Food & Wine

Five days/four nights in FRANCE, Nov. 14-18, 2012. Highlights: Three lunches with growers, featuring champagne/Montagne de Reims, home to Tattinger, Veuve-Clicquot, Krug, Mumm/learn about vinification, production and blending of champage/Epernay, home to Moët & Chandon/tour underground wine cellars storing millions of bottles/visit three producers in Côte des Blancs. Land, €1,560 ($2,056). Single supp., €120 ($158). BKWine Tours (Issy les Moulineaux, France; phone +33 1 58 88 04 66 or +33 6 80 45 35 70).

(See Favorite Flea Markets)

Once a year, I travel to my favorite country: Italy. During my 2011 trip, I visited Bolzano, May 15-18.

My wife, Lois, and I took a Grand Circle Travel tour of Chile and Argentina, Jan. 9-23, 2011. We live in the Northwest and did not know when we booked the tour what air routing we would be assigned. For us, it was four flights and 32 hours to get from Bend, Oregon, to Santiago, Chile, and the same going from Buenos Aires back home.

The tour began upon our arrival in Santiago on Tuesday morning, and we had to stay awake all day. After three days in Santiago, we flew to Puerto Montt and spent two nights in Puerto Varas at the Cabaña del Lago Hotel.

REPORT ON BANGKOK…

Eight-day/seven-night gastronomic tour in ITALY, Oct. 30-Nov. 6, 2012.

by Randy Keck (Second of two parts)

REPORT ON JORDAN… For our November-December 2011 trip to Jordan, we hired a private driver, Jehad Abu Saeed, whom we highly recommend.

For our 50th anniversary, my wife, Judy, and I took our children and grandchildren (11 people in all) for a two-week vacation in Italy.

I’ve cruised rivers in Europe, China and northern India with several companies, but my April 3-10, 2011, Rhine River cruise on Uniworld’s River Empress surpassed them all for style and elegance in an intimate and relaxed setting. Most of all, I loved being pampered!

The price for the seven-day cruise from Frankfurt am Main to Amsterdam was $1,999 plus $625 for an upgrade. The single supplement was waived on this sailing!