October 2008

The Zen Class Nirvana Organizer unzips flat to mount onto a seat-back tray table on any plane or train. It has multiple mesh and zippered storage compartments, a cup holder, pen holders and a key chain clip to keep on-board essentials at arm’s reach.

Weighing 17½ ounces, it zips closed into a compact carry-on measuring about 8"x12", with a padded shoulder strap or two handles for carrying.

Priced at $39.99, it is available online at www.zenclasstravel.com (see the demo video) or phone 800/818-0381 for more info.

In Queensland, Australia’s, Carnarvon National Park, the Art Gallery is an area of sandstone overhangs with aboriginal art thousands of years old. Hundreds of handprints large and small, ochre and ash stencils, freehand paintings and engravings that depict aspects of indigenous life can be found off a 5.4-kilometer footpath through Carnarvon Gorge.

The park is home to platypuses, whiptail wallabies, yellow-bellied gliders and over 173 species of birds.

Visitors to Kyoto now can stay in any of eight restored machiya, the traditional townhouses built for citizens to live in.

They have been restored in the period style, with complex beams, plaster walls, courtyards and hanging scrolls. Modern amenities, such as kitchen appliances and modern bathrooms, have been added.

A stay at the 2-person Ishifudono-cho house costs ¥25,000-¥40,000 (near $237-$380) per night, depending on the day.

“Fandex Family Field Guides: Africa” by Alex Karis (Workman Publishing. ISBN 0761139788 — 50 die-cut cards, $9.95).

 “Kiwis Might Fly” by Polly Evans (2007, Bantam Dell. ISBN 13978038533994 0 — 309 pp., $13).

In her second book, following her witty and engaging tale of cycling through Spain, “It’s Not About the Tapas,” Evans takes on New Zealand, this time from the back of a 650cc motorcycle.

In the Misty Mountains south of Cairns, over 80 miles of walking tracks take walkers through a high-altitude rainforest and past waterfalls. Walks range from easy (7.4 kilometers round trip) to bushwalker difficult (23.4 km one way).

You don’t need a car to reach the trails; the Bally Knob Trailhead is a short walk from the township of Ravenshoe, and there are accommodations in Mission Beach, Tully, Ravenshoe, Malanda and Millaa Millaa.

The Viking Ship Museum in Ros­kilde, a 20-minute drive from Copenhagen, Denmark, offers interactive programs, demonstrations and exhibitions, including five original 11th-century Viking ships excavated from Roskilde Fjord. Visitors also can explore Museum Island, which has a boatyard where period vessels are reconstructed.

The museum is open daily year-round, and admission ranges from DKK55 to DKK95 (near $11-$19) per adult, depending on the season. Visit http://vikingeskibsmuseet.dk.

The 28th Great Christmas Pudding Race will be run in the West Piazza of London’s Covent Garden Market on Dec. 6, 2008, at 11 a.m.

Over 150 contestants in teams, all wearing outrageous costumes, each balance a Christmas pudding on a flimsy paper plate while navigating around safety cones, under limbo poles and down courses with flour balloons and jets of foam. The race raises money for Cancer Research UK. 

Call the Pudding Race Hotline at +44 0 0870 402 9899 or visit www.xmaspuddingrace.org.uk.

Visitors to Wales can stay in any of 18 renovated cottages, farmhouses and unique historic buildings year-round through Under the Thatch, an organization dedicated to rescuing historic buildings.

For example, a 2-night midweek stay in a Gypsy caravan (wagon sleeping two) runs £125-£169, depending on the season.

Contact Under the Thatch (Felin Brithdir, Rhydlewis, Llandysul, Ceredigion, SA44 5SN, Wales, U.K.; phone +44 1239 851 410 or visit www.underthethatch.co.uk).

Public displays of affection, high fives and the word “awesome” really aren’t very British. To find out what is, visit the website www.visitbritain.com/us, where people living all over Great Britain share their personal experiences. Visitors can read their posts, ask them questions online and find out about the best things to do in specific areas of England, Scotland and Wales.