Travelers' Intercom

June 2004 issue

Seville from Lisbon via Beja, Portugal

  If you travel directly to Seville from Lisbon via Beja, Portugal, as we did in June 1998, you will take route 433, which winds pleasantly through the hills of the Parque Natural Sierra de Aracena. Spend a day or so at Hotel Galaroza Sierra (phone 959 12 32 37 or fax 959 12 32 36), which is 70 kilometers west of Seville at Galaroza, Spain. We liked the tranquility of this modern facility, with swimming pool, situated on a hill overlooking the forest. The cost was about $50. For info, visit www.hotelsearch.com.

DONALD SCHUBECK Cooper City, FL

July 2004 issue

Quick refund from International B&B

My husband, Eugene, and I were scheduled to leave on April 12, ’04, on a month-long trip to Eastern Europe, beginning in Prague.

After having seen in ITN an ad for International Bed & Breakfast (Box 823, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006; phone 800/422-5283), we contacted them and reserved and prepaid bed-and-breakfast accommodations for one week plus transportation from the Prague Airport.

The day before we were scheduled to leave on our trip, Eugene had a medical emergency which necessitated our postponing and then ultimately canceling our trip. We immediately contacted...

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August 2004 issue

Money hunt in the Balkans

On a trip to the Balkans my husband and I took in May ’04, we had wanted to travel by bus and find accommodations as we went. As soon as we arrived in Tirana, Albania, we realized that language problems would require us to have a car and driver.

In three hours, Sadik Malaj of Sondor Travel & Tours (sondor2002@hotmail.com) made all the arrangements. Our driver was his son, Dorien Malaj, who spoke English very well and was an excellent driver. The car and driver for eight days cost €1,250 (near $1,530), and we paid our own meals and hotels.

Credit cards generally are not...

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February 2012 issue

More on Tottori, Japan

I have a bit more information regarding a couple of the places mentioned in the article on Tottori Prefecture in Japan (Nov. ’11, pg. 6). I visited the area Nov. 1-7, 2011. Regarding the Uradome Coast boat excursion with the San’in Matsushima Yourun Company (Iwami-gun; phone 0857 73 1212 or e-mail info@yourun1000.com), the small-boat ride described in the article runs only from April to October and lasts 50 minutes, while the large-boat ride runs from March to November and lasts 40 minutes. Although the large boat, which I took since it was the only one running, did not pass between as...

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August 2011 issue

Camera support

I read the advice about reducing camera shake (Jan. ’11, pg. 85) and agree with Mr. Noble to a point. I think that another solution would be to tuck the arms in but hold the camera so the shutter button is on the top.

This would prevent the camera from moving because the hand that is holding the weight of the camera is not the one that has to move to trip the shutter. The bottom hand holds the camera’s weight and the top hand supports the camera against the photographer’s head.

Try this on any camera, especially a digital SLR or one of the new Four Thirds cameras. Some point-...

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June 2009 issue

Sweet treat in Mérida

On an independent trip to Venezuela with two friends in December ’08, we visited Mérida.

First, the bad news — Mérida’s Téleferico (cable car), which is described as the highest and longest cable car route in the world, is CLOSED indefinitely and has been since August ’08.

Some say that it needs upgrading; others say that the prospect of large construction contracts and kickbacks accounts for talk about building a new one. In any case, if taking Mérida’s Téleferico is a major reason you’d want to visit Venezuela, I advise delaying your visit until it’s been operating again...

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April 2011 issue

L’Insolent, Paris

During a stay in Paris in May ’10, my wife, Rose, and I discovered a great little bar and restaurant called L’Insolent (164 avenue de Clichy; phone 01 42 29 46 04). It’s somewhat away from the city center and near the Clichy Métro station.

It’s run by a friendly young couple, Nathalae and Tromas, who are a lot of fun. They both cook and wait tables with flair.

Rose and I started dinner with two green salads, one topped with a filet of herring and the other with paté de canard. Then Rose had fillet of sole and I, a wonderful rabbit over egg noodles; we split a bottle of wine...

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May 2011 issue

India with Worldview Tours

I love India. I visited again at 83, traveling with my 60-year-old son on the 16-day “Ancient Heritage of South India” tour, March 6-23, 2010, with Worldview Tours (Newport Beach, CA; 800/373-0388). It was offered with no single supplement, making it affordable for us.

I would certainly recommend Worldview Tours, whose Nino Mohan assured us that even if few people signed up, the tour would still go. As it turned out, we had a driver and air-conditioned Toyota SUV all to ourselves. All arrangements went as planned, and we were contacted twice while on tour to see if we had any...

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