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Archive for April, 2006
April Report Cards
On MALAYSIA, January-February ’06. . . • We took a tour to Borneo with smarTours (Newark, NJ; 800/337-7773 or www.smartours.com), Jan. 28-Feb. 11. We travel often, but this tour was one of the best. Malaysia is just beautiful. The people are very friendly and much fun. The flora, due to the climate, is lovely and colorful. We [...]Far Horizons » China adventure: Chongqing, Xi’an and Beijing
(Third of three parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3) The final portion of my journey to China in October-November 2005 commenced upon disembarking in Chongqing after completing our 5-day/4-night Yangtze River Three Gorges cruise. Our local guide, Daniel, advised we were now in the land of spicy, fiery cooking, short-tempered locals and China’s hottest [...]Adventure Travel » Soft adventure and soft beds
(Third of three parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3) Great white sharks! From the safety of a small “shark watching” boat, our small group of mildly adventuresome travelers was watching a group of “young and reckless” travelers on a nearby “shark diving” excursion boat in Walker Bay, South Africa, southeast of Cape Town, in [...]Mideast and Mediterranean » Unknown Little Petra
Moreen and I have been fortunate to have twice visited Petra, Jordan. To us, it is one of the crown jewels of the Middle East, along with Syria’s Palmyra and Lebanon’s Baalbek. (Egypt’s treasures are in Africa.) The first time we visited the rose-red city of Petra was in 1982. Then, the Middle East was inflamed [...]Latin America » Destination: Cuzco
As a delegate to the Latin America Travel Mart in September ’05, I was invited by PeruRail to sample their luxury train, the Hiram Bingham, which links Cusco and Machu Picchu. PeruRail is widely recognized as having not only one of the highest rail routes on Earth but the world’s most scenic railway service. Their service [...]The Discerning Traveler » Turkish delight
(First of three parts, jump to part 1, part 2, part 3) “Çorba, çok ılık, lütfen” (“Soup, very warm, please”)*, I told the waiter when I ordered my first course. Five minutes later, the lukewarm liquid arrived. I repeated the phrase, “Çorba, çok ılık, lütfen,” and after another three minutes the soup was put in front of [...]Ask Steve » Travel to Tunisia, credit card authorization for flights
Q STEVE, in your January ‘06 column you listed a number of airlines “that have not lost a single passenger since they were founded.” Just wondering if Aloha Airlines doesn’t consider flight attendants to be passengers. I recall the loss of one Aloha Airlines flight attendant, in flight, when the airframe came open about seven years [...]The Cruising World » Cruising up the Shannon through the 40 shades o’ green
(First of two parts, jump to part 1, part 2) I close my eyes and picture the emerald of the sea, From the fishing boats at Dingle to the shores of Donaghadea; I miss the River Shannon and folks at Skibbereen. The moorlands and the meadows with their forty shades o’ green. — Johnny Cash (1961) As the song says, I [...]All Aboard! » Railpass roundup 2006
European railpasses continued their creeping inflation in 2006. New passes added to your plethora of options, and choosing the pass ideal for you became more and more complex. With the vast selection of passes now available, you need to study carefully to select the pass best suiting your plans. As many as seven different passes [...]Travels in central Serbia
—by Margaret and Roger Kinkle, Oro Valley, AZ For 10 days in early October ’05 we visited friends in south-central Serbia & Montenegro, touring three historic sites in Serbia: Niš in south-central Serbia; Felix Romuliana at Gamzigrad near Zaječar in eastern Serbia, and Staro Selo (Old Village), south of Užice in western Serbia. Getting there We flew Air [...]
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