by Wendy Perrin

A question came in from Conde Nast Traveler reader Phyllis Nova:

"I enjoyed your China Iconic Itinerary in the March issue. Lots of good info.  I'm interested in your bonus trip to Xi'an but can't seem to access it online. Please inform how to get it. Thank you."

So sorry about the delay in getting my Xi'an recommendations onto cntraveler.com. (I've been busy!) They're there now.

Yes, folks, my hard-won China advice, based on that backbreaking Operation China recon mission you may remember from October/November, is now on the newsstands. The article is a step-by-step 12-day itinerary for travelers who want a smart combo of China's highlights as well as its off-the-beaten-path gems. Should you opt to read it online, BE SURE to read the PDF version, since this contains all manner of vital advice and cautions that are NOT in the non-PDF version!

By the way, Conde Nast Traveler has also designed and test-driven step-by-step Iconic Itineraries for Russia (I wrote that one too), Machu Picchu and the Amazon (which Brook wrote), Southeast Asia, India, and Egypt. To read the PDF versions, click on "Print the Whole Story + Maps" (which you'll find inside the box entitled "Online Extras"). Enjoy!

Biting the laptop ain't going to get your Facebook password back.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

I blow off the sunrise tour for a swim in the pool, and a stroll along some of the catwalks and towers here at my Ariau treetop hotel. At lunch, I overhear some people complaining about insects. Complaining about insects on their JUNGLE TOUR? If you have a problem with critters, maybe you should spend your holiday at Disneyland, and even there you have to deal with mice and a cricket.

Anyway, I walk a little more and then try to write, but squirrel monkeys keep trying to steal things from me, and a capuchin actually rips out the "fn" key from the laptop. I don't even know what that key does.

Whenever I hit the airport with my two whirling dervishes -- Doug, 4, and Charlie, 5 -- we spend most of our terminal time on the move, burning off energy in preparation for all those hours of having to sit still on the plane. That's us at Newark, Feb 14, 2008.

by Wendy Perrin

Many thanks to all of you who, before my dreaded overnight flight to Spain with the kids two weeks ago, generously offered your tips for relieving children's ear pain inflight. I'm happy to report that, despite ear infections and head colds, our trip was tears-free.  Sucking lollipops (in combination with antibiotics) did the trick.

On our descent into Madrid, we may have been sleepy and disheveled, but we were free of ear pain. Charlie and I played Uno.

I heard another great tip yesterday -- from Carl Schwartz, director of marketing for Cheapflights, who was in my office sharing war stories about flying with children.  He has three of them -- ages 7, 5, and almost 1 -- and his best earache-prevention tip comes from Cheapflights' Air Travel And Families section:  Ask the flight attendant to soak a couple of paper napkins in very hot water, wring them out, stick them in the bottom of plastic drink cups, and put the cups over your kids' ears. This creates a vacuum, reducing the ear pressure. Who woulda thunk?!

Cheapflights has equally nifty advice for entertaining, exercising, and otherwise occupying kids in airports. Its Kids' Airport Diversion Guide lists child-friendly features of and facilities at 22 U.S. hubs. At Boston's Logan Airport, for instance, there's the Boston Children's Museum's Kidport in Terminal C, and at Chicago's O'Hare there's a Kids On the Fly interactive exhibit, as well as a restored F4F-3 Wildcat, in Terminal 2.

Whenever we fly through Atlanta, we ride the underground train back and forth from concourse to concourse. That's Doug and Charlie the last time we were in Atlanta, August 2007.

On the Ariau River in Amazonia: Hangin' with guides Amadeo and Romero.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

A peaceful night in the Amazon rain forest at the Ariau treetop hotel. I am surprised that there are not many mosquitoes here until I learn that the river has a high acid level in these parts, making it hard for the insects to breed. There are some, however, so don't get too excited.

After a breakfast of stuffed tapioca pancakes and cupuacu juice, I am back in the canoe with Romero, Amadeo, and other guests from India, Holland, Canada, Australia, and a guy named Tal from Israel whom I met on the boat that brought me here from Manaus.

We head down the Ariau River a bit and then pull onto shore to do a little walk in the jungle. Romero points out many plants, trees, and herbs used for medicine, nutrition, or poison. These are too numerous to mention here, but highlights include a hallucinogen called chamboa and quinine, which was once used to treat malaria and is a key flavoring for gin and tonics. I grab a leaf and later submerge it in one of these drinks, just for fun.

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Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Manaus lies where the Amazon River meets the Rio Negro and the Rio Solimoes, and the rendezvous is something to see. Rio Negro is black but clear and Rio Solimoes is muddy, but instead of mixing, the Negro's strong current makes the two rivers run a few miles side by side until eventually they blend into the Amazon.

We are headed for the Ariau Amazon Towers hotel, and we travel up the Coca Cola-colored waters of the Rio Negro in Ariau's double-decker riverboat, done up in mint green and cream. I am promised a hammock -- and I need one -- but a few minutes later I'm told today is the day that all the hammocks get washed at the same time, so there are none. Uh-huh. That's believable.

The Ariau hotel's riverboat in all its ice cream-colored glory.

The test pilot takes questions after landing the partially biofuel-powered Virgin Atlantic 747 seen behind him.
Photo: Virgin Atlantic

by Brook Wilkinson

Last Sunday, Virgin Atlantic became the world's first airline to fly using biofuel. Sir Richard Branson would like you to think that this is a great leap toward sustainable air travel. However, it's just not that simple.

I applaud Branson's recent commitment to spend $3 billion on environmentally friendly technologies, but Sunday's test flight from London to Amsterdam didn't prove much. Two studies published just a few weeks ago in the journal Science found that most biofuels actually cause MORE greenhouse gas emissions than fossil fuels. Interested? Read on.

Fellow travelers: Lenny and Gene in Rio de Janeiro.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Breakfast and then a walk down into the heart of Rio's Santa Teresa neighborhood. There are many old grand mansions up and down the hillside, some in varying states of decay but a few recently renovated. A lot of these places are absolutely magnificent and must have been amazing hangouts 100 years ago.

Today is Arlene's last day. She is flying home and I am flying to Manaus via Brasilia to spend a few days in the Amazon. I try to convince Arlene to extend her stay, but she thinks a month is good and she is ready to go back to work. Personally, I think a year or more down here would be just fine.

We need to get money to pay our bill at Casa 579, and while walking to find a bank I hear my name called. I turn around and see Lenny, a guy I seem to always run into every few years in far-off lands.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

The bus ride from the Argentine border to Rio de Janeiro is an all-nighter and then some. We sleep well, and only wake up at 9 a.m. when the bus pulls into some high-tech roadside diner. It's a cloudy day in these parts, somewhere south of Sao Paulo, Brazil's largest city, which, sadly, we will not be visiting.

We ride through lots of farmland.  At a police check the cops come on and search only one bag: mine.  We arrive in Rio at 17:30.

We are staying in the colonial district of Santa Teresa at a very cool place called Casa 579, an old mansion with great views of the sea and of our old friend Cristo Redentor.

We clean up and bus down the hill to a restaurant called Espiritu Santo. On the veranda, huddled underneath a huge umbrella with VISA written all over it, we have a nice dinner. Outside in the streets cariocas are having spontaneous parties in preparation for Carnaval. Despite the downpour the atmosphere is lively.

In case you're wondering, I have pork chops encrusted with garlic and cornbread with a sausage farofa and collard greens while Arlene devours a tilapia stuffed with nuts and jungle fruits and wrapped in a banana leaf. A warm chocolate ginger cake seals the deal, and then we are back at Casa 579 and fast asleep.

Rent this wheelchair-accessible vehicle to get around Paris.
Photo: Ptitcar.com

by Brook Wilkinson

Question from reader Barrett Johnson:

"I'm helping an elderly aunt and two adult cousins plan their first trip abroad in June to France. Do you know how to rent a wheelchair for two weeks? My aunt is bringing her walker and can't also transport a wheelchair from the U.S. They arrive and depart from Charles de Gaulle and need the wheelchair at the airport."

Christophe Molitor of Ptitcar can help. He rents out wheelchairs, as well as wheelchair-accessible vehicles with or without a driver. His wheelchair and scooter rentals cost up to 10 euros per day (almost $15, at the time of this post), and he'll bring your family from the airport into the city for 140 euros. His driver can take you on excursions to places like Versailles and Normandy, with prices ranging from 245 euros to 2,650 euros. Monsieur Molitor's Web site will soon be available in English, but in the meantime you can email him at christophe@imediatservices.com.

Iguazu, or "Big Water," on the border between Brazil and Argentina.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Beautiful, wonderful, wet. Standing over the loud plunging chaos of Garganta del Diablo ("Devil's Throat") is something everyone should do. This is a massive U-shaped cliff right on the border of Brazil and Argentina, over which awesome amounts of water spill from three sides. The urge to "Geronimo!" into the thundering abyss is very strong, but luckily manageable.

I imagine seeing Spanish conquistador Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, the "discoverer" of Iguazu, about to head over the edge in his canoe, which is basically how he came across this spectacular place, paddling down the Iguazu River during an expedition in search of the fabled White King back in 1541. We begin our visit at the Devil's Throat, then we hit some trails to see other areas of the park and other falls, including a nice one named after Cabeza de Vaca himself.

Vancouver's parkland helps the city rank as one of the world's greenest.
Photo: Taylor S. Kennedy, National Geographic Image Collection

by Brook Wilkinson

Think ecotourism means traveling deep into the Amazon jungle or the African savannah? Not necessarily. More and more cities are upping their sustainability factor, making them great destinations for the green-minded traveler.

Grist, the go-to guys for any environmental question, published the following list of 15 green cities. Follow the links below for advice from the travel experts at Conde Nast Traveler about what to do on your next urban eco-vacation. It's the perfect pairing -- environmental advice from the Grist greenies, and travel tips from the people who take vacations for a living.

Grist's 15 Green Cities:
Reykjavik, Iceland
Portland, Oregon
Curitiba, Brazil
Malmo, Sweden
Vancouver, Canada

Click below for the rest of the list...

Arlene contemplates wine-flavored ice cream.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

New plan. We decide on another night at the St. George, and to see the Iguazu Falls the next day. We change our bus tickets so that we leave in the evening the following day rather than the morning. This gives us a whole day to do nothing except sit around and enjoy the pool. We relax with some Quilmes beers and hang out with the sun. I had been badly burnt in Antarctica and Torres del Paine by this same sun, but I find that although it may be the enemy during hikes and treks in wild lands, it is much more amicable poolside.

While sipping drinks and having food brought to our table, I think of a quote from one of my heroes, Bugs Bunny, when he too was having a few by the pool: "I wonder what the poor rabbits are doing this season."

Guns and fat: How much more American
can Big Cheese potato chips get?

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Up at 8, and we meet Mateo, Flor House's weird Persian cat, who seems to be able to fly when necessary. We have breakfast, and then take another bus, this one headed for Puerto Iguazu, about five hours away.

We arrive and find the Hotel St. George, just across the street from the bus terminal. The room is no great shakes, but the hotel is cool and has a pool, a Jacuzzi, a sauna, and a game room. We go back to the bus station to sort out our tickets to Rio, and all the nicer, cheaper options are full. We finally get tickets that cost an unbelievable $130 each. For a bus?

We spend the evening writing, reading, drinking sangria that we make in the room, and eating food we've picked up from a market, including potato chips featuring a rootin', tootin', sharp-shootin' sheriff named Big Cheese on the package. I like this kind of schtuff. A lot of places I have been have American-style products like potato chips and peanut butter, and the manufacturers try very hard to connect the product with the USA. Big Cheese is one example, but my other favorites include the American flag-wrapped Johnny Yummy peanut butter, America Boy Apple Juice in its blue jean carton, and Funny Boy Corn Snacks with an electric guitar-playing, sunglasses-wearing puff on the bag. (Unrelated to the American theme and not a food, but worth mentioning, I think, is BARF brand laundry detergent found in Armenia. Now that's funny.)

Hello, mate: These leaves will be brewed into Argentina's favorite drink.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

On the bus to Posadas from Buenos Aires, we are gently awakened at 6 a.m. and given croissants, fruit, jam, and coffee. This also gives us ample time to clean up before our 7 a.m. arrival. Considering the cushy service we've had since the evening before, we wish we had another 12 hours to go, or that the bus was actually headed to Alaska.

At the station we are met by Roberto, our driver. He takes us to our B&B, Flor House, where we drop our bags and set out on another busy day.

The last time the kids and I flew to Europe our seats were no great shakes, but they suited our particular needs just fine. I was even able to get a little work done on my laptop!

by Wendy Perrin

A great question came in from loyal reader Lori B. re: the SeatGuru vs. SeatExpert debate:

"Isn't the real question this: Is it even possible to get a good seat on an aircraft these days?  The airlines are 'saving' so many of their best seats for their preferred flyers, that for the infrequent flyer your choice is often the best of the worst. I have found that often you can change to those saved seats on the day of departure, but this works best if you have just one or two people to rearrange."

I too have found that you can often switch to a better seat on the day of departure. Two strategies I use:

(1) Ask the gate agent if an exit-row seat is available. These are typically assigned at the gate rather than in advance.
When I flew to Boston on Continental last week, I ended up in what I consider to be the best seat on the plane: an aisle seat in the emergency-exit row -- which meant I had extra legroom. It's definitely not frequent-flier status that got me there, though, since I have zero status with Continental.  I got there because when I arrived at the gate I asked the gate agent if an exit-row seat was available.

(2) Ask the gate agent if he/she can please move you to a seat next to an empty seat.
I find it helps when I point to my laptop and say that I'm desperate to get work done on the flight and having the extra elbow room would help a lot.  (Everyone knows how tough it is to type on a laptop in coach when the passenger in front of you has reclined his seat right into your computer.  With an empty seat next to me I can position my laptop on the traytable next door).

You're right, Lori, it's tough to switch seats when you've got more than one or two people. Tomorrow night, when Tim and the boys and I fly to Spain, there's no way we'll be able to move: Children aren't allowed in exit rows, and the plane is packed.

Note to anyone who thinks flying to Spain sounds like a cool way to spend Valentine's Day:  Both my 4- and 5-year-old have an ear infection and head cold (for which they are on antibiotics). One of my fave hotel blogs, Kitty Bean Yancey's Hotel Hotsheet, reports that, according to a survey of 1,000 U.S. women, the Valentine's gift they'd like most is a trip.  Clearly they didn't survey me.

Before I stock up on Children's Sudafed and bubble gum, anyone got any tried-and-true tips for lessening congested children's ear pain on flights?

by Brook Wilkinson

Yesterday, Enterprise Rent-A-Car debuted a new car sharing system in the St. Louis area. Zipcar has long been the leader in the car sharing business, with dozens of locations across the country, but now that the rental agencies are diving in (Hertz may well start its own program soon), rates could get even more competitive.

What's a car share? If you're not familiar with Zipcar, here's how it works: Members typically pay a one-time application fee to have access to a fleet of cars spread around an urban area, which they can then borrow by the hour or the day. Gas and insurance is included. Car sharing is an environmentally friendly plan because (1) it reduces the number of cars on the road, and (2) members think twice before hopping in the car to run a nonessential errand.

Enterprise's program, called WeCar, is starting with a fleet of Prius hybrids in downtown St. Louis. The Web site is sparse, to say the least, but you can send an e-mail to WeCarSTL@erac.com to join the program.

Read on to hear about U-Haul's car sharing program.

Looking for a cheap flight to China? A fare consolidator might be your best bet.
Photo: wikipedia.org

by Brook Wilkinson

Question from reader Crasydaisy:

"In the January edition of Conde Nast Traveler, Wendy mentioned independent airfare consolidators. Could you advise me of the names of some of these consolidators that sell to the general public?"

That's right, Wendy did mention airfare consolidators in her article about strategies we used to book our Dream Trip Contest winner's trip of a lifetime.

Airfare consolidators typically buy a large volume of seats at a low wholesale price directly from the airline and then sell those seats either to travel agents or to individuals. This can be a great way to buy last-minute tickets, since the airlines tend to keep increasing fares as the date of departure nears.

One thing to be aware of when buying through a consolidator: These tickets usually aren't eligible for frequent-flier miles. Ask the consolidator. And take Wendy's advice: Use your credit card so that your purchase is protected.

Read on for links to some reputable airfare consolidators that sell directly to the public.

So long, old friend: Wagging good-bye at the Retiro bus station in Buenos Aires.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

The morning Arlene and I are to leave Buenos Aires, we walk around San Telmo, then stroll a bit around the area of Puerto Madero. We think about visiting the art museum but do not. We sit under some trees and sip a soft drink called Pritty Limon and watch people. We then pick up our things and head to the Retiro bus station for our 6:50 p.m. coach to the town of Posadas in the province of Misiones. We witness a strange good-bye between two dogs, one headed out of town, the other staying in BA.

Here you see the aircraft I'm flying to Spain on Thursday. I'll report back on which site, SeatExpert or SeatGuru, provided the most accurate info about my seat.

by Wendy Perrin

Regular readers of this blog know that I've always recommended checking out SeatGuru when making airline reservations to ensure you land in the best seat (or at least avoid the worst seats) on the aircraft you're planning to fly. Now, thanks to trusted savvy traveler Gary Leff over at View from the Wing, I've just learned about SeatExpert -- a similar online tool that Gary says has recently proven to be a more accurate source of airline seat information. Clearly the smart thing to do before accepting a seat assignment these days is to check both sites first. Which is what I've just done for the coach seats that my family and I will be sitting in en route to Madrid later this week.

I'd love to hear from anyone who's had recent experiences -- good or bad -- with SeatGuru and/or SeatExpert. Just click on "Comments" below.

Titles about Hitler, Castro, Chavez . . . and Harry Potter? Books for sale on Defensa Street, Buenos Aires.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica. And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

We wake up late, think about how hectic our schedule has been, and consider doing absolutely nothing, but sometime in the afternoon we do take a stroll around San Telmo.

We run right into a flea market and art fair on Defensa Street, with lots of cool handmade things, antiques, paintings, and photos. (If you need parts for your 1950s vacuum cleaner, you may want to stop by.) We see a tango band called Fervor de Buenos Aires perform, and we like them so much we buy one of their CDs. We check out some art galleries. After a little more wandering, we end up at a place called Monse's.

Desnivel: A Buenos Aires restaurant that has haunted Gene for a decade.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

We didn't know this ahead of time, but our flight to Santiago for the connection to Buenos Aires stops in Puerto Montt. Lan Chile hands out the same exact snack for each segment, so we receive their little snack pack a total of four times throughout the day. Very exciting.

The past 30 hours have gone like this: After hardly any sleep, we walked three hours, waited five hours, took a half-hour boat, drove six hours, waited six hours, flew two and a half hours, waited 30 minutes, flew an hour and a half, waited an hour, flew two hours, and rode in a taxi for 30 minutes. Woo hoo. We arrive at GardenHouse Art Factory Hostel in the San Telmo area of BA.

by Wendy Perrin

Has anyone else noticed that the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Card is growing less user-friendly when it comes to turning your points into frequent-flier award tickets?

I've been a fan of the card ever since Matthew Bennett of Flight Bliss told me about it a few years ago when I was interviewing him for my Credit Card Makeover Perrin Report. When Randy Petersen, the man behind WebFlyer and FlyerTalk, agreed that the Starwood AmEx card would make a lot of sense for me -- given my need for flight, route, and schedule flexibility -- that sealed the deal and I got the card.  What makes it special?  You can use your miles on any of 31 airlines (including every major U.S. carrier and a few minor ones). This greatly increases your flight choices and your chance of finding available award seats. PLUS you earn the equivalent of 1.25 miles per dollar spent:  AmEx gives you 1 point for each dollar, but when you go to Starwood to convert your points into miles on the airline of your choice, Starwood throws in an extra 5,000 points for each 20,000 you redeem.  In other words, for only 40,000 points you get a 50,000-mile award seat.

I've loved the card  . . .  until yesterday, when I discovered certain hurdles that have apparently recently been put in place to annoy cardholders trying to convert their points into miles.

So long, glacier runoff: One of Gene's last shots of Torres del Paine National Park.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

We wake up at 9 a.m. after a rough night of cold and rain. We have slept four hours, tops. Today is our last day in the park, and the sun is out. We are supposed to hike a bit, take a ferry, then be picked up and driven six hours to Punta Arenas airport for a flight to Buenos Aires.

A two-hour walk takes us three, as we skirt the beautiful blue Lago Skottsberg and end up on the shores of the green Lago Pehoe. We reach the ferry dock to find out there are 12:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. ferries only. It is now 1:30 p.m. We are getting picked up on the other side at 6:00. The ferry takes 30 minutes. See the problem?

Attention, all of you who wait out airport delays at Wi-Fi hot spots such as Starbucks: Don't miss your flight!

by Wendy Perrin

Airline delays in the U.S. in 2007 were the second-worst ever, the U.S. Transportation Department announced yesterday, with flights delayed more than 26 percent of the time. (The worst year was 2000, when domestic flights were late 27.4 percent of the time.) In December flights arrived on time only 64.3 percent of the time.

So, when you're at an airport and the airline announces your flight's delayed, it's a safe bet that it's really, truly going to be delayed, right? Wrong. I just got an email from a loyal reader stuck at Dallas-Fort Worth, having missed her flight to Santa Fe because her "delayed" plane ended up leaving early. After the airline posted that her flight was delayed and she left the gate area to go work on her laptop at a nearby Starbucks Wi-Fi hot spot, the flight took off.

The reader is not just any reader. Mara Solomon of Homebase Abroad is a frequent international traveler and Italian villa rental agent extraordinaire who is on my annual list of the best villa specialists. Since we can all learn a valuable lesson from Mara's experience, I'm going to share what happened to her this morning:

Somewhere . . . in Torres del Paine National Park.

Follow our 2007 Dream Trip Contest winner through South America and Antarctica.  And don't forget to enter our 2008 Dream Trip Contest. The prize? A $25,000 trip (designed by Wendy) to the destination(s) of your dreams.

By Gene Pembroke

Up at 7 a.m. Rain, but a rainbow too, which is cool. We are ready to go by 8 a.m. and set out on the trail again.

A little wooden signpost says the next camp is only two hours away, but it takes us three, and along the way we skirt the beach of Lago Nordenskjold, stopping long enough for me to accidentally immerse my entire right foot into the lake. We move on, our rhythm improved by the new steady sloshing sound from my boot.

That's me, helping teach an English class in Siem Reap, Cambodia, last December.

by Brook Wilkinson

Conde Nast Traveler wants to know: Are you a voluntourist? Have you ever volunteered during your travels, perhaps building homes or schools, or working in a medical clinic? Have you thought about volunteering but haven't yet found the right organization to devote your time to? Or do you think volunteer vacations are a waste of time? Please answer the questions in our short survey on voluntourism; it'll only take about five minutes. The results will be published in the May issue of Conde Nast Traveler.