Travelers' Intercom
Ancient Carthage secret
For me, the highlight of a visit to Tunisia was ancient Carthage. The city of Tunis has a number of suburbs. One is Carthage — modern and bustling — but located within it, on the coast, is ancient Carthage.
Strange craft
I enjoyed Roger Canfield’s story on Macau in the February ’06 issue, but I should point something out. On page 40, he mentions seeing in a museum a boat used by Vietnamese people escaping the Communists.
Buenos Aires ‘tango’ shows
My wife, Judy, and I and two friends took a trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina, in November ’05. We stayed at the Wilton Plaza, having arranged our reservations through a Peruvian online travel service (e-mail reservations@argentinas-hotels.com).
Maximizing Scotland
I took a 2-week trip to Scotland. The first week, Sept. 10-16, ’05, was spent walking in the Highlands with a small group on an escorted trip arranged by a company I found on the Internet, Wilderness Scotland, Ltd. (3A St.
St. Petersburg guide
In 2004 when we decided to take a Russian riverboat cruise in September ’05 with Linwood Rotary (from the state of Washington), we noticed a letter from ITN reader Helene Eckstein (Nov. ’04, pg. 82). She mentioned a terrific guide in St. Petersburg and really sang her praises.
Archaeological Tours
In his August ’05 “Far Horizons” column, Randy Keck asked readers to recommend long-haul, single-destination group tours. Most of our organized touring has focused on single destinations.
Consider Guatemala
Having made three trips to Guatemala, when I read Judith Anshin’s story in the January ’06 issue it brought back many happy memories of this beautiful land and of the wonderful people who live there.
Custom India
My friend and I, who both qualify as seniors, first traveled to India in January ’03 for a month. We paid for the car and driver and then just arranged things as we went along, charging hotels and meals. Sometimes we looked at as many as three hotels before we chose one.
Mobal GSM phone
A recent television program listed things one should have for traveling, including the best shoes, the best white shirt, the best go-everywhere black pants, the best backpack, etc. What was omitted was something I consider essential: a Mobal GSM phone (Mobal Communications, 171 Madison Ave., Ste.
Found inefficiencies in booking
ITN was mailed a copy of the following letter, sent by a reader to Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT).
A semi-independent tour of China
Over the last 20 years, China has built up its infrastructure so that it is quite reasonable for individual travelers to tour on their own. Still, there is some risk and one can have some trepidation in undertaking this adventure, especially outside of the big cities.
Hidden pocket
Protecting your money while traveling abroad has gotten more complicated over the years, but not for me.
Driving in Poland a tight fit
On our first trip to Poland, in October ’05, I read that the road fatality rate in that country is one of the highest in Europe.
Amazon jungle cruise
A small ad in ITN caught my eye and my imagination. Who hasn’t dreamed of taking a small boat cruise on the Amazon?
Southern Chile agent
My husband and I were in the southern part of Chile in January ’05 and found the best tour operator we’ve encountered in our years of travel.
To help clothes dry
To limit luggage to “carry-on” only when traveling over an extended period, I pack three shirts, three sets of underwear and three pairs of socks and wash soiled items nightly. Washing is easy, but wringing sufficient water from my wash has been a problem. I now extract water using a lettuce spinner.
The ZürichCARD
I trust Rick Steves, so when he suggested in his “Switzerland 2005” guide that travelers should pick up a ZürichCARD, I listened. In November ’05 I purchased a 72-hour card, and I am very glad I did.
Paris and Nice notes
We took an an excellent trip to Paris (six nights) and Nice (three nights), May 23-June 2, ’05, arranged by France Vacations (Chatsworth, CA; 800/332-5332 or www.francevacations.net).
Warsaw Camera Market
We visited the camera market in Warsaw, Poland, in June ’05. With new and used cameras, computer equipment, cell phones, etc., it’s open only on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.