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The glass building affectionately known as the “Gherkin,” at 30 St. Mary Axe, is among 500 of London’s contemporary or historic buildings open to the public Sept. 18-19, 2004. Called London Open House, the free event includes access to private homes, arts spaces, offices, banks, government buildings and the new Wembley Stadium. Phone 020 7267 7697, fax 020 7267 2822 or visit www.londonopenhouse.org.
Some of the best seats at London’s Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, will cost just £10 (near $18.40) for the 2004-2005 season, thanks to a sponsorship deal with Travelex. One hundred top-price stalls and stalls circle tickets will be made available every Monday, 1½ hours before a performance. In some cases, this will mean a saving of up to £165 on the price of a ticket.
In 2005, Britain’s Royal Navy will mark the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, which saw the death of the naval hero Admiral Lord Nelson in his hour of victory.
Large whitecaps topped the waves. The gale prevented us from going on the deck. Amazingly, we hardly felt the ship rock as we were sitting on the verandah of our stateroom. The stabilizers worked amazingly well.
For days we had been enjoying our cruise on the vast, 18-deck, majestic Star Princess as it hurtled through the vast expanse of the empty Pacific, never encountering another ship.
“The Sex Lives of Cannibals: Adrift in the Equatorial Pacific” by J. Maarten Troost (2004, Broadway Books. ISBN 0767915305 — $12.95 paperback, 288 pp.).
Nov. 18-27, ’04. Among highlights: Ancient Timbuktu/travel by camel in the Sahara Desert/commercial center of Mopti/Djenne’s mud mosque and Monday market/meet Dogon tribesmen/colonial architecture in Segou/artisan market in Bamako — leather products, Tuareg jewelry, artifacts, mud cloth and woven baskets.
$2,669 from New York. Single supplement, $300. Optional extensions to Burkina Faso and Benin.
Spector Travel of Boston, 581 Boylston St., Boston, MA 02116; phone 617/351-0111 or visit www.spectortravel.com.
13-day tour of INDIA departs Nov. 14, ’04.
30-year art teacher and acclaimed artist Jon Neuse leads this workshop, Oct. 16-24, ’04.
4-day/3-night tour in southern GERMANY includes 2-day “test drive” of a Porsche 911 or Boxster S (two people per car). Departures August-October ’04.
7-day/6-night walking tour of 2,000 years of Parisian architecture, hosted by author Rachel Kaplan (“Little-Known Museums In and Around Paris”) and architectural historian Arthur Gillette, Sept. 10-17 and Oct. 23-30, ’04.
Among highlights: Gallo-Roman baths, gladiatorial arenas/Art Nouveau district of Hector Guimard/Modernist buildings of Le Corbusier and Mallet-Stevens/buildings designed by Frank Gehry, Jean Nouvel, Christian Potzemparc, Philippe Starck and Renzo Piano/meetings with leading French architects/optional tours to Villa Savoye and Vaux-le-Vicomte. $2,750, land.