February 2006

My wife, Barbara, and I have been traveling the world for over 30 years, and I thought I had heard and seen it all.

Before I leave on an extended tour, I stop at a bank and get a pack of new one-dollar bills. They come 100 to a bundle a little over an inch thick.

After a tour of Greece in late June ’05, my wife, Dorothy, and I stopped in Brittany, France, to visit our daughter who resides in the small city of Douarnenez, which at one time was the sardine capital of Europe. We had the opportunity to try a few restaurants there.

• On the waterfront at the end of rue Anatole France, which leads into the marketplace, is the Bord Eaux Restaurant. From the deck there is an excellent view of the small boat harbor, and from inside there is a limited view from most tables.

We had a 2-week stay in Provence, Oct. 5-19, ’05, with Idyll, Ltd. (Box 405, Media, PA 19063; phone 888/868-6871 or visit www.untours.com). We stayed in Velorgues, France, in the Oasis 2 apartment, a luxurious 2-bedroom rental with dishwasher, washing machine, patio and lots of privacy. The cost was $2,169 for apartment, car rental and airfare from Philadelphia.

Idyll provides a local “host” for orientation and support plus a wealth of pre-trip information. They have rentals throughout continental Europe.

Having made several past visits to tourist areas of Egypt and the Sinai, on our March ’05 trip my husband and I decided to explore the Coptic aspect of Cairo.

My friend Edith Ann Pazmino and I took an adventure that included three unusual islands between Asia and Australia, July 6-25, ’05. Our 20-day trip took us from San Francisco to Hong Kong, Hainan Island (in the South China Sea), Singapore, Perth and, in the Indian Ocean, Christmas and Cocos islands.

The trip would not have happened without the excellent help of Helen Svensen and Arthur Waine of Greenbelt Travel Services (5510 Cherrywood Ln., Greenbelt, MD 20770; phone 800/695-0317 or 301/474-1300, fax 301/345-3666 or visit www.greenbelttravel.com).

by Jim Simpson, Wilmington, DE

On our “Mini Tour 1” of Turkey with Pacha Tours (5757 Wilshire Blvd., Ste. 645, Los Angeles, CA 90036; phone 800/722-4288 or visit www.pachatours.com), we flew from London to Istanbul on April 15, ’05, and returned April 25.

The land price was $620 per person plus $50 per person extra to stay in the Erboy Hotel in Istanbul one night before the tour and one night after. All meals were included; everything was included except for a few extra museum entrances. Hotels were centrally located when we were in a city, the rooms were clean, and we had nice, hot showers.

We’ve wandered much of the world since retirement, usually independently and on a modest budget. We decided to take the “Heart of India” tour from Overseas Adventure Travel (One Broadway, Ste. 600, Cambridge, MA 02142; phone 800/955-1925 or visit www.oattravel.com), Sept. 29-Oct.15, ’05. We’re glad we did!

Greece Joyce Helfand of OPA Tours Greece (137 Genoa St., Ste. B, Arcadia, CA 91006; phone 800/672-7155 or visit www.greecetravel.com/opa) usually conducts only two tours a year, one in May and one in October, and limits her tours to 20 people or fewer. (Note: in 2006 there is also a tour in July.)

We toured with her to Athens, Delphi and the less-traveled provinces of Macedonia and Thrace (cities of Thessaloniki, Alexandroupolis and the Isle of Samothrace), May 10-24, ’05. We traveled at a leisurely pace in a full-size bus, staying in 5-star hotels for two or three nights each.