Mail Call

Q&A WITH YASSER OGANDO, PRODUCTION & ADVERTISING COORDINATOR In our February issue, production and advertising coordinator Yasser Ogando discussed solo female travel and her own bucket-list destinations, including Cuba. This inspired the question: What are some exciting destinations and pro tips for first-timers?

A few readers wrote in with suggestions:

I travel alone more than with a group, and for beginners I would suggest Chicago. It’s a walkable city, easy to get around and has a lot to offer. Also, another plus with a big city, you don’t necessarily feel alone while you’re there.

JENNIFER NEWMAN, via email

The first time I traveled alone, I visited San Francisco. It was a little odd because it wasn’t necessarily the trend then to travel as a single female, but I had a great time and would highly recommend [it].

CINDY VISCS, via email

Solo travel is all about your mindset. Do your research, plan well and you can go just about anywhere — within reason.

RACHEL DRESCHER, via email

Q&A WITH CHRIS SAGER, SALES MANAGER

Much has been said lately about improving eco-friendly initiatives within the wider travel industry. What steps have you taken as a traveler to reduce your carbon footprint?

Email us: letters@globaltravelerusa.com

MORE BARK TALK: SERVICE ANIMAL RESTRICTIONS CHANGE In our Jan. 28 issue of eFlyer USA and March “Mail Call,” we discussed the U.S. Department of Transportation rules changing the definition of service animals. Specific rules include allowing airlines to limit the size and number of service animals, requiring passengers with service animals to check in earlier and requiring stricter documentation and training. The topic inspired more readers to write in with their thoughts:

So pleased and hope new rules [allow] fly[ing] with true service animals only. So tired of “pets” stinking up the air and causing allergic people to suffer (me).

TERRI CALABRESE, via email

Very unfortunate the guidelines have been so permissive until now. I fully support carefully tightening up the rules so the disabled are the ones who benefit.

EDITH PEREZ, via email

As I’m sure you’re aware, the variety and size of animals seen on airplanes is quite ridiculous: dogs, cats, parrots, snakes, etc. Generally, the airlines allow for a pet to travel on board if it can fit underneath the seat in front of you in a pet carrier. You must pay a fee for this as well as if your animal is checked in the cargo area. I believe people are abusing the service animal variance

CONTACT GT Do you have a story to share? Thoughts on a recent GT article? Email us: letters@globaltravelerusa.com or write to Letters to the Editor, 310 Floral Vale Blvd., Yardley, PA 19067

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ABU DHABI A HALF-CENTURY OF BUILDING CASTLES IN THE SAND HANGZHOU IMMORTALIZED BY PAINTERS AND POETS ALIKE THE SOURCE FOR LU xURY BUSINESS TRAVELERS BUCHAREST p.66 COLUMBUS p.58 COOK ISLANDS p.68 FLORIDA KEYS p. 74 LUCERNE p.64 MUMBAI p.62 SANTIAGO p. 60 TANGIER p.71 TEL AVIV p.52

TEL AVIV FAMILY BUSINESS MEETS ROMANCE IN THE WHITE CITY

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ICELAND UP IN THE AIR

ADVENTURE AWAITS IN THE LAND OF FIRE AND ICE Drift above Cappadocia’s surreal landscape in a hot-air balloon. p. 72

9–5 | CAPE TOWN

The new GT app is passed through in 2016 — its busiest year yet.

Arranging a car service in advance proves the best way to get into town. Services like Centurion Tours and Citi Hopper greet you at the terminal and run about 270–360 South African rand ($20–27), depending on the number of passengers in the vehicle. Uber is also thriving in Cape Town, so consider hailing a ride with the app if your smartphone works in South Africa. The Uber X service costs R146–189 ($11–15), while the more luxurious Uber Black should cost about R249–324 ($18–25).

The 20- to 30-minute ride (depending on traffic) along the highway takes you past some of South Africa’s infamous townships. Although the center of Cape Town is home to fewer than 435,000, the metro area boasts a population of more than 3.7 million. Many live in these makeshift towns consisting of informal housing, a remnant from the days of apartheid, prohibiting non-whites from living in the city center.

Cape Town, though, is quickly moving on from those unfortunate days. As you approach the downtown area, you’ll immediately recognize the faces of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu currently installed on the façade of the Civic Centre. On a clear day, you’ll also spot the flat-topped Table Mountain in the background.

Suitable hotels are scattered around the Central Business District and along the waterfront, but the 12-story Townhouse Hotel offers an excellent option for business travelers with its downtown location near City Hall and South Africa’s Houses of Parliament. It boasts seven meeting rooms that accommodate up to 425 people, with its largest holding 300.

While your hotel likely includes full breakfast, you might want to organize a morning meeting offsite. Taxis don’t roam Cape Town’s streets, however, so use Uber or ask the concierge to arrange transportation for you. Hemelhuijs, a chic café by Chef Jacques JOHANNESBURG MAY HAVE THE REPUTATION as South Africa’s business capital, but Cape Town still offers plenty to those traveling for work. The Mother City, as it is commonly known, with its spectacular waterfront setting crowned by the famous Table Mountain, hosts conferences that attract visitors from around the world. You’ll likely arrive at Cape Town International Airport, the second-busiest in South Africa and the thirdbusiest on the entire continent. Located just 12 miles from the city center, it experienced tremendous growth since opening in 1954. More than 10 million passengers Captivating Cape Town This cultural crossroads provides endless opportunities for entertaining clients. BY MEREDITH BETHUNE

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and claiming “emotional support” to avoid paying this fee. Animals are uncaged and too large to fit underneath the seat in front of you. The size of the animal is also important because larger animals encroach on other passengers’ space in an area where space is already limited. There have also been documented cases of other passengers being bit and animals relieving themselves on the plane.

I hope the new rules will require that all owners must provide to the airline certified documentation the animal is in fact a service animal that provides an actual medical function to the owner, the dog wears an identifying marker that it is a service animal and that there is a size limitation. Prior to boarding, the animal must be caged and able to fit underneath the seat in front of you as well as restricting the animal from being allowed out of the cage when on board the plane.

VITTORIO MANGIONE, via email

I absolutely agree animals should be limited on planes. I am allergic to dogs and can barely sit at an airport in the gate area because of all the dogs. People let them out of the cages while in the gate area to roam free. Airports and planes are beginning to smell like urine pots. It is disgusting. They don’t serve peanuts anymore because of peanut allergies; how about dog allergies? Even if I was not allergic, the smell gets overwhelming, both at gate areas and on airplanes.

JUDY MURPHY, via email

Thank God; finally, common sense! As a weekly business traveler trying to support my family with a job requiring 80 percent travel, and experiencing severe allergies to pet dander, I have struggled to stay healthy traveling weekly with pets masquerading as service animals. I have been moved to the back of the plane from economy plus (which I paid for) because the flight attendant had to give preferential treatment to the disabled so an “emotional support” dog could lie on the floor in the bulkhead. I moved to another available seat at the back of the plane.

Animals eating off of the food tray of their owner, animals on nearly every flight with it only getting worse as time went on. I have nearly left my job more than once. Please, the stricter the better … the sooner the better!

DIANE SACCO, via email

globaltravelerusa.com | $4.99 February 2020

CARTAGENA p.64 CHRISTCHURCH p.70 DUBLIN p. 50 HONG KONG p.60 LOS CABOS p.74 NASHVILLE p. 56 NORWAY p.72 PARIS p. 58 TAIPEI p.66 ZANZIBAR p.62

THE WOMEN’S ISSUE Rise of the Female Solo Traveler p. 38

LETTER TO THE EDITOR Our first-ever Women’s Issue published in February inspired an avid reader and Advisory Board member to write in with some kind words:

The February issue is refreshing and impressive. Good for you for executing a great idea. Restores faith in print media.

MARK LANE, via email

kicking back | COOK ISLANDS

finevines

Torrontés Tango

Powered by I n an attempt to describe Torrontés, Argentina’s signature white wine, some have compared it to Pinot Grigio, Viognier, even Riesling. But none come close. Made from the grape of the same name, Torrontés is like no other. It begins with an aroma that conjures up a bouquet of flowers (the honeyed, perfumed Muscat of Alexandria is one of its ancestors), hinting that a sweet wine will follow. But no, Torrontés goes toward dry and fruity with a tangy and spicy edge. It is the perfect aperitif and equally right with shellfish, Niçoise salad, chicken, other whitemeat dishes, lightly flavored cheese and many Asian foods. As Americans discover this intriguing wine, they will also discover that, with a myriad of choices, even the most attractive Torrontés usually costs under $20. And what are the most attractive Torrontés? Among two dozen that I’ve recently tasted, these are my favorites.

Xavier Flouret Flaca 2008 ($18) is one of the most elegant Torrontés, with a delicate floral nose that hints of apricot and peach; a dry, round, well-structured body; a fruit-filled taste and vibrant acidity; and a long, delicious finish. Its Muscat ancestor comes to the fore in Lo Tengo 2009’s ($11.50) vivid, flowery aroma. It goes on to be a clearly focused, intensely flavored, bright and satisfying wine.

There is a suggestion of sweet mint and an evocation of orange and peach in Finca La Linda 2009’s ($11) aroma, followed by a relatively full body and excellent balance. Altogether a pleasing, inviting wine. Finca El Origen Reserva 2009 ($12) is clean, crisp and refreshing, offering a typical Torrontés floral flavor with pear and peach overtones and a gentle reminder of citrus fruits in the mouth. A particularly harmonious wine.

The delightful Pascual Toso 2009 ($15) combines keen fruit flavors, herbal notes and a fresh lemony acidity with a trace of honey and floral tones.

Following its aroma of fresh flowers and ripe fruit, Colomé 2009 ($15) is a graceful wine with citric notes reminiscent of grapefruit.

The pale-shaded Dominio del Plata’s Crios 2009 ($13.50) has a lilac-scented aroma with peach overtones followed by a dry, tangy taste.  Argentina’s signature white will have all your senses dancing. 72 globaltravelerusa.com JUNE 2017 IN THE COOK ISLANDS, on Rarotonga, I’m walking along a dusty path, edged by a plethora of plants and trees. Fat papayas hang from their umbrella-like trees; bananas, still green on the stem, invite; and mangos, ripe and ready, have fallen from their roost. Blossoming bushes waft a perfume, butterflies circle halos around my head, and a stream gurgles nearby. A mother sow and her family of cartoonish piglets join me on the road. Not one but 10 roosters crow in compet ing symphonies — though early morning is long past. The sea lies nearby, but here, hiking inland, surrounded by steep hills and much vegetation, I feel like the only person left on Earth.

Luckily, I’m not. I share this walk with one of the Cook Islands’ most famous residents, a larger-than-life figure known as Uncle Pa, once a world surfing champion. Though an octogenarian, he wears long dreadlocks, treks shirtless and sports a colorful sarong. With rippling muscles and the physique of a 30-year-old man, he belies aging and serves as the metaphorical poster child for his role as this island nation’s most famous healer. An herbalist or kahuna, he learned from his grandmother about the power of the plants that grow on these less-traveled islands. Intuitive, fearless, with a foot in both the past and the modern world, Uncle Pa has helped thousands of people regain their health over the years. As we walk, he picks leaves, flowers, berries and fruit. He tells me how he makes elixirs or poultices from them; he lets me taste BEACHSIDE BLISS: Spa treatment on the beach at Aitutaki Lagoon PHOTO: © STEVE ALLEN | DREAMSTIME.COM Art of Healing Ease body, mind and soul in the natural goodness of the Cook Islands. BY BECCA HENSLEY INFO TO GO A variety of international airlines fly to Rarotonga International Airport on the Cook Islands’ main island. In December 2016 Air New Zealand began weekly non-stop flights on its comfortable Boeing 777-200 aircraft, which offers a new premium-economy option, from Los Angeles (LAX), making the trek from the United States easier than ever.

www.globaltravelerusa.com May 2011 | G T | 35

ABU DHABI A HALF-CENTURY OF BUILDING CASTLES IN THE SAND

HANGZHOU IMMORTALIZED BY PAINTERS AND POETS ALIKE TEL AVIV FAMILY BUSINESS MEETS ROMANCE IN THE WHITE CITY

ADVENTURE AWAITS IN THE LAND OF FIRE AND ICE

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