International Travel News

Travel Briefs

December 2008 issue | Appears on page 96

Swims with horses

On Bazaruto Island, Mozambique, guests at the Indigo Bay Resort can swim in the Indian Ocean with some of the resort’s six South African Boerperd horses, floating on their buoyant bodies.

Usually offered once a week (at high tide) with a horse trainer and subject to weather and tide conditions, the activity is complimentary to resort guests, both novice and advanced riders. Regular trail riding in forest and on dunes is also available.

Including full board, nonmotorized...

December 2008 issue | Appears on page 96

Osaka’s Namba Park

When it was decided to pull down a little-used baseball stadium in Osaka, Japan, city planners and the site owner instead converted it into an unusual park space.

Located in an urban area near the Namba train station, there now are eight floors of gardens, paths, waterfalls, trees and public spaces on a series of terraces atop a mall with shops and restaurants — a unique place to visit.

December 2008 issue | Appears on page 96

Bike The Broads

Britain’s largest nationally protected wetland, The Broads, offers bicycling, boating and fishing on its shallow lakes and waterways.

The website www.thebroadsbybike.org.uk offers 11 printable bike routes, from five to 23 miles in length. Bikes can be rented from centers around the lakes for from £7 ($12) for two hours to £14 for all day (discounts for more bikes or child’s rental).

Contact Broads Authority (18 Colegate, Norwich, Norfolk, NR3 1BQ, U.K.; phone [01603] 610734,...

December 2008 issue | Appears on page 96

Body building

The structure of the museum Corpus, 21 miles southeast of Amsterdam, near Leiden, incorporates the form of a 115-foot-high seated human figure. On a 55-minute tour, visitors can, for example, climb inside a giant nose, smell fresh hay and feel a blast of wind from a giant sneeze.

Tours depart every seven minutes, with exhibits demonstrating digestion, neuron function and more. 9:30-5:00, Tuesday-Sunday. €16.50 ($22). No children under eight.

No online reservations from overseas...

November 2008 issue | Appears on page 11

Flemish tapestries

The Abbey of St. Peter in Ghent is holding the exhibition “Flemish Tapestries from the Burgundian Dukes” until March 29, 2009. It centers on tapestries that depict the victory over Tunis during a campaign of Charles V and includes many on loan from Spain.

Closed Monday. €8 ($11.50) adult, €6.75 senior/student. Wheelchair accessible. Contact Kunsthal Sint-Pietersabdij (Sint-Pietersplein 9, 9000 Gent, Belgium; phone +32 09 243 97 30, fax 97 34, www.gent.be/spa).

November 2008 issue | Appears on page 82

Cave paintings in Spain

A replica of the cave of Ekain, notable for its many prehistoric paintings, has been opened north of Bilbao, Spain. 500 meters from the real cave, the replica showcases Ekain’s art in the same order and placement as in the original.

Closed Monday, the cave is open 10-6 Tuesday-Friday and 10-7 weekends, holidays and summer. The price of €5 ($7) adult or €4 senior/student for a 30-minute guided tour includes entry to the exhibition all day.

Advance reservations are required....

November 2008 issue | Appears on page 82

Elephant polo

In the seaside town of Hua Hin, Thailand, the annual King’s Cup Elephant Polo Tournament will be held in 2009 on March 23-30 on the grounds of the Anantara Golden Triangle Resort (phone +66 53 784 084 or e-mail goldentriangle@anantara.com). The event raises money for the National Elephant Institute.

Sponsored by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (New York office, 212/432-0433, www.tourismthailand.org), the tournament is part of the World Elephant Polo Association World Series, with...

November 2008 issue | Appears on page 89

Alitalia bankrupt

At press time, Alitalia continued to teeter on the edge of total collapse. The national airline of Italy is in bankruptcy and has been unable to find buyers to keep the airline flying much longer.