When we used our MasterCard for a purchase in Glasgow, Scotland, on April 10, ’06, the new machine refused it because there was no “PIN number.” We insisted that the assistant try again and she refused. The manager came over and inserted our card again. The machine then said to enter the last four digits of the card. She did so and the card was accepted.

In the new machines they have for Visa and MasterCard, the card is inserted (as in a hotel door), not swiped. However, on the side...

I go to Thailand once or twice a year. At present, I’m coordinating a tsunami relief project in Phi Phi and Phuket. In March ’06, two Thai friends and I had dinner at a popular Phuket city seafood restaurant, Ta Yay. Our dinner (stir-fried morning glory, shrimp soup, chicken and vegetables in oyster sauce, rice, four juice drinks and one coconut) was delicious, but the bill caught us by surprise: 1,222 baht (about $29). We asked for a recalculation and the bill came back at 485 baht (about $...

Based on my April ’06 trip to Iran, I’d like to share three practical tips with ITN readers who are thinking of going there.

First, I was told that the Iranian Interests Section of the Pakistani Embassy in Washington will not issue a tourist visa to an American unless the prospective tourist already has received a visa authorization number from Tehran.

I had to send a copy of my passport information page to the company arranging my tour, which in turn presumably sent it on to...