During a 17-day February-March ’04 South America cruise aboard the Amsterdam of Holland America Line (Seattle, WA; 800/426-0327) and on land tours that we booked separately, I was interested in observing the different types of flowers, plants and trees in each country visited.

We flew into Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Feb. 19, and the agent from the local tour company was awaiting us at the gate. We were taken by private car to the Luxor Regente, a newly renovated hotel in a good...

On our trip to Athens, Greece, we could see the Acropolis from the street in front of where we stayed, Hotel Attalos (29 Athinas St.; phone +30 210 3212 801 — 2005 price, from €62 [$75]), in the Monastiraki area.

From the rooftop of our hotel, we watched the sun set over the Acropolis and then the spotlights come on, illuminating the hill. It was a spectacular show!

In the morning we walked to the Acropolis. We passed several archaeological digs on our way, worked our way up...

I have to quibble with the advice on roundabouts in the letter “Tips for Driving in Britain” (Aug. ’05, pg. 74).

First, it is not “ridiculous and. . . extremely dangerous” to stay in a roundabout until you know which exit to take, and I don’t understand how “it causes frustration for other road users.”

Second, once you’ve made the mistake of leaving a roundabout via a wrong exit, only to find that you must drive miles to retrace your route and start over again, you’ll learn...