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Rundown for the week of July 18th, 1998

Travel Update
Rudy mentions making reservations at Grand Canyon National Park lodges...call 303-297-2757 or visit http://www.amfac.com.

Gillette Castle
It's hard to think of Sherlock Holmes and not picture Basil Rathbone. Yet the dashing Hollywood movie star actually owed much of his success as Holmes to a dyed-in-the-wool New Englander from Connecticut. William Gillette was one of the most popular American actors of the early twentieth century, and he actually pioneered the role of Sherlock Holmes on the stage. A man of mystery himself, Gillette built a magnificent castle-like mansion in a secluded grove overlooking the Connecticut River in Hadlyme, Connecticut, where he spent his final years. Though most people today don't remember Gillette as Sherlock Holmes, thousands flock to Hadlyme every year to visit his castle and grounds, which are now a state park. The Savvy Traveler's Tom Verde traveled into the heart of Yankee territory. If you want to see Gillette Castle, you'd better get there before the end of the summer. It's undergoing renovations beginning the week after Labor Day, so the castle will be closed for a whole year-and-a-half during construction. The park, will stay open, though...free of charge, as always.

Q & A I -- Worst Seat Mate
Rudy hears listeners' stories about their worst seat mate experiences, from rambunctious children to a drunk passenger on the bus. Next week, we'll look at the other end of the spectrum when we hear stories about the best seat mates.

Hitchhiking Vietnam Interview
Karin Muller was born to travel. The early signs all pointed to it: her mother's stories about growing up in Africa, her own upbringing on four continents -- not to mention the years she spent in the Philippines with the Peace Corps. Even after Karin settled down and established herself as a successful management consultant, her wanderlust would not go away. So, heeding her instincts, she gave it all up and took to the road to see the world. Her first trip was a search for the "real" Vietnam which inspired her book Hitchhiking Vietnam. Karin dropped by to talk about the discoveries she made on that journey . Of course, the most obvious question was what made her give up a lucrative career to trek, by herself, across Vietnam? Turns out she got started on a dare...
Hitchhiking Vietnam is published by The Globe Pequot Press.

Deal of the Week
Today's lucky number is nine...
Southwest's $99 triggered competitors to match the offer with $99 one-way fares coast to coast.
American offers a pair of nines to get you out of Dallas' stifling heat: $99 one way to San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia, with three-day advance purchase.
Cathay Pacific has sweetened the deal on its All-Asia Pass: three nines - $999 - fly you from New York to Hong Kong and back, plus 30 days flying around Asia on Cathay visiting up to 18 other cities.
Suddenly summer getaway fare offers--that's my Deal of the Week!

Q & A II -- General Questions
Rudy takes listeners' general questions about travel. He mentions:

Choosing a gift for a business associate in Turkey

For more info, try Culture Shock: Turkey, a guide to customs and etiquette, published by Graphic Arts Center Publishing at 800-220-2665. The cost is $13.00.

Nevis

Hurricane Bungalows is one of the most secluded retreats in the Caribbean: 869-469-9462

Renting a villa in Tuscany

Italian Villas 800-700-9549
Other expenses to factor into the cost of renting a villa are hot water, which is metered; heating; phone; and cost of final cleaning. And by the way, you can also rent a palace or even an entire village from Italian Villas, for a mere $33,000-$34,000 a week.

2002 Olympics
Salt Lake City Olympic Committee 801-322-2002

Rescenter Utah, at 800-255-6451, represents a few hotels that will accept advance bookings. Keep in mind that innkeepers and property owners are charging the high season rate plus 8% for each year between now and 2002.

Guanajuato
Summertime should be the perfect season for traveling, right? The kids have some time off; you probably won't have to schlep a bunch of suitcases in the rain. Of course, the problem is that everyone else has the same idea. And what's that equation we all know so well? More people = higher prices at hotels and tourist sites. So where can you go that's really different but won't cost a few months salary? The Savvy Traveler's Judie Fein found an extraordinary town in Mexico, about 260 miles north of the hustle and bustle of Mexico City.

Next Week on The Savvy Traveler
We'll have the opportunity to go to Peru and get a rare peek at a mystical ceremony in the Andes mountains...

"The hill across the valley seems to be crawling. But it is people; thousands of people in movement carry their brass instruments and wooden flutes, spinning in circles of elaborate dance and pitching tarps and tents, making the mountain a speckled, plastic blue."

A tradition most travelers never have the chance to see in next week's journey. And, we get a postcard from one American who discovered a surprisingly warm reception in Iran:

"`Italian, German?' he asked laconically. "`No,' I said, `I'm an American.' A huge smile crossed his face. `Well,' he said leaning back in his chair to get a fuller look at the apparition before him, `I haven't seen an American in Isfahan for twenty years.'"

How the people of a country can help you question your own cultural preconceptions...plus your calls and questions about travel...

That and more in next week's voyage with the Savvy Traveler. I hope you'll join us.

For tapes of the show...
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.

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