Travel Briefs

There are many companies offering VoIP (voice over Internet protocol), which allows free or discounted international calls that travel mostly through the Internet, saving on long-distance charges.

The major provider is Skype (www.skype.com), with over 300 million users. Skype allows one to make computer-to-computer calls through the Internet for free no matter one’s location in the world. (For a computer without a built-in microphone and speaker, a headset is required.)

Metropolitan Touring offers expeditions in Ecuador on their Chiva Express one-car trains. The 38-passenger railcars each have large windows, a bar, a toilet and a rear platform. An outside ladder gives access to the roof, where there are securely attached seats and a guardrail.

Eight self-drive itineraries to the center, north and south of Thailand, including accommodations, are offered by Asian Trails, Ltd. (9th Floor, SG Tower, 161/1 Soi Mahadlek Luang 3, Rajdamri Road, Lumpinee Pratumwan Bangkok 10330, Thailand; phone 66 2 626 2000; fax 66 2 651 8111, www.asiantrails.net).

Example — the Chiang Mai-Sukhothai Loop offers views of the Yom River, Kamphaeng Phet and Mae Sot. The 6-day package costs $223 to $381 per person, double occupancy, depending on the car chosen. The single supplement is $120.

A 3-hour walking tour in Florence, Italy, focusing on the history of science during the Renaissance is offered by Context Travel (2222 Lombard St., Ste. 2r, Philadelphia, PA 19146; 888/467-1986, www.contexttravel.com). Galileo receives special attention as do many tools and scientific instruments used by him.

The tour costs €50 (near $78) per person plus €4 ($6) for entry to the Museum of the History of Science.

At Tokyo’s famous Tsukiji Market, the largest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world, as of April 1, 2008, tourists can watch tuna auctions only from a designated area and only from 5 to 6:15 a.m.

Traders had complained that tourists were interfering with auctions by distracting them and touching and photographing the 600-pound fishes.

In Barcelona and Lisbon, travelers can rent a 2-seater GoCar with a built-in GPS linked to an audio program that describes sights in the area. 

The small, open-topped cars each have three wheels, lap belts and a roll cage and can go 30 to 35 mph.

There are recommended routes, but the car gives info on sights wherever one is in the city.

Rates in Barcelona are €35 (near $55) for the first hour, €25 ($39) for the second and €20 ($32) for each additional hour. After four hours there is no additional charge. All-day rental costs €99 ($156).

The website www.travelchum.net matches people up with like-minded travel companions. With more than 40,000 members, the site is free and offers detailed searches of users’ profiles, messaging with other users, and discussion boards.

In Cumnock, Ayrshire, Scotland, after 250 years, Dumfries House (phone 0044 [0] 1290 551111, www.dumfries-house.org.uk) opened to the public in June 2008 following an $88.4-million restoration.

The 18th-century Georgian mansion is almost unchanged since an inventory of its contents was taken in 1803. Thomas Chippendale furniture was designed specifically for the house. A black-and-gold lacquered chest is valued at $20 million.

The Scharf-Gerstenberg collection, housed in Berlin in the newly renovated Stüler building (10 miles east of the city center, opposite the castle), is hosting a 10-year exhibition of surrealist and presurrealist art. Including works by René Magritte, Paul Klee and Salvador Dalí, the collection is open 10-6 Tuesday-Sunday. €8 ($12.50).

Contact the Stülerbau (Schloßstraße 70, 14059 Berlin, Germany; phone +49 0 30 34357315, fax +49 0 30 3435 7312, www.smb.museum).

In Barcelona, Spain, the Roman Catholic church La Sagrada Familia, which has been under construction since 1882, will “soon” have its roof completed. By 2010 there will be enough completed to hold services inside.

At the turn of the 20th century it was estimated it would take 150 more years to finish the building, but computer-aided design has sped up the pace. It is hoped that the Art Nouveau-inspired church, funded entirely by donations and admission fees and known for its 18 towers, will be completed by 2026.