Travelers' Intercom

Kathy Dolan and Lorenz Rychner demonstrating an optical illusion.

Did you know that Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898-1972), usually known as M.C. Escher, was Dutch? I guess everybody has, at one time or another, seen some of Escher's fantastical works, where stairs simultaneously go up and down and where endless loops are hard to figure out with the naked eye.

In Den Haag (The Hague), my wife, Kathy, and I visited the permanent "Escher in Het Paleis" exhibition (Lange Voorhout 74; www.escherinhetpaleis.nl/?lang=en), located in Lange...

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Returning to Seattle from a European vacation on May 12, 2018, one hour before our scheduled departure from Paris' Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG), we learned that our easyJet flight 8322 to London Gatwick Airport had been unceremoniously delayed four hours.

We noticed the schedule change while sitting at the gate, but there was no accompanying announcement (not even in French), no explanation and no customer support staff on hand to help.

Thirty minutes later, two easyJet...

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Another reader's letter reminded me of an experience of my own.

Heading home from Frankfurt, Germany, in September or October 2016, my wife and I boarded a United Airlines flight to Chicago, but the plane then sat on the ground hour after hour due to mechanical problems.

By the time things were fixed, we were told that a new flight crew would have to be found, as there would not be sufficient time for the crew on board to arrive at our destination within their allowable...

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On May 30, 2018, a friend and I flew overnight on Delta Air Lines from Seattle, Washington, to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, where we were to catch a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines connection to Bristol, England.

Upon arriving in Amsterdam, we found out that thunderstorms were causing many flights to be canceled, including our flight on KLM. We were informed that the next flight to Bristol was June 2, three days later!

After protesting that we had prepaid hotel and car reservations in...

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Sailing along the Aysén Region of southern Chile. Photo by cruise passenger Forrest Smith

It was the morning of March 30, 2017, and our captain, referring to the cruise season, said, "This is our last cruise. Let's go all the way around."

Our ship proceeded to sail from the Atlantic Ocean along the north side of Hornos Island and then to the south, with the view of Cape Horn through the ship's port windows (and on my cabin's monitor). Then it made a U-turn and sailed back past the Horn again, with the view from my cabin's starboard windows, and on...

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Jay and Joan at a shrine in Bangkok, Thailand.

I've been to Asia more than a dozen times, mostly for biking and always during the winter. My January-February 2018 tour was the first time I cycled in three countries during the same trip (Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand).

This epic trip, organized by SpiceRoads Cycling (45 [Sub Soi Pannee] Soi Pridi Banomyong 26, Sukhumvit Soi 71 Klongtan Nua, Wattana, Bangkok, Thailand; phone +66 2 381 7490, www.spiceroads.com), had three segments, and we had different guides/leaders, money,...

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My husband and I were ready to take the "Morocco Sahara Odyssey" with Overseas Adventure Travel, or OAT (Boston, MA; 800/955-1925, www.oattravel.com), but a week before our departure on April 22, 2018, my husband had to cancel for health reasons.

Thanks to Philip Wagenaar's article in his February 2017 "The Discerning Traveler" column, our travel insurance claim was closed within a couple weeks. We had purchased the Gold plan offered by AIG Travel Guard (800/826-4919, www....

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My wife and I had visited over 50 countries but had never hired a private guide for more than a day trip. After considering some of the challenges of reaching remote places in Bulgaria, and having read in ITN about the guide Patrick Peneff (www.bulgariaprivateguide.com), we decided to take the plunge. We are delighted that we did!

My communications with Patrick began about six months before our March 15-25, 2018, visit to Bulgaria. From our initial email exchange, it was clear this...

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