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Archive for July, 2007
Mideast & Mediterranean » Deir ez-Zor & its Armenian Genocide Memorial
By Ed Kinney, following the Euphrates River in Syria. See the May ’07 article. It is difficult for me to imagine Deir ez-Zor being anything but a friendly, laid-back town. When my wife, Moreen, and I visited there in 1997, locals waved and children followed us saying “Hallo,” and we’d reply likewise: “Mehaba.” But now Deir [...]The Discerning Traveler » Cabin air quality
by Philip Wagenaar, M.D. 14 tactics to increase your flying comfort The following essay was inspired by a letter from ITN reader Mrs. Carey Casey in Cathedral City, California. “Who are those two strange-looking people?” our fellow travelers must have wondered. Our faces covered by oxygen masks with their extended hoses dangling toward the supply tanks, we must have [...]Ask Steve » Trusting a stranger, tips on getting around England
Dear Reader, my December 2006 account of being lost in France and getting directions from a local jogged the memory of Patricia Arcaro of Glen Mills, Pennsylvania. She and a friend had lost their way in France when a motorcyclist stopped to help, going out of his way to take them to their hotel, driving [...]The Cruising World » Cruising with Claire
Claire McElarney is the energetic and always-smiling Activities & Dive Mate aboard the S.V. (sailing vessel) Mandalay, one of the fleet of four tall ships run by Windjammer Barefoot Cruises (Box 190120, Miami, FL 33119; 800/327-2601, www.windjammer.com). I interviewed Claire on the deck of the Mandalay in summer 2006 as the 236-foot vessel sailed from Grenada [...]All Aboard » Terminus Zaragoza
by Jay Brunhouse When you first step off your Spanish high-speed Talgo 350 train and out of Zaragoza’s (Saragossa’s) 2003 Delicias Station, the first thing you see 2,000 feet across the River Ebro are the risings of pavilions, towers and exhibitions sponsored by more than 78 countries for Zaragoza’s 2008 World Expo, June 14 to Sept. [...]Hyena Man in Harar
On a trip to Ethiopia with Elderhostel (Boston, MA; 877/426-8056, www.elderhostel.org) in October ’06, I had the opportunity to feed a wild hyena. One of the most enduring popular attractions in the city of Harar is the Hyena Man. At about 7 p.m. he starts calling the wild hyenas by name. After 10 minutes or so, [...]Re language
I have a great deal of experience in learning another language by studying and later teaching English to Brazilians and, several years later, teaching Spanish to Americans. You can practice a lot for free using the Internet with the help of a dictionary: for French, use www.lefigaro.fr, and for Spanish, www.elpais.com. I am sure there are [...]Naxcivan of Azerbaijan
Nakhichevan or Naxcivan: whatever the name, it’s a small piece of land separated from but part of Azerbaijan. It’s located 250 miles west of Baku, the country’s capital, and is surrounded by Armenia, Iran and Turkey. When I visited the domestic airlines office in Baku in late January ’07, the staff looked at me as if [...]Solo travel in South Korea
South Korea, the Land of the Morning Calm, is anything but calm. It’s a totally dynamic, 24/7 country. Alone on a week-long business trip to Daegu in June ’06, I extended my stay, adding a week in Seoul to experience South Korea. I avoided the common tourist spots. My goal for this, my first trip to [...]Exploring big, beautiful Brazil
by Emilee Hines, Hendersonville, NC I fell in love with Brazil before we left the airport at Rio de Janeiro. It was mid-January, a bleak time in most of America, but in Rio fields were lush and green and trees were blooming along the streets. Cariocas, as residents of Rio call themselves, strolled the mosaic sidewalks in [...]
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