy for you to partake in this awesome celebration by providing you with my Ultimate Guide to Scouting Cinco de Mayo.

Enjoy!

The Background on Cinco de Mayo: The Battle of Puebla

Cinco de Mayo is most recognized as a day to celebrate Mexican heritage and pride all over the U.S. (and regionally in Mexico).

So how did it all get its start?

Cinco de Mayo gets its roots during a time in history when the French occupied Mexico in the 1800s.

During this time, Mexico was absolutely in ruins and nearly bankrupt as a result of having fought in several wars including the Mexican-American War, the Mexican Civil War, and the Reform Wars. In response to their financial crisis, then President of Mexico, Benito Juarez, issued a moratorium suspending all foreign debt payments for two years. What happened next? Well, turns out many countries don’t like not getting their money so they sent ships to Mexico in response. While Britain and Spain were able to negotiate an agreement with Mexico, the French, under the rule of Napoleon III, saw it as an opportunity to establish a Latin empire in Mexico – one which would favor France.

How does this relate to Cinco de Mayo? In 1862, an extremely well-armed French fleet landed in Mexico and fought deep into the country… that is until they encountered heavy resistance from the Mexican Army in a town called Puebla. It was on May 5th (Cinco de Mayo), that the vastly outnumbered and a much more poorly equipped Mexican army, managed to not just beat, but absolutely demolish their French counterparts – who at the time, were considered to be the greatest military powers in the world.

As a result of this victory against the French, Cinco de Mayo is a day to celebrate Mexican national unity, heritage, and patriotism – similar to 4th of July in the U.S.

Other facts about Cinco de Mayo & Mexico

  • Cinco de Mayo is more celebrated in the U.S. than it is in Mexico, where it is a much more low key celebration.
  • Cinco de Mayo is often confused with Mexican Independence Day, but they are two completely separate celebrations with the latter falling on September 16th.
  • The largest Cinco de Mayo celebration takes place in Los Angeles, where more than 600,000 people participate in “Festival de Fiesta Broadway.”
  • The celebration was made popular in the 60’s and 70’s in the U.S. by Chicano activists who identified with Mexican Indian and mestizo (people of Mexican Indian and European descent)
  • Cinco de Mayo is just one 365 festivals the Mexican community celebrates each year.

CELEBRATING CINCO DE MAYO IN STYLE

So now that we know about the history of Cinco de Mayo, how do people actually celebrate it? Well, depending on where you are and what your own personal style, you could celebrate it in a variety of ways. Here are some ideas.

Indulge  Mexican Cuisine 

Whether you want to go out or bring the fiesta back home, one way you could celebrate Cinco de Mayo is by eating Mexican Cuisine. Thankfully here in the U.S., Mexican food is very popular and no matter where you are, you’re likely not far away from an excellent Mexican restaurant or taqueria.

Need some suggestions on where to eat? If you’re in any of these areas, you might want to check out one of these awesome Mexican restaurants:

Tip: There is no one food associated with Cinco de Mayo so eat whatever Mexican dish you most enjoy, like tacos, enchiladas, burritos, or fajitas!

Find a Fiesta 

Of course, for those of you looking for more a lively Cinco de Mayo, the only way to go is by going to a FIESTA!

Here are some of the more notable Cinco de Mayo festivals taking place across the U.S.

Tip: If you’re attending a fiesta, opt to wear colors associated with the Mexican flag – Red, white and green. Additionally, you could wear a few pieces of traditional Mexican attire like sombreros, cowboy boots, or huarches (leather sandals).

Not able to find a Cinco de Mayo fiesta near you? Don’t worry because you can still celebrate by planning your own party almost as easily!

Tip: If you’re Cinco de Mayo celebration involves kids, here are some Mexican recipes you might want to consider that everyone will enjoy.

Other Cinco de Mayo Activities

If you’re still looking for other ways to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, all across the U.S. there are a variety of activities you might consider participating in, including 5k runs, fundraisers, and more

Here are some you may consider checking out:

Cinco de Mayo

This Saturday, all across the U.S., many Americans will celebrate Cinco de Mayo – a celebration of Mexican heritage, culture, and pride. From New York to Los Angeles, cities will host a variety of events and festivals designed for everyone to join and participate in, like fiestas, concerts, and fundraisers. Hopefully regardless of what city you’re in or what your flavor, our guide to Cinco de Mayo made it easier for you to figure out where and how to celebrate this day of Mexican culture and heritage.

Lastly, if you do decide to celebrate Cinco de Mayo with margaritas and spirits, I encourage you to please do so responsibly and to plan your rides ahead of time.

Still looking for more ways to celebrate Cinco de Mayo near you? Check out Scout.me and discover events and celebrations near you.

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How to: Send Food Back at a Restaurant Simply & Easily

Okay, we’ve all been there…

You’re sitting at a restaurant (hopefully one you discovered on scout.me), patiently waiting for your food, when after about 30 minutes your meal arrives.

Excited and hungry, you voraciously dig in. But just three-seconds into your meal, it hits you like a ton of bricks: This food isn’t right.

What’s the problem with your meal? It might be:

  • It’s not what you ordered
  • You asked for it without sauce or some other ingredient that is not easily taken out
  • It’s not prepared correctly (over/under-cooked)
  • There’s a foreign object in your food

So what do you do? Well, if you’re paying for a meal, there’s absolutely no reason it shouldn’t be done correctly. The restaurant is in the business of providing a great quality dining service and if it’s not up to your standards, you should let them know and send the food back, right?

Of course, the problem for most of us is, it’s not easy to send back food because it could lead to an awkward confrontation with your server. Maybe more than that, you really don’t want to make your server upset in fear you might end up with something extra in your meal.

So what do you do when you want to send your food back at a restaurant but don’t want to make your server mad? Here are some tips to make this awkward and unavoidable situation a little more palatable.

7 Magic Words You Need to Know When Sending Back Your Food

The first key to easily handling situations where you need to send food back is simple. Just remember these 7 words:

“I know it’s not your fault but…”

Why these words? Not shockingly, servers are just like any of us. They want to be treated politely, respectively, and with understanding. By approaching your server with these 7 words, you’re doing just that. Also, by letting them know that you don’t believe it’s their fault, you’re using language which will diffuse them and decrease the chances they’ll become defensive.

Be Specific   

When you’re letting your server know there’s a problem with your order, you’ll also want to get very specific about what you’d like. This is also a great opportunity to ask any questions to help clarify your order and help set expectations for both you and the server.

Prevent Sending Food Back in the First Place

Want to avoid catastrophe at a restaurant? Many situations where you need to send food back can actually be easily avoided by just being proactive in your communication with your server before you place your order.

For example, if you don’t like sauces to the point where it’s actually a deal-breaker on ordering an item, you might want to let your server know that – even if it doesn’t mention it on an item’s description in the menu. As I know too well, many of these descriptions leave many items and ingredients out and letting your server know even preventatively could save you a lot of time and discomfort.

Now it’s your turn: Tell us your secrets to sending food back

Let’s be honest: Sending food back at a restaurant is really uncomfortable and at all costs, many of us would like to avoid these situations altogether. Unfortunately though, as long as there are restaurants, there are bound to be scenarios where for one reason or another an item needs to be sent back to the kitchen. When these situations do arise, hopefully, you’ll remember these tips for getting your food corrected simply and easily.

Did I miss anything? Do you have any secrets for handling these situations?

Let me know in the comments section below. And don’t forget, you can always discover new restaurants and places to eat by checking out scout.me.

 

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Scouting Life: The 3 Most Interesting Foods I’ve Ever Discovered

For the most part, I’ve always considered myself to be pretty open to trying new things. Whether it’s a new activity or visiting a new place, I love the sense of adventure that comes with experiencing something for the first time. After all, variety is the spice of life, isn’t it?

But among the many activities there are to try, to me, no single one is more enjoyable than trying or discovering new foods. In fact, for any who have eaten with me, they know that calling me an enthusiastic eater could be considered an understatement. @nanpalmero?

As a result of this, I’ve been in several situations where I’ve tried things that by most western standards are considered to be gross, extreme, or just plain weird. So you may not be surprised then that I have become used to receiving strange looks from across the table, after which of course, are followed by questions like “why?” or “how can you do it?”

To them, my answer is this. When I look at cuisines and dishes from around the world, I realize that there are people – including entire cultures – who eat things that some in our culture may define as weird. But to those who live in them, eating those things can be as normal as eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is to us. And if they can eat these dishes, then why can’t I?

No reason if you ask me.

So for better or worse, I do, try, and discover a lot of new flavors and food and I’m still here to write this blog about them. They haven’t all been great experiences, but being completely honest with you, I’ve regretted none of them.

Today, I wanted to share with you my top 3 most interesting foods I’ve eaten… EVER. Here we go!

Continue reading →

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Scouting New York with Boy Genius, Jonathan Geller

I am – more than anything – a mobile tech geek.

That is, I have an irrational obsession with all things which are wireless, love things that beep, and think mobile tech makes the world more connected. I think it’s how I ended up at Telenav in the first place now that I think about it.

So I certainly had great interested when I heard that I was going to be meeting Jonathan Geller of Boy Genius Report in New York City. He’s is one of the foremost experts on all things mobile tech and can be found reporting on his own site, in addition to lending his tech knowledge on national new networks like CNN and Fox.

But as the internet knows Jonathan Geller mainly as expert on tech, I’m interested in learning about him and his home town of New York City. Where are his favorite places to eat? What does he like to do? In other words, how does he “scout” one of the biggest cities in the world?

Want to find out this stuff and more? This week, join me and our Scout team on Twitter & Facebook as we tweet live from New York City with Jonathan Geller of BGR.com. We’ll try to get down to the bottom of these things and more as we Scout with him in the Big Apple!

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7 Ideas to Make Spring 2012 the Best One Ever

WOOOOOOOOOOSH!

What was that noise? Did you guess the collective sigh of relief caused by winter finally going out the window? Then you’re right (and one heck of a guesser).

Today marks the first official day of spring and for many, with it comes feelings of renewal, sunshine, and maybe the best part – warmth. If you’re like me, then you’ve even had this day circled on your calendar since at the end of 2011.

But even as highly anticipated as spring is for many of us, it can just as easily fly by with few memories to show for it. Has this happened to you?

Let’s try something out. Think back to how you spent spring 2011. What do you remember about it? What were your top three favorite moments?

Time is up!

Whether you’re having trouble remember what you did last spring or you’re aren’t,ahead of us all is the potential to make it this spring best of your life. Will you take advantage of it?

Continue reading →

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Discovering, Sharing & Exploring – Why did we stop?

Do you remember those afternoon rides as a kid? Sitting in the back, hands and face glued to the window and just looking out in awe at everything around you? From the stores on the street to the pedestrians walking on the sidewalk to all the other cars on the freeway; many of us glared out in the world endlessly. I still remember sitting in the back of our maroon Cadillac Seville peering out from the back seat. But as I got older, for some reason, those drives weren’t as exciting as I remember them being when I was a child.

A friend of mine had a theory as to why this happened. He said it’s related directly to how creativity and minds function and mature as we grow older. He told me to think of a trip or drive that I would take with my parents over and over again. The example he used was a 20 minute drive to a relative’s house every weekend. When we’re young, that twenty minute drive seems like an eternity. Then, as we get older, it would likely feel more like an hour. As we got even older and eventually began driving there on our own, that twenty minutes seemed to go even quicker.

Does this sound familiar?

Continue reading →

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VIDEO: Scouting Durian, the World’s Smelliest Fruit

Happy Monday, everyone! Are you ready for a great week ahead?

Now, I realize most of you are probably coming off a pretty awesome weekend, where you hopefully had the opportunity to create some awesome stories & memories with the people you love. Ultimately, that’s what Saturdays & Sundays are for, right?

As a result, weekdays can be a bit of a drag compared to their weekend counterparts.

But does all the fun have to be had on the weekend? I certainly don’t think so… I think weekdays can be filled with just as much fun and excitement… if you want it to.

Enter the Durian.

Continue reading →

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Weekend Challenge #2

A couple weeks ago, Kenji went on a weekend challenge to try a new food. If you missed it, you can read it here and urged all of us to be weekend-adventurers. But in case you needed a reminder, he wasn’t just talking about that particular weekend. He was referring to all the time. So this weekend, we remind you to be part of the Scout revolution and do what adventure-seeking people to best, discover.

And for the record, I truly believe that regardless of where you are, journeys and trips of exploration should always happen.

But the real question is, why is this even important?  Continue reading →