ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, February 2, 1997 TAG: 9701310039
SECTION: TRAVEL PAGE: 8 EDITION: METRO
Living as a Colonist in Williamsburg
Visitors to Colonial Williamsburg can now immerse themselves in Colonial life as farmers, seamstresses, gardeners, cooks and interior designers.
The Williamsburg Institute, a new project of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, offers courses year round that vary in length from a few hours to a few days. Visitors can cook 18th-century foods in the Governor's Palace kitchen, sew 18th-century clothing or try their hands at such trades as coopering, basket and carpentry.
Programs vary throughout the year. Participants must stay in a Colonial Williamsburg hotel. Packages start at $125 per person a night (through March), excluding meals. They include program fees and a one-year pass to museums and exhibit buildings. Reduced rates are offered for children 12 and younger. Call (800) 603-0948.
- THE NEW YORK TIMES
Vatican may limit Sistine Chapel visitors
VATICAN CITY - The new director of the Vatican museums has left open the possibility of limiting visitors to the Sistine Chapel.
Nearly 3 million people visited the Vatican museums in 1996, Francesco Buranelli, the new director, said. The number is expected to increase mightily during Jubilee celebrations marking the third millennium..
A 14-year restoration of the chapel and the Michelangelo frescoes on the ceiling was completed in 1994.
``Problems of access and protection can arise. I cannot put the work at risk,'' he said.
- THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Have a good trip. But if you don't ...
NEW YORK - Wendy Perrin, consumer news editor at Conde Nast Traveler, shares strategies for smooth sailing in ``Secrets Every Smart Traveler Should Know,'' from Fodor's, $15 paperback.
It's one of those books you don't think you need until it's too late. Until your luggage is lost, the tour company goes belly up, your cruise is canceled, there's no room at the inn, your flight leaves you on the ground, or you get sick abroad.
The first chapter, ``Complaining,'' already assumes something is wrong. Subsequent chapters cover airlines, lodging, travel agents and tour operators, cruises, car rentals, shopping, and emergencies abroad. They are as much about how to avoid a hitch as they are about what to do when one occurs.
- THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nibbling away at cost of airline food
It is an oft-heard complaint that airlines are serving less food to travelers. Statistics suggest the complaints are justified.
In the fall of 1996, for example, the nation's 10 largest airlines spent an average of $4.50 to feed each passenger, a 14 percent drop from the first three months of 1994, when the average was $5.25.
Because of the mix of long and short flights of the various airlines, any pretzels-to-pretzels comparison of their food expenses would be misleading.
Predictably, airlines like American and United that fly many long international flights, which require them to serve passengers something approaching a full meal, spent the most. The figures below include food costs for all classes of service.
Southwest Airlines, a domestic airline that doesn't serve anything more substantial than a bag of peanuts, spent an average |of 22 cents per passenger.
American Airlines$7.92
United Air Lines.$7.16
Trans World Airlines.$4.87
Northwest Airlines$4.78
Continental Airlines$3.70
Delta Airlines$3.65
Alaska Airlines$3.57
USAir$2.63
America West Airlines$1.24
Southwest Airlines$0.22
SOURCE: Avitas
- THE NEW YORK TIMES
LENGTH: Medium: 81 linesby CNB