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Skiing at Whistler: Perfect powder at a price

2008-01-28T20:24:00.000-08:00

WHISTLER, British Columbia (AP) -- A dozen years ago, a roommate and I were wasting away another rainy winter night in Seattle when we decided to drive the pickup truck five hours north to Whistler. We left at 10 p.m., pulled into the lot near the lifts and spent a few fitful, freezing hours of semi-sleep in the cab until sunrise.

Whistler is a little more than two hours from Vancouver International Airport.

We gladly paid about $45 each to blissfully ski on the softest, freshest snow in the Northwest -- which usually provides wet cement. On the way home we stopped at McDonald's.
You couldn't pull that off today.
Whistler and its twin neighbor Blackcomb Mountain, about a two-hour drive north up the stunningly beautiful Sea to Sky Highway from Vancouver, is widely recognized as one of the top resorts in North America by skiers and snowboarders. It's easily recognized by everyone else as a gorgeous paradise of snow amid the towering evergreens and jagged, rocky peaks of British Columbia's Coastal Mountains. Once nestled into Whistler Valley, you instantly forget you are just 70 miles north of Vancouver's urban sprawl.
But those qualities don't come cheap.
The venue for the downhill skiing and snowboarding events in the 2010 Winter Olympics -- plus the nordic events nearby -- has become a haven for those who want luxury near their lift lines.
The standard daily lift ticket is $81. All-day adult group lessons begin at $77, with lift ticket.
Fancy hotels such as the Four Seasons, the Fairmont Chateau, the Westin Resort and Spa and not one but two Pan Pacific palaces seem to be at every turn inside Whistler Village. The pulsing, main pedestrian walk of shops, bars, restaurants and two grocery stores even has a wine shop at the base of Whistler ski area.
Not a Motel 6, Super 8 or can of Hamm's beer in sight. And based on the ubiquitous "No Overnight Parking" signs, sleeping in a truck is no longer a hassle-free option.
My family of four and a married couple without kids -- the most patient, tolerant friends on the planet -- spent a pre-holiday crush Friday night and Saturday at Whistler in December. We found a room at the Tantalus Lodge, a 10-minute walk or three-minute shuttle van ride south of the Whistler Village Gondola. We enjoyed a two-bedroom, two-bath suite with a sofa bed, full kitchen and fireplace for $261 per night (plus $16 a day to park). It slept six comfortably.
Some hotels want two-night minimums. Then there's the currently unfavorable currency exchange rate, eh?
Don't Miss
Whistler Blackcomb
In Depth: Winter Getaways
A friendly alternative to glitzy Jackson Hole
But, oh, what you get for all those loonies and toonies (Canada's $1 and $2 coins).
Local merchants and many of Whistler's 3,400 employees -- seemingly all perky, in their 20s and many from New Zealand, Australia or Great Britain -- push the fact that theirs is a four-season resort.
Ski season runs from November through June, with the spring months usually spent on higher Blackcomb Mountain, elevation 7,500 feet (Whistler Mountain tops out at 7,160 feet). Blackcomb's summer glacier skiing and snowboarding are tentatively scheduled to run through July 27.
There's also vibrant mountain-biking season and a relatively new zip-line attraction. Some of Canada's world-class mountain bikers live at Whistler or at Squamish, the small town midway between Vancouver and Whistler along B.C. Highway 99.
But did I mention the winter snow?
Whistler's gondola takes you from the main base at 2,214 feet to above 6,000 feet. From there, chairs take you to the black-diamond runs off the top. Or you can swoosh off to the south, to the Dave Murray and Wild Card trails, which will be the runs for the men's and women's downhill and super giant slalom races in the Olympics. Those runs end at Creekside, another lodge with rentals, bars and restaurants a short distance down the road south from Whistler Village.
In my multiple trips here over the years, I've liked the snow better and found the runs more wide open atop Blackcomb. It is accessible from the bottom of Whistler's main village by the Blackcomb Excalibur Gondola, by walking 15 minutes north through Whistler Village along the well-marked Valley Trail System to the Blackcomb Daylodge, or five minutes by shuttle or car. Beginning in late 2008, there will be a peak-to-peak gondola that will connect the two mountains at the 6,100-foot levels.
In preparation for the Olympics, the only highway into Whistler is torn up in a widening project. And half of Vancouver is seemingly under construction.
But Ryan Proctor, public relations coordinator for Intrawest at Whistler, said the Olympics will consume only 10 percent of the skiable terrain at Whistler-Blackcomb.
"We'll still be fully operational during the Olympics," Proctor said.
At Whistler-Blackcomb, that's a very good thing.
IF YOU GO ...
Getting there: From Vancouver International Airport, you can rent a car for the 2-hour, 15-minute drive to Whistler, or take the Perimeter Whistler Express bus ($33-58, 8:30 a.m.-11:30 p.m. during peak snow season). If you are flying between the U.S. and Canada, you must have a passport. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is a 4 1/2-hour drive from the south. Train service on the Whistler Mountaineer from Vancouver is available at 888-687-7245. If you are driving between the U.S. and Canada, you must have a government-issued ID (like a driver's license) and proof of citizenship (like a birth certificate) beginning Jan. 31. Children 18 and younger need proof of citizenship.
Prices: General adult lift ticket per day during peak season: $81 (Less for residents of Washington state and British Columbia and those with an EDGE card and other seasonal discounts). Performance ski and snowboard/boot rentals for intermediate and expert skiers begin at $40 per day, less for beginners.
Accommodations: Condos, villas, luxury hotels and resorts (Fairmont Chateau, Four Seasons, Pan Pacific, Westin, Hilton) dominate the immediate area of Whistler Village, with prices from $243-$535 per night during peak winter months. More standard lodging (Residence Inn by Marriott, Holiday Inn Sunspree, Listel Best Western) and some bed-and-breakfasts can be found in the village and on the periphery for $174 and up midweek (more on weekends).
Dining: Eateries include steakhouses (The Keg at 4429 Sundial Place, Hy's at 4308 Main St.), sushi (Sachi Sushi, 4359 Main St.), Thai (Thai One On, 4557 Blackcomb Way), pizza, pubs, nightclubs, coffee shops -- even fondue (Bavaria Restaurant, 4369 Main St.). If you have accommodations with a kitchen, there are two grocery stores (an IGA inside Marketplace on the north end of the village and The Grocery Store (they even deliver) at Village Square midway along the village's pedestrian mall. Next to The Grocery Store is a wine shop.
Statistics: The two mountains provide 38 combined lifts and 8,171 skiable acres. Average snowfall 33.5 feet per year at the summit of Whistler Mountain. Average alpine temperatures aren't bad, either: December-February are 23/11 degrees (33/20 in the valley). Blackcomb Mountain (elevation 7,494 feet) provides 5,280 feet -- one mile -- of vertical rise from base to top diamond runs. Whistler (elevation 7,160 feet) rises 5,020 feet.

Spectacle Island offers spectacular views of Boston Harbor

2007-07-26T11:02:00.000-07:00

BOSTON, Massachusetts (AP) -- Spectacle Island has a swimming beach, five miles of walking trails dotted with gazebos, and a panoramic vista from the highest point in Boston Harbor.

It's hard to believe that underneath all this is an 80-foot-high mound of trash.
A five-year, $180 million project buried the waste dump under 6 million tons of dirt and gravel from Boston's Big Dig highway project to create this 105-acre oasis. Easily accessible via a 10-minute ferry ride from the city, it's now advertised as the harbor's jewel and touted as a "green" park for its solar-powered facilities and compost toilet system.
"It was an eyesore in Boston Harbor that has been turned into something beautiful," said Beth Jackendoff, a park ranger who lives on the island part-time. "Not only does it have some of the best views you're gonna get in Boston, but it's something that we're going to be able to learn from. It has a theme of reclaiming something."
Wes Austin, a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, thought it would be the perfect place to bring his mother and sister visiting from San Diego.
"It's different, it's close, and there's more nature than you can find in the city," said Austin, 26, of Boston. "And, it's a nice getaway for just a couple of hours."

The family sat recently in the grass atop the island's north drumlin, the highest point in the harbor, and admired the scene of cargo ships floating by as planes dipped in and out of nearby Logan Airport. At 157 feet above sea level, the spot towers over neighboring islands and boasts a view spanning Boston's skyline and the 40 miles between Salem to the north and the Blue Hills Reservation to the south.
"It's just so gorgeous," said Janis Austin, 56. "It just gives such a different perspective of the skyline. I've never seen the city like this."
Fishing, hiking, swimming and bird watching are common at one of Boston's best-kept secrets. But most people are there to appreciate Spectacle Island's spectacular views.
One of the harbor's 34 islands, Spectacle has a curious history. Colonists named it for the pair of eyeglass spectacles they saw shaped by its hills, which have housed a hospital for quarantined patients and a factory where horse carcasses were rendered to glue.

It is perhaps best known for having been a dump for more than 100 years. The growing accumulation of garbage eventually forced out the handful of families who lived there, and it became a glaring example of Boston Harbor's pollution.
But the island's filthy reputation is lost in the new park, which opened last summer.
"You'd never know it was a landfill without reading about it," said Judy Wishloff, 43, of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, who visited while vacationing in Boston. "As a tourist, this kind of attraction really resonates because there are cool things to do, and the visit has history and substance."
Down in the island's valley is the visitor center, powered by solar panels and packed with exhibits and information on the island's history, wildlife, vegetation and environmentally friendly usage.
With articles on file that date back to the 1800s, visitors can learn about the island's old schoolhouse, or the layers of the five-year restoration project that involved bringing in more than 4,400 barge-loads of dirt. Rangers and park employees refer to the project as the "mini-dig."
This summer, the island features jazz concerts every Sunday. Park rangers also organize events including kite flying, guided tours and scavenger hunts for children. Bird watchers can enjoy rare sightings of bobolinks, warblers and savannah sparrows, among the park's 100 bird species, and fishermen can borrow poles or nets from the visitor center to catch stripers, cod, flounder or lobster.
The visitor center also features a cafe that sells burgers and chowder, and lounge chairs in the shade of the verandah.
Free boat shuttles launched in June give visitors an opportunity to island-hop in the harbor. Popular sites include a fort at Georges Island, America's first lighthouse at Little Brewster Island, and campgrounds at Lovells Island, Grape Island and Bumpkin Island. Spectacle Island's 38-slip marina also allows private boats to dock overnight for a fee.
With a little imagination, the novelty of being on an island could in itself provide enough entertainment for the day. Jeffrey Frankel, a 54-year-old economics professor at Harvard University, wore a long plastic sword slung through his pant belt when he visited.

Ride the rails in style

2007-07-11T10:34:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Mahogany interiors, five-course meals and personal butler service will be available on several Amtrak routes starting this fall, as the national passenger railroad embarks on a new partnership with GrandLuxe Rail Journeys.

The companies have teamed up to attach seven special GrandLuxe cars to regularly scheduled Amtrak trains. More than 90 departures are scheduled from November to early January.
The new service, dubbed GrandLuxe Limited, will be available between Chicago and the San Francisco Bay area; Chicago and Los Angeles; and Washington and Miami. Limited trips are also scheduled between Washington and Chicago; from Denver to San Francisco; from Denver to Chicago; and from Chicago to Albuquerque.
For Amtrak, the partnership will be a moneymaker, company spokesman Cliff Black said. He declined to say exactly how much privately held GrandLuxe is paying the government-owned corporation.
The project marks the first time Amtrak is providing regularly scheduled private rail services.
"We like the opportunity to experiment with creative marketing approaches," Black said. "Anything that elevates the profile of passenger-train service is beneficial to Amtrak."
The arrangement allows Evergreen, Colorado-based GrandLuxe, formerly known as American Orient Express, to bring its brand of luxury to a wider group of potential customers in a more affordable format.
Tickets for the two- and three-day GrandLuxe Limited trips will range in price from $789 to $2,499. In contrast, GrandLuxe's regular tours take seven to 10 days and range in price from about $4,000 to $8,000 per person.For its longer trips, GrandLuxe operates one 21-car train that consists of old passenger cars from the 1940s and 1950s -- a time when train travel had not yet been overshadowed by the interstate highway system and commercial aviation. The cars have been refurbished to conform to modern standards and to add "a level of luxury that never existed," said Christina Messa, vice president of marketing for GrandLuxe.
For the Amtrak partnership, GrandLuxe will split its train in three. Each segment will have a dining car and a lounge car and have room for 47 passengers, Messa said. It will operate completely separately from the Amtrak portion of the train.
GrandLuxe passengers will not be able to get off at intermediate stops because of limitations such as platform length, though the companies said that could change in the future.
Amtrak will operate the same number of cars it normally would, but in some cases it may have to add an extra locomotive, Black said.
The companies said they could continue and expand the partnership if it is successful.
GrandLuxe trains tend to appeal to older travelers, and Messa said she expected the new Amtrak routes to do the same.
Tom Weakley, 64, has ridden GrandLuxe trains 16 times since retiring from a job in the drug wholesaling industry. He said he relishes being pampered on board the train. A butler brings coffee in the morning. In the afternoon, there are cocktails in the lounge car.
The lounge cars themselves vary: One features a baby grand piano; another, used for particularly scenic routes, is surrounded by glass.
Dinners are long and unhurried -- an opportunity to make friends with fellow passengers, said Weakley, of Indianapolis.
"Did I mention the complimentary wine?" he added. "And they don't limit you to one glass."

Tolkien tales come alive in Denmark's Faeroe Islands

2007-06-30T02:14:00.000-07:00

GJOGV, Faeroe Islands (AP) -- It's just after 9 p.m. when the magic begins.
The late-setting sun breaks through purple rain clouds to drape the rugged island of Eysturoy in a golden shimmer. A perfect rainbow arches over the Slaettaratindur mountain. Offshore, a wild ocean launches ferocious swells against the Giant and the Witch, two spectacular rock pillars that protrude from the surf like craggy teeth.
All that's missing from the storybook setting is a band of orchs or goblins crawling out from behind a rock, or a pipe-smoking hobbit emerging from one of the turf-roofed houses.
The Lord of the Rings analogy is never far away in the Faeroe Islands, a barren and wind-swept archipelago whose volcanic peaks shoot out of the Atlantic Ocean halfway between Iceland and Norway. Local legend even claims the ring of power is hidden here.
"The one who holds it gets lots of powers but the one who holds it will also die because of it," says Hans Jakub Mikkelsen, a hobby historian, recounting an ancient Faeroese saga.
Although easily accessible by plane from Britain or Scandinavia, the Faeroe Islands are remote enough to be spared mass tourism for now. You run into more sheep than people once you venture outside the sedate capital, Torshavn.
That's a good thing. Anonymity has helped this semiautonomous Danish territory remain one of those rare places where you don't have to worry about traffic, pollution or crime. Doors are left unlocked and only seven of the roughly 48,000 residents are in jail.
Shy but hospitable, the islanders trace their heritage to a less friendly bunch -- the Vikings, who started settling here in the 8th century. Ancient traditions live on, like the medieval chain dance, the reciting of ballads and a controversial slaughter of pilot whales.
The bloody spectacle occurs about six times a year when a school of pilot whales comes close enough to be driven onshore. Knife-wielding men butcher the whales to the silent approval of scores of curious onlookers and the horror of animal rights activists.
The brutal tradition seems hard to reconcile with the gentle character of the Faeroese, but then again, this is a land of stark contrasts.
Nature has carved a dramatic landscape from the basalt rock spewed out by volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. Every winding turn of the well-kept roads offer majestic views over deep-green pastures, shimmering fjords or steep cliffs towering over the Atlantic swell.
But walk up to the edge, and the brute force of nature stares you right in the eye.
Take Slave's Edge on the island of Vagar. Here, a high-lying lake spills over a rock wall and releases its excess water into the ocean in a 30-meter waterfall.
The surf below roars menacingly as a horizontal wind lashes your face with rain. The rocks start to feel slippery as you watch the hostile waves crash into the vertical wall. Not surprisingly, the Faeroese are looking for ways to generate electricity here.
"If you take the power of 1 kilometer off these cliffs there is enough energy in those waves for one year of electricity consumption in the Faeroe Islands," says Olavur Gregersen, the head of SeWave Ltd., a small Faeroese wave energy company.
While hiking on mountain trails is a must, the best way to get around the Faeroe Islands is by car. Modern roads and tunnels connect the main islands of Vagar, Streymoy, Eysturoy and Bordoy. Ferries run between most of the other islands. Weather permitting -- and everything here depends on the weather -- you can even get around by helicopter.
From the air you get a full appreciation of how lonely these 18 islands are. Tiny villages with colorful wooden houses are clustered around the shores, but the inside of the islands is desolate. The mountainsides are simply too steep or too exposed to the elements to make comfortable living possible.
You also get an idea of why the Faeroese don't pay much attention to weather forecasts. One island will be baking in sunlight while the next is shrouded in fog.
The rule is to dress warm and waterproof, especially if you're out hiking. A clear blue sky can turn into hailstorm within minutes -- and don't think you'll see it coming.
Harsh as it may seem, the climate is actually very mild for this northern latitude thanks to the Gulf Stream, a warm ocean current that helps keep average temperatures between 37 degrees in the winter and 52 degrees in summer.
The mix of warm Gulf Stream waters and frigid Arctic waters also provides for fertile breeding ground for fish, whose impact on the Faeroe Islands cannot be overestimated.
The local government says fish products account for an estimated 97 percent of export volumes, and you believe it when you see the impressive fleet of trawlers crowding the port in Torshavn. Faeroese cod, saithe, haddock and farmed salmon are shipped around the world.
Oddly for a fishing nation, fresh seafood does not dominate the menus at Torshavn's eateries. The Faeroese like to eat meat when they go out, not fish which is considered a staple food.
You'll need some courage to sample Faeroese delicacies like sheep's head, whale blubber and Skerpikjoet -- raw mutton that has been left to dry for months. If you're not feeling adventurous, there's always roast lamb and potatoes.

UFO fest to mark 60th anniversary of 'Roswell Incident'

2007-06-22T16:29:00.000-07:00

ROSWELL, New Mexico (AP) -- Is "The Truth" located in this remote city in New Mexico?
Driving alone down a stretch of desolate highway en route to Roswell, I begin to understand why conspiracy buffs have long argued that aliens crash-landed in the desert here a half-century ago.
Darkness engulfs desert fields. A misshapen yellow moon hangs in the sky. Husks of abandoned buildings litter the roadside. Has an alien invasion already taken place? I notice a blinking light in the sky -- but quickly discern it's an airplane.
Being out here by yourself is enough to make you think twice.
"I do know this. There are other things out there in the universe," said John Turner, 78, who was working the desk of the International UFO Museum and Research Center on Roswell's North Main Street when I visited.
I have secretly wanted to visit Roswell since I was a boy. What I got during my brief visit -- something I've contemplated doing for years -- was a lesson in how a small city in the middle of the American southwest became enshrined in American pop culture.
The 60th anniversary of the so-called "Roswell Incident" will be marked July 5-8 at the city's annual UFO festival. City officials say 50,000 people are expected for the event, which will include lectures, book-signings, tours, entertainment, and, according to the organizers, perhaps an alien abduction or two.
Long-term plans are underway as well for a UFO-themed amusement park, complete with an indoor roller coaster that would take passengers on a simulated alien abduction. The park, dubbed Alien Apex Resort, could open as early as 2010. The city has received a $245,000 legislative appropriation for initial planning, but the park would be privately built and managed.
The original Roswell Incident occurred in July 1947, outside the city. A rancher named W.W. "Mack" Brazel went to check on some sheep after a night of storms. He claimed he found some strange debris. Neighbors told Brazel he might have pieces of a flying saucer.
On July 8, 1947, a local military office issued a press release saying that pieces of a "crashed disk" were recovered. A story featured on the front page of the Roswell Daily Record claimed a flying saucer was captured (the paper is now reproduced and sold to tourists). Other news agencies picked up on the event -- albeit in a cursory fashion.
A revised release was soon sent out that said the material was a weather balloon. But stories about requests for tiny coffins and a nefarious plot began to emerge and Roswell went from small town to Alien Capitol.
What exactly happened more than a half-century ago in the desert remains murky. But it did inspire me to drive hundreds of miles across the desert to a town of roughly 45,000 people.
After a fitful sleep at the Best Western, I rubbed my scalp to search for any curious implants or scars, and headed out early to spend the morning downtown.
I was greeted at the UFO Museum (a former movie theater) by an alien dummy wearing a Santa Claus hat. The light posts on the streets of Roswell feature alien heads wearing Santa Claus hats. The creatures look utterly incapable of such malevolent acts as abduction and brain surgery.
The museum takes visitors through a timeline, beginning with newspaper clips and printed affidavits from many who claim to have intimate knowledge of the crash. For an extra donation, visitors can take an audio tour with a decidedly low-tech cassette Walkman.
The convoluted timeline of what happened after "The Roswell Incident" shows just why there are so many conflicting stories about the event.
The museum freely mixes documentary materials and kitsch. Among the displays are explanations of crop circles and an exhibit detailing how Roswell has been portrayed in pop culture.
It's curious how aliens are almost inevitably depicted by those who claim they've been visited by extraterrestrials as diminutive with oval heads, green skin and doe-shaped eyes.
The museum's most popular and photographed exhibition is purely fictional: the set of an alien autopsy from the 1994 television movie "Roswell." The vivid exhibit, in which doctors prepare to examine an emaciated alien corpse, is on a permanent loan to the museum.
The gift shop takes up a good chunk of the first floor and offers every conceivable extraterrestrial gift: alien plush dolls; alien shot glasses and magnets that say "I BELIEVE." A wide selection of books and documents on the Roswell incident is also for sale.
There's also a research library for those inclined to further study the alien phenomena.
"We'll tell people the story of what happened and tell them to make up their own mind," Turner said.
Downtown Roswell is a hub of alien-themed shops. There's the Not Of This World coffeehouse and the Cover Up Cafe. Even businesses like banks have cardboard cutouts of aliens in the windows.
One shop worth a visit is the Alien Zone, roughly a block away from the museum. For a small fee, visitors (the human kind) can see an exhibit called "Area 51" that features displays of roughly 3-foot-tall alien models in very human poses.
One display shows an alien in a sauna reading a newspaper; another features a forlorn-looking alien lounging in a jail cell in prison stripes. The main exhibit features an "alien autopsy" complete with an alien baby fetus in a glass jar in the background and another life-size model of an alien stumbling from a crashed space ship.
There's plenty else to do in Roswell. But even city officials now seem to know why many people trek across the desert for a visit. The city's Web site says: "Roswell has something to offer all of our special visitors, whether from this planet, or from a distant galaxy."

New 'Wonders' poll in final month of voting

2007-06-17T09:33:00.000-07:00

GENEVA, Switzerland (AP) -- The Great Wall, the Colosseum and Machu Picchu are among the leading contenders to be the new seven wonders of the world as a massive poll enters its final month with votes already cast by more than 50 million people, organizers say.
As the July 6 voting deadline approaches, the rankings can still change, the organizers say. Also in the top 10 are Greece's Acropolis, Mexico's Chichen Itza pyramid, the Eiffel Tower, Easter Island, Brazil's Statue of Christ Redeemer, the Taj Mahal and Jordan's Petra.
The Great Pyramids of Giza, the only surviving structures from the original seven wonders of the ancient world, are assured of keeping their status in addition to the new seven after indignant Egyptian officials said it was a disgrace they had to compete for a spot.
The winners will be announced on July 7 in Lisbon, Portugal.
Latin Americans and Asians have been the most enthusiastic voters so far in the final round of 20 candidates for the world's top architectural marvels, but people from every country in the world have voted by Internet or phone, says the nonprofit organization conducting the balloting.
"It's the first ever global vote," said Tia B. Viering, spokeswoman for the "New 7 Wonders of the World" campaign.
Rome's Colosseum, China's Great Wall, Peru's Machu Picchu, India's Taj Mahal and Jordan's Petra have been among the leaders since January while the Acropolis and the Statue of Christ Redeemer made their way up from the middle of the field to the top level, according to latest tallies. The United States' Statue of Liberty and Australia's Sydney Opera House have been sitting in the bottom 10 since the start.
Also in the bottom group are Cambodia's Angkor, Spain's Alhambra, Turkey's Hagia Sophia, Japan's Kiyomizu Temple, Russia's Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral, Germany's Neuschwanstein Castle, Britain's Stonehenge and Mali's Timbuktu.
Americans and Europeans have the lowest participation so far, Viering said.
"At the moment, most of the voting is coming from Latin America and Asia," she told The Associated Press. But the organizers are confident the campaign will draw more attention in the U.S. and Europe in the final phase, Viering added.
"Excitement is starting to pick up in the United States" because the campaign is getting much attention worldwide and Americans are starting to realize how positive it is, she said.
"People realize that it's now or never."
The ancient city of Petra in southwestern Jordan -- popularized by "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" and famous for its water tunnels and stone structures carved in the rock -- jumped from the middle of the pack to the top seven in January thanks to campaigning by the Jordanian royal family and thousands of Jordanians voting by text message over their mobile phones, Viering said.
The campaign was begun in 1999 by Swiss adventurer Bernard Weber, with almost 200 nominations coming in from around the world. The list of candidates was narrowed down to 21 by the start of 2006. Since organizers started a tour to each site last September, the competition has been heating up.
There is no foolproof way to prevent people from voting more than once for their favorite wonder, but most of the votes are cast by Internet in a system that registers each participant's e-mail address to discourage people from voting twice, Viering said.
"We have a lot of kids (voting) and that trend is continuing...but we have votes really from every part of the population," she added.
The original list of wonders were concentrated in the Mediterranean and Middle East.
Vanished are the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes and the Pharos lighthouse off Alexandria.
After the Egyptian protest, the organizers of the campaign set the pyramids above the competition.
"We absolutely had no problem with this," Viering told the AP. As of July 7, there will be eight world wonders including the Pyramids of Giza, she added.
Choosing world wonders has been a fascination over the centuries. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, keeps updating its list of World Heritage Sites, which now totals 830 places.
"It's so exciting," said Viering. "There are not many things that could bring the world together like global culture, ... this is really something that every single person in the world can be interested in."
"This is all about bringing people together, to appreciate each other, ... to celebrate diversity," said Viering.
Weber's Switzerland-based foundation aims to promote cultural diversity by supporting, preserving and restoring monuments. It relies on private donations and revenue from selling broadcasting rights.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

How not to climb the Matterhorn

2007-06-08T09:42:00.000-07:00

ZERMATT, Switzerland (AP) -- One sheer drop-off to the right, another eight feet to the left. A switchback ridge so steep that three steps brings you to the next turn. Rope handholds to clutch when the mountain trail shrinks to less than a foot wide.
What am I, a goat? It was time to consider a panic attack.
A summer day hike, my husband said. A glorious saunter up a flower-filled meadow to one of the world's most famous Alpine huts. Look, families with little children are in the gondola line with us. Don't forget your sunglasses, it's so bright.
Which is how, three hours later, I was shivering in a surprise July snowstorm en route to Hoernlihuette, the Matterhorn base camp, wearing capris and sneakers with no tread.
At 14,690 feet, the Matterhorn is not even the highest mountain in Switzerland -- but it surely is the most photogenic, rising up on four elegant faces to a craggy peak along the Swiss-Italian border. Walt Disney even borrowed its silhouette for Disneyland, debuting the Matterhorn Bobsleds ride in 1959.
At the real mountain's base lies the car-free Swiss town of Zermatt. There is no offseason here; it's nearly always packed with tourists riding trains and gondolas up the mountains, hiking on the alpine trails, walking along picturesque streets lined with traditional chalets, and eating at restaurants decorated with the ubiquitous, huge Swiss cowbells. Utterly charming or tourism gone mad, depending on your point of view.
Hoernlihuette, at 10,696 feet, has been on the flank of the mountain in some version since 1880. It's where the guys and gals with ice picks, ropes and crampons eat, drink, sleep and use the outhouse before launching their pre-dawn summit attempts. When the weather is bad and no one sits on the patio, you can also inhale the wet socks and sweaty shirts of manly men who disdain deodorant.
About 4,000 people a year stay here during its brief summer season (July 1 to September 30), with 3,000 of them seeking glory on top of the Matterhorn. But I was of the lesser beings, daytrippers who gasp for breath up to the stone refuge, throw themselves exhausted upon its sturdy wooden benches and need a beer -- or maybe two -- before they can face the trials of going back down.
We set off for Hoernlihuette on a crisp sunny morning, after a brief walk around Zermatt and a stop to pick up water and munchies. Then we were off to the Schwarzsee cable car, which whisked us 3,000 feet up to a restaurant and pond above the tree line, where families with children picnicked.
For hikers, it was time to get started, at 8,474 feet.
After 45 minutes across a stony meadow, we reached Hirli, a lone building a few hundred feet up. My, how time flies on a mountain. You can see where you are going, yet it takes forever. To match my plodding pace, my husband photographed about 10,000 alpine flowers from every direction.
Then the wind turned brisk, the blue sky ashen gray. Temperatures fell about 20 degrees. We broke out the windbreakers, which held off the freezing rain for five to six minutes tops. I longed for gloves and a hat.
It took about 10 steps for the landscape to turn from alpine meadow to crumbling lunar rock face. As the sleet turned into stinging hail, the trail disappeared altogether.
The snowstorm struck when we were totally exposed on the switchback ridge. By then I was hyperventilating about the sheer cliffs on either side. I decided it was better to stare at the wet stones beneath my feet.
Ironic, is it not, that we seek out these sweeping mountain vistas, yet when we are there, a glance in any direction sends our hearts racing in fear?
Yet the mind is a marvelous thing. Since the storm limited visibility to six feet, all of a sudden I could not see the plunging cliffs. Death might be a step or two away, but I was oblivious. That's when the fear disappeared.
We somehow made it to Hoernlihuette. Fortified by gemuesesuppe (vegetable soup) and heisse schokolade (hot chocolate), we left the steamy camp about 3:15 p.m., just as the next day's summiteers were checking in for the night. There's nothing like a one-inch layer of sleet and a pea soup-thick fog to really make a mountain descent interesting -- I thanked God again and again for my two adjustable hiking poles.
As we drew near to Schwarzsee, we heard a shout. A climber with a fully loaded expedition backpack was practically dancing down the mountain, leaping from rock to rock, his ice pick swinging. We flattened against the cliff to let him pass. A minute later, another. Then six, then a dozen.
"Maybe they are racing," I mused.
We soon found out why, as we watched the gondola operator lock up his office and ride the last one down, despite our own shouts from 100 yards away. We had misread the 17:15 p.m. closing time as 7:15 p.m. In fact, 17:15 p.m. is 5:15 p.m. We arrived at 5:21 p.m., six minutes too late. Believe me, he did not care.
Now we had 3,000 feet more to go, or 2 hours and 35 minutes to Zermatt, according to a trail sign.
A word about those Swiss hiking times posted at every crossroads. Would you ask a Kenyan how long it takes to run to the nearest village? I think not. Swiss grandmothers could beat you up the mountain carrying their day's groceries, so why would you believe their time estimates?
You can't. Try adding 25 minutes for every hour. Then add another 35 minutes because it is dark and you have to stick to the winding road instead of hitting the steep yet enticing trails through the woods that you know could save you miles. Memo to self: Buy a hiking head lamp.
After three more hours, my thigh muscles began to twitch uncontrollably. Nearly frozen, we arrived back in the dark, utterly exhausted, about 9 p.m.
What did we learn?
Zermatt and the Matterhorn are must-see destinations.
Mountain expeditions in capris and bald sneakers are bound to end in disaster.
The Swiss are nothing if not punctual -- do not miss the last tram.
Over 500 people have died climbing the Matterhorn since 1865, and Swiss tourism authorities say deaths now average about 12 annually. (WHAT? WHAT? A dozen each year? Could someone have mentioned this sooner?) As of early May, six people had died this year.
Many of the dead mountaineers are buried in Zermatt's downtown cemetery. Don't join that club.

Casinos or culture? Singapore seeks tourists

2007-06-04T10:03:00.000-07:00

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -- What makes a successful tourist destination? Casinos, theme parks, and Bollywood films -- or a mix of historic sites and local culture?
As Singapore reduces its dependence on electronics exports it wants to boost its tourism industry -- currently about 5 percent of gross domestic product -- and is betting on casinos and other imported entertainment to lure millions more visitors.
"Artificial tourist creations can work," said Tony Wheeler, co-founder of the Lonely Planet guides.
"Disneylands all over the world seem to pull in the crowds. And the casinos, given the propensity for the Chinese to gamble, will probably be a success."
Perhaps Singapore's biggest handicap is its lack of famous sights: it has no Angkor Wat or Taj Mahal. For many years, it prided itself on its innumerable shopping malls, and promoted its annual "Singapore Sale".
Abroad, it is often better known for its authoritarian ways -- it canes vandals, executes drug offenders, crushes political opposition, and bans the sale of chewing gum. Culturally, its development has been crippled by restrictions on freedom of expression and censorship of films and plays.
But with an eye on the newly affluent Chinese, Indians and other Asians who increasingly travel overseas, Singapore has begun work on several new attractions, including two big casinos, a Universal Studios theme park, and a ferris wheel, even though none of these is particularly Singaporean.
Bollywood blockbusters
In a bid to generate more "buzz" abroad, it has opened clubs such as Ministry of Sound and is even pitching itself as a film location, eager to emulate New Zealand's success with hits such as Lord of the Rings. By "starring" in Bollywood blockbusters such as Krrish, Singapore hopes to entice more Indian tourists.
Earlier this month, Singapore snagged the rights to host Formula One racing, which it hopes will raise its profile abroad. Citigroup expects the race to generate S$150-200 million a year.
"They want to send a message that Singapore has changed," said Christopher Wood, CLSA's regional strategist.
"They have to have more than shopping centers. Formula One is a brilliant idea. But nobody in Asia does culture well. Japan is the only place in Asia that has it. There's nothing cultural happening here now, zero."
The government wants to double the number of visitors to 17 million a year by 2015, while nearly trebling tourism receipts to S$30 billion. Its new attractions could well succeed in pulling the crowds, economists say, particularly given Macau's experience.
After the former Portuguese enclave of Macau opened up to the big U.S. casino firms, it proved so popular that its annual gambling revenues hit US$7 billion last year.
Macau had a record 22 million visitors last year, up 17 percent from 2005, and could have as many as 35-40 million a year by 2010, Goldman Sachs said in a research report this month.
Inspired by Macau, Singapore scrapped its decades-long ban on casinos and is now building two gambling resorts, due to open in the next three or four years, at a cost of nearly $7 billion.
One of those casinos will include a Universal Studios theme park. That too could attract millions of visitors from the region, given that the one in Japan had 8.7 million visitors in the year ending March 31, up 4.6 percent from a year ago.
Sleepy backwater
But some Singaporeans have their doubts.
"The Formula One is a lazy way to get cheap publicity," wrote Ng Weng Hoong in a letter to Business Times, as the government's money would be better spent promoting the use of solar energy.
"Singapore should not be hypocritical, pretending to care for energy savings and the environment -- and then coming up with a wasteful, has-been event like the F1."
Thousands of Singaporeans signed a petition objecting to the casinos, citing fears about the social impact and risk of crime.
"It's wrong to think that by putting up a casino that will attract tourists. It will attract a niche market - gamblers," said Hans Hoefer, who founded the Insight Guides. "I haven't seen a tourist in Las Vegas, I've only seen gamblers."
Paul Theroux, the novelist and travel writer, once wrote that it was Singapore's image as "a hot, sleepy backwater, full of colonial relics, crumbling houses, and old habits" that lured him to the city-state in the late 1960s.
"They're burying the old Singapore. It will be gone soon," he lamented in his book My Other Life. While Theroux portrayed the city-port's raffish side with its pimps and prostitutes and seedy nightclubs in his novel Saint Jack, much of that was torn down or scrubbed clean in Singapore's frantic rush to modernize.
Bugis Street, once the haunt of transsexuals, is now lined by unremarkable, could-be-anywhere shopping malls, while many of the old shop houses in Chinatown were demolished to make room for modern office blocks and apartment blocks.
While westerners and writers such as Theroux want history and culture, Chinese and Indians see Singapore as a beacon of modernity and efficient infrastructure, in stark contrast to many of Asia's chaotic cities, says tour guide Geraldene Lowe.
"All they want to see is a modern city," said Lowe, whose walking tours take in Singapore's historic quarters and craftsmen such as those who make wood carvings for the temples, or paper statues for traditional Chinese funerals.
"The government builds these ferris wheels and (gambling) resorts that you can get anywhere. Why not promote the culture we do have?" said Lowe.
Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

How not to climb the Matterhorn

2007-06-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

Tiny island nation seeks tourists

2007-05-28T10:38:00.000-07:00

BOMBOM, Sao Tome and Principe (AP) -- Flying into the tiny island of Principe off Africa's west coast brings a sense of traveling back in time.
Seen from over the Atlantic, the dense tropical jungle coats the volcanic terrain down to a turquoise sea and golden beaches reachable only by boat. It looks like a prehistoric land that time forgot.
Principe is one of the poorest spots on Earth in dollar terms. But in terms of virgin tropical landscapes it is one of the wealthiest, says Rombout Swanborn, a Dutch businessman and conservationist.
Swanborn recently purchased two hotels on Principe and, backed by local authorities, aims to plug this island of about 6,000 people into the ecotourism boom now spreading across West Africa.
Ecotourism took off in eastern Africa in the early 1990s. Underdeveloped countries such as Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya discovered they had what vacationers from developed countries sought -- raw wilderness rich in animal life.
Now the business is gaining traction in the western part of the African continent, too.
Ecotourism is flourishing in Gabon and Ghana. Angola and Nigeria are also signing up. Sao Tome and Principe, a twin-island nation in the Gulf of Guinea, aims to become the latest.
"The people here are sitting on a pot of gold," said Swanborn, who also operates four ecotourism developments in Gabon.
The Madrid, Spain-based World Tourism Organization in October described Africa as the industry's "star performer." Growth in visitors is predicted to be around 10 percent this year, more than double the world average.
"One can safely say that the growth we observe in Africa ... is mainly based on ecotourism growth," Eugenio Yuris, head of the WTO's sustainable tourism section, said.
The United Nations and international conservation bodies such as the World Wildlife Fund are backing the ecotourism trend. They view the development of sustainable tourism as a way of wedding local needs and care for the environment.
There are potential pitfalls, though.
Neel Inamdar, a senior adviser at Washington, D.C.-based Conservation International, a nonprofit organization, points out that Kenya has fought hard to recover from the damage wrought by high-volume, low-cost ecotourism.
"You need a strong regulatory environment, with bodies that will stand up to the industry," Inamdar said.
Principe island, just north of the equator, fits the bill of a tropical paradise.
Just a few hundred people live in its seaside capital, Santo Antonio. The rest are scattered across small communities of clapboard houses and tumbledown former plantation buildings where they scrape a living from farming and fishing.
The jungle spills down to beaches where you can spend an entire day and the only footprints in the sand are your own.
The thick Atlantic rainforest is sprinkled with colorful birds, including rare species, and waterfalls. In certain seasons, sea turtles lay eggs on the beaches and whales come within view of land.
Despite its charms, this country is not all that it could be as a vacation destination. There are few international-standard hotels.
But tourism development is gathering pace.
Portugal's Pestana Group, which runs a resort on Sao Tome island, is building a development in the capital, also called Sao Tome, that includes a five-star hotel, a casino and villas.
Arlecio Costa, local director of the Falcon Group, is developing a huge project on the northern tip of Sao Tome island called Lago Azul with South African investors.
The $380 million development, still at the planning stage but scheduled to open in five years, includes a quay for cruise liners, an 18-hole golf course, a conference center and a hotel with a health spa.
"It looks like a dream," Costa said.
The project will leave a large footprint, but Costa insists its biggest selling point is the area's natural beauty, especially the nearby Obo National Park whose conservation activities are supported by the United Nations.
Sao Tome and Principe was a largely overlooked country until it found major oil reserves, estimated at 11 billion barrels, in its offshore waters a few years ago. That discovery brought foreign governments and international oil companies knocking at its door.
Costa, though, reckons tourism is the way forward.
"The oil will run out one day," he said. "Tourism can be forever, if you take care of it."
IF YOU GO:
SAO TOME:
National tourism Web site: http://www.saotome.st
TRAVELING TO SAO TOME: Foreign passport holders require visas and a yellow fever vaccination to enter Sao Tome. Flights leave from Lisbon, Portugal (TAP Air Portugal); Luanda, Angola (TAAG); and Gabon (Air Sao Tome). Air Sao Tome flies from Sao Tome island to Principe island.
WHEN TO GO: The equatorial islands have a steady temperature between 22 and 30 C (72 and 86 F). The October-May rainy season brings sporadic heavy showers and higher temperatures. It is mostly cloudy between June and September.
WHERE TO STAY: There are just a handful of international standard hotels, though the national tourism Web site lists some other local places to stay.
In the capital, Sao Tome, there are two main hotels. The Marlin Beach Hotel - http://www.marlinbeach.com - is on the bay and the Hotel Miramar -http://www.sao-tome.com/hmiramar/index--english.htm - is located in the city's embassy area.
On the Ilheu das Rolas, an islet off the southern tip of Sao Tome island, the Pestana Equador Hotel -http://www.pestana.com/hotels/en/hotels/africa/SaoTomePrincipeHotels /Equador / Home/ - offers beaches and diving.
On Principe island, the Bombom Resort - http://www.bom-bom.com - has beachside bungalows and organizes trips into the rainforest.
TIPS: Portuguese is the official language. Few speak English; more can speak French. The local currency is the dobra, though euros can be widely used. There are a few taxis, and visitors renting vehicles are advised to choose four-wheel-drive jeeps because the roads are poor. The streets are safe and the people are friendly and welcoming. Sao Tome, with international aid, has greatly improved its problems with malaria in recent years, but visitors should take the usual precautions against mosquito bites.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Disney World hotels ban smoking

2007-05-23T11:37:00.000-07:00

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Florida (AP) -- Smoking will be banned as of June 1 at all 22 Disney World hotels and time-share resorts in Florida.
The ban permits smoking at designated outdoor areas. The transition to become smoke-free will allow Disney to better accommodate the increasing number of guests requesting nonsmoking hotel rooms, the theme park's spokesman Jacob DiPietre said.
The ban follows a 2000 measure that restricted smoking throughout Disney's theme and water parks, limiting smoking to designated areas, DiPietre said.
"We're focused on responding to what our guests are asking for and our guests are overwhelmingly asking for smoke-free rooms," DiPietre said. "The number of guests requesting smoking rooms has declined dramatically in recent years."
DiPietre could not provide figures tracking the decline, but said it has been "significant."
Less than 4 percent of Disney's more than 24,000 hotel rooms are currently smoking optional, DiPietre said.
Guests caught smoking after the ban could face cleaning surcharges as high as $500, DiPietre said.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

High Museum unlocks 'Gates of Paradise'

2007-05-21T10:45:00.000-07:00

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- When the artists of Florence, Italy, swung open the doors of the Baptistery of the Duomo (cathedral) now known as the "Gates of Paradise" in 1452, a new world was waiting on the other side.
Twenty feet tall and weighing three tons, this single work is considered the gateway to the Italian Renaissance, an upheaval so fundamental to how we see our world and think of ourselves that centuries later no Western culture is left untouched by it. ( See an audio slide show with curator Gary Radke )
Legend has it that Michelangelo himself is the one who dubbed these doors the "Gates of Paradise."
And as the High Museum of Art opens its exhibition of three of the doors' 10 gilt panels on Saturday, the conservation effort that brought them here will have lasted 25 years -- just two years less than it took to make the work itself. ( See a gallery of images from the set-up of the High Museum's exhibition )
Once the High showing closes on July 15, the exhibition travels to the Chicago Institute of Art and the Metropolitan Museum in New York.
The panels -- depicting the biblical stories of "Adam and Eve", "Jacob and Esau", and "David and Goliath" -- then will be moved back to Florence to be reassembled in the original doorway for permanent, hermetically sealed display at the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo. They are expected never to travel again.
Exhibition curator Gary Radke of Syracuse University says that the special alloy of bronze developed in the 15th-century workshop of Lorenzo Ghiberti for the doors had resulted in a corrosion that had dulled the dull surfaces of the square relief-sculptures and other gilt ornaments on the doors.
The danger in trying to reclaim such works, of course, is that chemical treatments can damage the bond between the gold and bronze and take away more priceless, irreplaceable material.
So it's thanks to a specially developed laser-and-distilled-water technique that what you now can see on display is not a restoration -- not new gold leaf added, or reconstructed bronze modeling -- but the same metals Ghiberti worked with himself.
"These 'Gates of Paradise,' think about it," Radke says. "They're on the doors of the Baptistery in the center of downtown Florence, where you have walking by every day, people like Michelangelo, people like Donatello, people of all important eras, going, going there. And they (the doors) are really the school of the Florentine art of the mid-15th century, of the Renaissance. ... They're there, all day, every day, at night, under the moonlight, under the sunlight.
"Think of how many people have been through that piazza and have seen these doors. I remember them being relatively clean -- I went as a student, then went as a newlywed and thought what was on the work was dirt.
"We found out it wasn't just dirt but was actually chemical reactions between the surfaces of the gold and the bronze."
The genius of the master metalworkers of Florence had caught up with their work at last and intervention was required to save them.
Ghiberti ("gee-BARE-tee," pronounced with a hard "G") is, in a way, the artist behind the masters. Born in 1378, he won a competition to create the north doors of the Baptistery at a time when Radke says Florence was spending more money on its cultural expansion than its military endeavors.
By the time that commission had led to the "Gates of Paradise" job, Ghiberti's workshop had become the place in which Donatello, Masolino, Uccello and other key artists of the era would be trained. Ghiberti died in 1455 -- 20 years before the birth of Michelangelo.
One-time U.S. tour
Now housing the reliefs in special transparent oxygen-free cases -- so no humidity can generate a galvanic reaction among the salts in the metals -- the display at the High Museum is designed not only to give you a very close look at three of the 31.5-inch square panels themselves, but also a sense for context.
Patrizio Ostricresi of the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence has worked closely with the chief conservatory on the project, Annamaria Giusti. While overseeing the assembly of the protective cases for the priceless pieces in Atlanta, he points to the "David and Goliath" panel's patches of brown that show through the gold.
"Look at this," says Ostricresi. "The mountain in this scene, the helmets" on the centurions in the crowd scene, "and the David, himself. You see how the gold has been rubbed off? Removed? I will show you why."
He walks over to the full-size photographic replica of the doors the High has produced for the display. "You see, the 'David' panel was placed by Ghiberti here, at the bottom of the door. This is why the Florentines could take the gold. It was low. Within reach. But if you look at the 'Adam and Eve' panel? Perfect. It has lived for 500 years up high on the doors. Too high to reach."
And when High Director Michael Shapiro looks at the "Adam and Eve" panel, what he notices is a feat of astonishing relief work. "This angel's wing," he points out, "comes right out of the piece."
Sure enough, there's light behind the central part of the wing on one of the many angels feathering the skies over Ghiberti's glowing Eden.
Shapiro has become known in the industry for his liaisons with European art centers. Still in its first of three years, the Louvre Atlanta series of exhibitions currently is on view, its latest additions the "Decorative Arts of the Kings" show and the recent arrival of "Et in Arcadia" painting of Nicolas Poussin. ( Read more about the High's decorative arts show from the Louvre )
And in 2003, Shapiro brought Verrocchio's "David" to the museum, the first effort in the particular laser conservation technique deployed in the "Gates of Paradise" reclamation.
As might be expected, that effort in conservation involves the international cooperation and study of many experts. The High convened a special workshop in February 2006 in Florence with funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (which also underwrote the show's catalog) and resulting in a commission to have the digital-art library ARTstor create a major photographic study of the "Gates."
The completion of the restoration of the bronze doors has been facilitated by special funding from a non-profit organization, the Friends of Florence.

50 years since debut of 'Europe on 5 Dollars a Day'

2007-05-18T10:11:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK (AP) -- Arthur Frommer first saw Europe in 1953 from the window of a military transport plane.
He'd been drafted and was headed to a U.S. base in Germany. But whenever he had a weekend's leave or a three-day pass, he'd hop a train to Paris or hitch a ride to England on an Air Force flight. Eventually he wrote a guide to Europe for GIs and had 5,000 copies printed. They sold out at 50 cents apiece, and when his Army stint was over, he rewrote the book for civilians, self-publishing "Europe on 5 Dollars a Day" in 1957. (Read excerpts)
"It struck a chord and became an immediate best-seller," he recalled.
On the 50th anniversary of the book's publication, Frommer is still being credited with helping to change leisure travel by showing average Americans that they could afford a trip to Europe. And while the dollar-a-day series is finally ending this year after selling millions of copies, the Frommer brand remains strong, with a new series from Arthur's daughter Pauline carrying on the tradition.
More important, Frommer's original approach -- a combination of wide-eyed wonder and getting the best value for your money -- has become so standard that it's hard to remember how radical it seemed in the days before discount flights and backpacks.
"If you go back to the 1950s, most people who traveled were wealthy," said Pat Carrier, owner of The Globe Corner Bookstore in Cambridge, Massachusetts. "If they went to Europe, it was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of trip. Today, my kids think they should be in a foreign country as part of their every-year experience. Arthur did for travel what Consumer Reports did for everything else."
Anne Sutherland, a professor at the University of California at Riverside who studies tourism as a global phenomenon, used "Europe on 5 Dollars a Day" on a six-month trip in 1965. "When I read the title, I said, 'I can do Europe on $5 a day? I'm going!"' she said. "And I really did live on $5 a day. For my generation, that really made a difference. Without that guidebook, we couldn't have known we could do it."
Bertram Gordon, a professor at Mills College in Oakland, California, recalled sitting in a cafe in Paris in the mid-1970s where "it looked like every third person passing by was carrying a Frommer's." But Gordon, who teaches a course on the history of European travel, noted that many factors contributed to Frommer's success, including the affluence of post-World War II America, adventurous baby boomers, and the rise and ease of jet travel.
"Frommer was catching a wave," Gordon said. "This is not to take anything away from him, but when his books started coming out, there was an audience."
That wave continues today. Americans now "look upon the entire world as a possibility for their next vacation," Frommer, 77, said in an interview. "You go to a party nowadays and people say, 'Shall I go to Miami or London? Shall I go to San Francisco or Shanghai?' The whole emphasis has become international travel, which was not the case 50 years ago."
In the 1950s, he added, "you traveled to Europe with a steamer trunk. You were told by the entire travel industry that the only way to go to Europe was first-class, that this was a war-torn continent coming out of World War II, that it literally wasn't safe to stay anywhere other than first-class hotels."
Then as now, Frommer insists, "budget travel is a preferable method of travel because it leads to a more authentic experience. You meet people imbued with intellectual curiosity -- teachers, students, artists, normal people, people from all over the world -- who want to have a genuine experience, rather than an experience whose aim is to make you physically comfortable and let you enjoy the pretentiousness of flaunting your wallet."
In the 1960s, when inflation forced him to change the title of the book to "Europe on 5 and 10 Dollars a Day," he said "it was as if someone had plunged a knife into my head." Thanks to the weak dollar, the final editions were titled "Europe from $95 a Day."
"The dollar a day concept doesn't make sense when it costs $100 a day if you're lucky to find a hotel room," said Michael Spring, Frommer's publisher at Wiley Publishing Inc.
Carrier, the Globe Corner Bookstore owner, credited Spring with greatly improving the Frommer's guides in the past 10 years. Carrier said they remain especially useful for food and accommodations. But he added that the Frommer's "brand is diminished today in terms of its reach across all age groups. I don't think anyone could have anticipated 15 years ago that Lonely Planet would explode the way it did." Lonely Planet books are geared to backpackers and a younger, more adventurous traveler.
Frommer's still publishes comprehensive guides to many destinations, but is trying to broaden its appeal. Last year the brand launched MTV Travel Guides, geared to trendy 20-somethings; Frommer's Day by Day guides to help time-pressed travelers pare down their options; and Pauline Frommer's Travel Guides, for adult budget travelers, emphasizing alternative accommodations and offbeat experiences like volunteer vacations. "Pauline Frommer's New York City" won the 2006 best travel book award from the North American Travel Journalists Association.
Pauline began traveling with her father and mother, Hope, in 1965 when she was four months old. "They used to joke that the book should be called 'Europe on Five Diapers a Day,"' Pauline Frommer said.
Her father still rails against gourmet meals, five-star hotels, private jets and other trappings of luxury travel, and Pauline shares his tastes. He noted that she recently booked round-trip tickets for herself, her husband and two daughters to fly round-trip to England this summer on Virgin Atlantic for $595 apiece. "She saved close to $1,000 for her family," he said approvingly.
"I never fly first-class," he added. "It's an incredible waste of money."
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Nudist camps reach out to the young and buff

2007-05-17T09:56:00.000-07:00

WOODSTOCK, Connecticut (AP) -- Here's the naked truth about nude recreation: The people who practice it aren't getting any younger.
To draw 20- and 30-somethings, nudist groups and camps are trying everything from deep discounts on membership fees to a young ambassador program that encourages college and graduate students to talk to their peers about having fun in the buff.
"We don't want the place to turn into a gated assisted living facility," said Gordon Adams, membership director at Solair Recreation League, a nudist camp in northeastern Connecticut that recently invited students from dozens of New England schools to a college day in hopes of piquing their interest.
The median age is 55 at Solair, where a yearly membership is $500 for people older than 40, $300 for people younger than 40 and $150 for college students.
The Kissimee, Florida-based American Association for Nude Recreation, which represents about 270 clubs and resorts in North America, estimates that more than 90 percent of its 50,000 members are older than 35.
"If a young person is enlightened enough to go to a beach or resort, they'll find that they're outnumbered by people who are not like them," said Sam Miller, 32, a medical student in Riverside, California, who is helping to plan a youth ambassadors workshop being held next month in Orlando, Florida. "Oftentimes they won't go back for that reason."
No one is quite sure why nudity, at least the organized version promoted by the AANR and similar groups, is such a tough sell for younger people.
"I think people think that we're all hippies," said Laura Groezinger, 22, of Billerica, Massachusetts, who grew up visiting Solair with her family. "Other people, I don't know the right way to say this, but they think it's more sexual, kind of. They don't understand just the being free with your body and being comfortable."
Money is also an issue. As nudist resorts become increasingly upscale, catering to baby boomers and retirees with plenty of disposable income, they're less affordable for college students and young families.
"There's a financial barrier, and I think it's important for resorts, if they want young people around, to recognize that and cater to them with discounts or free days," Miller said.
Only a handful of students attended Solair's recent college event, held on an overcast 60-degree day that prompted many to bundle up in sweaters rather than shed their clothes. But camp members such as Robyn Maguire, 27, of Manchester, Connecticut, said they plan to try again.
"I hope to get the word out to younger people that hey, it is OK, and here's a safe place to be, a very accepting place," Maguire said. "Unlike any other place in life, people actually look at you when they talk to you."
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Cyprus to tempt tourists with saints' bones

2007-05-16T09:12:00.000-07:00

NICOSIA, Cyprus (Reuters) -- The bones of martyred saints and somber shrines may not be at the top of every tourist's must-see holiday wish list.
But the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, better known as a major European sun-and-sea spot, is determined to delve into its rich cultural heritage and exploit the budding -- and more wholesome -- market of religious tourism.
"We are more than just a sand and sea and sex destination," said George Michaelides, chairman of the Cultural and Special Interest Tourism Association.
Industry officials say about 100,000 of the island's 2.5 million tourists already come for the cultural and religious monuments and the market has seen a boost since Dan Brown's bestseller "The Da Vinci Code" made religious quests popular.
"Cyprus has always been associated with religion. In earlier times there was no ship going to the Holy Land without stopping at Cyprus. We are known as the island of saints," Michaelides said.
According to the World Tourism Organization, 300 to 330 million pilgrims visit the world's key religious sites every year. Cyprus is eager to take a big bite out of this growing market and boost the island's main industry.
In cooperation with the powerful Church of Cyprus and tourism officials it is launching religious tours for the first time this summer.
"Cyprus packs a huge amount of monuments in such a small space," said Vakis Loizides, a tourist officer at the Cyprus Tourism Organization (CTO). "The island's special relationship with saints, like Lazarus and Helen, make it very attractive."
Visitors can go on a tour tracing the footsteps of Saint Paul, who traveled from Antioch to Cyprus in 45 AD, and visit the pillar in the town of Paphos where he was tortured and, according to his second epistle to the Corinthians, given "forty bar one lashes" for preaching Christianity.
Or they can visit the church of Saint Lazarus, who church tradition says came to Cyprus after his resurrection by Christ, and served as a bishop on the island.
Most of his bones were sent to Constantinople in the 9th century but the faithful can see his skull, on display in a glass-topped box in the church.
Da Vinci Code
"We are seeing an increase in demand," said Angelos Mylonas, manager at Mantovani Plotin Travel. "After 'The Da Vinci Code', there is an interest from people to see Greek Orthodox churches."
Scattered over the Troodos mountains, Cyprus's 10 medieval timber-roofed churches, listed as UNESCO world heritage monuments for their stunning wall paintings, are at the top of many religious tourists' lists, he added.
"Tourists already know where they are going and what they want to see. They are extremely well read, they know places not even we are aware of," Mylonas said.
A 300,000 Cyprus pound ($700,000) tourist office campaign part-funded by the European Union and the Cypriot government is aimed primarily at travelers from Greece and Orthodox nations of the former communist bloc like Russia, but also at Orthodox communities in the United States, Britain and Australia.
The CTO is publishing religious tourism guides in several languages and a traveling exhibition of Orthodox artifacts is also planned.
Religious tolerance
Officials say that apart from the large number of shrines spanning millennia, Cyprus's comparative advantage is that it houses monuments of different religions, including one of Islam's most important mosques, the 648 AD Hala Sultan Tekke in the town of Larnaca.
"Cyprus is tolerant to various dogmas. Tourists can see Muslim and Orthodox monuments co-exist. This is very special," Loizides said.
He said the Church, originally skeptical about anything to do with tourism which it associates with lewd behavior, is now eager to promote "religious culture tours". It is cooperating in planning festivals and ceremonies so tourists can attend them.
"There is international interest in religious tourism. Given the violence and wars in the world, there is a belief that if developed properly, it can lead to a dialogue between cultures," he said.
Others in Cyprus see the development of religious tourism from a more practical perspective.
"This will help diversify the product of the island, change its image," Michaelides said. "These people come off-season and stay longer than the average tourist. They are better spenders, who go around and not just from the hotel to the pub."
Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Boeing vs Airbus: Battle for the skies

2007-05-12T21:58:00.000-07:00

LONDON, (England) CNN -- Last month Airbus began painting the Singapore Airlines livery on its first A380 superjumbo, due for delivery in October this year, while Boeing continues to receive healthy orders for its 787 Dreamliners.
Yet the real battle for the skies is happening on terra firma, between the two major players in the aviation industry.
Each has their backers and each their detractors in a mire of politics, power, money and influence. One thing is for sure though, from the smallest plane to the biggest it is one mighty struggle between the two.
"It's a major contest. Can Airbus sell the A380 against all the Boeing range of planes? There is also the fight for the medium-sized market -- there's going to be a titanic struggle between the 787 Dreamliner and Airbus' A350, which it also got into difficulty with," Kieran Daly, of Air Transport Intelligence told CNN.
"I also think we're just seeing the very beginnings of the biggest contest of all -- who will replace the smaller narrow-bodied planes, like the 737s, which are everywhere you look."
Orders for new planes tell part of the story. For the best part of a decade, Airbus held the lead while Boeing struggled with a painful and lingering restructuring.
But the tables have turned. While delays to the A380 led to some airlines canceling orders of the planes, Boeing enjoyed an almost record-breaking year with 1,050 on its books in 2006, compared to Airbus' 790.
Technical problems with the A380 are symptomatic of a broader ideological malaise at Airbus. At the end of February, Europe's plane-maker is embarked on its own restructuring program, called Power 8.
By reducing aircraft development times by two years, from eight to six, the airline hopes to streamline productivity and regain their market lead. It won't be a smooth ride -- there will be job loses within the company and industrial action has already been threatened.
It is in the airline boardrooms, however, that the fate of Airbus and Boeing will be decided.
Most carriers embark on a rolling program of renewals. Not so British Airways. It is opting for a block replacement of its fleet and that's got the plane manufacturers salivating at the prospect of a truly gigantic order.
So will BA stick with Boeing or go for Airbus?
"If you're Willy Walsh looking at Boeing, all your pilots are trained for their aircraft, so there's an incumbent advantage. However I don't think that's necessarily a done deal. BA will be looking at the future shape of the industry," Andrew Fitchie, an analyst for Collins Stewart told CNN.
In February the airline hinted at the path it may take with an order of four Boeing 777s, with an option for four more.
"There will be certain routes that the A380 will be more suited to on BA's global network. What is interesting is that BA is looking to do the whole fleet and expansion in one, which will give them considerable bargaining power with manufacturers."
Who wins between Airbus and Boeing can only be judged over a large number of years, but one things for sure. Once you are squashed back into seat 36F, it's still going to seem like a very long flight.

Capital gains: D.C.'s dining scene has come of age

2007-05-11T10:49:00.000-07:00

(Travel + Leisure) -- The meal began in a rush of tiny tastes. A chocolate truffle oozed foie gras. New-wave bar snacks -- pork rinds in maple syrup, sweet lotus chips in star-anise dust -- gave way, in a spray-bottle spritz of mojito, to an endless procession of astonishing bites. What were those specks on pineapple slices that crackled at the back of the mouth? Pop Rocks? Riceless sushi rolls were filled with blue cheese and apple.
Cantaloupe juice, treated before us in a chemical bath, became semisolid miniature fruit bombs. Zucchini seeds had the texture of caviar. There were flavored airs, savory jellies, warm foams, hot and cold in the same little cup. "Guacamole" was avocado-enshrouded tomato sorbet. Lobster came next, a plump hunk pierced on a liquid-filled pod ("bite down and squeeze," the menu specified), followed three courses later by "Philly cheesesteak" -- a slim two-inch-long hoagie with white-truffle slices and rare Kobe beef. (Watch highlights of the D.C. restaurant scene )
After three hours and some 35 courses the final creations arrived: saffron-scented gummies, cocoa-dusted corn nuts and a mentholated cough drop transformed into a wafer-thin after-dinner mint. And the most amazing thing about this dinner? It can be ordered most nights of the week on a once-sketchy block in downtown Washington, D.C.
Spanish chef José Andrés, Washington's answer to Willy Wonka, has built an empire on the once-underestimated promise of the capital palate. His wildly experimental Minibar, where I consumed this cutting-edge feast -- six sushi-bar seats at the heart of Café Atlantico, a high-volume restaurant -- is but a couture test run for a much more ambitious stand-alone place. And Andrés, of course, is only one chef.
It seems our nation's old-boys' meat-and-potatoes club has become one of the most exciting restaurant cities on the Eastern Seaboard. Actually, Washington today is reaping the benefits of a gastronomic coming-of-age that began in the early years of the Clinton White House, when a new generation of chefs began to imbue fine dining with the city's own local character (I cooked at the time as an apprentice chef at then newcomer Citronelle). You'll still find cigar-munching political lifers working back-room deals in dining rooms as entrenched as Ted Kennedy's seat in the Senate, but Washington restaurants, like the politics of this town, are not what they once were. (Vote on your favorite American cities)
The locals
If there can be said to have been a food revolution in Washington in the last decade, Jeffrey Buben and Robert Kinkead are the two local chefs who began it all. At Buben's Vidalia and Kinkead's namesake restaurant, their hugely popular long-running flagships, the chefs forged for the first time what could truly be called "D.C. cuisine." With the exception of Senate bean soup, the city has few classic specialties to call its own. Buben and Kinkead, starting in the early nineties, looked just beyond the Beltway for ingredients (Maryland seafood, Virginia ham) and inspiration, cobbling together their own sophisticated regional repertoire. They paved the way for a new generation to begin tinkering with local flavors.
Taking up the mantle were chefs like Todd Gray at Equinox (818 Connecticut Ave. NW; 202/ 331-8118; http://www.equinoxrestaurant.com/; dinner for two $120), a modestly appointed restaurant one block from the White House. Gray had worked under Roberto Donna, for many years the city's top Italian toque, but embraced more eclectic regional flavors when he set out on his own. The restaurant underwhelms at first glance -- the dining room, packed midday with blue-blazered bureaucrats, has all the appeal of a dentist's waiting room. But Gray's robust, flavorful food rises above its surroundings. Dishes like pan-roasted Chesapeake oysters in a buttery caper-and-pineapple meunière or mustard-sauced bay scallops with grilled frisée are the sort that beg to be sopped up with crusty bread.
Elsewhere, the Buben-Kinkead influence extends to more than just food, inspiring the mixing of homeyness and high-level cuisine. At Palena (3529 Connecticut Ave. NW; 202/537-9250; http://www.palenarestaurant.com/; dinner for two $130), a six-year-old spot north of the National Zoo, the very low-key vibe masks some of the city's most heartwarming food. Palena is actually two restaurants in one: in the boisterous front room, house-made hot dogs and a much-lauded burger are the principal draw, while at the hushed tables in back, far more refined globe-trotting creations get the reverence they merit. The duo in the kitchen met while cooking at the Reagan White House, which might explain their versatility. There are detours through Italy (house-cured salumi, pillowy wild boar-dressed gnocchi) and side trips to France (foie gras-squab boudin blanc). One main course featuring pork three ways deliciously combines tastes of Germany (smoked loin), Argentina (chimichurri sauce), and Italy (cotechino sausage) on the same plate.
The icon
Some 28 years ago Frenchman Yannick Cam gave Reaganites the glamour they craved. At Le Pavillon, the city's introduction to nouvelle cuisine, Cam sent out diminutive, painterly portions that became all the rage. After the restaurant closed, in 1990, the eccentric Cam bounced between kitchens before vanishing from the scene altogether. In 2004, the city's most iconic French chef made his splashy return just steps from the Mall. Le Paradou (678 Indiana Ave. NW; 202/347-6780; http://www.leparadou.net/; dinner for two $110) has the sort of starched-shirt formality that's gone out of vogue of late. The spare, spacious dining room is among the city's most attractive, swaddled in pale blond wood and featuring a Robert Custer glass sculpture. Beneath a ceiling sparkling with tiny faux stars, beautiful dishes emphasize old-fashioned French flavors using a modern, light touch. One oversize plate frames a checkerboard of dramatically sauced girolle mushrooms under garlic-infused escargot; on another, scallops and sea bass dance round a spattered puddle of bouillabaisse-channeling bright yellow sauce.
The old-timer
Citronelle (3000 M St. NW; 202/625-2150; http://www.citronelledc.com/; dinner for two $170) is by now an institution, a restaurant mentioned in the same breath as many of the country's finest. A few years after opening it in Georgetown as an outlying appendage of his Los Angeles-based Cal-French empire, chef Michel Richard ditched the West Coast to stay in D.C. full-time. The dining room, with its woozy color-shifting glass wall, is unrecognizable from my days there searing fish. But the high-wattage clientele is still the same (evidenced by the Secret Service entourage spied in the driveway). The waiters, in black suits and crisp white shirts, are as properly stiff as any at JFK's favorite French spots, but Citronelle is not your grandfather's French restaurant. Richard's food is as vivacious as ever: bracing creations like cuttlefish fashioned into "fettuccine" and showered in trout eggs and beets, or his Technicolor "oyster shooter" amusebouche-a narrow glass layered red (aspic-encased tomato confit) to white (oysters in brine) to green (cucumber gelée) to black (caviar)-are dazzling both to look at and to consume.
The renegade
Neither Richard nor Andrés has a lock on creativity here. At Maestro (1700 Tysons Blvd., McLean, Va.; 703/821-1515; http://www.ritzcarlton.com/; dinner for two $200), in the Ritz-Carlton Tysons Corner, in the Virginia suburbs, 33-year-old Fabio Trabocchi filters his exquisite Italian food through a Felliniesque lens. Despite the steepest dinner prices in the Washington area --and its far-flung locale about 20 minutes outside the city -- the restaurant is consistently packed. As if the food weren't erotic enough, the dining room's Versace opulence (along with the possibility of a room for the night) makes it ideal for a nostalgic Clintonesque dalliance. Trabocchi is a perfectionist, equally comfortable working in a traditional idiom (superb risotto) or creating something brand-new (Kobe beef carpaccio rolled around tofu). Five- or seven-course meals can be mixed and matched from among his classical dishes ("La Tradizione") and his most outlandish ("L'Evoluzione"). Or the truly adventurous can put their entire evening in this young wizard's capable hands. Raw fish might come first, a gorgeous mosaic of caviar-slathered tuna, hamachi, salmon and conch, with vitello tonnato expressed as a sauce. There might be lobster plumped into a pasta pouch, tortellini filled with duck confit, or loin of Virginia lamb photogenically shrouded in goat cheese mousse and pistachio crumbs.
The emperor
Minibar (405 Eighth St. NW; 202/393-0812; http://www.cafeatlantico.com/; dinner for two $170) auteur José Andrés is a force of nature, launching, it sometimes seems, a new place every week. His burgeoning empire began, naturally enough, with the small-plate food of his native Spain. In 1993 he reimagined tapas at the original Jaleo (there are now three), a restaurant gamble in a neighborhood-abutting Chinatown -- that had seen better days. Since then a new sports arena and a shopping mall have replaced the pawnshops and check-cashing stores. Officially known as the Penn Quarter, the spiffed-up area might easily be billed "Andrés-town." Within a single block the chef runs three of the city's most popular restaurants: along with Jaleo, there's the Latin American-influenced Café Atlantico, which houses the four-year-old Minibar; just up the block is Zaytinya, a high-ceilinged showpiece devoted to the flavorful mezes of Turkey, Greece, and the Middle East.
With Oyamel (401 7th Street NW; 202/628-1005; http://www.oyamel.com/; dinner for two $60), Andrés's newest place, he steers the small-plate concept south to Mexico. Vibrant, authentic flavors Andrés researched in Mexico are interpreted with his characteristic whimsy, like a dried fruit-stuffed quail in rose-petal sauce that's a fragrant homage to "Like Water for Chocolate." Other great nibbles include compulsive mole-doused french fries, cheesy rice with huitlacoche -- the corn fungus more gently described as "black mushrooms" --and tequila-drenched queso fundido with made-to-order

Views, festivals and villas in Italy's Ravello

2007-05-10T09:16:00.000-07:00

RAVELLO, Italy (AP) -- Here along the Amalfi Coast, dramatic panoramas of rocky cliffs hanging over the sea are everywhere.
But the views from the town of Ravello -- perched above the gulf of Salerno -- feel like a shortcut to paradise.
Getting to Ravello, which has a rich history dating back to the sixth century, is an adventure in itself. The town remains virtually untouched by the swarms of tourists who visit nearby Capri and Ischia. Perhaps it is the hairpin bends that drop off into ravines that keep away all but the most determined. The town is also closed to traffic; cars must be left in parking lots near the main square.
Still, visitors find their way here to relax, sample limoncello liqueur in local cafes or listen to the renowned open-air concerts that are offered each summer as part of the Ravello Festival. Over the years, the town has hosted many celebrities, including Richard Wagner, Arturo Toscanini, Miro and D.H. Lawrence.
Cobblestone alleys, steep lanes and staircases lead to breathtaking views from terraced villas, like the one at Villa Cimbrone, a well-known local attraction that is also an upscale hotel. Here statues, temples, fountains, epigraphs, an ancient cloister, natural grottos and exotic flowers and trees lead the way to the breathtaking "Belvedere of Infinity."
The view from the balcony is so wide that the American writer Gore Vidal -- who owned a nearby villa -- once defined it as "the most beautiful in the world." White-marbled statues guard you as you lean out, overlooking the coast. The place is incredibly quiet, even in the high season. Only a few tourists, speechless, take pictures of each other as the sea and the sky merge on the horizon.
Villa Cimbrone dates back centuries and is a fascinating mixture of styles and epochs, ethnic and cultural elements and antique finds. Its name derives from the rocky ridge on which it stands, which is known as "cimbronium." An Englishman, Lord Grimthorpe, bought the villa in 1904, and it quickly became a meeting place for English visitors to the Amalfi coast, including the famous London Bloomsbury set.
A nearby villa called La Rondinaia was built by Grimthorpe's daughter and for many years, it was owned by Vidal. La Rondinaia, which means swallow's nest, was built into the side of the cliff, with six stories and multilevel terraces wrapped around it in a labyrinth of stairs and balconies. Vidal , who has had a prolific career as a playwright, essayist, scriptwriter and novelist, did much of his writing here. Celebrities who visited the villa over the years included Tennessee Williams, Rudolf Nureyev, Paul Newman, Hillary Clinton and Brad Pitt.
La Rondinaia is now owned by Vincenzo Palumbo, who bought the property from Vidal for a reported euro14 million (US$18) million. Palumbo, who also owns several local hotels, is renovating the property and said he plans to turn it into a niche lodging for jetsetters. The details were still being worked out, but Palumbo said he hopes to rent the villa out later this summer. With six bedrooms, including suites, two studies and five fireplaces, he said it will accommodate 12 to 18 people at a time.
Palumbo added that Vidal's studio, where he did his writing, will remain untouched and will be part of a small museum inside the mansion.
La Rondinaia is not now open to the public, but I was offered a peek inside on a recent visit to the Amalfi Coast with my parents.
We found the gate in the corner of a narrow alley, anonymous, with no sign or plaque. The black gate was half-open, beckoning. We silently entered the wild garden and wandered past umbrella pines, olive and cedar trees. Paths reached out in every direction.
The scene, with no other sound other than our own steps, was dreamlike. We walked past an empty swimming pool and a natural 70-meter-long (230-foot-long) cave, and there it was, the stunning, almost gravity-defying villa, towering above the sea and clinging to the side of the mountain.
Palumbo, who grew up in the area and visited La Rondinaia as a child, awaited us at the main door. Inside, the living room still seemed to echo the sounds of the parties held there, with its three balconies, four armchairs, cushions on the ground and a fireplace. Old magazines, a dusty sofa and an old typewriter in the studio are suggestive of the many nights Vidal spent shaping novels like the historical "Burr" or the polemical "Perpetual War for Perpetual Peace."
Vidal took some furniture and many books back to the United States. But otherwise, everything in the study where he once wrote gives the sense that he just left.
We followed Palumbo to the terraced mansion's upper floors through an opulent staircase. The first terrace seemed to drop off into nothingness. When you peep out over the edge, it feels like you are flying.
It's a sensation that I have never quite felt anywhere but in Ravello, where the views are so expansive you almost feel like you can touch the heavens.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Antarctica: On thin ice

2007-05-09T08:55:00.000-07:00

HALF MOON ISLAND, Antarctica (CNN) -- Iceberg Alley is an aptly named narrow channel on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula.
The water is afloat with glassy splinters, hardly bigger than an ice cube, ranging up to colossal tabular icebergs, some the size of several football pitches.
Cruising down this channel in subzero temperatures, it's difficult to imagine Antarctica may be suffering from the effects of global warming.
But these giant breakaway icebergs may in fact be signaling the continent's meltdown.
Icebergs originate from ice sheets, which form on land from millions of years of snowfall. As the ice gravitates towards the sea, it naturally breaks up. But scientists say the ice around the Antarctic Peninsula is disintegrating at unprecedented rates and blame warmer weather.
In the last 50 years, this region has experienced a 2.5C increase in average temperature. That is a faster rise than any other place in the southern hemisphere.
Walking along the pebble beach at Half Moon Island, Chris Edwards, a geologist from Scotland, says the changes are obvious. "I am horrified by the amount of red snow algae I am seeing now, which means we're down to 'old snow.'"
Edwards suggests that's a tell-tale sign of a serious change in weather patterns.
"Evidence like this is everywhere. For example, the Northeast Glacier used to be buffered on to Stonington Island. It's retreated 40 meters (45 yards) in the last 35 years. Now, there's no ice ramp attaching it to the mainland."
This month is the launch of International Polar Year (IPY) -- an ambitious scientific effort involving over 200 projects -- which will study exactly these types of geological changes. Researchers will investigate reductions in ice sheets and explore the impact on sea levels and marine ecosystems.
Birgit Sattler, a microbiologist from the University of Innsbruck, Austria, highlights the need to raise awareness of these issues.
She is conducting a month-long scientific project into glaciers around Port Lockroy, a former whaling station which is now a British research center.
"The Antarctic eco-system is very sensitive and tiny climate changes have dramatic effects. There are far longer vegetation phases now. Plants are growing at much higher altitudes. It's really important to tell people about this."
Before the research papers of the IPY's scientists are published, for those living on the southern polar cap, climate change is already palpable.
Rick Atkinson is Base Manager at Port Lockroy. He has been working in Antarctica for more than 20 years.
"We have to recognize what is happening here. When it's meant to snow, it starts raining. That's not normal."

Island hopping off your own steam

2007-05-08T08:29:00.000-07:00

LONDON, England (CNN) -- Imagine a holiday where you come home with not only a tan, but also an enormous sense of achievement.
Swimming between islands for 3-6 kilometers (1.8-3.7 miles) every day for a week might not sound like much of a holiday, but it's a concept that lures hordes of keen swimmers to do just that on their time away from the office.
Australian-born 36-year-old Simon Murie turned his love of swimming in open waters into a business in 2003.
His company, SwimTrek, now takes people on swimming adventure holidays in 10 different destinations. The company's motto is: "Ferries are for wimps, let's swim!"
British lawyer Sally Cook went to Croatia with SwimTrek one year ago, at around the time of her 30th birthday, which, she says, felt like a momentous occasion.
Facing natural forces like the tide, the wind and the sea was an amazing feeling, she says.
"Bizarrely, this somehow gave me an amazing sense of calmness and equanimity. It was like, OK. Great. I can relax now I know my place in the universe," she says.
"For me, swimming in open water makes me feel like I am completely embracing life, facing my fears and being reminded just how insignificant I am all at the same time."
With a former Sydney lifeguard Australian father who loves swimming in the sea, and an English mother who enjoys river swimming, Simon Murie says his love for open water swimming developed at an early age.
The biggest difference between pool swimming and open water swimming, he says, is that in the open water you never know what the conditions will be like.
"There's a big difference between swimming in a pool and swimming in open water. It's much easier in open water if the conditions are good. There's higher buoyancy. But if the conditions are bad, a whole new swimming style is needed," Murie told CNN.
In 1999, he swam the width of the Hellespont, the stretch of water in Turkey that divides Europe and Asia. Organizing the swim involved a week's worth of paperwork. The swim itself took just over an hour.
Although just 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) wide, the challenge comes because the water flows in both directions. One side comes from the Black Sea; the other is from the Mediterranean. It's also a busy shipping channel.
The swim spurred Murie into thinking he could be a guide for people who wanted to swim bodies of open water.
In 2002, Murie swam the width of the English Channel and a year later his business was born.
The most popular destinations are those in the Mediterranean -- namely the Greek Islands and Croatia -- where conditions are pretty good for open water swimming.
"It's based on the idea that you have a sense of journey. You swim from one island to the next. It's a lovely feeling turning up to an island off your own steam," Murie says.
"You spend the night on an island, get up the next day, walk to the edge of the island and swim to another island. That's basically what SwimTrek is about."
On average, swimmers travel 3-6 kilometers a day (1.8 to 3.7 miles) and between 20-25 kilometers (12.5-15.5 miles) in the whole week. Early on in the week, swimmers are filmed while swimming and later the footage is examined with a guide to assess where their stroke and technique can be improved.
In Croatia, swimmers normally do two swims a day because the islands are closer together than in, say, Greece, where swimmers travel up to five kilometers (3 miles) in one stretch.
Which destination is the best depends entirely on the person, says Murie, and the company helps people to decide which location will suit them most.
Each trip is broken into two or three groups, depending on swimming ability. Each group has its own escort boat or swimming guide.
The company gives swimmers a training plan so they can prepare for three or four months before their trip begins.
"Speed doesn't matter. It's all about whether you can do the distance. And there's always the option to get on the boat, have a break and a cup of tea before carrying on."
The ages of those who take part range from early 20s to swimmers in their 70s, says Murie. And the mix of ages adds a nice dynamic to the trips.
"The beauty of swimming is that age is not a barrier. It's a sport you can do until you are very old."
There's also a balanced mix of men and women.
He says that as with any type of open water swimming there are risks, but his company does a lot of research to ensure the trips are to areas where the worst harm could be a minor jellyfish sting.
Ten people who have been on trips with SwimTrek have gone on to swim the English Channel. Murie says he tries to add a few new SwimTrek destinations every year. Next on the list is one that goes from Spain to Morocco.
"You get an amazing sense of achievement. People far exceed what they think they can do. Because there's a group dynamic, you push yourself to achieve," Murie says.
"It's great to see people move on in the sport and progress. People look at the map and can see where they have swum. They get really fit during the week, too."

Swing City

2007-05-07T09:01:00.000-07:00

By the time you read this, minds will no doubt have been made up as to which is cooler, this year’s film version of Miami Vice or the vintage 1980s television original. For most Miamiphiles, though, the point is moot: The arrival of the movie, two decades after the celebrated show completed its run, simply underscored the city’s enduring status as a nexus of style. Whoever you think makes the more nuanced Crockett, the more complex Tubbs, the sleek art deco and neon backdrop of South Beach continues to play a starring role. Propelled by Miami’s popularity, the city is experiencing what’s been described as a golden age of architecture, with some of the world’s finest architects designing eagerly anticipated civic, commercial and residential spaces. The rapid growth is a double-edged sword, however, when it comes to golf. Given the various demands on real estate here, the greater Miami area hasn’t attracted the profusion of new course construction seen almost everywhere else in Florida—home to more than 1,200 courses, the most of any state in the country. On the other hand, several of Miami’s iconic golf resorts—Doral, Turnberry Isle and The Biltmore—are reopening this fall and winter after extensive renovations and have never looked better. A paucity of golf is not the problem in Miami; it’s the abundance of so much else—hip restaurants and nightclubs, modish hotels and pools—that may overwhelm you. So break out the T-shirt-and-blazer ensembles and start growing that stubble.Where to play
DORAL GOLF RESORT & SPA, BLUE **** 1/2 The Blue Monster, as it’s universally known, is one of those larger-than-life courses, though the reason for its renown is a running debate. Yes, certain holes are legendary, particularly the 437-yard par-four eighteenth, an object lesson in risk- reward, with water running along the entire left side and pinching in at key places. But, some argue, that’s mainly because Doral has hosted a televised PGA Tour event annually since 1962, the year after it opened; and besides, the decision to stage the tournament at the expansive Doral Golf Resort & Spa has much to do with logistics. The Blue Monster, this line of argument goes, can no longer even be considered monstrous, as it stretches "only" 7,100 yards from the back tees. I say rubbish. In addition to the copious water hazards and some 120 bunkers, the course is defended forcefully by the frequent winds. The layout boasts some great par threes, including the 237-yard fourth. Furthermore, the resort staff is adept at moving golfers around Doral’s five courses (which receive 150,000 rounds a year), and walking—a rarity in Florida golf—is allowed. Finally, the Blue Monster recently underwent a four-month renovation, during which the greens were resurfaced to roll more smoothly and the bunkers rebuilt to restore some of Dick Wilson’s tricky strategic elements. 4400 N.W. 87th Avenue, Miami; 305-592-2000, doralresort.com. Yardage: 7,125. Par: 72. Slope: 130. Architect: Dick Wilson, 1961. Greens Fees: $225-$250.

Newport focuses on keeping visitors happy

2007-05-06T07:58:00.000-07:00

NEWPORT, Rhode Island (AP) -- Luxurious mansions built as summer homes for the fabulously rich share a ZIP code here with the International Tennis Hall of Fame, which sits mere minutes from the church where John F. Kennedy got married and crystal blue waters that wrap around the city.
Newport has long embraced its status as a premium tourist destination, drawing more than 3 million visitors a year. But facing growing competition from other cities for limited tourist dollars, and amid a downturn in visitors, officials are concentrating on keeping guests happy -- and coming back.
A new hospitality training program in the city aims to do that by taking shopkeepers back to basics, teaching them how to help tourists locate hard-to-find public bathrooms and parking, and reinforcing the importance of attending to customers' needs.
"You can't control gas prices, war in Iraq," said Keith Stokes, executive director of the Newport County Chamber of Commerce, which is spearheading the initiative. "Those are things that you really can't focus on. What you can focus on, what you can improve, is the positive visitor experience."
It may sound elementary, but it also underscores the importance of hospitality in a city whose attractions include Gilded Age mansions once inhabited by the Vanderbilt and Astor clans; Touro, the oldest synagogue in the nation and heralded summertime music festivals dedicated to folk, jazz and other genres.
Several of the indexes used to measure the health of the tourism and hospitality industry, such as admission to attractions, have declined as destinations around the nation wrestle for their share of the market.
City Councilman Charles Duncan said he's concerned that certain employees in Newport, especially younger ones, aren't as courteous to customers as they should be.
"I don't think they understand that tourism is one of our biggest commodities here -- and Rhode Island's biggest commodity," said Duncan, who sponsored a City Council resolution supporting the program.
"You don't have to be toothy nice, you know what I'm saying?" he said. "You just be polite, for heaven's sake."
Businesses and city staffers that regularly encounter tourists will be coached on providing basic information about the city, like where to find parking, lunch spots and public bathrooms, which often lack adequate signs.
While year-round Newporters generally know answers to those questions, the city's shops and restaurants depend heavily on seasonal workers, often out-of-town students or people from overseas who may be almost as new to the city as day-trippers.
Officials say the initiative isn't about fixing any major problems with Newport. Stokes said the city doesn't receive any more complaints than it used to or than other cities get.
"I don't perceive anything to be broken," said Evan Smith, president of the Newport County Convention and Visitor's Bureau. "I just think we have room to be better."
Business owners say they appreciate the importance of customer service and already practice what the chamber preaches. Several merchants said they liked the concept of the program, even if they weren't sure it was for them.
"Every city employee should be well-versed in giving directions and helping people," said Bill Rommel, owner of the Arnold Art Store and Gallery.
Bob and Cindy Wernicki, of Griswold, Connecticut, had one of their first dates in Newport more than 20 years ago and still make regular visits. They said they enjoy their jaunts here -- even though parking is occasionally atrocious, and even if some restaurants have jacked up prices.

Taking the long route to Sydney

2007-05-05T07:34:00.000-07:00

LONDON, England (CNN) -- If you think traveling overland on a bus from London to Sydney sounds like something exclusively for 20-something backpackers, think again.
In September, 38 people will embark on a trip that does just that, and one in four passengers onboard will be aged over 50.
The group -- one-third Irish, one-third English and one-third Australian -- will be the first to do the trip covering 20 countries and organized by London-based company Ozbus.
The idea is the brainchild of Mark Creasey, an Englishman who backpacked around the world a few times in his 20s, including one trip from Sydney that was largely overland.
"Back then you couldn't go any further than Thailand because all the borders were closed," he told CNN.
A few years back Creasey, 37, began hearing about people who were traveling independently on overland routes from Australia to the United Kingdom.
"I got the atlas out and looked at it. Apart from Burma (Myanmar), all the other countries that were once closed can now be traveled through."
Two years ago, Creasey started researching whether he could make a business out of the idea.
"When you think about the amount of backpackers who travel between the UK and Down Under it's vast," he says.
The company launched on January 2 this year, and within three and a half months, the first trip was fully booked.
Creasey and his team have done reconnaissance missions of the entire trip, in two parts, building relations with local agents in each country. There will be three crew members on the trips.
"There's been an awful lot of planning because of the magnitude of the trip. There's an awful lot that can -- and probably will -- go wrong," he says.
"There's been no framework of reference to compare it to. There's another company that does it on a one-off basis and goes only as far as Singapore."
The group taking part in the inaugural 12-week trip in September is made up of a mixture of people, with three aged between 18 and 20, and a quarter aged over 50.
"There aren't too many students. I think it's probably too expensive for them," says Creasey.
"A lot of people over 50 have expressed interest in it. I think that's because it's novel. It would appeal to people who have paid off their house, their kids have left home and they're looking for an adventure that's a little bit different."
The group leaves from London. They then take a ferry across the English Channel and travel across Europe through France, Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.
From there, they head to Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, India, Nepal, China, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and East Timor.
They will travel on the same bus the whole way. Once they get to East Timor, group members fly to Darwin, but the bus goes on a boat. From Darwin they get back on the bus and drive down to Sydney, the final destination.
Creasey says he has some concerns about traveling through Iran because of sensitive relations between it and a lot of western countries who are worried about Iran's nuclear program.
"We're monitoring the situation. We're a bit worried about Iran but hopefully we won't have to change the route," he says.
"Luckily there are alternative routes the whole way through. Whilst it's a bit of a headache, we won't be putting people at risk."
Trips cost £3,750 ($7,500). From January, Ozbus will offer a Sydney to London trip.

Best boulangeries in Paris

2007-05-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

Travel + Leisure) -- When it comes to iconic baguettes, flaky croissants and melt-in-your-mouth pains au chocolat, the French capital delivers.
Croissants
The shop: Vintage glass panels frame the façade of Maison Kayser (14 Rue Monge, Fifth Arr.; 33-1/44-07-17-81; closed Mondays), a destination boulangerie in the Latin Quarter. Eric Kayser turns out 60 different breads each day, among them the Malesherbes, a square-tipped baguette. His finely crafted viennoiseries -- France's traditional breakfast pastries -- are as notable as his breads. The Kayser café is the perfect spot for a light lunch; a plat du jour, desser and coffee are about $15.
Don't miss: His croissants, decadently plump, with a golden exterior that flakes at the merest touch and a meltingly tender center.
Sourdough loaves
The shop: On weekend mornings, expect to find a queue snaking down the sidewalk from Dominique Saibron's contemporary glass, wood, and stone emporium, Le Boulanger de Monge (123 Rue Monge, Fifth Arr.; 33-1/43-37-54-20; closed Mondays). Fans (you'll be one!) can't get enough of his petits pains aux lardons et comté, slim, chewy rolls with bits of bacon and melted Comté cheese, or escargots cannelle, cinnamon-filled pinwheels of croissant dough with a buttery crumb topping.
Don't miss: The best-selling pain bio au levain, a delicately tangy organic sourdough loaf.
Miche
The shop: Master baker Lionel Poilâne died several years ago, but his daughter Apollonia keeps the business flourishing. At this original (and decidedly diminutive) wood-paneled headquarters of the world-famous boulangerie Poilâne (8 Rue du Cherche-Midi, Sixth Arr.; 33-1/45-48-42-59; http://www.poilane.fr/; closed Sundays), the bread is still baked in an antique wood-fired oven just downstairs.
Don't miss: The big, round miche; this dense sourdough loaf made from stone-ground flour can be decorated to your specifications and makes a fabulous gift. The rustic, free-form apple tart is another perennial favorite.
Baguettes
The shop: Philippe Gosselin, Grand Prix winner of the city's Best Baguette in Paris award, supplies bread and croissants to Jacques Chirac and the Elysée Palace. A classic baguette at Gosselin (125 Rue St.-Honoré, First Arr.; 33-1/45-08-03-59; closed Saturdays) is made from white flour, water, sea salt and leavening and has irregular air holes throughout from natural fermentation. "The baguette is the bread of Parisians," says Gosselin. "It has a life span of just six hours."
Don't miss: The shop's lunchtime array of baguette sandwiches, from ham-and-Gruyère to shrimp-and-avocado.
Pain aux raisins
The shop: Established in the firmament of great Paris bakers for the past 30 years, Basile Kamir is also one of the most influential. An advocate for things done the old-fashioned way, he lobbies for using stone-ground organic flours, forming loaves by hand, and long rising times. His Moulin de la Vierge (166 Ave. de Suffren, 15th Arr.; 33-1/47-83-45-55; closed Thursdays) is steeped in nostalgie, with vintage glass and ornate moldings.
Don't miss: The excellent pain aux raisins, a sumptuous swirl of soft croissant dough, eggy pastry cream, and raisins.
Pain au chocolat
The shop: A striking Art Deco boulangerie complete with starburst light fixtures, 1930's mirrors, and curved display cases, Boulangerie Bechu (118 Ave. Victor Hugo; 33-1/47-27-97-79; closed Mondays), in the heart of the chic 16th Arrondissement, is also a tearoom. Christian Marceau's retro d'or ficelle, a skinny, crisp variation of his "retro-style" pale-gold baguette, makes a perfect breakfast with apricot jam and café crème.
Don't miss: Pain au chocolat orange, an addictive variation on the classic treat, with citrusy notes enhancing the dark chocolate or the unusual, yet delicious, coco-banane, with lush flavors of coconut and banana.
Croissants aux amandes
The shop: After a visit to Père Lachaise Cemetery, resting place of Piaf and Proust, stop at La Flûte Gana (226 Rue des Pyrénées, 20th Arr.; 33-1/43-58-42-62; closed Sundays and Mondays), where Valérie, Isabelle and Marianne Ganachaud, daughters of the legendary Bernard Ganachaud, produce the house's venerable baguette.
Don't miss: Croissants aux amandes, originally conceived as a way to use day-old croissants, with an almond cream-and-kirsch filling, and brioche vendéenne, a template for the ultimate brioche, buttery with a hint of fresh vanilla.
Fougasse
The shop: A short walk from the Eiffel Tower, earnest young boulanger Thierry Dubois is baking his way to a growing reputation among the diplomats and doctors of the Seventh Arrondissement. At his peach-hued Pain D'Épis (63 Ave. Bosquet; 33-1/45-51-75-01; closed Saturdays), Dubois offers a range of specialty breads -- baguettes, boules and ficelles -- all from the same unique mixed-flour dough, a line that he calls Royale.
Don't miss: The fougasse, a ladder-shaped loaf dosed with olive oil and baked with fillings that change daily -- black olives one day, chèvre and tomatoes the next.
Planning a Caribbean getaway? Don't miss Travel + Leisure's new Ultimate Caribbean Hotel Guide.

Taking the kids to Washington, D.C.

2007-05-03T06:37:00.000-07:00

(Tribune Media Services) -- Make faces at the oh-so-cuddly panda cub or inspect a moon rock. Cheer on a big-league baseball team or practice spycraft.
Who says a learning vacation can't be fun? Maybe the kids griped when you suggested heading to the nation's capital rather than the beach this spring (they were studying American history this year, after all). But that was before they knew how much fun they could have.
Washington, D.C., is a lot more than boring monuments and stuffy museums. In fact, Washington may provide just the right blend of hands-on museum activities, outdoor fun, hip shopping and kid-friendly restaurants and hotels. (Visit http://www.washington.org/ for the best weekend hotel deals, and remember that most museums are free!) Besides, you can regale the kids with tales from your trip here as a kid. (Remember that eighth-grade trip?)
There's probably no better time than spring to visit, either. It won't be the cheapest time of year for a Washington trip, but it also won't be so hot and humid that the kids will beg you to skip seeing the Declaration of Independence at the National Archives in order to make a beeline for the hotel pool.
There's just one problem. No matter how many days you've got, you won't be able to see everything Washington has to offer. You'll make yourself and the kids crazy if you even try. Instead, let each member of the family choose one must-see site. The historic planes and spaceships at the National Air and Space Museum? The giant panda cub Tai Shan at the National Zoo? The chance to climb to the top of the Washington Monument? Reserve free tickets ahead of time by visiting www.nps.gov/wamo. Book a tour of the White House and the Capitol by contacting your congressman (http://www.house.gov/).
Wherever you go, locals say the best way to get around is via Metro (http://www.wmata.com/). I'm also a fan of the Old Town Trolley Tours (http://www.oldtowntrolley.com/) that stop at all the major tourist sites and allow you to get on and off all day.
Just make sure to leave plenty of time to play Frisbee on the National Mall, see the Lincoln Monument at night, check out the weird and wonderful gargoyles at the Washington National Cathedral (http://www.cathedral.org/) and share a terrific pizza (locals say Pizzeria Paradiso is the best; http://www.eatyourpizza.com/). Show the kids the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and tell them how many Americans protested that war. Cheer on the Washington Nationals at RFK Stadium, or drive to nearby Baltimore to watch the Baltimore Orioles play at Camden Yards.
If the kids are old enough, encourage each one to plan one day of the trip. You'll be amazed at where they lead you! Check out the kids' areas on the Web sites for the Smithsonian (www.smithsonianeducation.org/students), the White House (www.whitehouse.gov/kids) the National Zoo (www.nationalzoo.si.edu/audiences/kids) and the House of Representatives (www.clerkkids.house.gov/congress/index.html).
Guidebooks such as "Frommer's Washington D.C. with Kids" and Fodor's "Around Washington, D.C. with Kids" can also help. See what special activities and workshops are offered during the time you plan to visit.
In addition to the major sites, consider activities that tap into your kids' interests-of-the-moment:
The littlest artists will love The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden's "Gallery Tales for Tots," which introduces kids to modern art through storytelling and the chance to create their own masterpieces. The museum (http://www.hirshhorn.si.edu/) also has programs for older children and art labs for teens. The National Gallery of Art (http://www.nga.gov/) hosts drop-in workshops for kids and "postcard" tours in which children are given packets of cards with pictures of objects they can find in the museum.
Future spies and spycatchers can take KidSpy classes at the International Spy Museum (http://www.spymuseum.org/), where they can also test their code-cracking skills. Late this spring, your child can take on the role of an intelligence officer searching for a missing nuclear device about to be sold to a foreign country. Does your kid have what it takes?
Doctors in training can check out the bullet that killed Abraham Lincoln, a pool of live leeches and the world's largest collection of microscopes at the National Museum of Health and Medicine (http://www.nmhm.washingtondc.museum/), located on the campus of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
Presidents-to-be can take one of the kid-friendly Washington Walks tours (http://www.washingtonwalks.com/), including one at the Lincoln Memorial that introduces children to a young Abe Lincoln and another at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial as seen from the eyes of Roosevelt's famous pooch, Fala.
Kids celebrating bar mitzvahs and bat mitzvahs should see the exhibition Remember the Children: Daniel's Story at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (http://www.ushmm.org/). It tells the historically true story of a fictional German boy named Daniel, following Daniel from his middle-class home to Auschwitz.
Animal lovers can talk to volunteers at the National Zoo and even help out at the on-site farm. Check out the Asia Trail, which just opened in the fall and not only is the new home for the zoo's famous pandas but also for sloth bears, fishing cats, clouded leopards and even a Japanese giant salamander.
Young actors and actresses have their pick of productions to see, and more than 30 area theaters offer a free ticket for each child 17 and under with each adult ticket purchased. (Visit the League of Washington Theaters at http://www.lowt.org/.) The Kennedy Center (http://www.kennedy-center.org/) has a special family theater, while the National Theatre (http://www.nationaltheatre.org/) touts special free children's entertainment each Saturday. The Kennedy Center is also featuring the Shakespeare in Washington festival through June.
History nuts can talk to costumed interpreters at George Washington's plantation home in Mount Vernon (http://www.mountvernon.org/), located 16 miles south of Washington, and see what 18th-century rural life was like, from the slave quarters to the mansion to the colonial farm site. There are plenty of hands-on activities for kids. (Ever try rolling giant hoops?)
The kids will be too busy having a good time to realize how much they're learning. Good job.
(For more Taking the Kids, visit http://www.takingthekids.com/, where Eileen Ogintz welcomes your questions and comments.)

Caymans ban cruise ships at port

2007-05-02T11:38:00.000-07:00

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands (AP) -- The Cayman Islands government said Tuesday it has banned cruise ships from anchoring at a port where their huge chains have damaged coral reefs.
Environmental officials say some coral can be preserved despite extensive damage along the sea floor near the Spotts Dock facility, which is used as an alternative port when seas are too rough for cruise ships to call on the George Town harbor.
"Because cruise ships are the biggest vessels to use the area regularly, their chains tend to cause a lot of the damage," said John Bothwell, a research officer with the British Caribbean territory's environment department.
A cruise ship anchoring for one day can destroy nearly an 1 acre (0.4 hectares) of intact reef, he said.
Cruise ships capable of holding their position without anchoring will still be allowed to unload passengers in Spotts Bay, about 16 kilometers (10 miles) east of the capital.
The ban had been in place previously, but Port Authority director Paul Hurlston reinstated it effective April 19 after officials noticed ships were anchoring again.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Tourists seek out black culture along the S.C. coast

2007-05-01T07:16:00.000-07:00

CHARLESTON, South Carolina (AP) -- For decades here, there was little mention of the rich culture of the descendants of black slaves, many of whom lived as farmers and fisherfolk on the nearby sea islands.
Euphemisms used by whites helped obscure their history. The Civil War was sometimes referred to as "the recent unpleasantness." Slaves became servants; slave quarters became carriage houses.
Despite the rewriting of reality and lack of recognition from outsiders, the culture of West African slaves was nourished by their descendants. The isolation of the sea islands where they lived helped keep their language, arts and traditions largely intact.
But now this culture known as Gullah in the Carolinas and Geechee in Florida and Georgia is being noticed and sought out by others. Government officials and cultural institutions are taking measures to preserve and promote the uniqueness of Gullah culture.
And bus tours, restaurants, museums and galleries are attracting a growing number of tourists searching for the full history of the region.
"It's like the hidden secret that no one ever talked about," said Alphonso Brown, who grew up Gullah on a farm without running water and now runs Gullah Tours. "Of course if there is something that is hidden and then revealed, everyone is talking about it."
Gullah communities were established on the sea islands by freed slaves after the Civil War. Most made their living fishing or farming fields of vegetables and row crops.
Brown, a retired school teacher and band director, has been giving his tours for more than two decades. When he started, the busiest times were in the spring and fall, the top tourism seasons in Charleston. Now he's booked year-round, except for January when the winter slows business. Even then, he gives tours for corporate groups.
His tours provide a glimpse of things one might miss on a more traditional tour of the city's pastel buildings and historic sites.
There's the Old Slave Mart; a house lived in by Denmark Vesey, who planned an 1822 slave insurrection; and Catfish Row, which inspired the George Gershwin opera "Porgy and Bess."
"There are slave quarters all over the place," says Brown, who navigates the narrow city streets in a small white bus. "The house guides and the Realtors and other people don't say 'slave quarters,' they say 'carriage houses' or 'servants' quarters' or 'dependencies."'
Brown's tours depart near the Charleston Visitors Center just down the street from Gallery Chuma, which does a brisk business in Gullah art.
Artists include the noted Jonathan Green as well as John Jones, whose bright paintings "Confederate Currency: The Color of Money," reproduced scenes of slavery from Confederate bills and Southern bank notes.
"There's definitely a lot of interest in the Gullah culture," said gallery owner Chuma Nwokike, a native of Nigeria who graduated from The Citadel. "People come in and say they want to go to Gullah, Gullah Island and I say it's nothing like that."
There was a children's TV show called "Gullah, Gullah Island" in the mid-90s on Nickelodeon, but there is no real place with that name.
Tourists can visit Gullah communities at real places like Wadmalaw Island and St. Helena Island -- where some segments for the show were filmed.
But the culture is experienced with more than simple sightseeing. It's about food, listening to the Gullah language, and learning about the culture at museums like that at the Avery Research Center for African-American History and Culture at the College of Charleston.
Gullah is a Creole language -- a language that develops when people who can't understand each other remain in long contact, as the slaves did with their captors. Linguists say there are structural differences between Gullah and English that justify it being considered a separate language.
A New Testament in Gullah was published two years ago, to the delight of people like Carolyn Jabulile White, who grew up Gullah and now entertains by telling stories in Gullah to groups and visitors.
"It's nice to see it in a Bible because when you go to the funerals and to the weddings and the gatherings on the islands, you heard it all the time," White said. "I'm glad it's done, because when I'm gone, my children, my grandchildren, those behind will know we certainly had a very rich heritage and culture as a people."
Amanda Manning, of Carolina Food Pros, helps tourists learn about Gullah through some of her culinary tours that stop at restaurants that offer Gullah cuisine.
"Okra, eggplant, peanuts and watermelon were all brought here during the slave trade," she said. "The African slaves grew these things and were very familiar with them."
Indeed, she said, much of what we know as Southern cooking really comes from the slaves.
"The Africans were the cooks," Manning said. "They cooked in their own slave cabins and they cooked in the big houses. The truth is most of them taught most of us how to cook."
About an hour's drive south of Charleston, nestled amid oaks shrouded by Spanish moss on St. Helena is the Penn Center with its museum, site of one of the first schools in the nation for freed slaves. A National Historic Landmark, the center's mission is to preserve the Gullah culture.
A Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor running from North Carolina to Florida was designated by Congress last year. It is the only one of 37 heritage corridors in the nation to focus on the experience of blacks. An International African-American History Museum is also planned in Charleston.
Back on Brown's bus, Ron McMahon, an engineer from Saratoga Springs, New York, and his wife were taking the Gullah Tour with their friends, Linda and Gary Davis, of The Villages, Florida.
"When we travel, we like to find out a little bit about the history and the people," said Linda Davis, taking the tour for the first time.
"It's a very different perspective. It's not the history book stuff you learn about Charleston," said Ron McMahon, who also took Brown's tour two years ago. "It's not talked about. It's not written about. You hardly know anything about it until you get here and talk to people."
Part of that is because the Gullah themselves, for decades, tried not to draw attention to their background.
"There was never an intent to speak Gullah. There was never an attempt to preserve the culture and tradition," Brown said.
"I was born and raised on my grandparents' farm," he added. "We had our horse but, hey, don't you know we'd rather have a tractor? We had no running water, we had a pump. So what some people call culture and heritage and tradition, that was hard work."
Now, though, the work is not as hard and Brown is doing what he loves.
"Pay me at the end of the tour," he tells a lady getting on the bus. "If you don't enjoy it, you don't pay."
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

New Noah's Ark ready to sail

2007-04-30T09:10:00.000-07:00

SCHAGEN, Netherlands (AP) -- The massive central door in the side of Noah's Ark was thrown open Saturday -- you could say it was the first time in 4,000 years -- drawing a crowd of curious pilgrims and townsfolk to behold the wonder.
Of course, it's only a replica of the biblical Ark, built by Dutch creationist Johan Huibers as a testament to his faith in the literal truth of the Bible.
Reckoning by the old biblical measurements, Johan's fully functional ark is 150 cubits long, 30 cubits high and 20 cubits wide. That's two-thirds the length of a football field and as high as a three-story house. (Watch a tour of the replica Ark )
Life-size models of giraffes, elephants, lions, crocodiles, zebras, bison and other animals greet visitors as they arrive in the main hold.
"The design is by my wife, Bianca," Huibers said. "She didn't really want me to do this at all, but she said if you're going to anyway, it should look like this."
A contractor by trade, Huibers built the ark of cedar and pine -- biblical scholars debate exactly what the wood used by Noah would have been.
Huibers did the work mostly with his own hands, using modern tools and occasional help from his son Roy. Construction began in May 2005.
On the uncovered top deck -- not quite ready in time for the opening -- will come a petting zoo, with baby lambs and chickens, and goats. And one camel.
Visitors on the first day were stunned.
"It's past comprehension," said Mary Louise Starosciak, who happened to be bicycling by with her husband while on vacation when they saw the ark looming over the local landscape.
"I knew the story of Noah, but I had no idea the boat would have been so big."
In fact, Noah's Ark as described in the Bible was five times larger than Johan's Ark.
But that still leaves enough space near the keel for a 50-seat film theater, where kids can watch the segment of the Disney film "Fantasia" that tells the story of Noah.
Another exhibit shows water cascading down on a model of the ark. Exhibits on the third level show ancient tools and old-fashioned barrels, exotic stuffed animals, and a wax model of an exhausted Noah reclining on a bed in the forecastle.
Genesis says Noah kept seven pairs of most domesticated animals and one breeding pair of all other creatures, plus his wife, three sons and three daughters-in-law together on the boat for almost a year while the world was deluged.
Perhaps it was only logical that the replica project would be the brainchild of a Dutchman: Fear of flooding is ingrained in the country's collective consciousness by its water-drenched history.
Lois Poppema, visiting from California, said she thought the Netherlands was exactly the right place for an ark.
"Just a few weeks ago we saw Al Gore on television ... saying that all Holland will be flooded" by rising sea levels, she said.
"I don't think the man who made this ever expected that global warming will become (such an important) issue -- and suddenly having the ark would be meaningful in the middle of Holland."
Under sunny skies Saturday, Huibers said he wasn't worried about another biblical flood, since according to Genesis, the rainbow is the sign of God's promise never to flood the world again. But he does worry that recent events such as the flooding of New Orleans could be seen as a portent of the end of time.
Huibers said he hopes the project will renew interest in Christianity in the Netherlands, where churchgoing has fallen dramatically in the past 50 years. He also plans to visit major cities in Belgium and Germany.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Panda cub to get two more years at National Zoo

2007-04-29T06:51:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Chinese officials on Tuesday granted Tai Shan, the National Zoo's popular giant panda cub, an extra two years at the Smithsonian Institution park with his parents.
Under a panda loan agreement with China, any cub born at the National Zoo would be returned for breeding sometime after its second birthday. Tai Shan turns 2 on July 9 but will remain with his mother Mei Xiang and father Tian Tian at least until 2009.
Chinese Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong presented the zoo with a giant green laminated passport to extend Tai Shan's stay.
"As an envoy of goodwill from the Chinese people and a symbol of friendly cooperation between China and the United States, Tai Shan will continue to bring more happiness and delight to the American people," Wenzhong said.
The cub, now 125 pounds, took a few bites of a celebratory "cake," made of his favorite orange Popsicle and chopped fruit, before the cake rolled down a hill. He soon had both paws on it again and was chomping away.
Susan Roswell, a Baltimore resident, said she was dreading the day Tai Shan would have to leave the zoo.
An estimated 2.25 million visitors have gone to the zoo to see the cub since his public debut in December 2005.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

High Museum unlocks 'Gates of Paradise'

2007-04-28T09:17:00.000-07:00

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- When the artists of Florence, Italy, swung open the doors of the Baptistery of the Duomo (cathedral) now known as the "Gates of Paradise" in 1452, a new world was waiting on the other side.
Twenty feet tall and weighing three tons, this single work is considered the gateway to the Italian Renaissance, an upheaval so fundamental to how we see our world and think of ourselves that centuries later no Western culture is left untouched by it. ( See an audio slide show with curator Gary Radke )
Legend has it that Michelangelo himself is the one who dubbed these doors the "Gates of Paradise."
And as the High Museum of Art opens its exhibition of three of the doors' 10 gilt panels on Saturday, the conservation effort that brought them here will have lasted 25 years -- just two years less than it took to make the work itself. ( See a gallery of images from the set-up of the High Museum's exhibition )
Once the High showing closes on July 15, the exhibition travels to the Chicago Institute of Art and the Metropolitan Museum in New York.
The panels -- depicting the biblical stories of "Adam and Eve", "Jacob and Esau", and "David and Goliath" -- then will be moved back to Florence to be reassembled in the original doorway for permanent, hermetically sealed display at the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo. They are expected never to travel again.
Exhibition curator Gary Radke of Syracuse University says that the special alloy of bronze developed in the 15th-century workshop of Lorenzo Ghiberti for the doors had resulted in a corrosion that had dulled the dull surfaces of the square relief-sculptures and other gilt ornaments on the doors.
The danger in trying to reclaim such works, of course, is that chemical treatments can damage the bond between the gold and bronze and take away more priceless, irreplaceable material.
So it's thanks to a specially developed laser-and-distilled-water technique that what you now can see on display is not a restoration -- not new gold leaf added, or reconstructed bronze modeling -- but the same metals Ghiberti worked with himself.
"Think about it," Radke says. "These pieces are on the doors of the Baptistery in the center of downtown Florence, where you have people of all important eras walking by. People like Michelangelo, people like Donatello. These doors are really the school of the Florentine art of the mid-15th century. They're there, all day, every day, at night, under the moonlight, under the sunlight.
"Think of how many people have been through that piazza and have seen these doors. I remember them being relatively clean -- I went as a student, then went as a newlywed and thought what was on the work was dirt.
"We found out it wasn't just dirt but was actually chemical reactions between the surfaces of the gold and the bronze."
The genius of the master metalworkers of Florence had caught up with their work at last and intervention was required to save them.
Ghiberti ("gee-BARE-tee," pronounced with a hard "G") is, in a way, the artist behind the masters. Born in 1378, he won a competition to create the north doors of the Baptistery at a time when Radke says Florence was spending more money on its cultural expansion than its military endeavors.
By the time that commission had led to the "Gates of Paradise" job, Ghiberti's workshop had become the place in which Donatello, Masolino, Uccello and other key artists of the era would be trained. Ghiberti died in 1455 -- 20 years before the birth of Michelangelo.
One-time U.S. tour
Now housing the reliefs in special transparent oxygen-free cases -- so no humidity can generate a galvanic reaction among the salts in the metals -- the display at the High Museum is designed not only to give you a very close look at three of the 31.5-inch square panels themselves, but also a sense for context.
Patrizio Ostricresi of the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence has worked closely with the chief conservatory on the project, Annamaria Giusti. While overseeing the assembly of the protective cases for the priceless pieces in Atlanta, he points to the "David and Goliath" panel's patches of brown that show through the gold.
"Look at this," says Ostricresi. "The mountain in this scene, the helmets" on the centurions in the crowd scene, "and the David, himself. You see how the gold has been rubbed off? Removed? I will show you why."
He walks over to the full-size photographic replica of the doors the High has produced for the display. "You see, the 'David' panel was placed by Ghiberti here, at the bottom of the door. This is why the Florentines could take the gold. It was low. Within reach. But if you look at the 'Adam and Eve' panel? Perfect. It has lived for 500 years up high on the doors. Too high to reach."
And when High Director Michael Shapiro looks at the "Adam and Eve" panel, what he notices is a feat of astonishing relief work. "This angel's wing," he points out, "comes right out of the piece."
Sure enough, there's light behind the central part of the wing on one of the many angels feathering the skies over Ghiberti's glowing Eden.
Shapiro has become known in the industry for his liaisons with European art centers. Still in its first of three years, the Louvre Atlanta series of exhibitions currently is on view, its latest additions the "Decorative Arts of the Kings" show and the recent arrival of "Et in Arcadia" painting of Nicolas Poussin. ( Read more about the High's decorative arts show from the Louvre )
And in 2003, Shapiro brought Verrocchio's "David" to the museum, the first effort in the particular laser conservation technique deployed in the "Gates of Paradise" reclamation.
As might be expected, that effort in conservation involves the international cooperation and study of many experts. The High convened a special workshop in February 2006 in Florence with funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (which also underwrote the show's catalog) and resulting in a commission to have the digital-art library ARTstor create a major photographic study of the "Gates."
The completion of the restoration of the bronze doors has been facilitated by special funding from a non-profit organization, the Friends of Florence.

Taking the kids: To the Galapagos Islands

2007-04-26T10:47:00.000-07:00

(Tribune Media Services) -- The teen was having a fit. He was hungry, and his mother had left to go to work. His father couldn't calm him down and finally gave up trying. The teen stomped around, squawking. Sound familiar?
Except we're not talking about humans here, but rather birds -- a juvenile Nazca booby a few feet away from me on an island in the Galapagos that is home to more than half a million birds.
The bay we're anchored in -- Darwin Bay at Tower Island (also known as Genovesa Island) -- is in fact a caldera formed by an ancient volcano, and we walk around looking at more birds than I've ever seen in one place: red-footed boobies, blue-footed boobies, gulls and frigates, which ignore us just like teens often do. We hike up steep steps to the rim of the caldera and watch the Nazca boobies' mating dance -- the male whistles to try to attract a female.
All week, as we cruise the Galapagos Islands off the coast of Ecuador, we joke about the parallels between the amazing creatures we encounter here and human family behavior.
We pose with giant tortoises that ignore our presence, and we try not to disturb the marine iguanas sunning themselves on the rocks. Sea lions swim circles around us in the water. We hike over black lava fields and snorkel with sea turtles and stingrays. I feel like we've stumbled into an episode of "Nova."
This wouldn't be everyone's first choice for an expensive vacation. There are no beach chairs or tiki bars on these protected beaches, where tourists may only venture with a guide. But this is an adventure we'll never forget, starting with those sea lions we spotted on San Cristobal Island, snoozing on rowboats as if they owned the place.
Along with three other families, we've signed on for a weeklong cruise organized by Seattle-based Wildland Adventures (http://www.wildland.com/), a member of the Trusted Adventures consortium of travel companies (http://www.trustedadventures.com/).
Our home for the week is an 83-foot boat called Flamingo 1, operated by Ecoventura (http://www.ecoventura.com/). It's comfortable but certainly not luxurious. We're surprised that we can find room for all of our gear in the small cabins.
There are perhaps 85 tour boats in the Galapagos Islands, from a 100-passenger cruise ship to small boats that sleep four or six people. Some of the tour boats are yachts, including one designed to replicate Charles Darwin's ship, the HMS Beagle. Ours seems just the right size, sleeping 20 passengers. It has a crew of 11, including two experienced naturalists, Harry Jimenez and Orlando Romero, who make every excursion an adventure -- even for the 8-year-old twin boys on board.
Captain Manolo Martinez has five children at home, he tells us over dinner. He invites a different family to dinner each night. We're a varied group: my husband Andy; 22-year-old Matt; 20-year-old Reggie, our college junior; and 15-year-old Melanie. There are also the Peets, from Seattle, with 12-year-old Summer and 9-year-old Graham; and the Strausses, from Bethesda, Maryland, with 8-year-old twins Joshua and Daniel.
Then there is Subodh Das, of Lexington, Kentucky, who is here with his 35-year-old daughter Mona Mullin, friend Diane Moore and 25-year-old son Som Das. They try to take an exotic trip every year, Subodh says, his children joking that they're happy to travel with dad since he's paying. "And I'd rather leave them memories than money," adds Subodh, a divorced engineer.
Many families we meet seem to agree with that philosophy. These remote islands off the coast of Ecuador, where the wildlife (especially the giant tortoises) inspired Charles Darwin's work, have emerged at the top of many families' travel wish lists.
Where else can you snorkel with sea lions or watch a sea lion nurse her pup? Even at a cost of more than $10,000 for a family of four, adventure companies such as Wildland Adventures, Austin-Lehman Adventures (http://www.austinlehman.com/), Abercrombie & Kent (http://www.abercrombiekent.com/) and Thomson Family Adventures (http://www.familyadventures.com/) report increasing interest in Galapagos trips designed for families.
"We're not the kind of family that likes to go and sit on a beach," said Sam Peet.
"Definitely not," confirms 12-year-old Summer Peet as she races off to splash in the surf, sea lions lazing nearby.
The beach where we've stopped to swim and snorkel is full of sea lions -- mamas and their nursing pups, frisky adolescents, fathers marking their territory. Every day is a different island and a different adventure. We see Sally Lightfoot crabs, bright red against the black lava rocks; great blue herons; penguins (yes, there is a warm-water species here); and even a short-eared owl, which is small and is apparently the only owl on the planet to hunt food during the day (no predators for the owls to worry about). Frigates hitch a ride on the mast of our boat, much to the kids' delight.
Before dinner each night, the naturalists tell us what we'll do the following day. Important clothing details -- hiking shoes vs. flip-flops, shorts vs. swimsuits -- are discussed. It's nice to leave all the planning and cooking to others. We do have to keep track of our own snorkel gear and wetsuits (provided by the boat) and our beach towels. That's not as easy as it sounds with the gear in identical mesh bags.
And because we're so close to the equator, we see stars in both the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere at night. They are so bright. I can't believe we're here in the Pacific Ocean at the center of the globe.
"You may not remember the food, but you'll remember everything we saw," said Som Dos.
"This has really exceeded expectations," said Steve Strauss, whose only worry is that his two boys aren't old enough to fully appreciate this trip.
But even in paradise, kids get hot and tired, siblings bicker, teens want to get away from their parents, the boat rocks too much some nights, and the food gets tiresome. It's all part of the adventure, we tell each other.
On a small boat like this, everyone must make an effort to get along. It's not as if you can go elsewhere and get away from anyone, whether your own family or others on board. There's no entertainment except that which we supply ourselves. When we're not hiking, snorkeling or exploring, we congregate on the top deck with cushioned chaise lounges, shaded from the sun, to read, talk or take a snooze -- just like the sea lions. The kids play Scrabble and cards. The crewmembers do all they can to make us happy.
"Remember, you're in paradise," the naturalists keep reminding us.
How can we forget?
(For more Taking the Kids, visit http://www.takingthekids.com/, where Eileen Ogintz welcomes your questions and comments.)

Thailand Guides - Kanchanaburi

2007-04-26T10:27:00.000-07:00

The third largest province of Thailand, Kanchanaburi offers both natural and historical attractions. It is easily accessible with 3 hour drive from Bangkok. For Thais, it has been known as much a destination for adventure holidays as a place to learn about Thai history.
Overview
Kanchanaburi is a green land. It sits on mountainous terrains that are covered by verdant forests and two big rivers running through the city. Waterfalls, national parks (one of them is accredited as UNESCO world heritage), historical sites and tranquil riverside landscape are the main attractions. It has a frontier with Myanmar to the west with a mountain range as its borderline.
Attractions
Main attractions in the city revolve around war memorials of World War II. The most visited place of all is the Bridge over the River Kwai. Built in 1943 by war prisoners and conscripted labourers, the black iron bridge spanning over Kwai Yai River is a part of the railway that the Japanese army aimed to use as a line to transport supplies to their frontline soldiers in Myanmar during World War II. More than 150,000 people died during the construction of the railway. The original railway, particularly the section that perches on the cliffs, is still in use today while the bridge was destroyed during the battle and rebuilt shortly after the end of the war.
War cemeteries and museums can be found in both in and outside Kanchanaburi city. The farthest of all is the Hell Fire Pass Memorial Museum about 80 kilometres north of the city centre. Built by the Australian Government in 1998, it has exhibition of contemporary photographs, maps, models, illustrations, memorabilia from the war and a 7-minute audio-visual presentation. It is located on the hillside that has a waling trail that allows visitors to walk to the Hellfire Pass. The name derived from flickering bonfires illuminated at night for Australian war prisoners who were forced to work all night to build the railway. The museum is open daily from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is free.
Adventurers enjoy plenty of activities in Sai Yok National Park. The 300-square-kilometre park has caves, waterfalls (some of them are known as the most beautiful in the country), rivers and lush forests. Besides bamboo rafting, which is the most popular recreational activity here, you can do trekking and camping. Bungalows and resorts are available near the park. Situated 104 kilometres from Kanchanaburi town centre, the park can be reached by boat and car.
However, the most visited national park in Kanchanaburi is the Erawan National Park. Its close proximity to the city (65 kilometres from Kanchanaburi city) allows Thai weekenders get in touch with the nature. The park has mixed deciduous forests, lots of wildlife, waterways and the Erawan Waterfall, which is one of the most famous waterfalls in Thailand.

For those who have a few more days to spend, the border town of Sangkhla Buri is definitely worth your visit. This mountainous town is about 220 kilometres toward the Thailand – Myanmar border. It has a countryside of scenic valleys that are home of hill tribe villagers. Active tours such as trekking on elephant backs and rafting can be done here. The town is well known for the wooden Mon bridge and the Three Pagoda Pass. The former is the 850-metre-long wooden bridge across the Sonkaria River link the town to Myanmar. It has a fantastic viewpoint of tributary of three rivers. The latter is the miniature pagodas which are the war memorial from the 19th century war between Thais and Burmese.
Prasat Mueang Sing Historical Park presents a historical significance not only for Thais but also neighbouring Cambodians. The park is the site of a city ruin which is believed to be an outpost of Khmer empire during the Angkor period 800 years ago.
Located 43 kilometres out of town, skeletal remains, artifacts, religious statuary and pottery dating back some 2,000 years have been unearthed – it indicates a thriving community that inhabited here between the 12th and 14th centuries. The park is open daily from 9 a.m. – 4.30 p.m.
Activities and Events
Kanchanaburi is considered an adventure destination. Trekking, kayaking and rafting are popular activities you can do all year round. Most of them happen near Kwai River or in the national parks.
River Kwai Bridge Week is the biggest event of Kanchanaburi. The 10 day event is held annually from late November to early December to commemorate people who lost their lives during the World War II. Activities in this event include memorial services, historical and archaeological exhibitions, cultural performances, nostalgic train rides on World War II vintage steam locomotives and a spectacular light and sound presentation re-enacting the bridge’s Second World War history.
Time to Visit
Kanchanaburi can be visited all year round. Rain in September and October makes the forests greener – the best time for nature trips. However, tourists prefer to come here in the cool season that starts from November to February. The province’s biggest festival ‘River Kwai Bridge’ is held in December.

Bangkok's new mini hotels

2007-04-25T10:47:00.000-07:00

Arun Residence
The look: Hidden on a small residential street in the Old City, this quaint four-story hotel abuts the Chao Phraya river and offers views of Wat Arun, the 19th-century Temple of the Dawn, from its open lobby.
The scene: Diplomats and Thai professionals arrive at the Deck, the hotel's bi-level French-Thai restaurant, for cocktails at sunset, then stay for flavorful dishes such as rice vermicelli with prawns and chiles.
The rooms: Four guest rooms -- each named for a local flower -- have futon beds and glass French doors. The only suite has a private terrace.
The amenities: Arun's space may be spare, but its price can't be beat; we don't mind living without an alarm clock and in-room safe when there's such a genial staff -- and those refreshing glasses of freshly squeezed mango juice upon arrival.
Dirty secret: Call ahead for directions -- most taxi drivers have never heard of the Arun or the small soi on which it's situated.
Nice surprise: The daybreak wake-up calls: roosters crowing, the swish of water taxis and river barges, and the sound of prayers rising from nearby wats.
36--38 Soi Pratoo Nok Yoong, Maharat Rd., Rattanakosin Island; 66-2/221-9158; http://www.arunresidence.com/; doubles from $80.
Baan Thai Wellness Retreat
The look: Five 18th-century teak houses transported from Ayutthaya -- the ancient Thai capital -- create a blissfully shaded 21-room hideaway in the center of the city.
The scene: Fitness mavens and holistic spa-goers love the package deal, which includes meals, a daily spa treatment, and an in-room Thai cooking lesson.
The rooms: Opt for a spa suite with an outdoor massage table, full kitchen and sitting area, or stay above the open-air yoga pavilion and unwind to the soothing sounds of afternoon vinyasas.
The amenities: Choose your spa treatments from a full slate of services. The 50-minute Divine Shirodhara rubdown is thought to cure headaches and reenergize the senses.
Dirty secret: We love the healthful spa-style Thai cuisine, but give yourself time to find the restaurant: the labyrinth of walkways can be more frustrating than relaxing.
Nice surprise: Traditional Thai art is displayed everywhere, from the ornately carved entrance gate to the stone Buddha sculptures beside the three curved pools.
7 Soi Sukhumvit 32; 66-2/258-5403; http://www.thebaanthai.com/; three-night packages from $770 per person, double.
The Eugenia
The look: Eastern colonial grandeur meets African game-lodge chic at this old-world hotel. Animal skins and trophies decorate the walls, brass light fixtures are imported from India, and the smiling staff stands at the ready.
The scene: Media tycoons and local fashionistas check out the turquoise pool from the adjacent bar and restaurant.
The rooms: Most of the 12 rooms have four-poster beds and antique wooden desks. Framed vintage maps adorn the periwinkle walls.
The amenities: The Thai-style turndown service includes a fragrant jasmine candle burning on the nightstand.
Dirty secret: Aluminum and copper bathtubs are fancy but work better in theory than in practice -- keep a few towels on the floor to prevent a dangerous fall.
Nice surprise: Forget the rickety tuk-tuks; chauffeurs will take guests anywhere in Bangkok in the hotel's eclectic vintage fleet, which includes a 1970 Daimler limousine, a 1958 Mercedes Ponton and a 1965 S-Type Jaguar.
267 Soi Sukhumvit 31, North Klongtan, Wattana; 66-2/259-9011; http://www.theeugenia.com/; doubles from $165.
Luxx
The look: Echoing the modern-Oriental style of the nearby Metropolitan hotel, the newest arrival off Silom Road is white-hot, with a glossy bi-level entrance and 13 silver and slate-accented rooms.
The scene: Gen Xers stretch out on the lobby couches to read Lonely Planet guidebooks and Australian fashion magazines while using the free Wi-Fi.
The rooms: Request room No. 12, a junior suite with sliding glass doors, a state-of-the-art sound system, and outsize sofa (only $120).
The amenities: We love the iconic teak-barrel soaking tubs and waterfall showers.
Dirty secret: Room service could have been snappier, to avoid soggy eggs and toast.
Nice surprise: Hit the simple Thai massage parlor next door, or the open-air market just a two-minute walk east on Surawong Road.
6/11 Decho Rd., Bangruk; 66-2/635-8800; http://www.staywithluxx.com/; doubles from $90.
Planning a Caribbean getaway? Don't miss Travel + Leisure's new Ultimate Caribbean Hotel Guide.
Copyright 2006 American Express Publishing Corporation . All rights reserved.

Hawaii hotels offering deals, perks to lure visitors

2007-04-25T10:31:00.000-07:00

HONOLULU, Hawaii (AP) -- Visitors to Hawaii are paying record-high hotel rates despite a sharp drop in hotel occupancy this year. The softening has prompted many hotels to offer deals and incentives -- from complimentary surfboard rentals to free room upgrades -- months before they normally do.
State tourism liaison Marsha Wienert said such specials are traditionally offered during the spring, or the so-called "shoulder" period, but hotels started advertising them as early as mid-January this year. She said Hawaii tourists can expect "added value," such as a fifth night free, a meal or an activity.
The cooling comes after 2 1/2 robust years for the hotel industry, which has benefited from Americans leery of traveling abroad.
"Everybody realized over the past couple years that this is a phenomenon and there was going to be a right-sizing occurring within the marketplace. It was a matter of when," Wienert said.
Hotel occupancy in Hawaii fell to 77 percent for the first two months of the year compared with 84 percent for the same period in 2006, according to the latest report by Hospitality Advisors LLC.
The statewide average rate, however, surged 8 percent to $201, which is among the highest in the nation.
In February, revenue per available room, a key industry measure known as "RevPar," dipped 3 percent to $161, the first decline since August 2002.
"On a 10-year basis, we're having a perfectly fine first quarter. We're just a little disappointed because the previous two years were so hot," said Barry Wallace, executive vice president of hospitality at Outrigger Enterprises, which manages 30 properties statewide.
Outrigger, like other chains, often sets rates for its 9,000 rooms in Hawaii a year in advance for wholesalers. So adjusting the rates is not as simple as a highway motel changing the sign and turning on the "vacancy" light.
Wallace said the company is engaging in selective discounting to certain segments, such as Hawaii residents, in hopes of a short-term boost.
Hyatt, which operates three resorts in Hawaii, is also trying to stimulate some short-term activity by offering spring packages that include complimentary room upgrades, free breakfast or tickets to a luau show.
"We deploy them when we see little pockets where we need some help," said Frank Lavey, vice president and managing director of the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa. "The second quarter has not improved as much as we had hoped it would, but it's certainly more promising than the first one was."
Hilton is running several programs to target the "soft periods," including a 10,000 Hilton HHonors bonus points offer and discounts for members of AAA and AARP, said Jon Conching, regional vice president of sales and marketing for Hilton Hawaii.
The company is also offering a spring deal for Hawaii residents that includes a free surfboard rental or discounted surf lesson.
Hotel consultant Joseph Toy, chief executive of Hospitality Advisors, said a number of hoteliers predicted the softening and prepared with contingent marketing plans, which are now being rolled out.
Toy said hotels should still have a good year, but not as good as they experienced in the past few years.
"I don't think the party is over, but I think we are definitely in a softer market and definitely past our peak," he said.
Many hotel operators say bookings are strong for the summer season and they will not need to offer many perks.
While the Japanese market continues to slump, a substantial decline this year was tourists from the East Coast. Fewer airlines are flying directly from the East Coast to Hawaii and more people are again considering foreign destinations, such as Europe or the Caribbean.
"Hawaii competes with the world now," Wienert said. "As people get more comfortable with flying, especially international, I think you will see travel patterns changing a little bit.
"However, we hope we're still perceived as foreign in nature, but domestic in all that we are and do," she said.
Some say fewer tourists and higher rates may not necessarily be a bad thing for Hawaii.
Walter Jamieson, chairman of the University of Hawaii's School of Travel Industry Management, said if Hawaii is sincere about attracting high-end tourists and not going for volume, it has to accept the fact that the numbers may be down.
He said it's very encouraging if the hotels can continue to charge higher rates.
"That says something about the quality of experience and perceived value," he said. "I'm not one that panics when visitor numbers go down."
Price sensitivity may also be an issue, but many in Hawaii's tourism industry don't believe so.
Hawaii is the most expensive state in the nation in which to vacation, according to a survey by AAA last year. The average cost for food and lodging for a family of four in Hawaii was $559 a day, more than double the national average and more than $200 higher than the next closest state, Nevada.
Jamieson said Hawaii hotels are still competitive with mainland hotels.
"You've got the beach at the front door, and within a short drive, you can be in a rain forest or watching world-class surfers," he said. "I'm one that's fairly bullish about the destination in terms of what we have to offer."
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Puglia: Italy's heel has it all -- except hordes of tourists

2007-04-24T19:41:00.000-07:00

POLIGNANO A MARE, Italy (AP) -- Puglia has some of the brightest seas, most diverse art and architecture, most mouthwatering peasant cuisine and kindest people in all of Italy -- including strangers who will go out of their way to lead you to one after another stunning beach on impossibly lapis-lazuli waters.
Puglia is the heel to Italy's boot, and after two weeks spent touring the region, I felt grateful that charter airlines don't disgorge hordes of tourists here. These are just some of the reasons:
Brilliant seas
"I said put it back, this is a natural park," a stern father told his son. He was pointing to the octopus that sat with protruding eyes on the boy's shoulders after being plucked from the crystalline waters at Natural Maritime Reserve of Torre Guaceto, just north of Brindisi.
With more than 500 miles of coast on two seas, the Adriatic and the Ionian, Puglia has all sorts of gorgeous beaches. For white limestone cliffs spotted with the deep green of gnarled pine trees, try the southernmost tip of Salento.
At opposite ends of this peninsula, I swam in the fingerlike cove of Porto Badisco, where legend has it that Italy's mythological founder, Aeneas, landed, and I dove even deeper into history at Portoselvaggio, where remains of Neanderthal men were found.
A few miles north, it's all about sandy expanses, like Punta della Suina, where the setting sun turns the transparent water pink.
But it's Torre Guaceto that gets my gold medal -- for the baby-powder white sand, the schools of silvery fish flitting from reef-like rock formations in pools of turquoise water, and the scent of pine needles drifting from the pristine forest that borders the beach.
Living history
No other image says Puglia better than the trullo, a rural home that's essentially a whitewashed teepee of small limestone slabs stacked without mortar, with a cone surmounted by pagan or religious symbols. They are scattered among olive groves and huge prickly pear cacti in the Valle d'Itria, inland in a triangle between Bari, Taranto and Brindisi.
Of unknown origin and unique to Puglia, they date at least from the Middle Ages. Most are still inhabited and more than 1,400 huddle in Alberobello. The town might feel a bit too touristy for Puglia, with its souvenir shops exhibiting plastic trulli, but it only takes a look at the clotheslines in a trullo backyard to realize that real life goes on in this primitive fairytale place.
Farther inland is the Murge, scorched highlands grooved by canyons where, in the Middle Ages, people built cave dwellings as homes and churches when they fled from pirates.
The most famous dwellings of all are the Sassi in Matera, which is just across the state line in the Basilicata region. Below the modern town and built on the side of a steep ravine, two whole neighborhoods of single-room cave dwellings and rock-hewn, frescoed churches were inhabited first by hermits and then by families until the 1960s. While some are now trendy hotels and restaurants, they still look so authentically ancient that Mel Gibson filmed scenes here for "The Passion of the Christ."
Cities as art
Art is not a masterpiece in a museum but a whole downtown in Valle d'Itria cities like Locorotondo, or, by the coast, in Bari, Ostuni and Lecce.
Locorotondo is a round nest of a village where everything is white except for the bright splashes of red flowers that overtake its wrought-iron balconies. Ostuni is even more blinding, though a sea breeze caresses you as you hike up and down its steep inclines and marvel at the sculpted baroque portals on its whitewashed houses.
But you haven't seen Baroque in all its theatrical, indulgent, luxuriant excess until you've spent an evening among the wreaths of fruit and the pinup women sculpted on the golden limestone churches and palaces of Lecce.
By comparison, the medieval downtown of Bari is austere, centered on the Basilica di San Nicola, built between the 10th and 12th centuries to honor its patron saint (yes, it's the real St. Nicholas, "Santa Claus").
The busy port city is trying to overcome its dangerous reputation, but the only person that chased us in the narrow alleys was a grocery store clerk with a cold bottle of water, concerned that ours had become too warm as friends and I waited for another clerk to make our sandwiches.
Art gems
Medieval masterpieces are everywhere on the eastern coast, beginning with the inscrutable Castel del Monte. We know the octagonal castle was built by Emperor Frederick II, one of the most powerful men in the Middle Ages, in the early 13th century. But nobody quite knows why.
Isolated on a small hill, it lacks both the architecture and the location for a military fort, and it's way too imposing to be a pleasure palace. The most evocative hypothesis is that it was an intricate symbol, built around the magic intersection of astronomy, mathematics and the Christian faith.
Traveling south, the Romanesque cathedrals at Trani and Otranto seem to rise from the sea. The latter's floor is covered by a mosaic from 1165 representing the tree of life, a hopeful message in the site of a massacre -- a chapel houses the remains of the 800 citizens who were slaughtered in the church where they had fled an assault by Islamic armies in 1481.
Puglia, like most of southern Italy, has been conquered over and over by northern and Mediterranean armies since Greek colonizers established flourishing city-states on its coasts. More than 2,500 years later, their heirs still speak Griko, a dialect of archaic Greek, in the inland Grecia Salentina.
Octopus to figs
I'll admit that the powerfully alcoholic red Salentine wine played a role in my dancing the pizzica pizzica, the local version of tarantella, one night in the streets of tiny Serrano.
But the food that went with it at the farmers' fair was just as worthy of celebrating, including Puglia's staple, orecchiette (ear-shaped pasta), as well as horse meat steaks, ciceri e tria (handmade tagliatelle with garbanzo beans), fave e cicoria (pureed fava beans and chicory), cakes spilling over with figs.
Meat, grilled or cured, reigns inland, nowhere more spectacularly than at Cisternino in trulli land. At night, the absurdly numerous butchers of this whitewashed village set up tiny tables on the sidewalks and cook to order whatever you select from their marble counters, preceded by minuscule black olives, homemade cheeses and salami.
Seafood, including delicacies like octopus and sea urchins, rule the coast in hole-in-the-wall trattorie like Nonna Tetti in Lecce. I had a hard time finishing pignata di polpo there, when the whole octopus was brought to me in a clay pot -- especially since I had already had mozzarella di bufala, fried vegetables, and linguine with mussels.
I needed similar endurance when gratitude compelled me to start my last dinner in Puglia with a humble pizza margherita. This must be the only region in Italy where the tomato-and-mozzarella staple of generations of students and workers still only costs about $2.50.
Puglia is Italy's top olive oil producer, so, for 660 miles back to northern Italy, I carried a three-gallon tank of thick olive oil in front of my car seat, sheltering it from the sun that for two weeks hadn't stopped blazing and that pervades every facet of life here.
I kept thinking about a verse from an Italian poem that was used on an old tourism ad for southern Italy. Roughly translated, it was something like this: "No earthly hope can give my heart peace as much as the certainty of sun that overflows from your sky."
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Cruise ship fuel threatens isle

2007-04-23T23:10:00.000-07:00

ATHENS, Greece (Reuters) -- Hundreds of tons of oil trapped in the tanks of a sunken cruise ship near the Greek island of Santorini must be pumped out immediately to avert an environmental disaster, Greenpeace said on Tuesday.
The Sea Diamond, owned by Louis Cruise Lines, sank on April 6 a day after running aground off the island, forcing more than 1,500 passengers and crew to evacuate it. A French tourist and his daughter are missing and feared drowned.
Several special vessels have been battling a limited oil spill for 12 days but fears of a much bigger spill grow as about 400 tons of fuel oil remain inside the ship.
"The most serious concern is the fuel inside the cruise ship," said Nikos Charalambidis, director of the Greek branch of the environmental group Greenpeace. "This spill we are dealing with now is minor, just some oil and other fluids but not from the fuel tanks."
"Too much time has been wasted and not a day more should be lost. Over 400 tons of oil in the sea would mean 70 square kilometers of oil spill and pollution along 25 kilometers of coastline," he told Reuters.
Santorini welcomes hundreds of thousands of tourists each year and is one of the country's most spectacular and upscale tourist destinations.
Islanders said the current spill had already shifted direction, avoiding floating dams and reaching the coast below the picturesque village of Oia. It has yet not reached Santorini's best beaches, lined with volcanic black sand, on the eastern side of the island.
"The oil has reached the coast in some areas," a Santorini port official told Reuters. "It is not extensive yet and efforts are being made to clean it off the rocks manually."
The official said the island was still awaiting the government's plans for pumping the remaining fuel from the ship.
"We are now using floating dams to try and control the spill and we are waiting to hear what the plan will be to get the oil out from the ship," he said.
The country's merchant marine ministry was expected to discuss environmental protection plans with interested parties later on Tuesday.
The government has been criticized for being too quick to praise the operation to rescue hundreds of American, European and Australian tourists from the Sea Diamond, only to later declare two people missing and see the ship sink.
The cruise company has attributed the sinking to human error, without naming a culprit. A Greek prosecutor charged the captain and five other crew members with negligence. If found guilty, they could face suspended prison sentences.
Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

While tourists sleep in

2007-04-23T19:54:00.000-07:00

(Tribune Media Services) -- Throughout Europe -- on medieval ramparts, in churches, produce markets, alpine farmsteads and Riviera villages -- the local culture thrives while tourists sleep.
I'll never forget waking up with the locals on the Italian Riviera in the off-season. The morning sun kisses the tip of Vernazza's bell tower and greets a sleepy village. There's a refreshingly damp cool in the air and a rare Italian silence. Then a distant rooster crows, "Chicchirichi!" as they say in Italian, at the modern world.
The harbor square is quiet, littered with calloused little boats. The lady whose husband was out all night fishing beckons me to her fish-filled wheelbarrow. Sorting through the wheelbarrow like it's a sale bin at the mall, she introduces me to the "frutti di mare" -- tiny red snapper, electric eel, big octopus and pesce azzurro ("blue fish"). That's the term for miscellaneous fish -- anything from anchovies to tuna.
Picking up a shiny 6-inch anchovy and threatening me with it, as if it were a rattlesnake, she says, "This was swimming this morning at 3 a.m. He will be dinner tonight, maybe for you."
I like beach towns so small that they have no real grocery store, just a mobile market that rolls in every morning. That happens with a particular flair on the Algarve, in the south of Portugal.
One bit of old Algarve magic still glitters quietly in the sun -- Salema. It's at the end of a small road just off the main drag between the big city of Lagos and the rugged southwest tip of Europe, Cape Sagres. Quietly discovered by British and German tourists, this simple fishing village has three streets, a handful of restaurants, a few hotels, time-share condos up the road, a couple of shipwreck bars and a split personality -- the whitewashed old town is for locals, and the other half was built for tourists. Both locals and tourists pursue a policy of peaceful coexistence. Tourists laze in the sun while locals grab the shade. Tourists sleep in while locals rise with the sun.
Salema's flatbed truck market rolls in weekday mornings, one truck each for fish, fruit and vegetables, plus a five-and-dime truck for clothing and other odds and ends. On my last visit, the tooting horn of the fish truck woke me at 8 a.m. with a honky chorus of the 1812 Overture. The bakery trailer, selling delightful fresh bread, rolled in just after that -- with less fanfare.
Salema is still a fishing village, but just barely. While the fishermen's hut no longer hosts a fish auction, you'll still see the old-timers enjoying the cool early morning hours -- when the sand is still wet with dew -- before the tourists take the beach. While mending their nets, they reminisce about the old days, when life was "only fish and hunger."
Local communities seem to live their traditional routines in a parallel existence, oblivious to the tourists who are just another and necessary slice of the local economy.
While churches are "sightseeing attractions" inundated with tourists and their flashing cameras at midday, early in the morning they are more clearly places of worship. From St. Peter's in Rome to St. Paul's in London, I find churches offer a more genuine welcome first thing in the morning. You might even find yourself actually locked into a worship service.
Stepping into Toledo, Spain's vast cathedral before the modesty guards assume their position at the door (to keep out shorts-wearing tourists), I notice that a chapel I've always found closed is not only open but alive with an ornately robed priest and flickering candles. The Mozarabic Chapel comes to life only in the morning, when it hosts a very special Visigothic Mass -- which, with a remarkable Dark Age splendor, claims to be the oldest surviving Christian ritual in Western Europe. As I slip in, the man at the door tells me I'm welcome to enter, but he's about to close the door, so I'll have to stay for the entire Mass. Giving up my freedom, I become a Visigoth for 30 minutes. Toledo's proud Mozarabic community of 1,500 people traces its roots back to Visigothic times, and this service is a lively reminder of the town's dedication to allowing different faiths and cultures to coexist peacefully.
This particular morning, there are so few participants, I find myself helping out by holding a huge, centuries-old Bible while the priest reads. Later, walking out of the Mass, I'm thankful for many things, including the knowledge that, among travelers, the early bird gets the memories.
Rick Steves writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television and public radio. E-mail him at rick@ricksteves.com, or write to him c/o P.O. Box 2009, Edmonds, Wash. 98020.© 2007 RICK STEVES, DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.