I have known Jeffrey Goldsmith for a few years now, meeting him first at a Las Vegas Coffee Fest Tradeshow. At that time he was promoting his new book Cafe Haiku, which some of you may know and love, and was getting his feet wet in the world of coffee. His book was a success and he spent a while promoting poetry readings in cafes around the US.

Since then I have been able to follow a couple of his new ventures, and we friendly bounce ideas off of each other during our commutes to and from work.

His latest effort is a website called Viamigo which is a global portal for people who are interested in either traveling to any city and looking for the REAL experience. You can sign up as, or search for, a tour guide in hundreds of places.

I love how indy this site is, and what it offers to the adventurous traveler who wants to break out of the usual tourist mode. You can create your own Anthony Bourdain style trip to the far ends of the earth, and know someone once you get there.

I also posted about this site in the Travel section of the baristaexchange forum.

Check out the site, sign up to be a guide, or use it the next time you are traveling somewhere and want a true locals perspective on that city.

- Matt