International Outlooks on Thanksgiving
Rudy finds out what foreign visitors to the United States plan for Thanksgiving.
Q&A I -- Strange Food
Rudy talks with listeners about the strangest food they've ever eaten while traveling.
Rudy mentions a book on how to face strange meals around the world:
"Do's and Taboos Around the World for Women in Business," by Roger E. Axtell, Tami Briggs, Margaret Corcoran and Mary Beth Lamb
Wine Country
One of California's most popular destinations is the wine country of Northern California -- both Napa and Sonoma Valleys are only about an hour's drive north of San Francisco. Anthony Dyas Blue is wine and spirits editor for Bon Appetit magazine. He told me that many people like to go to the wine country during the fall harvest which runs from around late August through the middle of October. But he cautions that harvest time can be a mixed blessing for visitors.
Cathedral Prowl
Rudy tags along on a guided tour of National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.
Cruising England in Style
Considering a drive through the hills and dales of England? Why not do it in style in a Morgan. This classic, hand built British roadster is the only racing car to be offered for sale in a window of Harrod's department store. And although it isn't the only way to get around the British Isles, as The Savvy Traveler's Tom Verde discovered earlier this year, it's one of the most exciting.
Where to rent a Morgan:
Wykeham's Limited, 6 Kendrick Place Reece Mews, South Kensington, London SW7 3HF (Across the street from Christie's, the famous auction house.) Telephone: 011-44-171-589-6894/8309, Fax: 011-44-171-589-8886
Deal of the Week
How does flying to Hawaii as often as you want sound to you?
Well, for $998 you can fly between Honolulu or Maui from LA or San Francisco for all of next year. This extraordinary deal is brought to you by a tour organizer called Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays that books flights on American Trans Air. The Pleasant Air Pass, as its called, is good for all of '98 except for a few holiday blackout dates. You can buy the pass from any travel agent, but you can't begin your travels until 60 days after purchase.
A Pleasant Hawaiian spokesman assured me that there are generally seats available on the 6 weekly flights out of San Francisco and the 5 from LA and that the company doesn't care if you go back and forth 100 times -- the pass entitles you to as many flights as you can handle.
Hawaii in '98 for 998 with a Pleasant Air pass -- that's my deal of the week.
The phone number for details on the deal is 800-2-HAWAII.
Q&A II
Rudy fields general listener questions. And mentions:
Air Courier Companies:
New Voyager in New York: 212-431-1616
Charter Flight Center in London: 44-171-828-1090
Alpha Flights: 44-181-579-8444
Cordon Bleu
Our Vagabond Traveler, Doug Lansky, dons an apron, a chef's cap and goes to pastry class at the world famous Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris.
If you plan on being in Paris and think a weekend at pastry school would be simply magnifique, you can expect to pay about $150. The closest Cordon Bleu school to this country is in Canada -- the information number in Ottowa is 1-800-457-chef. And where is our Vagabond Traveler off to next? Last we heard, Doug Lansky was planning to head to Sarajevo.
Next Week on The Savvy Traveler
We'll visit the land of a thousand Santas -- just think of it as "It's a small world" with whiskers -- and we hear what a savvy traveler can learn by visiting food markets around the world,
"People in markets are going about a real life activity and that's what I meant by a window on a culture that is rare for a visitor to be able to see through."
Former New York Times restaurant critic Mimi Sheraton talks about her new book on food markets of the world.
We take an upscale excursion from Santa Fe to Denver,
"What the QEII is to the sea and MGM Air was to the skies, this train is to the rails."
We'll climb aboard an American luxury train and hear about the special things that happen in your town to celebrate the arrival of the holidays. That and more in next week's journey with The Savvy Traveler.
If you want your very own copy of The Savvy Traveler, order an audio cassette. It's easy. Just call 303-823-8000. The price is $15. As Rudy says, it's a steal.
