Tell ITN about the funniest thing that ever happened to you while traveling in a foreign country. (ITN prints no info on destinations in the United States.) There are no restrictions on length. The ITN staff will choose each month’s winner, who will receive a free one-year subscription to ITN. Entries not chosen cannot be acknowledged.
This month’s winner is GEORGE R. COHEN of Rancho Mirage, CA:
by Kathie Swift; Des Moines, IA
The first question that’s usually asked about our pilgrimage to Israel is “Did you feel safe?”
“Yes, all the time!” we enthusiastically answer.
My wife, Ginny, and I went on a two-week cruise to Greece and Turkey, “Voyages to Antiquity: Athens to Athens,” Sept. 7-21, 2010, with Road Scholar (Boston, MA; 800/454-5768).
The total cost of this educational trip was close to $16,000 for the two of us, excluding insurance but including round-trip airfare from Washington Dulles to Athens via New York, all land tours and all shipboard and tour tips.
In Israel for only one week (Sept. 1-7, 2011) for a family wedding, I hadn’t planned on any sightseeing. However, a friend who had moved to the town of Zichron Ya’akov, a place I had not toured before, invited me to spend the day.
What’s made of mud, stays cool in the hottest weather and boasts a design that hasn’t changed in 3,000 years?
In Istanbul, I highly recommend the Sumengen Hotel (Mimar Mehmet Aga Caddesi Amiral Tafdil Sokak 21, Istanbul, Turkey; phone 0212 517 6869).
I am so grateful to ITN subscriber Nancy Anderson (Feb. ’07, pg. 67), who told of her excellent experiences with Mehmet Ozbalci, owner of Turfantastik (Millet cad. Inan Is Hani No. 5/610, Aksaray, Istanbul, Turkey; phone [90] 212 589 33 25). I had kept her article, as I knew I wanted to visit Turkey.
(Second of two parts)
by Philip Wagenaar (First of two parts)
The “Where in the World?” picture of the tannery in Fez, Morocco, and those dying vats reminded me of when I bought a leather handbag in the shop above the tannery in December ’09.
I had to turn the bag inside out and hang it outside for two months to get the awful smell out! They don’t process leather very thoroughly, and it was really rank.
But, at $10, the price was right — and now it’s a very nice bag.
DORI PORTNER
Larkspur, CA