July 2018

Tucked behind the 216-foot-long reclining Buddha at the Chaukhtatgyi Buddha Temple in Yangon, Myanmar, is a row of 33 smaller statues, each one demonstrating a different mudra (hand position) used by the Buddha. Many were pictured here in the May 2018 issue.

Construction of the original large Buddha was sponsored by a wealthy Burmese Buddhist (U Po Tha) in 1899. After its completion in 1907, however, it was decided that the statue's face appeared aggressive, so the image was destroyed in the 1950s and work began on a new image. The new statue was consecrated in 1973.

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Dear Globetrotter:

Welcome to the 509th issue of your monthly foreign-travel magazine.

If you enjoy travel to pristine wilderness areas and observing wildlife up close, an expedition trip to the Arctic or Antarctic should be on your travel list.

When my wife, Betty, and I traveled to Antarctica in 2015, our trip didn’t include a visit to the Falklands (Islas Malvinas) or South Georgia. After travel discussions with others, we realized that we had missed out on exceptional bird, sea mammal and landscape viewing opportunities.

As we had enjoyed our two previous polar experiences, our next decision was whether to consider another, more inclusive Antarctica trip or focus only on an expedition visit to the Falklands and South Georgia.

Many polar expeditions spend only two to three days each in the Falklands and South Georgia, either on the way to or returning from Antarctica. Uncooperative weather and sea conditions can easily reduce the number of off-ship excursions when you have only a few days to visit each area. We decided that if we really wanted to increase our chances for as many viewing opportunities as possible, we needed to maximize the number ofdays in each destination.

With this in mind, we found that Poseidon Expeditions (Providence, RI; 347/801-2610, www.poseidon expeditions.com) offered the itinerary that matched our interests and price range ($25,000 for two, excludingflights).

In November 2017, we embarked on a 13-day expedition that started in Puerto Madryn, Argentina, and ended in Ushuaia. The expedition schedule included 2½ days in the Falkland Islands and 5½ days in South Georgia.

Bhutan has become a “go to” destination since the country opened to outside travelers in 1974. That first year, just 287 visitors were permitted entry, but tourism has exploded recently, from 23,480 visitors in 2009 to 254,704 foreign individuals visiting Bhutan in 2017.

‘So what’s the attraction?’ you might ask. Bhutan is an amazing destination with much to offer.

This tiny kingdom (population 797,765) limits visas and makes sure we visitors are taxed for our impact on their environment. The country has made a concerted effort to not exploit their natural resources for short-term gain.

The cultural attractions include their unique architecture, national dress, traditional sports and Buddhist beliefs, and, of course, there’s the country’s natural beauty. All this has been well documented in recent ITN articles (for example, April ’17, pg. 46, and Oct. ’17, pg. 18). But this country is not overrated. (Please, visit!)

My wife, Lois, and I did enjoy Bhutan’s culture, but this article is about a walk in the well-protected outback, following an entirely new path to rarely seen vistas.

Tourism to the Caribbean in the fall of 2017 took a big hit following the significant damage done by hurricanes Irma and Maria. Cruise ships responded to the situation there by canceling or modifying their itineraries, and passenger bookings dropped.

By early November, the prospect of empty cabins precipitated some great last-minute bargains for frugal travelers like me.

As the southern islands in the Caribbean chain had escaped most of the hurricanes’ impact, a 7-day cruise on the Celebrity Summit (beginning Jan. 6, 2018) to Barbados, Antigua, St. Kitts, Saint Lucia and St. Thomas sounded like a perfect fit for my husband, Lynn, and me. With Celebrity’s sale price, we secured a window-view cabin for a total of $1,160 for the two of us, including taxes and port charges. Except for St. Thomas, all of these were islands we had never seen.

The first purpose-built permanent cruise terminal for Rome, Terminal Amerigo Vespucci, opened in Civitavecchia, Italy, on May 21. Jointly owned and operated byCosta Cruises, MSC Cruises and Royal Caribbean International, it can accommodate larger ships.

2.4 million passengers are expected to board there each year, using 120 check-in counters and 90 boarding-status monitors. It includes a VIP lounge plus a small museum with Roman and Etruscan artifacts.

In Florence, Italy, increased security at the Duomo (the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore), initiated in early 2018, has caused long wait times for visitors. The Duomo is most famous for its 15th-century dome designed by Filippo Brunelle­schi. It is recommended that visitors arrive early (before 8:30 a.m.), when lines are shorter.

The city of Palma, on the Spanish Mediterranean island of Majorca, will begin banning short-term apartment rentals (such as those listed on Airbnb.com) in July. Locals have complained that rents for apartments have increased more than 40% since 2013 and also that the conditions of neighborhoods have deteriorated due to the behavior of tourists.

Short-term rentals of houses and chalets, or rooms therein, will not be banned. Palma already requires short-term rentals to be licensed, but it is estimated that less than 10% of the available rentals in the city are licensed.

US travelers can get a free one-way internal flight (from Melbourne, Brisbane or Sydney) to Australia’s Outback (Alice Springs, Darwin or Uluru) until Dec. 31, 2018.