05
by Roger Canfield, Contributing Editor
Before my late October ’07 trip to the Philippines, I was aware that the Philippines and America share certain historical commonalities, including Christianity, colonialism, war, independence and democracy. While, on my trip, I found friendly people and fine food, the country also has its share of poverty-stricken areas.
During a month-long Africa trip, I wanted to get up close to lions. It wasn’t until I got to Zambia and the Waterfront Hotel & Campground aka The Zambezi Waterfront, Victoria Falls aka The Waterfront (P.O. Box 60407, Livingstone, Zambia; phone +260 213 320606 or 07 or 08, fax 213 320609, e-mail [for accommodation] waterfront@safpar.com or [for activities] zaminfo@safpar.com or visit http://safpar.com/waterfront) that I was able to book, in their activity center, an adventure called “Lion Encounter.”
In the March ’08 issue, page 59, a reader wrote that he was disappointed with the outdoor Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania. We were in Bucharest in September ’07 and found the Village Museum to be wonderful. It is located on the banks of a pretty little lake, with native trees, shrubs and flowers all around. Houses and other outbuildings from all over Romania were dismantled, taken there and reassembled. Most are from the 1800s.
During a 14-day “Celtic Kingdoms” cruise on Holland America Line’s Prinsendam, on Aug. 31, 2007, I took a day-long shore excursion from Belfast to Giant’s Causeway.
During a wakeful night, while wearing my climber’s headlamp to illuminate the March ’08 issue of ITN, I noted the reference (page 69) to carrying lightbulbs for sufficient reading light and was struck by the simplicity and effectiveness of our family’s solution to that problem.
Each of us has a Petzl Tikka Plus Headlamp, which is hands-free, comfortable, focuses bright light on both pages of the book without disturbing others, and doubles as a flashlight.
Regarding transferring large numbers of slides to a CD or DVD, Linda Lander wrote, “I need a ‘previewer’ to sort out what I want to discard” (Oct. ’07, pg. 48).
A reader mentioned taking a disability pass to Europe in order to park in spaces for the handicapped (Dec. ’07, pg. 103). At the website www.globalaccessnews.com and after clicking on “Travel Archives,” under “Trips, Tips and Resources” I found the following item:
“Great news! European countries now honor disabled parking placards from the U.S. and Canada. The placards must display the international symbol for disability and state the name of the document holder. Prominently display your documents inside your car’s windshield.”
During an April trip to Japan’s Honshu island, we visited the Nebuta-no-sato Museum, where some of the floats for the Nebuta-matsuri in Aomori are housed. (The festival takes place Aug. 2-7 each year; visit www.nebuta.jp/english/index_e.htm.)
I had not flown with Qantas since 1983, but for an October ’07 flight from Auckland, New Zealand, to Los Angeles, since they were the best buy, I bought a ticket.
On the day after Christmas 2007 we were in Brest, France, and found many of the restaurants closed for vacation. After a little searching, we found Les Caudalies (1 rue Malakoff, 29200 Brest), a 36-seat neighborhood/family restaurant.
Once we were seated, the host/waiter/owner brought the menu, written on a small chalkboard and listing four starters and five entrées.