September 2006

There are two things I learned from a July-August ’05 trip to Africa.

1) You MUST have the new U.S. dollars in Africa, especially to pay for your visa at the Kenyan border.

Prior to traveling in Mongolia and China in April ’05, I called Orchard Bank to tell them that I would be using their MasterCard while overseas. Even with that, it didn’t work in the ATM in Beijing nor anywhere else, for that matter! I also had a TJX Capital One Visa card and a debit card, however, and both worked fine.

The finest pastry shop in Europe, maybe in the world, is in Vienna, Austria: Demel (Kohlmarkt 14, Vienna, A-1010 Austria; phone +43 1 535 17 17 39).

On a 5-day cruise down the coast of Norway in May ’06 (part of a 17-day Grand Circle Travel trip that included Finland), we ate on our own two nights in Bergen at relatively affordable prices.

My wife, Rose, and I stayed three nights in Helsinki in June ’06 and discovered two excellent places to eat. Both were quite near the central train station and square.

I thought I’d pass along some tips and information about Dublin. I’m a frequent traveler to both London (Aug.’06, pg. 19) and Dublin, most recently visiting in December ’05-January ’06.

Iguazu Falls, located on the Argentine–Brazilian border 650 miles north of Buenos Aires, are the widest waterfalls in the world and are widely recognized as one of the 10 most spectacular. In April ’06, a month before my wife, Paula, and I were scheduled to leave for a one-week visit to Buenos Aires, we decided not to miss the opportunity to see these remote waterfalls.

My husband, Joe, and I were incredibly happy that we chose Buenos Aires (B.A.), Argentina, as our vacation destination this year. Aside from the U.S. dollar’s being strong there, one of the main reasons we decided to go was because we read W.E.B. Griffin’s “Honor Bound” series, “Honor Bound” and “Blood and Honor” among them, which addresses B.A. during WWII. It is very descriptive of the city and the estancias, also mentioning the Alvear Palace Hotel, and it sounded like an exciting and fascinating place. We were not disappointed.

The Holy Island of Lindisfarne lies three miles from the mainland of Northumberland, England, not far from the Scottish border. It’s not only a picturesque site but a religious and historical place well worth a visit if one is traveling in northern England.

A little history
Since the island is connected to the mainland by a causeway at low tide, visitors must check the tide timetables located at the entrance to the causeway so as not to be stranded on the island for a much longer time than planned.

On our first visit to France’s Pont du Gard, the famous 2,000-year-old aqueduct near Nîmes, in 1996, we stood in envy as we looked down on the river below dotted with canoes and kayaks, promising ourselves that someday we, too, would be among them. It was a long time before that anticipated day arrived; in fact, not until my 80th birthday in June ’05 did we return.