Travelers' Intercom
(Not) taking food into Chile
Arriving at the Santiago International Airport, Dec. 18, 2008, I went through Immigration and then Customs. As a frequent traveler to less-traveled parts of South America, I am used to bringing snacks in case we miss meals.
Frugal trip to NZ
New Zealand, an expensive country, can be done on the cheap. I spent $2,200 plus my grocery costs on my trip from Thanksgiving Day to Christmas Day 2007.
Billed for tour before accepting it
In December 2008, I called Grand Circle Travel to arrange March 2009 travel for two to Sicily. GCT calls the basic trip a “14-Day Extended Vacation.” They also offer a 6-night pretrip to Malta and a 7-night post-trip on the Amalfi Coast of Italy.
Paul Gauguin cruise
We took a superb cruise in French Polynesia, Oct. 30-Nov. 12, 2008, with Grand Circle Travel (Boston, MA; 800/248-3737, www.gct.com). The ship was the Paul Gauguin of Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
‘Mind the gap!’
ITN readers who have ridden the London Underground and trains are familiar with the unending “Mind the gap” announcements at each station and the weak jokes associated with them. I even have an English postcard with “Mind the gap” printed on it in big black letters.
Eastern Turkey’s ties to the world
When I signed on for the 22-day/21-night “Turkey’s Biblical East” tour organized and led by Tamer Teoman of Teo World Culture Tours (New York, NY; 888/444-1110, www.teoworldculturetours.com), I knew little about that part of the world. Anatolia? I can’t say I even knew what part of Turkey that was.
Lightweight walkie-talkies
While spending several weeks in Spain in March-May 2008, my husband, Duane, and I found walkie-talkies to come in very handy for keeping in touch when apart.
Sicily independently
My wife, Joan, and I usually travel by car or rail, with vaguely planned itineraries and seldom with prebooked accommodations.
Flyer miles for first class
My better half, Joan, and I both are United Mileage Plus members and use the United-branded Visa credit card from Chase.
Katadyn water purifier
For a trip to Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos in January ’09, like the writer of the letter “SteriPEN® Sterilizes Water” (March ’09, pg. 56) I too was concerned about the expense and environmental aspects of drinking bottled water exclusively.
Found ‘deficiencies’ on ship
I found sailing from Fort Lauderdale to San Francisco on a Panama Canal cruise aboard Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Infinity, April 13-28, 2008, to be a horrendous experience. For a suite with balcony, the cost was $8,328 per person, double occupancy, excluding airfare.
Among the Datooga in Tanzania
My husband, Colin, and I had a fantastic adventure in Tanzania and Kenya, Jan. 7-Feb. 7, 2008, one that began with a casual invitation from David, a missionary sponsored by our church: “Would you like to come to Africa to visit our mission work?”
Disappointed on Silk Road tour
We took a trip along the “Silk Road” to the five “Stans” (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan) and Turkey, Aug. 17-Sept. 9, 2008.
Navigating code-share tickets
In the letter “Weak Link re Code-share Tickets” (Feb. ’09, pg. 30), the writer’s problem with code-share tickets and seat assignment confirmations is by no means unique. Also, with a code-share ticket, unless you are paying attention you could go to the wrong airline to catch the flight.
Notes on Australia
In the March ’09 issue, page 55, Wanda described her pretrip planning before she and her husband, Ray, took the tour “Ultimate Australia” with Overseas Adventure Travel (Cambridge, MA; 800/493-6824, www.oattravel.com) in October-November ’07. Here are her tips from the trip itself.