We took a trip to Libya with Distant Horizons (Long Beach, CA; 800/333-1240), an ITN advertiser. We were quite fortunate to have received visas, which arrived at almost the last minute. Other tours had to be canceled because the Libyans had not issued visas for those groups.

It seems the Libyan government relaxed its restrictions on visas, at least temporarily, to take advantage of the thousands of people who wanted to watch the total solar eclipse on March 29, ’06. Our group left...

I believe in some literary license, but the reader’s comparison of the Flaming Cliffs in Mongolia to the Grand Canyon (May ’06, pg. 64) goes way too far and creates unrealistic expectations for future travelers.

We, too, visited the Flaming Cliffs in July ’05, and we have just returned from our third visit to the Grand Canyon. The latter continues to be awe-inspiring, regardless of our having seen it before, and remains near the top of our long list of sites seen around the world....

Flents Ear Stopples, which have been my trusted companion during 50 years of travel, have come in handy whenever loud noise has kept me awake.

They are easy to use. After softening the earplug by kneading it between thumb and index finger, you mold it into the very beginning of the ear canal with your index finger. You can reuse each one five or six times, and you can even use two plugs in the same ear.

Note that Flents, which are made of wax and cotton, differ from silicone...