Here’s an unusual travel-related summer internship: The Four Points by Sheraton Best Brews Summer Intern. Yup, the intern selected will have beer tasting as one of his or her duties for the hotel brand. Says the press release:

This isn’t your frat brother’s job though, the internship will come with the frothy perks of tasting and toasting, but will also include learning the inner workings of the Four Points by Sheraton Best Brews program and the ever expanding craft beer industry and beer business. Like all executive internships, this position will start pouring in June and tap out in August.

I’m still trying to figure out exactly what craft beer has to do with Four Points by Sheraton. While I work on that, anyone who wants to apply should get cracking. The deadline for applications in April 26.

When a handsome bull is in the room, it seems some folks just can’t keep their hands to themselves. Such was the case with Bodacious the Bull, a life-size bronze statue that once marked the entrance to celebrity chef Mario Batali’s new-ish steakhouse Carnevino, located in the Palazzo Las Vegas Resort Casino Hotel.

On multiple occasions, the restaurant witnessed female Vegas-goers groping, climbing and otherwise engaging in “inappropriate fondling” activities with the bull while their co-conspirators snapped pictures.

Whether it was his well-defined musculature or ample rear that attracted them, we shall never know. After a spate of incidents, one of which allegedly involving George Clooney’s girlfriend Sarah Larson, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports, management at the restaurant confirmed this week that the bull has been moved to one of the restaurant’s back rooms.

But Carnevino wasn’t trying to protect Bodacious and his prominent posterior from molestation at the hands of casino-crazed vacationers. Instead, the restaurant cited legal and safety concerns as the reason for the bull’s relocation.

Bodacious Moved for Decency’s Sake

As more and more travelers opt for inexpensive getaways this year, they reserving spots at the nation’s campgrounds in record numbers.

Sure, camping is a cheap way to vacation. And yeah, I love the great outdoors. But hands down, one of my favorite parts of camping is cooking up some good grub after a day spent hiking, swimming and mucking around in the woods. But sometimes it’s hard to know exactly what to make. And all too often, I end up sticking to a menu of trusty favorites like pasta and pancakes.

During my most recent hunt for a cool camping spot to venture to this summer, I instead found myself perusing the Camping Club’s long list of camping recipes. Campfire pretzels? Who knew. Mountain meatloaf? Yes, please. Cowboy quiche? Yee haw. I’m bookmarking this list to pull out for inspiration when the time comes.

If you’re going to be in New York this weekend and you love travel, consider checking out the New York Times Travel Show, a veritable smorgasbord of travel information from resorts, hotels, spas, cruise lines, tour operators, tourist agencies and adventure travel companies from around the world. Along with vendor booths and live entertainment performances representing a vast array of cultures, the show features a Taste of the World Pavilion filled with international cuisine and cooking demonstrations, a Spa Pavilion offering sample treatments and discounted packages at spa resorts, travel author appearances and special travel deals offered to folks brave enough to book their next vacation on the spot. And with travel experts Rick Steves, Arthur Frommer, Ian Wright and Stephanie Abrams - among many others - leading seminars, the show offers a rare chance for face-to-face learning from leading peeps in the industry. Cost: $15.

And while we’re talking travel mags….Fancy yourself a travel writer, photographer or magazine editor? Budget Travel’s 10th anniversary issue will be written and photographed by readers. They’re in the home stretch, but are still looking for:

- Foodies in the Southwestern United States who can recommend great spots to refuel

- Pet travel photographs (you know you’re hoarding some cute ones)

- Someone traveling abroad in the next two weeks who’ll pick up some items from a foreign supermarket

- Your best family travel tips (e.g. how to usher get ankle-biters through airport security)

- Feedback on any trips you’ve taken after reading about them in the magazine’s 40 Best Deals section

Last Chance! Our All-Reader 10th Anniversary Issue Needs Your Help!

Behold, Travel + Leisure’s roundup of the best airport restaurants, bars, lounges and spas:

Best Airport Restaurants and Other Time Killers

Yes, that’s Ali Larter, and she’s beautiful. But perhaps more beautiful is the abundance of chocolate adorning the Godiva Decadence Suite, unveiled inside the Bryant Park Hotel in Manhattan today. The hotel suite is made completely of chocolate - right down to the walls - and features opulent touches like a chocolate version of Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss, a chocolate and crystal chandelier and a chocolate fireplace (which, we assume, is just for decoration).

The over-the-top suite is part of the Ultimate Chocolate Fantasy contest from Godiva, which will award one lucky couple a weekend in the suite (with a non-chocolate bed, we hope) and perks like a private chocolate tasting with a Godiva chocolatier, chocolate spa treatments and a year’s supply of Godiva chocolate.

photo source

Today Mobil Travel Guide announced its 2008 Four- and Five-star ratings for U.S. hotels, restaurants and spas. Notoriously picky (they don’t just hand out five-star ratings to any old Four Seasons or Ritz Carlton), Mobil added eight new hotels to its five-star list for 2008. We’ve listed all 41 of the five-star hotel winners below. For four-star results and winners in the restaurant and spa categories, you can check out all the ratings in the Mobil Travel Guide’s 50th Annual Star Awards.

Mobil Five-Star Hotels

California - Beverly Hills

Raffles L’Ermitage Beverly Hills

The Beverly Hills Hotel

The Peninsula Beverly Hills

California - Dana Point

St. Regis Resort, Monarch Beach

California - Los Angeles

Hotel Bel-Air

California - Oakhurst

Chateau du Sureau

California - San Francisco

Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco

St. Regis Hotel, San Francisco

The Ritz-Carlton, San Francisco

Colorado - Aspen

The Little Nell

Colorado - Colorado Springs

The Broadmoor

Connecticut - Washington

Mayflower Inn & Spa

District of Columbia - Washington

Four Seasons Hotel Washington, D.C.

Florida - Manalapan

The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach

Florida - Naples

The Ritz-Carlton, Naples

Florida - Palm Beach

Four Seasons Resort Palm Beach

Georgia - Atlanta

Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta

Georgia - St. Simons Island

The Lodge at Sea Island Golf Club

Hawaii - Wailea

Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea

Illinois - Chicago

Four Seasons Hotel Chicago

The Peninsula Chicago

The Ritz-Carlton, A Four Seasons Hotel

Massachusetts - Boston

Boston Harbor Hotel

Four Seasons Hotel Boston

Massachusetts - Lenox

Blantyre

Nevada - Las Vegas

The Tower Suites at Wynn Las Vegas

New York - New York

Four Seasons Hotel New York

Mandarin Oriental, New York

The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park

The St. Regis

New York - Saranac Lake

The Point

North Carolina - Pittsboro

The Fearrington House Country Inn

South Carolina - Kiawah Island

The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island

South Carolina - Summerville

Woodlands Resort & Inn

Tennessee - Nashville

The Hermitage Hotel

Texas - Dallas

The Mansion on Turtle Creek

Utah - Park City

Stein Eriksen Lodge

Vermont - Barnard

Twin Farms

Virginia - Richmond

The Jefferson Hotel

Virginia - Washington

The Inn at Little Washington

Wyoming - Jackson

Four Seasons Resort Jackson Hole

A local gem, cult-favorite, sure bet and constant it-spot among those-in-the-know and all those other hackneyed phrases used to describe tried-and-true favorites in popular tourist destinations – call it what you want – San Francisco’s House of Nanking is one of ‘em.

Yeah, you’ll find a dirty mop in the bathroom and there might be gooey rice stuck to the underside of the plastic bowl from which you’ll eat. Sure, the staff may greet you not by saying hello, but with a tug on the sleeve that says quite unequivocally, hurry up, sit down and eat already. Yes, your table may toggle back and forth on its uneven legs as you sit hunched over a bowl of soup whose exact contents will forever remain mystery.

But you’ll absolutely love it. Well, not everyone will. House of Nanking – a somewhat dingy little joint on the border of Chinatown and North Beach (just up the block from a dive bar whose awning proclaims “Where Good Friends and Girls Go to Meet”) – is no fine dining experience, but it consistently wins accolades as the city’s best Chinese.

Instead of ordering from the crinkly, plastic-covered menu, tell your waiter (who’s likely to be one of the owners) just to choose “what’s good today” and bring enough food for the table. If you want something specific, sure, let them know (we highly recommend the onion cakes) and be clear about whether you want vegetarian dishes, meat, chicken, fish or a combination. Then let the kitchen do the rest.

Don’t waste time holding your breath for the sort of Chinese fare you’ll find in most restaurants around the United States. This ain’t no P.F. Chang’s. Far from it. Produce is market-fresh – we’d be shocked if the majority of what appeared on our plates had been in the kitchen longer than 24 hours. Sauces are nuanced and flavorful, but light enough to let the food itself take center stage.

Dishes like this plate of basil leaves, mushrooms and red onion arrive at the table in mere minutes and disappear (into our mouths of course) just as quickly.

Eggplant draped on a bed of bok choy, peppers and fresh greens:

House of Nanking
919 Kearny St
San Francisco, CA 94133
(415) 421-1429

The TravelPost.com Insider Native City series is a regular feature highlighting unique, iconic or influential edibles, products and other creations found in some of the world’s most popular travel destinations.

Freelance writer Lorraine Sanders has been editing the TravelPost.com Insider blog since 2005. You can reach her at news (at) lorrainesanders (dot) com.

I recently became one of the gazillion travelers to fall in love with the iPhone. It. Just. Rocks.

Since acquiring my iPhone, I’ve been having some fun exploring all the applications and widgets that make this little device even cooler than it is on its own. To be sure, there are a slew of add-on applications, widgets and programs available for download out there. But which ones are the best for travelers? Here is my list of the Best iPhone Applications and Widgets for Travelers:

New York on Tap

Use this well-designed application to find bars in New York, as well as subway stops and directions.

Hotel Widgets

A simple, but easy-to-use search tool for finding flights, hotels, car rentals and cruises using your iPhone.

Earthcomber

With its iPhone-optimized interface, Earthcomber helps you find what you’re looking for (restaurants, wi-fi, banks, gas stations, ice cream – you name it) and locates it on Google Maps. You can also get driving directions, read reviews and see the location of friends who also use the app.

Sudoku for iPhone

For those addicted to this travel-friendly game, we like the simple interface of this iPhone-based Sudoku widget. There are several similar widgets out there, but this one has a cleaner appearance and also offers players a choice of simple, easy, intermediate and expert game levels. Too bad you can’t play on the plane (yet).

iEventful

This application lets you search for events by city. If you find yourself in a new town with an evening to kill, this simple search will return plenty of options in categories ranging from Food-Wine-Cuisine to Performing Arts.

SoonR

Need access to computer files, photos and programs like Skype from your iPhone? SoonR allows you to do just that. The downloadable program loads the SoonR Desktop Agent onto your home computer and allows you to search, find and share files with any mobile phone – even when your computer is turned off.

iPhone Miles

A simple tool that allows business travelers to track auto mileage with their iPhones. We especially like the way this application allows users to specify driver, purpose and distance and then exports the information to Excel for easy record-keeping.

IM+ for Skype

ddicted to Skype? You can use your account to call or instant message contacts via your iPhone with this application. The only bummer: it’ll cost you $25 to download the service.

Cool Gorilla Phrase Books

Much like traditional translators, this iPhone-friendly application offers phrases in five languages (French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish). But unlike many electronic handheld language gadgets, this application will actually pronounce the phrases for you using Quicktime.

Flight Stats

Search for flight status, departure and arrival times, airport and airline information, security wait times and current airport delays all from your iPhone.

JiWire Wi-Fi Finder

Find wi-fi hotspots in cities around the world. Allows you to browse by country, city, address, wireless provider and even connection type. An added bonus? You can search exclusively for free wi-fi hotspots.

iPhone Tipper

While many tipping applications exist for the iPhone, we like this one because it allows you to split the check among up to 10 people and offers an easy interface for viewing 15, 20 and 25 percent tip amounts alongside the bill total .

Travel writer Lorraine Sanders has been editing the TravelPost.com Insider blog since 2005. You can reach her at news (at) lorrainesanders (dot) com.