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Travelers' Intercom

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Bills paid before travel

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
Before a trip, first I arrange for every bill possible — car insurance, phone, etc. — to be paid by my credit cards. I never, never enter anything in a computer. Then I arrange for my credit cards to be paid by my bank automatically every month. I make sure my checking account has enough ...

Credit card fraud

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
I spent three weeks in Italy, probably my favorite country in the world, in March-April ’07. One negative occurrence on my trip — I had my credit card number ripped off somehow. Fortunately, Visa’s computer caught and prevented over $8,000 in fraudulent charge attempts in Seoul, Korea. I couldn’t arrange to get a replacement card while ...

‘Excellent’ guide in China

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
If you are traveling to China on your own and planning to spend a few days in Beijing and/or Chengde, you may like to consider employing the services of Mr. Sun Qingjun, or Harry (harrysun@ heinfo.net), an excellent bilingual guide from Chengde now residing in Beijing. I met Harry in 2002; he was the leader of ...

Guide in Turkey

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
I would like to recommend a personal guide for travel in Turkey. Our group of eight friends met in Istanbul on Sept. 13, 2007, the day before embarking on a Mediterranean cruise (Norwegian Jewel). Prior to arriving in Istanbul, we had made arrangements with Lale (pronounced Lolly) Kosagen (e-mail kosagan@yahoo.com or visit www.tourguidesinturkey.com) to give us a ...

Morocco guide ‘outstanding’

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
My wife, Marie, and I took a 2-week Morocco holiday, Sept. 30-Oct. 12, 2007, and were introduced to an outstanding guide. I would like to share his name and our experience. After meeting our inbound flight from Paris at the Casablanca airport, Said Baadoud (phone +212 76 3020 41 or e-mail saidbaadoud2001@yahoo.fr) escorted us for a ...

Monkeys in Kuala Lumpur

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
Monkeys in Kuala Lumpur
It was another hot, steamy and sunny afternoon in Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia, as we were making our way out of the Lake Gardens district about two miles from the Petronas Towers. The Lake Gardens are a large urban park with wooded areas, rolling hills, lakes and several attractions immediately southwest of KL’s center city. After a ...

Great visit to Syria

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
Great visit to Syria
My husband, Kurt, and I took our third trip to Syria, March 19-23, 2007. It has certainly become one of our favorite places. The friendships we have developed over the years have been wonderful, and we’d love to extend these friendships to those of you interested in visiting such a beautiful place. This trip was two ...

Northern Spain’s Celtic roots

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
Northern Spain’s Celtic roots
I took a trip to northern Spain, Aug. 8-28, 2007. Guitars, wine and arid plains, right? Yes, in other parts of Spain, but in the principality of Asturias, located on the coast between Galicia and Cantabria, bagpipes, apple cider and mountains are standard fare. Upon arrival at the Aviles airport in Asturias, the most remarkable sighting ...

Nothing beats a flush in NZ

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
Perhaps we do have this in the States, but we’re not finding it in my local home improvement store. While in New Zealand in 2007, my husband, Jim, and I were impressed that most of the toilets had two levels of flush. You could do a low-use flush or a full flush. What a boon in ...

More productive questions

Travelers' Intercom, February 2008 issue
In deciding which few words and phrases to learn how to say in a foreign language, keep in mind that knowing simply how to ask “Where is…?” is risky. If you are truly at sea in the local language, then it’s my experience that you are very unlikely to understand the answer. In my opinion, it ...