Calling All Readers
Favorite foods (Part 3)
"My husband and I like going places we’ve never been before, seeing things we’ve never seen before and eating and drinking things we’ve never tried before. "Aboard the Saga Sapphire on a cruise with Saga Cruises in 2013, we tried Eton mess. This British dessert is traditionally served at Eton College’s annual July 4 prize-giving celebration. It consists of strawberries, sugar, heavy cream and baked meringue. It is delicious!" (letter sent by Marcia Ritter)
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 9)
"In 1955, when I was 23, some friends and I biked through parts of Europe. Two of us spent a week in England, with time in London, then rode south to Stratford-upon-Avon. "We lucked out and were fortunate to see 'Twelfth Night' ... with Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh!" (excerpt from Myrtle Kastner's letter)
Favorite foods (Part 2)
The crowning touch to our experience came when our driver grabbed some scissors to snip our noodles, because he knew we would be uncomfortable slurping as he did. The soup was so delicious and wonderfully filling that we asked to go back the next day. And the next. (excerpt from Nancy McAfee's letter about a visit to Vietnam)
Favorite foods
"I have enjoyed so many wonderful foods while traveling, like ice cream in Venice and falafel on the streets of Tel Aviv, but my favorite "food" ... was a cup of hot tea in Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka, at the Heritance Tea Factory hotel, on March 2, 2014. ... While my husband and I did not pick our own tea leaves, this was still the most perfect cup of tea that I ever drank." (excerpt of letter from Nili Olay)
Travel etiquette
ITN Contributing Editor Randy Keck asked to hear from readers on the topic of travel etiquette. Following is an excerpt of a reply from Sylvia DeForest, of Seattle, WA (on cultural faux pas she and her husband committed in Tuva, Siberia, in 2008): "Walking into and out of many yurts, we had to learn to never step on the threshold and never to turn our backs toward the family's shrine inside. We learned quickly, after gentle reminders. ..."
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 8)
"After visiting Tibet in 1985, I always wanted to return to the Himalayas. July 1998 became my time to return, venturing to Ladakh, high up in the Himalayan area of India, on a group tour. ... "When I mentioned to our guide that I had hardly seen any Ladakhi people (because they were following the Dalai Lama), he offered me the greatest gift possible: a private car and driver to take me to the Dalai Lama’s birthday party ... . Off I went." (excerpt of letter from Marilyn Marx Adelman)
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 7)
"In May 2015 at our timeshare ... just south of Salzburg, we were awakened by loud explosive sounds. Upon opening the window, we were startled to see beautiful fireworks spreading brilliant colors in the distant mountains. We were mesmerized for over 30 minutes as the sound-and-light display filled the seemingly deserted mountains. "We were told later by the hotel staff that this was a customary way to celebrate a wedding in the area. ..." (excerpt of letter from Phyllis Harlan)
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 6)
[during an alpenhorn festival in Switzerland]: "One group was on a terrace high above St. Moritz. People loved the music. So did the cows, which left the pasture, congregated around the players and joined in! The musicians were out-moooooed and had to give up." (excerpt from Jon C. Lafleur's letter)
COVID consequences (Part 12)
"... on May 10 [2021], I sent an email to Samo Toplak, CEO of Value World Cruises, requesting a refund and explaining why. He agreed to reimburse our entire payment, and on May 14 it was deposited directly into my checking account. ..." (excerpt from Dorothy Botnick's letter)
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 5)
"Traveling alone through Greece in 1964, I met an American woman in Delphi traveling with two other people. They were going to visit her cousin .... She invited me to go with them to his home, which he had built for his family in a village up in the mountains beyond Delphi. ..." (excerpt from Jean Mackey's letter)
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 4)
"In October 1993 ... we took a cruise up the Danube to visit Melk Abbey. ... On the upper deck, there was a gathering going on between US astronauts and Russian cosmonauts. ... At one point, the late M. Scott Carpenter, one of the original Mercury Seven astronauts, pointed to my Super 8 movie camera and asked, "Excuse me, may I ask what that is? ..." -- excerpt from Ada Green's letter
COVID consequences (Part 11)
"2020 was going to be a good year for travel, as my husand, Leo, and I had two international trips planned. On April 13 we were to depart on the 'Essential Holland & Belgium Culinary River Cruise' with Vantage Deluxe World Travel -- our fourth trip with Vantage. ..." -- excerpt from Ann Cyr's letter
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 3)
"In the late ’80s, my husband and I were staying at a gîte (B&B farmhouse) in France, and the hostess asked if we wanted to have table d’hôte. " 'What’s that?' I asked. She said that they would provide a meal at a reasonable cost. I asked what kind of meal and how much it cost. She said it would be $20 for two, and that day’s menu was ratatouille." (excerpt from Robin Baron's letter)
COVID consequences (Part 10)
"My wife, Cynthia, and I were in Morocco anticipating joining the tour 'Morocco: Sahara & Beyond' with G Adventures ... scheduled for March 16-30, 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck." (excerpt from John Norton's letter)
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 2)
(excerpt from Emily Moore's letter) "My husband and I were enjoying an independent tour of New Zealand in 1993. Our little rental car took us up and down the mountain roads through lush green farmlands with thousands of sheep. "Our first surprise was a traffic jam of sheep in the road ahead of us. There was no way around them. They filled the road, even spilling over into the woods on either side. ..."
COVID-19 cancellations (Part 9)
Photo submitted by Katherine Shindel "I bought this necklace and earrings from this very talented woman in Nuku'alofa, Tonga, in February 2020. (South Seas pearls are cheaper than Tahitian pearls.) I can't imagine all the hours she put into it."
Pleasant travel surprises (Part 1)
"He took us on a short tour of the Rathaus, including a chamber in which both President Kennedy and Queen Elizabeth II had once spoken. "Imagine our delight when we then found ourselves climbing a ladder up into the tower. With the rain falling just outside the turret walls, we reached the control panel for the Glockenspiel. The man then pulled a couple of tubes ... and started the carousel." (excerpt from from Bruce Morrissey's letter)
COVID-19 cancellations (Part 8)
"My wife, Eileen, and I left Charlotte, North Carolina, on March 12, 2020, flying to Quito, Ecuador, via Miami to join a cruise to the Galápagos Islands ... . "Upon arriving in Quito, and because of COVID-19, passengers were greeted by airport staff in full hazmat suits checking our temperature and handing out health questionnaires, all before we entered the country." (excerpt from John Leach's letter)
COVID-19 cancellations (Part 7)
Excerpt from letter submitted by Beverly Hazen (Mayville, NY) "... Upon our arriving in Seville [March 11, 2020], we heard of President Trump’s announcement that flights from Europe to the US would cease in a matter of days. While there was an underlying concern regarding COVID-19 that could not be totally ignored, the tour itinerary was keeping us moving along, and our tour director was reassuring that the tour was continuing. ..."
COVID-19 cancellations (Part 6)
"I wanted to give a shout-out to one of ITN’s advertisers, Flo Tours. ... I was booked with them to travel to the five ’Stans, Sept. 7-25, 2020. Due to COVID-19, they had to cancel the tour on Aug. 4. I was offered a credit to another of their tours anytime through 2022. "I requested a refund of my deposit instead, on Aug. 6, and they graciously credited my credit card the next day." (excerpt of letter from Mary Anderson, Littleton, CO)