Rundown for the week of February 20, 1999
Hoor River, Oregon
If you like skiing, windsurfing, mountain biking, kayaking and hiking,
but you've only got a few days for vacation, then how about we take
you to a place where you can do all of these activities in the same
day? We're going to a bend on the Columbia River where there is no
off-season for sport and the rush of adrenaline: It's Hood River,
Oregon and our guide is Hal Cannon of The Open Road.
Q & A I: Disabled Traveling
Rudy talks to listeners about what it's like to travel with a
disability. Some resources:
- Ideas for Easy Traveling: Timely Tips for those with Limited
Mobility is available through Accent Press at 800-787-8444.
- Disability Resource Web site: www.disabilityresource.com
800-695-4042.
- Accessible Travel Source Web site: www.access-able.com.
- Wilderness Inquiry organizes outdoor adventure tours for people of
all abilities: 800-728-0719.
- Turtle Tours: tourturtle@aol.com
Rates tours with number of turtles
how slow/fast they go.
- Wheels Up Travel Web site: www.wheelsup.com.
- List of Other Resources:
http://www.journeyquest.com/handicapped.shtml.
- Rudy also talks to Tony Allen of The Experiment in International
Living about trips for teenagers and some of the students with
disabilities who have enjoyed the trips. Inquiries to:
800-345-2929. Check out their Web site at: www.worldlearning.org.
- PLUS: Steve Wright and Heidi Johnson-Wright's book on traveling with
limited mobility.
Wade Davis Interview
In the early 80's ethnobotanist Wade Davis traveled to Haiti and
encountered the fascinating cultural phenomenon known as vodoun...we
know it better as "voodoo". His fascination of voodoo became the basis
for Davis' spellbinding novel -- and later film -- called, The
Serpent and the Rainbow. Since then, Davis has continued to
explore indigenous cultures and his most recent book, Shadows in
the Sun, is a compilation of essays about many of their customs
and rituals. In the book Wade argues that in our quest to know the
world we often disturb the very foundations that make native cultures
stable.
Harlem Renaissance
One of the many reasons people travel is to observe history --
tourists wait for hours in line to see the names of their immigrant
ancestors at Ellis Island. They visit castles or exhibitions of
Egyptian artifacts. But some historical eras are not well-marked by
monuments or museums. Their secrets dwell in the everyday streetscapes
of everyday neighborhoods. Take the Harlem Renaissance of the
1920's--a time of unprecedented cultural achievement for
African-Americans. These days it's hard to find evidence of the
roaring twenties and the fervor of what was called the New Negro
Movement. Unless you have the right tour guide, as did The Savvy
Traveler's Marianne McCune.
Deal of the Week: Delta Does Weekends
If you live in a city with a lot of Delta Air Lines flights, I've got good
news for you. Delta finally figured out that the Internet is an efficient way
to sell cheap seats for weekend travel. And it's just become the last major
U.S. airline to inaugurate on-line, weekend sales.
Unlike some of its competitors, Delta doesn't automatically notify you of deals once you've
registered on line -- you have to go to their Web site http://delta-air.com every Wednesday to
see what's on tap for the upcoming weekend.
Here are some samples:
- Round-trip between L.A. and Cincinnati, $218
- Round-trip between Dallas-Ft. Worth and Austin, $58
- Round-trip between Portland and Salt Lake City, $108
- Round-trip between Baltimore and Atlanta, $118.
Here are some notes:
- You do not have to book on line.
- Your outbound travel has to
be on Saturday.
- You have to return the following Monday or Tuesday.
As you might expect, Delta hub cities like Cincinnati and Atlanta have the
most offerings, but the range of cities is actually pretty impressive. So
welcome the airline to the fly-cheap-on-weekends club by clicking on http://delta-air.com.
Q & A II: General Questions
Rudy takes listeners' general questions about travel. He mentions:
Fun Things to Do in Norway
- The Akershus Fortress, complete with dungeons, banquet halls and a
chapel, is still used by the royal family of Norway for special
events. During World War II the Nazis used it as a prison, and it is
now Norway's Resistance Museum. During the summer, there are plays,
dances and concerts held outside.
- Bygdoy Peninsula is home to a wide variety of off-beat museums -
from Norway's largers open-air folk museum to the Kon Tiki Museum that
houses Thor Heyerdahl's famous balsa raft he took across the Pacific
in 1947.
- The nine-hour trip from Oslo to Bergen is said by many to be the
most scenic in the country. There are hiking trails along the way, so
if you get a ScanRail pass and can hop on and off at your whim, this
is the place to do it. Many travel agencies sell ScanRail passes, as
does ScanAm Tours in New Jersey: 800-545-2204.
- The tourist office of Bergen can give you ferry, bus and train
schedules. Call +47-55-32-14-80 or the Norwegian tourist office in New
York, 212-421-7333.
Bicycling in France
- The Savvy Traveler's Joan
Reiss talked about biking destinations in Europe. She suggested
the Dordogne area, near Lasco caves.
Coconut Postcard
This time of the year, most of us fantasize about taking off and
hibernating on some exotic island. The Savvy Traveler's Fritz Burke
lives in Maine, so it's no wonder he packed up his family this winter
and took them to an island in Thailand. Only problem is, he's gotten
a lot of flack for this vacation...as if he's somehow shirked his duty
as a Mainer by jetting off to the South Seas. Well, Fritz wants
everyone to know that, just because he hasn't been digging himself out
of snowbanks, doesn't mean he hasn't faced adversity. He sent us this
postcard to prove it.
Next Week on The Savvy Traveler
We go back out onto the Open Road and experience the magic of the San
Xavier mission.
Clip: "I'm not Catholic, but there's something here that moves me..and I
can't explain it."
We'll find out why it's standing room only at this historical site
outside of Tucson, Arizona. We explore Australia's Northern Territory,
and tackle perhaps the most complex travel issue of all: Packing.
Clip: "Are floral prints okay in Bosnia, or is basic black nicer in a war
zone?"
A packer's lament, and your most bizarre room service stories. That
and more so please come along for the ride in next week's edition of
The Savvy Traveler.
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.
The Savvy Traveler Newsletter
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call toll-free, 888-SAV-TRAV (888-728-8728), extension 3, or e-mail mail@savvytraveler.org.
