International Travel - The Washington Post

Spring travel: Old war wounds give way to a new Vietnam

Kristin Henderson — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 19:38:00 GMT

The multi-lane highway out of Hanoi into the north Vietnamese countryside narrows to two lanes before the pavement finally ends. In a cloud of dust, we arrive on the shore of Ha Long Bay. The bay, in the Gulf of Tonkin, looks like a mystic, flooded mountain range. Steep islands, thousands of them, jut up from the turquoise water. We board one of the scores of tourist junks that cruise among them.

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Spring travel: Old war wounds give way to a new Vietnam

Kristin Henderson — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 19:38:00 GMT

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Cerro Chirripo, Costa Rica’s highest peak, rewards hikers with marvelous views

Kevin Charles Redmon — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 15:13:09 GMT

To stand atop Cerro Chirripo, at 12,530 feet Costa Rica’s highest peak, and watch the sun rise over the Atlantic Ocean about 50 miles away, you must first excel at waking up in the dark. Four a.m. is okay; 3:30 is even better. At that hour, the stone floors of Base Crestones, an environmental research station that allows up to 60 backpackers to sleep in its spare dormitory beds each night, are cold enough to freeze your feet through two pairs of woolen socks. There’s a good reason for the unheated station’s nickname: the Refrigerator. Here, at 11,200 feet, mid-June might as well be mid-winter.

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Cerro Chirripo, Costa Rica’s highest peak, rewards hikers with marvelous views

Kevin Charles Redmon — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 15:13:09 GMT

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The two sides of Africa — rivers and dust

Peter Mandel — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 18:12:19 GMT

Africa keeps some secrets — wild, private subtleties that it would rather not share.

You may see a lion here, as I did. The continent, in general, is glad. Spot a leopard, or catch a cheetah out of the corner of your eye, and all is well. Africa beams.

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The two sides of Africa — rivers and dust

Peter Mandel — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 18:12:19 GMT

Africa keeps some secrets — wild, private subtleties that it would rather not share.

You may see a lion here, as I did. The continent, in general, is glad. Spot a leopard, or catch a cheetah out of the corner of your eye, and all is well. Africa beams.

Read full article >>