International Travel News

Travelers' Intercom

June 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Another delay

Two weeks before my departure to Málaga, Spain, on Jan. 25, ’06, I reconfirmed my flight on Iberia Airlines and told the representative I would need wheelchair assistance when I arrived at Madrid’s Baraja Airport. I ended up getting all the help I needed, as my connecting flight to Málaga was leaving in just one hour. The young lady who saw that I got to my gate would not accept any tip.

The journey home was not so simple. I had six hours to wait at the brand-spanking-new Terminal 4....

June 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Mobal phone

Seconding the readers’ recommendation in the March ’06 issue, page 14, I too have had great service with www.mobal.com. The cell phone is cheap, the per-minute rates are reasonable, and there is no monthly charge; only what you use shows up on your credit card.

There are two packages: one for 140 countries (not including the USA, on a different frequency) and one for 160 countries (with USA).

Your unique phone number is assigned via a SIM chip, and it stays with you forever....

June 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Bills, tango, and shopping

I have some comments on letters in the April ’06 issue.

Regarding bill paying (page 14), since I’m usually away six to eight weeks at a time, I write all the checks ahead, get them ready to mail, then rubberband and sticky-note each batch as to the appropriate date to drop it in the mail box. My neighbor mails them for me and I bring her fridge magnets.

Regarding tango shows in Buenos Aires (page 16), I was on two different group tours that took us to La Ventana. It was $25,...

June 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Helping clothes dry

Erhart Demand wrote about traveling with carry-on luggage only, washing clothes by hand and using a salad spinner to extract water from his laundry so it would dry faster (March ’06, pg. 102). He’s a man after my own heart, and creative as well!

I also travel with carry-on only. I usually do laundry after I’ve taken a shower. After having dried myself, I spread out my towel, lay my wet laundry on it and roll it up tightly, then twist it to wring the clothes. This removes enough water...

May 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Ensuring credit card usage overseas

For several years my wife, Paula, and I have used the same airline-affiliated Visa cards without incident, traveling to Malaysia, Chile, Slovakia, etc. Recently, the airline began transitioning to a MasterCard issued by a different bank than the Visa issuer. During the application process for the new MasterCard, I told a representative of the bank’s credit card operation that we would soon leave for Spain and that we intended to use our new credit cards there. (We each were getting a new...

May 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

On ATMs

I agree in general with many of the readers’ “Money Matters” comments in the December ’05 and January ’06 (pg. 92) issues.

I’ve found that American Express cards are essentially useless outside of the USA as well as at a number of places within the USA. The most universal card to use is Visa, although a number of places outside the USA will accept MasterCard.

We have found that airports and train stations now almost universally have ATMs, thus you can get the local currency...

May 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Credit card vs. ATM vs. travelers’ checks

My wife, Glenda, and I traveled in Central Europe for a month in fall 2005 and used two credit cards for purchases and services (an American Express card and a Citibank MasterCard) and one debit card for ATM cash withdrawals (a Visa card obtained from our credit union). After returning home, we compared the exchange rates we obtained when we used two cards on the same day. We did not use all three cards on the same day so don’t have a valid 3-way comparison.

The MasterCard added a 3%...

May 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Pink dolphins in Brazil

My wife, Dona, and I traveled to Brazil, Jan. 10-22, ’06, to search for the pink dolphins that inhabit the Rio Negro where it joins the Amazon near Manaus, Brazil. Yes, there really are pink dolphins! We saw two that were solid pink (about the color of bubble gum) and several that had pink underbellies and light-gray backs.

A few can be seen at the Ariaú Amazon Towers, a resort built in the rainforest on stilts to accommodate the changing river level. There are four miles of elevated...