Travelers' Intercom
Smitten with Réunion Island
On our way to visit remote Madagascar in May 2019, my adventurous adult son, Eirik, and I decided to visit an even more remote place, a dot on the map named Réunion.
Travelers’ Intercom USA
ITN is temporarily accepting brief write-ups about the US. Information on independent travel, cultural and traditional sites and sources of handmade crafts plus little-known natural wonders are welcome. Avoid touting commercial theme parks, casinos or highly publicized touristy sites.
Fan of Tunisia and Algeria
I enjoyed reading about Dawn Vincent’s trip to Tunisia and Algeria (Dec. ’20, pg. 6).
A November 2020 trip to Mexico
To escape the winters in Michigan, my travel companion and I, now in our mid 70s, have been going to Europe and Southeast Asia each year for five to six months at a time. However, since none of the countries that we normally visit have been accepting US passports during the COVID-19 pandemic, on Nov.
Independent trip to Portugal
It had been 20 years since we last visited Portugal, and we decided it was time to make a return trip to this delightful and friendly country.
Collecting on a travel insurance claim
My husband, Alan, and I wanted to go to Romania and Bulgaria in April 2020, so in October 2019 we went onto Vacationstogo.com and selected an Emerald Waterways (www.emeraldwaterways.com) river cruise from Bucharest to Budapest, planning an early arrival in Bucharest.
Fado sung by men
Reading the reader’s letter “Fado Experience in Lisbon” (Nov. ’20, pg. 12) reminded me of a similar experience my wife and I had in June 2018.
A beautiful mistake
While on a multicountry tour in 2014, our group was staying at a hotel in Budapest. It was a Sunday morning, and since my husband, Jerry Liedl, and I had some free time, our guide said we might want to visit St. Stephen’s Basilica.
Travelers’ Intercom USA
ITN is temporarily accepting brief write-ups about the US. Information on independent travel. cultural and traditional sites and sources of handmade crafts plus little-known natural wonders are welcome. Avoid touting commercial theme parks, casinos or highly publicized touristy sites.
Mayan remnants in Guatemala
The focus of my trip to Guatemala in November 2019 was remnants of the Maya.
Planning ahead with ‘Europe by Rail’
Here is a new pastime I use to help counter the COVID-induced travel doldrums. I grab my newly arrived copy of “Europe by Rail” (authored by Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries), randomly select a page and begin an armchair train journey.
Charitable travelers
If any travelers are like me and like to help their fellow man by donating blood when they can, a change in blood bank policies is worth noting.
Planning a visit to Central and Western Africa
As part of my continuing quest to “see the world,” during four trips taken from July 2018 to March 2020, I visited the many countries in Western and Central Africa that I had previously missed, leaving only the Central African Republic and South Sudan.