“There’s one!” Our local guide ecstatically pointed out a sight guaranteed to generate a sense of awe in the most jaded traveler. Standing erect on a rock protruding from the bay near our landing site on Bartolomé Island in the Galápagos was an honest-to-goodness penguin, saluting our arrival. We were sweating in the sea-level equatorial heat while the polar seabird looked calm, cool and definitely out of place.

Refugees from the extreme southern part of South America, where they...

by Seth Sherman, Thomasville, GA

Five weeks off from work and four weeks to plan a trip — but where to go? As there was a conference in Taiwan that I wanted to attend, both Asia and the Pacific Rim seemed logical. How about Indonesia?

Planning a visit

Reviewing my Lonely Planet guidebook, I decided that I wanted to sample Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Maluku, Papua (formerly Irian Jaya), Java, Bali and the islands of Flores, Rinca, Komodo and West Timor in Nusa...

by Judith Anshin, Contributing Editor

Having visited India before, I decided to try a customized tour on my journey to the country last year. In the fall of 2003, I had worked with Nino Mohan, owner of Worldview Tours (Newport Beach, CA; phone 800/373-0388), on arrangements for a visit (see Sept. ’04, pg. 6 & Oct. ’04, pg. 60) and was impressed with his efficiency, so when he suggested I form a tour group through the travel club I lead, I decided to give it a try.

Forming...