Informing the international traveler since 1976.
Archive for July, 2005
Report Cards for July
From Beijing, CHINA, May 24, ’05. . . • Holiday Inn Chang An West (66 Yong Ding Rd., Haidan District, Beijing; phone 86-10-6813-2299) — 10-minute walk from the Wukesong station on the subway. Quiet. Clean. Excellent service — a responsive staff. The rate was RMB565 (about $70) with service — good price, for this quality. (This price [...]Adventure Travel » Bolivia, land of contrasts and mysteries
(Second of two parts) La Paz La Paz is best remembered for great, inexpensive hotels, shopping bargains and streets of witch doctors. I found the most colorful and largest variety of shopping at the “witches’ market” (Mercado de Hechiceria), across from San Francisco Church (Iglesia de San Francisco) in central La Paz. Vendors there were helpful [...]Mideast & Mediterranean » The lonely desert castles of Jordan
The Kingdom of Jordan may not have the oil wealth of its Middle East neighbors to its east. It does, however, have wonderful art and historical riches available now for ordinary travelers to view in this troubled area. Petra is certainly Jordan’s crown jewel and a must for every tourist, but, having gone that far, [...]Latin America Watch
According to tour operators and tour wholesalers serving Latin America, there has been an increase in leisure travel to this area. The demand for alternative foreign destinations has whet the traveler’s appetite for soft adventure and indigenous cultures. The availability of upscale travel products in the sector of country inns, jungle lodges and expedition cruises [...]Cruising Ireland’s Shannon River
I spent a week in September ’04 self-cruising up Ireland’s Shannon River, stopping each day to wander about and enjoy some of the ruins, great scenery and picturesque towns.The Shannon empties into Lough Derg, a huge recreational lake. With many marinas and small villages around the lake and along the river, it is a popular [...]The Discerning Traveler » Car rentals and leases for the young at heart
(First of three parts) “You are too old,” the representative said bluntly. Moments earlier my wife, Flory, and I had arrived at Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv. When I protested to the rep, he retorted, “Just take the shuttle to the Hertz lot, where an agent will have you drive around. If you do all [...]Travel & Health » Avoiding diarrhea
The common medical ailment associated with travel to developing countries is, as travelers to Mexico refer to it, “Montezuma’s Revenge.” Montezuma’s Revenge affects 20% to 50% of travelers worldwide. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (www.cdc.gov), 10 million tourists a year are afflicted with travelers’ diarrhea. High-risk destinations include most of the developing [...]Reviewers’ Corner
Here are a couple of the latest travel-book reviews written by an ITN reader. “Fodor’s African Safari” (2004, Fodor’s LLC, Fodor’s Travel Publications. ISBN 1400012341 — 190 pp., $9.95 paper). This guidebook’s focus is how to choose big-game adventures in East or Southern Africa. However, its maps, organization, paucity of wildlife information and multiple [...]The Cruising World » Sail a tall ship to adventure
by Lew Toulmin (First of two parts) Cruise ships are wonderful, but there is one thing that is better: sailing a real tall ship. What’s the attraction? Well, how about true adventure, real sailing, living the history that most people just see on TV, visiting exotic places, seeing things that many folks ashore don’t even know exist, meeting [...]Wieliczka
The Wieliczka Salt Mine (www.kopalnia-wieliczka.pl/english) in Poland is still a working mine, but not the part where tourists are allowed. The section we saw on our trip in August ’97 is a museum with figures carved in salt. There are two chapels dating from the 17th century made entirely of rock salt. The highlight of the [...]
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